By CRAIG FREILICH

Verizon Wireless customers in the North Country have been seeing their 4G icons popping up from time to time recently as the telecommunications giant prepares its northern New York 4G service.

“Yes, people should be seeing the 4G LTE icons lighting up on their devices as we test and optimize our local network for eventual rollout of the technology,” said Verizon Wireless Upstate New York Region Public Relations Manager John O'Malley.

Verizon’s 4G LTE is one version of a standard for higher capacity “fourth generation” signals for wireless devices.

Verizon boasts one of the most extensive 4G networks in the country, and it is still expanding, now into the North Country.

“I can't give you a firm launch date, but it is coming,” O’Malley said.

“Our long-stated goal is to have our entire nationwide 3G coverage footprint substantially covered by 4G LTE by mid-summer,” he said.

“There will still be scattered pockets where we still have 3G, but all of our main markets will have 4G LTE by that time,” O’Malley said.