SMART launches LTE Broadband; Unlimited until October 25

SMART launches LTE Broadband; Unlimited until October 25

SMART LTE launches in the Philippines! Finally.

Smart LTE Unlimited until October 25! No Cap!

SMART officially launched their 4G LTE service today at an event in Resorts World. We’ve already reported on the crazy download and upload speeds as well as the pricing scheme (Php3,500 per month for 10GB) so you’d think there was nothing news worthy save for the gates of the service finally opening. However Smart had one more surprise — the first 2 months of Smart LTE will be unlimited (until October 25). There will be no 10GB cap! That means you can download all the stuff you want at ridiculously high speeds without worrying about getting charged more. Note that after October 25 the 10GB cap will be in effect.

How to Subscribe

40+Mbps DL speeds!

Before you subscribe, make sure your area is covered. Just click hereto go to the map with all the base stations plotted. If you have coverage and you want to subscribe, you will need to submit the application form, proof of identification (government ID), proof of address, and proof of income to any of the following Smart stores: Cash & Carry Makati, SM Moa, SM Megamall, Shangrila, Robinson’s Galleria, Smart Tower, Rockwell, and Greenhills. You will get the USB dongle for free (worth 8K) and there is a 24-month lock-in period.

We were part of the beta testing and based on our experience the speed claims are spot on. One beta tester even hit as high as 80Mbps in Greenbelt Mall. Personally the highest I’ve seen was a little over 20Mbps which is still blazing fast compared to any form of broadband or mobile internet in the country today. In other words, this isn’t just a press release, it’s real and it works.

Short interview with Ron Molina, Marketing Head for Smart LTE

Ron Molina, Smart Marketing Manager for LTE

We had a few minutes to talk with Smart’s Marketing Manager for LTE, Ron Molina, and we talked about the future of LTE in the Philippines. Ron shared that the USB dongle is just the first step and they’re currently studying what kind of LTE-capable mobile devices they’ll be bringing to the Philippines. The frequency LTE band SMART is using is the same on that DOCOMO has in Japan so you can expect the same type of LTE-capable smartphones being offered there to become available here via Smart soon.

As for the coverage, SMART LTE has doubled the areas they’re covering compared to the areas they had during Closed Beta Test. They expect this to grow even more in the coming months but they will be focusing first on key areas (probably business districts, malls, etc).

Cosplayers have nothing to do with LTE but they rocked the launch event

We dropped by the launch event at Resorts World earlier this afternoon. Unfortunately we weren’t able to stay for the whole program but we were able to check out the different booths. One thing they had going for them was the presence of really awesome cosplayers who took on the roles of Megatron, Shockwave, Jetfire, and Iron Man. People just couldn’t get enough pictures with them! Here are some of the photos we took:

Cosplayers with Aubrey Miles and Maricar De Mesa!
Cosplayers with an executive from Huawei (we’re confirming his identity, will edit this once we get it)
Megatron has evil plans for one of our writers, Colin
Jetfire strikes a pose with Rob and Colin
Lol. Shockwave > Colin

A short personal note

We were there when they first showed the technology in Boracay. We were there when they did the Closed Beta Test. We covered the LTE Forum. Today we covered the launch. It’s just an awesome feeling to see Smart’s LTE service finally launch. Congratulations Smart! May your LTE network stay strong and may it never get too congested! Hehehe.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest News

Latest Reviews

Best Phones in the Philippines

Best Guides

Recent Posts