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As AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon continue extending their LTE networks across the country, a new market analysis suggests that most users will eventually choose not to buy LTE iPads and other 3G/4G-enabled tablets. The report, which comes from research firm CCS Insight, says that demand for iPads and other tablets with built-in mobile broadband support will continue to drop over the next four years. Following that logic, the company says that it expects Apple and other manufacturers to reduce the number of iPads and other tablets with built-in cellular connectivity.

The wireless spectrum crunch is forcing most mobile carriers to consider options to address a future in which there simply isn’t enough frequency available to easily meet the ever-growing demand for 3G and LTE connections. One idea that has been floated is developing systems that can offload mobile data onto Wi-Fi networks.

That idea isn’t new. In fact most iPhone and 3G/LTE iPad users tend to offload data service to home or public Wi-Fi networks. Doing so has clear advantages to consumers in that it helps avoid any overage fees and it can provide a faster connection in some circumstances.

Dealing with limited spectrum resources, however, carriers have been forced to consider ways of offloading data themselves rather than waiting and hoping that users to take action on their own.

Verizon’s 4G LTE coverage map continues to look like a teenager with a bad case of acne, however, they are lighting up more cities per month than other carriers have all year. The next batch of markets to receive the Verizon 4G LTE treatment is just as large, with 33 new markets and 32 expanding markets set to go live tomorrow. There’s a reason you pay Big Red all that cash, and this is one of them.

A few days ago we reported on Sprint’s 4G LTE network going live in and around Kansas, and today, Sprint has made an official announcement welcoming 15 cities into their new LTE Now Network. If you own a Sprint 4G LTE enable phone and live in any of the following cities listed below, you should start experiencing increased speeds.

Seven new markets received AT&T 4G LTE yesterday, bringing AT&T’s total LTE coverage to 47 cities. AT&T continues their slow roll, while Verizon’s lighting up around 47 cities per month. Since you AT&T customers could probably care less about Verizon’s plague like rollout, I’ll jump right to the new markets so you can see if you’ve hit the AT&T LTE jackpot.

Believe it or not, there are over one million iPhone users in the United States who cannot access 3G networks because their carrier of choice is T-Mobile. Apple’s smartphone isn’t officially available on T-Mobile right now — because the operator’s unique 3G network isn’t supported by the handset’s wireless chip — but people choose to use its 2G network instead.

That situation will change for the new iPhone, however, because T-Mobile has announced it will launch a new LTE network next year.

For all the buzz about the Microsoft Surface, we don’t know really know the most important things about it yet. We don’t know when it’ll be released. We don’t know how much it’ll cost. As nice as the Surface looks, Microsoft didn’t even say if it would come with 3G, let alone with LTE. And according to Bloomberg, the reason they didn’t announce it is because the Surface won’t: it’s WiFi-only.

Like its predecessors, Apple’s latest iPad promises to provide you within around ten hours of battery life for surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching video, or listening to music. But with its high-resolution Retina display and LTE connectivity, it needs a much bigger battery to do that.

And we all know how long it takes for that battery to charge, because it has been well documented since the device made its debut earlier this year. But the cost of keeping it running may be a lot less than you think.

In case you haven’t been counting down the days to Verizageddon, it’s almost upon us. Tomorrow, Verizon will be lighting up and expanding its 4G LTE network in a ridiculous number of markets. Verizon undeniably has the largest 4G LTE coverage in the U.S. and it’ll be years before its competitors catch up.

Verizon continues to put other carriers to shame with their 4G LTE network. In one day, Verizon manages to blanket more markets than most carriers do in months. At the current rate of expansion, I’d say most other carriers are year’s behind, and according to Verizon’s current forecast, it’s going to get worse.

Chipset maker Qualcomm today announced its plans for a universal LTE chip that would be perfect for a truly 4G iPhone. Apple’s next iPhone is rumored to feature 4G LTE networking, and Qualcomm’s upcoming chip would allow the device to operate on AT&T and Verizon’s 700 MHz 4G LTE bands. Phones haven’t been able to support multiple blocks of spectrum on the 700 MHz band, but Qualcomm’s upcoming chip would allow a smartphone to take full advantage of LTE speeds on multiple carriers.

Unlimited data plans are becoming scarce options for smartphone and tablet users. Sprint remains the only carrier to offer an unlimited data plans. Most Verizon and AT&T customers, however, need to make do with tiered data plans. Tiered data plans get more cash from customers and deter customers from overloading mobile networks with excessive data use.

As a result, a lot of us try to avoid excessive data use by limiting the types and amount of content that we access when using a device’s 3G or LTE connection. That, in turn, blocks many content companies from capturing ad or subscription revenue from mobile users. That reality is leading major content companies to complain to the carriers and which AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson recently said may lead to “toll free” data plans.

The concept of shared data plans has been floating around in the U.S. mobile industry for a while.  So far, however, only Verizon has announced plans to offer them. This idea of shared data plans is based on the various family and business plans available from almost all major carriers in which multiple lines and corresponding devices are bundled as a single plan on a single account. That allows all the devices share the same pool of minutes.

While it seems like shared data would function in a similar manner, the issue isn’t quite so clear-cut from the perspective of mobile carriers. In fact, according to AT&T CFO John Stephens, carriers still aren’t sure how to configure shared data options or how much money they would make or lose by implementing them.

Netflix announced an updated version of its iOS app on Thursday for customers in the U.S. and Canada. The update is centered around improving the overall user experience while streaming movies and TV shows to an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. One important improvement beyond that, however, is the ability to control mobile data use and avoid expensive overage fees.

Apple has faced some challenges already when it comes to LTE on the new iPad and it looks like there will be more challenges to come as nearly 60% of mobile carriers worldwide expect to launch LTE service over the next 18 months.

To date, the new iPad only works with LTE systems in North America, a fact that has forced Apple to change the name of LTE iPads. While a new study confirms that LTE will become a global standard for high-speed mobile broadband, it also notes that various regions and countries are focusing on deploying LTE with varying bands of radio spectrum. That could mean devices will need to be designed for specific markets and that international data roaming using LTE will be problematic and potentially impossible.

LTE devices, including iPads, offer users two major advantages: speeds typically faster than many wired providers (in my neck of the woods, Verizon LTE is just over twice as fast as Time Warner’s Roadrunner Turbo) and ubiquitous access for LTE devices (and any devices tethered to them) that is a lot more convenient than relying on public network or hotspots like those found in your neighborhood Starbucks. A downside is that LTE’s speeds make it easy to rack up a large bill.

If you’re looking for another high-speed wireless option that offers better bang for your buck, there’s one joining the field to consider  – and it’s coming from an unlikely source with an unlikely price. Five major cable companies are joining forces to deliver ubiquitous Wi-Fi coverage for any of their subscribers… for free.

Late last week, RIM got FCC approval to ship LTE models of its BlackBerry PlayBook tablet. The news isn’t a complete surprise. RIM had announced plans for a 4G PlayBook option last year when the tablet originally shipped. Sprint was the targeted as the primary U.S. carrier for the device, which would’ve operated on Sprint’s WiMax network, but the carrier announced it was canceling that plan after the initial Wi-Fi PlayBook shipped (and got less than stellar reviews).

While Verizon is busy setting the U.S. ablaze with 4G LTE, AT&T continues their embarrassingly slow rollout. In a less than exciting announcement, AT&T has informed us that three new cities have been blessed with their 4G LTE network. Those of you living in the following cities will now have access to faster speeds thanks to good ol’ AT&T:

The internet was sent into an uproar yesterday after Verizon CFO Fran Shammo revealed that the carrier would be effectively killing off grandfathered unlimited data plans as subscribers are transitioned to 4G LTE plans. The change will come alongside the introduced of shared data plans for families and businesses this summer.  Once the new policy is in effect, you’ll lose grandfathered unlimited data on Verizon when upgrading to LTE or a new device.

In an attempt to calm its disgruntled customers, Verizon has issued another statement today that details more closely how unlimited data will die a slow death.

Bad news for grandfathered unlimited data subscriber on Verizon: the nation’s largest carrier will kill unlimited data once and for all when subscribers switch over to 4G LTE data plans.

Starting in mid-summer, when you buy a LTE handset and switch over to 4G data, Verizon will make you buy one of its new data share plans. Switching plans will end your grandfathered unlimited plan.

China Mobile, the world’s largest carrier with over 655 million subscribers, is in talks with Apple to bring the iPhone to its homegrown 3G (TD-SCDMA) network. The carrier’s chairman, Xi Guohua, confirmed the discussions during a shareholders meeting earlier this week.

In two days, hundreds of thousands of Verizon customers will be able to experience the blazing speeds of 4G LTE thanks to another major rollout. Verizon continues to leave its competitors in the dust and come May 17, Verizon will have blanketed 258 markets with its 4G LTE network. This week’s expansion lists a few areas we’ve already told you about, and includes 28 new markets as well as 11 expansion markets. If you live in any of the following areas, get ready for a nice speed boost:

As AT&T continues to roll out its LTE network across the country, some markets are getting markedly lower speeds for LTE iPads and other devices. In fact, two of the company’s largest markets are getting speeds below the national average for AT&T’s LTE service and below Verizon’s LTE service in those areas. Those two markets are Los Angeles and Chicago – but several other cities may be in for the same issues as AT&T expands its LTE service in the coming months

Having Verizon as your carrier can have certain drawbacks when it comes to your wallet, but it sure is hard to argue about it when they’re rolling out 4G LTE Like A Baus! Verizon has announced its next bombardment of 4G LTE rollouts and it comes just in time for summer. Verizon plans on lighting up and expanding its 4G LTE service up and down the East Coast beginning next week. It’s a long list of beach towns and Vermont markets so if you were hoping of taking your work with you to the beach this summer, you should be covered (East Coast that is).

How important are iPads and other tablets to mobile carriers worldwide compared to mobile broadband devices? According to a new study, they’re becoming a critical part of the mobile business. That’s pretty impressive when you consider that before the iPad’s launch two years ago, tablets were a rarity in mobile carrier stores. Today, thanks largely to the iPad, tablets make up 40% of mobile broadband offerings.