Definition of "LTE"

LTE, short for Long Term Evolution, is considered by many to be the obvious successor to the current generation of UMTS 3G technology, which is based upon WCDMA, HSDPA, HSUPA, and HSPA. LTE is not a replacement for UMTS in the way that UMTS was a replacement for GSM, but rather an update to the UMTS technology that will enable it to provide significantly faster data rates for both uploading and downloading. Verizon Wireless in the U.S., which is partly owned by Vodafone, has already said that it will support LTE as its 4G technology of choice, abandoning its current CDMA based network.

Also known as: "Long Term Evolution"