Huawei E398: the first GSM/UMTS/LTE modem for Sweden

Visible at the MWC 2010 show in Barcelona, the Huawei E398 modem is the first to provide triple functionality - compatible with GSM, UMTS and LTE networks.

A lot of questions were asked of the LTE network technology at the MWC 2010 show in Barcelona, even if for most carriers this wont be a reality before 2012 at the earliest. This doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t go shopping for compatible hardware at interesting prices.

While Samsung realising good sales numbers by being able to offer LTE modems on the first commercial LTE network, operated by Teliasonera in Northern Europe, the Chinese external cellular modem specialist Huawei, has now also come out swinging.


During the show, they presented the first triple mode modem on their stand, compatible with GSM (2G), UMTS (3G) and LTE (proto-4G) in the form of the Huawei E398. It is built on a MDM9200 chipset provided by Qualcomm, with the chipset manufacturer having decided that LTE would be one of their strategic fronts, as this will allow them to offer various hardware solutions (and therefore take the lead in an emerging market).

We already looked the development of this chipset last November through a presentation of mobile technologies that the American group are currently working on. It allows the user to access to the Internet when mobile no matter the GSM technology deployed, transparently swapping to a more powerful network if it becomes available.

Deployment of the Nte4Mobility LTE network
It is on the future Net4Mobilty LTE network (joint venture between Telenor and Tele2) in Sweden where the Huawei E398 modem will be initially deployed. It shouldn’t be forgotten that Huawei won the LTE network deployment contract in partnership with the Swedish telephone equipment maker Ericsson. This network should be functional before the end of 2010.

"The E398 has been designed to meet growing needs as carriers gradually introduce LTE networks through flexible deployment schedules. With the E398, end users won’t have to wait for full LTE coverage before being able to take advantage of speeds 10 times faster than what is currently available, while still remaining constantly connected. Taking into account the rapid growth of the LTE market, Huawei designed the E298 modem as a starting point for their partner’s future deployment’s the world over"

, stated James Chen, Executive director of Huawei’s Nordic branch.