The network, which is said to cover 66% of the UK’s population and most of its major cities, will make its commercial debut on July 19 with the introduction through Orange retail outlets of the company’s 3G Mobile Office Card.

The dual-mode notebook PC card, manufactured by Lucent Technologies and Novatel Wireless, is designed to offer user-transparent hand off between UMTS and GPRS networks, where 3G coverage holes exist. The process is enabled with software from an unnamed partner that is integrated into a user dashboard from where key services are also available.

Orange chose Lucent Technologies and Novatel Wireless as the manufacturer of its initial 3G PC card, although other manufacturers will be represented in future. Orange claims to have avoided the problems experienced by operator rival Vodafone, whose own Mobile Connect 3G/GPRS PC card has proved incompatible with some notebooks from IBM, Dell, and Hewlett-Packard.

International 3G roaming will be brought on stream by way of Orange’s French 3G network, which is set to launch this autumn, according to CEO Sanjiv Ahuja. 3G roaming will be further bolstered by way of Orange’s FreeMove alliance partners, Telefonica Moviles in Spain, T-Mobile in Germany and Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM) in Italy. This should extend to 14 countries over time.

Orange has also been keen to avoid criticism over pricing attracted by UK rival Vodafone at the launch of its own 3G service in April. A flat rate, all-you-can-eat tariff is available for 75 pounds ($136.10) a month, plus 85 pounds ($154.30) for the PC card. Although expensive, the tariff is designed to appeal to IT managers by providing greater visibility into network usage.

Vodafone’s top-rate tariff for its own Mobile Connect 3G/GPRS PC card drew criticism in some quarters at launch for its 500MB per month download limit, for a similar all-in price of 85 pounds ($154.3) a month plus 50 pounds ($90.8) for the card. Orange retains the right to invoke a fair-usage clause in extreme cases, however.

More restrictive bundles are also available including a pay-as-you-go option priced at 255 pounds ($462.90) for the PC card and 2 pounds ($3.60) per MB of data consumed.

We know the customer doesn’t really care about the technology. What matters is that we get it right, Ahuja told journalists at the launch in London, yesterday.

As further proof of its intent, Orange laid out its roadmap for incorporating other wireless connectivity options into the service. The operator said it may choose to deploy EDGE as a high-speed overlay for its GPRS coverage in rural areas of the UK, following its experience in France, Romania and Slovakia.

However, such a decision will not be taken until the company reaches its planned 80% population coverage for 3G in the UK next year.

Wireless LAN hotspot access will also be bundled into the service offering in future, again with seamless hand-off. These additional options will be supported through additional PC card offerings and upgraded dashboard software. Orange is already a major hotspot provider in France and has just announced plans to add an additional 1,500 hotspots to its 3,000-strong network by the end of the year.

Orange will also bolster its remote access offerings outside France with the extension to the UK market from September of France Telecom-owned business communications services provider Equant’s fixed-broadband access products.

Ahuja said Orange’s experience in understanding and reacting to the needs of its business 3G customers will prove invaluable to a successful launch of its mass market 3G services later this year. Addressing the fundamentals will also be a hallmark of the services we’re introducing for consumers, said Ahuja.

Orange confirmed LG Electronics and Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications as initial suppliers of handsets for its consumer 3G launch. A further 3G update in September is likely to include details of Orange’s entry into 3G smart phones and wireless PDAs, Orange UK VP business solutions Mike Newnham told ComputerWire.

In comparison, Vodafone’s 3G network is thought currently to reach around 42% of the British populace while Hutchison 3G boasts more base stations but offers poor UMTS to GPRS roaming and few options for business users.