Sprint doubles down on Android, 4G in 2011

While declining to be specific, Sprint executives on Monday said 70 percent of the phones the carrier will release in 2011 will run on Google's mobile operating system, and at least 20 of them will be 4G-capable.

Sprint was one of the first carriers to commit to 4G, announcing its plans to use WiMAX back in 2006, although the rollout did not occur in earnest until last year. The company believes its commitment to 4G is one of the reasons the carrier was able to stop hemorrhaging customers in 2010.

Product development and operations chief Farid Adib told the Wall Street Journal that Sprint's equipment partners did have a "learning curve" when it came to WiMAX. This could be used to explain the slow uptick in devices even though the company's network was ready.

Adib suspects those now transitioning to LTE would experience the same growing pains, which could mean Sprint could maintain its 4G advantage for a bit longer than some might expect. Indeed, announcements from the major manufacturers when it comes to LTE have been scarce.

For example, it is widely expected that Apple's next generation iPhone would still be a 3G device, and its probably a smart bet that most Android devices wouldn't be LTE-capable until 2012 at the earliest.

While there have been some rumblings that Sprint could eventually transition to LTE -- its subsidiary Clearwire is said to be considering the technology, and CEO Dan Hesse has hinted using the technology is a possibility -- waiting until the market for LTE matures before making a decision would benefit Sprint.

Either technology though, Sprint seems committed to Android. "It's obvious the momentum is with Android," he told the WSJ.