IQALUIT – Northwestel cellular customers in Rankin Inlet, Baker Lake, Arviat and Pangnirtung can now enjoy a dramatic increase in data speeds on their smart phones, and better call quality as a result of a major network upgrade, the company said on Monday.
Northwestel’s technicians upgraded the cellular sites in these communities from CDMA 1xRTT to EV-DO, which will increase data speeds and capacity by up to ten times, says a press release. EVDO stands for Evolution-Data Optimized – a wireless standard that separates voice and data onto separate channels. 4G LTE will not come to the North quite yet.
“Customers will immediately notice significantly faster data speeds when using their smartphones in Rankin Inlet, Baker Lake, Arviat and Pangnirtung,” said Bertrand Poisson, Northwestel’s general manager for Nunavut in the release. “Residents can better enjoy the North’s latest CDMA compatible smartphone option to use on the upgraded network.”
