“Dual Carrier EDGE” is Nokia’s latest speed booster for EDGE (aka 3G for non-UMTS handsets) – unfortunately, the original announcement did not clarify how existing EDGE devices like an iPhone 2G are affected.
However, I managed to get a hold of a Nokia employee, who provided me with the following bit of info:
Existing EDGE devices only benefit from higher speeds indirectly; if the network is updated with Dual Carrier software, the Dual Carrier-capable cell allows more bits to pass through during a Busy Hour when it’s used with Dual Carrier device compared to EDGE device. However, this improvement in the cell throughput during a Busy Hour also benefits EDGE phones as more EDGE traffic can also be passed through with Dual Carrier. Outside Busy Hour EDGE user cannot notice any difference, because the speeds of old EDGE phones don’t increase.
This essentially translates to: no speed INCREASE for existing EDGE devices. However, you may be able to reach the highest speed more often on an updated network as it works “more efficiently”…
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