Like Telecom, the carrier is set to accelerate its mobile network form today’s peak download speed of 7Mbit/s. Better, hardware is on the way that can hack such bandwidth.

Today, Vodafone 3G, Telecom XT and (from next week) 2degrees’ networks all run on the same W-CDMA technology, and all have the same theoretical peak download speed of 7Mbit/s (in practise, you’ll achieve about half that, even under ideal conditions, and often a lot less if there’s congestion, or you’re far, or obstructed, from the nearest cell site).

As Vodafone NZ completes its 3G network today, and Telecom braces for its 3G launch tomorrow, our cousins in the northern hemisphere are rolling out commercial 4G/LTE networks - which Sweden’s Ericsson is pitching as the answer for New Zealand’s rural broadband gap.

LTE and WiMax are the two technologies poised to dominate next-generation mobile networks, says Aussie-based telco guru Paul Budde in a new report. But local LTE trialist Vodafone, and early WiMax adopter Kordia, still see the technologies as some years off.