Huawei Gets 4G Up Mount Everest

Never one to be afraid of venturing into hostile territory, Chinese telecoms behemoth Huawei has brought 4G to the unwelcoming climes of Mount Everest.

It has collaborated with China Mobile, launching the LTE service in June, but only confirming the successful deployment this week at 5,200 metres above sea level.

Huawei taking 4G to the top

In 2007, Huawei and China Mobile helped bring 2G coverage to Mount Everest to help mountain climbers in their preparation for the 2012 Olympics. The 2G service is still running well, Huawei said.

David Wang, president of Huawei Wireless Networks, said: “Bringing 4G to Mount Everest marks an important milestone in global LTE TDD (Long-Term Evolution Time-Division Duplex) development. We are very excited to make this possible, and look forward to working with more operators worldwide to bring high-speed mobile broadband services anytime and anywhere.”

Everest is no stranger to mobile technology. Swedish telecoms giant TeliaSonera brought voice and data services to the Nepalese region in 2010.

This year, Mark Wood, a British explorer, is hoping to hold Skype conversations during his ascent up the world’s tallest mountain and at the peak.

What do you know about China and its tech? Try our quiz!