Wireless 3G WAN Service For Eastern NC

While doing some research on 3G Wireless for our area I ran across this map showing total 3G coverage nationwide. If you want a reality check on how fast 3G is rolling out, just take a look. In Eastern North Carolina, Raleigh is the closest location where 3G is available with any reliability.





What is frequently called 'edge' service (meaning it is unreliable and frustrating) only extends to about Rocky Mount. Look at the rest of the country and you can see why 3G as a ubiquitous service is still a few years away. Even Charlotte only has reliable service in the immediate built up metropolitan area.

Going North you don't see reliable coverage until you approach Washington D.C. Richmond has only a tiny footprint around the downtown area. My phone service through Embarq does not even provide a direct 3G option, but resells services of another vendor (and that vendor is a minor player in the 3G world).

The complex technical options of 3G are making it far more difficult to roll out than when we saw the roll out of wireless phones a few years back.