American telecom carrier T-Mobile US has launched its voice over LTE (VoLTE) in Seattle for its LG G Flex, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Light customers.

In 2012, MetroPCS launched the first VoLTE service in the U.S.

Neville Ray, chief technology officer, T-Mobile US, said: “We’ve been working on a LTE Advanced version of VoLTE, which we plan to roll out to more T-Mobile customers throughout the coming year.”

VoLTE offers faster call setup times (almost twice as fast as a non-VoLTE call setup) and fast LTE data speeds while on a call. HD Voice service is also included with VoLTE.

In January 2013, T-Mobile US started offering nationwide HD Voice. The company says its rivals such as AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, etc. couldn’t launch HD Voice without VoLTE.

The company said VoLTE calls will be carried over IP on our LTE network instead of a circuit-switched path on our 4G HSPA+ network.

“This is advantageous because your phone stays on our wicked fast LTE network to make a call. The tricky bit in all this is the smooth mobility between our various radio layers. Enhanced Single Radio Voice Call Continuity (eSRVCC) is a new LTE Advanced function and we’re excited to be the first to deploy it in the U.S.,” Ray added.

T-Mobile is trying to ensure that its customers will not face phone call drops if they leave an LTE area and it switches to 4G HSPA+ or 2G coverage.

The telecom carrier is currently working on offering Wi-Fi calling to its customers over the coming months.

T-Mobile said VoLTE will be added in additional cities and with more devices. T-Mobile’s Wideband LTE, delivering the fastest nationwide LTE network, will be yet another focus area.

Pix: Wikimedia

TelecomLead News Team