Verizon Wireless must have been getting tired of being overshadowed by Sprint’s EVDO Rev A announcements, like this one yesterday, cause this morning Verizon Wireless officially announced the first Rev A markets it is launching in, and the availability of the Rev A USB720 wireless modem for its customers.

We all knew they had been not-so-quietly building it out, but now Verizon says the upgrade will take place in areas of Massachusetts, Richmond, Virginia, Chicago, Gary, Ind., Salt Lake City, and Florida.

Verizon says:

BroadbandAccess customers in enhanced wireless broadband coverage can expect average download speeds of 450-800 kbps and average upload speeds of 300-400 kbps.

Not to be outdone by Verizon, Sprint sent us over some EVDO RevA “facts” this morning, reminding us that Sprint is saying its Rev A network has average upload speeds of 350-500 kpbs and download speeds of 600 kps-1.4 mbps — though they’re probably pretty similar to the user.

Sprint also already offers the Novatel Wireless USB720 that Verizon announced today and will be on sale for Verizon customers tomorrow. Sprint started upgrading to Rev A in October of 2006 and covers 24 major markets, including some Verizon is announcing today, like Boston, Salt Lake City, and Southeastern Florida.

Verizon might be behind Sprint in Rev A rollouts, but it’s all good news for us wireless broadband lovers.