HSPA+ is a network.HSPA+ (High Speed Packet Access Plus) is the name of the set of HSPA enhancements that are defined in 3GPP beyond Release 6 (R6). The enhanced downlink (HSDPA) was defined in R5 and the enhanced uplink (HSUPA) was defined in R6.
HSPA+ is an enhanced version of high-speed 3G wireless networks. Because it is so closely related to 3G and is not a new, built-from-the ground-up technology, HSPA+ has been called a 3.5G network instead of a true 4G network. But HSPA+ networks are capable of delivering 4G speeds, with download speeds between 5 megabits per second and 8 mbps.
This means that when you use an HSPA+ enabled device to access the internet, pages will load even quicker than normal on your phoneor computer – and you can expect faster downloads too.
Key Features of HSPA+:
It increases HSPA capacity as well as reduce latency below 50 milliseconds
It supports voice and data services on the same carrier and across all of the available radio spectrum and offers these services simultaneously to users
HSPA+ with 64 QAM and advanced antenna techniques such as 2X2 MIMO can deliver 42 Mbps theoretical capability and 11.5 Mbps on the uplink and could be ready for deployment in 2010
HSPA+ enhancements are backward-compatible with UMTS Release 99/Release 5/Release 6
HSPA+ could match, and possibly exceed, the potential performance capabilities of IEEE 802.16e-2005 (mobile WiMAX) in the same amount of spectrum, and could match LTE performance when using 5 MHz of spectrum.
