HSDPA+ is not 4G.

This is a nitpick really, but I'm just the messenger here:

  According to the International Telecommunications Union
  (ITU) networks using "beyond 3G technologies" with a path
  to LTE-Advanced can be classified as 4G technology.

Therefore, HSDPA+, especially the dual-cell variants, are officially "4G" -- just not LTE.

Considering the peak speed of the dual-cell variant is 42Mbps, that seems a reasonable claim. Real world speeds can hit 22Mbps+ which is ~4x as fast as many older 3G technologies.

The real downside to not having LTE is that upload speeds are better than older 3G technologies, but nowhere near as good, and the latency is also not as low.

But with the right carrier, it's more than workable, and if you're using an older phone (like I am) it will be much faster.

Anandtech and various other sites have started posting reviews:

  http://www.anandtech.com/show/6425/google-nexus-4-and-nexus-10-review

Thanks! That ITU note will definitely blunt my complaints about 4G-as-4G, knowing that the term is mostly a marketing thing.

My mistake! It is probably 3.5G.

Yeah, that's what articles say but I don't know enough of the science behind it, but eh, whatever. As I mention elsewhere I don't get high-speed anything where I live so I don't actually have to care. ;)

Not sure it's even your mistake. AT&T and probably others have been pushing the idea that HSDPA+ is "4G" for a while. My iPhone 4S, which doesn't do LTE, shows a little "4G" indicator.