3G Vs. 4G

How much faster is 4G compared to 3G and what applications run better on 4G?

3G and 4G are standards for mobile communication. Standards specify how the airwaves must be used for transmitting information (voice and data). 3G (or 3rd Generation) was launched in Japan in 2001. As recently as mid-2010, the networks for most wireless carriers in the U.S. were 3G. 3G networks were a significant improvement over 2G networks, offering higher speeds for data transfer. The improvement that 4G offers over 3G is often less pronounced. Analysts use the analogy of standard vs Hi-Def TV to describe the difference between 3G and 4G.

Comparison chart:

	3G	4G
Data Throughput:	Up to 3.1mbps	Practically speaking, 3 to 5 mbps but potential estimated at a range of 100 to 300 mbps.
Peak Upload Rate:	50 Mbit/s	500 Mbit/s
Peak Download Rate:	100 Mbit/s	1 Gbit/s
Switching Technique:	packet switching	packet switching, message switching
Network Architecture:	Wide Area Cell Based	Integration of wireless LAN and Wide area.
Services And Applications:	CDMA 2000, UMTS, EDGE etc	Wimax2 and LTE-Advance
Forward error correction (FEC):	3G uses Turbo codes for error correction.	Concatenated codes are used for error corrections in 4G.
Frequency Band:	1.8 – 2.5GHz	2 – 8GHz