Verizon Wireless looks to 1xEV

Telephony: Verizon Wireless will work with Lucent Technologies to trial cdma2000 1xEV, which is expected to reach a high-speed data rate of up to 2.4 Mbps. The carrier is the second in the United States, after Sprint PCS, to publicly endorse the technology.

“This is more validation that the technology is a reality,” said Ed Salas, vice president of technology development for Verizon Wireless.

The 1xEV trial expands on the current third-generation enhancements Verizon Wireless is currently testing with Lucent. 1xEV is expected to further enable services like instant messaging, streaming audio and video, high-speed Web browsing and other mobile office capabilities.

The trial, which is expected to begin in the spring and last through the summer, will provide Verizon Wireless with an idea of what the technology will allow as far as throughput and end user experience. In addition, because the technology will be on Lucent’s base station platform, the trial will give carriers a sense of what the system will look and feel like once it is in their network, Salas said.

“The key advantage of 1xEV in the first phase is the ability for it to get to market quickly,” he said. “We are building on what the Internet is built on. We believe this way we can get to market quicker than the wireless telephony world is used to.”