Afghanistan is often known for a lot of things, mostly focused on the least pleasant parts of life like war and terrorism. Now, however, there's a new reason to know Afghanistan as the country has its first ever 4G LTE (News - Alert) network, thanks to a move from next generation communications provider Afghan Wireless Communications Company.
The next generation communications move allowed the first mobile communications company in the country to bring out a complete 4G LTE network, which represents both the first and only such network to be found in the entire country. This makes Afghan Wireless the hands-down most advanced wireless company in the entire country, and the king of next generation communications in the region.
The network is set to go active in Kabul City, and it won't stop there, reports note. The network's reach will push into several different Afghani provinces, covering a wide swath of the region in support of Afghan Wireless' stated goal of offering the best in service to all of its subscribers. The network was put in at a staggering cost of over $400 million, and is set to provide users with speeds of at least 400 Mbps, which represents the best speed found in the country.
Afghan Wireless' managing director Amin Ramin noted, “We at Afghan Wireless are proud to be the first mobile communications company to provide 4G/LTE service to the people of Afghanistan. The launch of AWCC's 4G/LTE Network in Kabul—and soon, throughout the nation—is the latest example of AWCC's determination to provide Afghans with the world's best communications services.”
It's actually a bit sad, in its way, to note that Afghanistan has taken this bold step forward into 2009, bringing in a 4G LTE network in an era where we're all getting to the point where 5G will be released in around two and a half years, give or take. While 4G LTE service will still be up and running when 5G arrives, and will probably still be the standard for maybe a year or two after 5G releases in quite a few places, the end result remains the same: Afghan Wireless just spent a bunch of money to put in a system that will be at least technically obsolete in about three to five years.
While Afghan Wireless customers will no doubt get plenty of use out of this network, and probably enjoy the much faster speeds, it's still kind of a shame knowing that this won't be a next generation communications technology for that much longer anyway. Still, an advance is an advance, and if the subscribers are happy, that's likely good enough for now.