Solomon, who broke the news at Mashable's Media Summit Friday, declined to be more specific about a time frame. New York will be the sixth major city to offer so-called 4G Long Term Evolution service through AT&T. The others are Dallas-Forth Worth, San Antonio, Houston, Atlanta and Chicago. AT&T will launch LTE service in Boston, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Athens, Ga., this Sunday. By the end of 2011, AT&T plans to offer LTE to 70 million people in 15 major metropolitan areas.
For AT&T customers, there will be no extra charge to use LTE. Customers who have the carrier's two LTE-compatible phones -- HTC Vivid and Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket -- will enjoy download speeds that are 5-12 Mbps, about 10 times faster than what's offered through AT&T's 3G network, a rep says. The Vivid and Galaxy S II Skyrocket will also be available on Nov. 6.
iPhone owners, though, won't be able to use AT&T's LTE service. An LTE-compatible iPhone is likely in the works, but at the moment, iPhones only work with 3G.
AT&T's LTE rollout, which began this summer, comes after rival Verizon Wireless introduced LTE in the U.S. last December. Sprint currently offers 4G WiMAX and plans to roll out LTE in the U.S. in mid-2012.