MOBILE network upgrades underway will give Singapore's 2.4 million 3G mobile users faster downloads on the go as early as March.

All three telecommunications companies, SingTel, StarHub and MobileOne, are upgrading their 3G or third-generation mobile networks to support 21Mbps download speeds. This is some 50 per cent faster than the current 14.4Mbps cap.

M1, with about 27 per cent of the postpaid mobile customer base here, will offer the faster speeds by March, said M1 spokesman Chua Swee Kiat. 3G services are generally available only to post-paid mobile customers.

StarHub, which also has a 27 per cent share of the post-paid market, expects to have its network up by June. SingTel, the biggest mobile operator with over 46 per cent of the post-paid market here, will offer the faster access speeds 'progressively this year', said a spokesman.

The faster mobile network, said SingTel consumer chief, Mr Yuen Kuan Moon, will give customers 'greater flexibility and mobility at higher speeds and this will empower them to collaborate and innovate fluidly without borders, whether they are at work, home or on the go'.