4G - the fourth generation wireless service with promised higher speeds - will hit Houston on April 1, according to Clear Wireless.

Clearwire currently provides pre-WiMAX communications services in 50 markets across the U.S. and Europe. San Antonio, Austin and Dallas already have the service but the company is getting ready to launch in H-Town on April Fools Day (no foolin').


I got to experience a sampling of the new service at a recent private launch event for local resellers. Company representatives describe the service as "super fast mobile Internet." Today's mobile networks were designed for making phone calls (using 3G technology).

Clearwire's 4G service will reportedly deliver wireless download speeds of 6Mbps and an upload speed of 1Mbps. Home Internet download speeds vary in speed and price from 6Mbps to 1Mbps.

The service will be launched under the CLEAR brand name and will be offered in several ways:

•Mobile Internet - coverage in any CLEAR coverage area
•Home Internet - like DSL or cable
•Home Voice - unlimited calling to anywhere in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico

Three different bundles will be offered in the Houston market including:

•Home + Home Voice - $50/mo
•Pick 2 (Home + Mobile, Mobile + Mobile, Home + Home Voice) - $55/mo
•Pick 3 (same options as above) - $75/mo

I saw the two devices Clearwire will offer here. One is a USB device that plugs into laptops for mobile usage. The home Internet product is a Motorola modem about the same size as a cable or DSL modem.

The coverage map for Houston looks as if it will blanket most of the area. Extending west to Katy, north towards Conroe, east to Baytown and south just beyond Alvin. Galveston is not included in the map I saw though there is a small pocket of coverage around Lake Jackson.

Strategic investors with the company include Sprint, Time Warner, Google and Comcast. Sprint will simultaneously launch its own branded 4G service in Houston when Clearwire launches its service. That's because both companies will use the same network. I have not seen pricing for Sprint's service yet.

Sprint and Clearwire seem to be aggressive with this service as both companies would like to reach 120 million users by the end of 2010.

Watch for a media blitz around April but several wrapped vehicles with the CLEAR logo are already on Houston's streets.