T-Mobile Rolls Out 3-G Service in NYC -- With Data

It's official: After years of delays, T-Mobile launched its new 3-G data network in New York City on Monday. Contrary to previous reports, which claimed the rollout would initially be voice-only, the service does in fact include data. That's the good news. The bad news is that if you live somewhere other than NYC, the 3-G data train may take a while to get to you. According to the carrier, the plan is to expand its UMTS/HSDPA network to "be available in cities where a majority of its subscribers currently use data services" by the end of the year.

From Monday's press release:

T-Mobile's 3-G network supports voice and data services consistent with available service and handset offerings. The company today offers multiple phones that are able to operate on the UMTS network. The phones are designed to automatically connect to the best available network (3G or GSM/GPRS/EDGE) to provide the great call quality and rich communication services customers expect from T-Mobile. [Emphasis ours]

"Multiple," in case you were wondering, means two phones by our count: The Samsung t639, which T-Mobile started selling in New York City last October, and the Nokia 6263. Those aren't exactly the "compelling data-centric, all-in-one devices" that sell 3-G services, so T-Mobile will undoubtedly be augmenting its device line-up over the next couple months as it continues to expand its new 3-G service.