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So the Hero's from England won't work on USA 3G bands correct? Does anyone know when a Hero will come out that is capable?
yes that is correct, 3g in the usa will not work on the hero. the hero will come out on october 11th for United States, many indications are hinting that the carrier will be sprint
does this lie in the hardware?
Sorry to bump this thread, but as I asked earlier. Does the 3G settings lie in the hardware, or is it customizable/changeable somehow?
No, there is nothing to "unlock" a non 1700 frequency phone to make it capable of accepting 3G speeds on T-mobile
I've no idea whether the radio in the Hero is capable of supporting T-Mobiles 3G 1700Mhz band, but I do personally find it hard to believe that HTC would manufacture 2 different GSM Heros (as opposed to a GSM and CDMA one) which differ only by the bands they support since the additional cost involved in having 2 separate production lines is probably far greater than the incremental cost of using a more capable radio in all GSM Heros.
My G1 is a US T-Mobile G1, and it works fine with the 3G bands here in Europe. In addition, if you look up the specs of the Magic on HTCs website, it does not mention the 1700MHz band, but the MyTouch 3G does support and it is essentially a Magic.
This would lead me to believe that it is likely to be a firmware rather than hardware restriction - only time will tell!
Regards,
Dave
Hero coming to T-Mobile USA
By the looks of things at http://www.tmonews.com and with a bit of url manipulation I was able to navigate to this pretty convicing and helpful page.
Anyone have any better resources?
foxmeister said:
...My G1 is a US T-Mobile G1, and it works fine with the 3G bands here in Europe. ...
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yeah, but the G1 was designed specifically for t-mobile and so the G1 itself was built to support the bands for all t-mobile networks in one device.
And as the european ones nearly all use 2100mhz, that is a slightly different case.
and as for the URL manipulation, that doesn;t always mean anything.. with the right manipulation, you can get it to show updates for one device on a page titled for a totally different model. however, it would be good if you are right!!
G1 = 1700 and 2100 MHz
Hero = 900 and 2100 MHz
So both work fine in europe (2100) but only the G1 will work with T-mo US (1700). Considering that there is no reasonable prepaid 3g data in the US anywhere, not many European travellers will miss the 1700MHz capability of their cell phone.
The choice of the 900MHz band is a bit odd, seems like the only reasonably-sized market for that would be Australia. At least it'll work when you are down-under ;-)
at the moment yeah, but many European networks are pushing to get access to the 900mhz frequency and use it for 3G once 2G gets turned off.
apparently it has better penetration into buildings or something...don't quite understand the reasons why it should be better for that, but the UK networks certainly want a bit of that action....
rhedgehog said:
at the moment yeah, but many European networks are pushing to get access to the 900mhz frequency and use it for 3G once 2G gets turned off. apparently it has better penetration into buildings or something...
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As a rule of thumb, the lower the frequency (longer wavelength) the deeper it is going to penetrate. Thats why you can listen to the radio inside whereas you can't see the sun (visible light=much higher frequency).
cool.
I understand now. i suppose it kinda makes sense as well, lower wavelengths tend to have more power anyway,so i shoulda figured that out....
According to the Carphone Warehouse website, one of the features for the GalaxyS2 is quoted as HSDPA+. Is this an oversite on carphone warehouses part or will HSDPA+ actually be available to us in the uk?
http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/news/coming-soon/samsung_galaxy_s_2
The Samsung Galaxy S 2 is coming soon to The Carphone Warehouse! Just 8.49mm at its thinnest point, Galaxy S 2 is officially the World's slimmest smartphone. It comes with the latest version of Android and a brilliant NEW Super Amoled + display.
Dual core processor, for superb performance
Super fast web browsing with NEW HSDPA+ technology
Full 1080p HD video recording and onscreen playback
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Optimised for entertainment:
Internet
NEW HSDPA+ technology makes your 3G mobile network connection faster, so you can download more content, load online videos more easily and enjoy the web more.
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Click to collapse
the phone has HSPDA+ (4G)
the question is if your phone company supports 4G or not
even if 4G is not an option for your cell company, you can still get 3G with the phone
yeh the question is whether uk phone companies will support hspa+ as it is an extension of 3g really?
because if not they shouldnt be advertising a feature that is disabled.
or due to the recently announced 4g spectrum auction, they are just meaning it will be compatible once the 4g network is set up.
its just hsdpa+ enabled and thats that... what carrier the consumer will be using and if the carrier supports it, is none of their business. they sell internationally just because uk carriers dont support this yet doesnt mean that they arent supposed to describe exactly what they are selling...
no, you guys aren't understanding me. it is a uk website, not an international website of samsung, it is a uk seller selling to the uk, we have tranding standards laws so products arent missold.
do any uk people know if this is possible in this country?
I'm not quite sure you actually know what HSPA+ is - the phone does support this wireless standard, but for it to be useful to you your cell provider needs to have HSPA+ capable stations in your area. They are selling you a capable phone, not cell phone service - and the maximum speed this phone can attain is higher than other phones maximum speed.
And, of course, UK providers do support this standard. You are most likely to get a HSPA+ signal in metropolitan regions. If you absolutely have to know if your area is covered, you need to research further - but this will change over time, as more and more regions are upgraded.
But even if no cell phone provider in your area had capable stations it wouldn't be mislabeling as the seller is only describing the capabilities of the phone - you could be buying it for use outside the UK.
You really need to research before asking pointless questions.
walk.away said:
no, you guys aren't understanding me. it is a uk website, not an international website of samsung, it is a uk seller selling to the uk, we have tranding standards laws so products arent missold.
do any uk people know if this is possible in this country?
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carphone warehouse ships INTERNATIONALLY this means its shipping to countries that do have hsdpa+ carriers...
why make a big deal out of this? even if the uk doesnt have it right now they will in a few months. if they have it already, great...
Carphone Warehouse is an international company, does not mean Carphone warehouse UK ships internationally.
http://selfhelp.carphonewarehouse.com/SelfHelp/request.do?view()=c{a37ba1a0-bc8e-11de-e56d-000000000000}
I am sorry if I wasn't clear with the question, I was wanting an answer/debate as to whether the UK will or already has HSPA+. I was unaware it does as we haven't sold off the old analogue wireless spectrum yet. When this is sold off (sometime mid next year at the earliest) then the networks have to implement it, so more delay.
Having worked previously for many years in electrical retail, if I told someone that their new HD tv made everything HD, that would be misselling, and breaking the law. Same logic applies to the website
NEW HSDPA+ technology makes your 3G mobile network connection faster, so you can download more content, load online videos more easily and enjoy the web more.
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Is this then true that HSPA+ is compatible with the existing 3G networks? There is no need for upgrading the wireless transmitters? I know that Vodafone has done trials but I do not know how these would be done.
Also I don't really think this is a pointless question as for UK users the SGS2 seems to be the first HSPA+ phone available. Again I know that Vodafone has done trials but no phones that have HSPA+ that are available internationally have been sold in the UK with this technology.
Also PartyMango, they are selling you a "cell phone" service as they are a 3rd party seller of Orange/T-Mobile/3/Vodafone services, CW take responsibility for the contract. CW do not sell phones this expensive unlocked or payg.
But thankyou for telling me that there is HSPA+ service already in the UK, as my phone doesn't support it I would never know and having tried to research it I couldn't find anything so asked here, and tried to let potential UK buyers know that a "4G" phone is coming soon fully capable.
Edit: Btw, I don't think locked phones on UK contracts would have cheap rates for being able to use HSPA+ data abroad.
walk.away said:
Is this then true that HSPA+ is compatible with the existing 3G networks? There is no need for upgrading the wireless transmitters? I know that Vodafone has done trials but I do not know how these would be done
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HSPA+ is the next revision of current 3g technology. Providers do need to upgrade their transmitters, but that doesn't necessarily mean replacing the hardware. Almost all recent transmitter hardware sold by equipment manufacturers to cell providers is firmware-upgradeable. Most equipment installed now is even prepared to carry LTE signals at a later time.
walk.away said:
Is this then true that HSPA+ is compatible with the existing 3G networks? There is no need for upgrading the wireless transmitters? I know that Vodafone has done trials but I do not know how these would be done.
Also I don't really think this is a pointless question as for UK users the SGS2 seems to be the first HSPA+ phone available. Again I know that Vodafone has done trials but no phones that have HSPA+ that are available internationally have been sold in the UK with this technology.
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I'm not sure about HSDPA+ but I've had HSDPA on my HTC Hero for the past 18 months with T-Mobile UK, and I know Three UK have HSDPA capability too.
According to GSMArena:
The Hero has HSDPA 900 / 2100
The original SGS has HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100 (And when I played with a SGS in a Three store it had a H, so it definitely worked with Three's HSDPA network)
SGSII has HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
So I think it's just similar but with more frequencies? Not sure, but hope it helps somewhat!
EDIT: I looked it up on Wikipedia and HSPA+ is a much faster connection, I'm sure we don't have that in the UK yet, perhaps it's just a misprint on the website?
Ayrlupine said:
EDIT: I looked it up on Wikipedia and HSPA+ is a much faster connection, I'm sure we don't have that in the UK yet, perhaps it's just a misprint on the website?
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HSPA+ does feature different speed levels, on the phone side as well as on the network side - many cell providers all around the world do have it, UK providers too. It would be very odd for the UK networks not to feature this technology, as opposed to most domestic european cell networks. But rural areas most often won't have HSPA+ coverage.
And it is no misprint as the website is advertising the phones capabilities, not a specific cell providers network features.
4G like 3G they are all shared bandwidth
so don't expect to see full speed in heavily populated area
if 200 people happened to be connected to the same cell phone tower pumping out 4G, then all 200 people are sharing the same 21 Mbps bandwidth
that means each one will probably be getting in reality 2.1 Mbps at best
of course that's like a worse case scenario, and only if all 200 people are actually downloading heavy content off the network
Sorry about the double post T.T
Three UK are supposedly rolling out HSPA+ this year, they've just announced a HSPA+ capable mobile broadband dongle. (I have no source, I'm lazy, just google HSPA+ UK or HSPA+ Three.)
So that's pretty neat, I'm thinking of getting SGSII with Three, hopefully I'll be able to hop on the HSPA+ when it rolls out!
AllGamer said:
if 200 people happened to be connected to the same cell phone tower pumping out 4G, then all 200 people are sharing the same 21 Mbps bandwidth
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Number of frequencies that can be used simultaneously on a cell tower has gradually increased from 1 upto 4 today and maybe more later.
So upto 4 frequencies can be used in the same area and each frequency can handle 21 Mbps.
Later there will be phones that can handle several frequencies simultaneously
to get higher speed.
so with this being a hsdpa+ device is it safe to assume that if I were to buy a British sim free version that I can pop in my tmobile sim card would only have 3G speeds?
the fact that is says hsdpa+ and not hspa+ kinda makes me worried that the s2 cant achieve "4G" speeds. (at least the british version)
someone correct me if im wrong but hsdpa+ is the technical term for what tmobile calls 3g and hspa+ is supposed 4G.
Your phone will be able to achieve the highest speed its standards and the implemented network standard allow - the Galaxy S II supports 21 Mbps down (HSPA+) and 5,76 Mbps up (HSUPA). These are the maximum supported speeds/standard, of course the phone can utilize older standards like HSDPA, UMTS, EDGE or even GPRS as well if the local network won't support anything better. If this were a HSDPA+ phone, the maximum achievable speed would be 14,4 Mbps.
4G is nothing more than a marketing term, used by different cell providers for different standards. At this point, it has lost its meaning. (But, yes, by your definition, the Galaxy S2 is going to be a "4g device")
PartyMango said:
Your phone will be able to achieve the highest speed its standards and the implemented network standard allow - the Galaxy S II supports 21 Mbps down (HSPA+) and 5,76 Mbps up (HSUPA). These are the maximum supported speeds/standard, of course the phone can utilize older standards like HSDPA, UMTS, EDGE or even GPRS as well if the local network won't support anything better. If this were a HSDPA+ phone, the maximum achievable speed would be 14,4 Mbps.
4G is nothing more than a marketing term, used by different cell providers for different standards. At this point, it has lost its meaning. (But, yes, by your definition, the Galaxy S2 is going to be a "4g device")
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Right I could care less about the 4g wars because none of these network technologies are true 4g. BUT with that being said there is a big difference is real world speed levels between the 2. The GS4G is advertised as a hspa+ and hsdpa+ capable device that is capable of 21mbps. Of course I've never seen anything over 10 but the SGS2 is only being advertised as hsdpa+. So with that being said I guess its safe to say that the SGS2 does not have a hspa+ radio in it. Only an hsdpa+ radio. Correct? None of the docs I've seen show that it is a hspa+ capable device
Sent from my DAMN Galaxy 4G¡!
walk.away said:
no, you guys aren't understanding me. it is a uk website, not an international website of samsung, it is a uk seller selling to the uk, we have tranding standards laws so products arent missold.
do any uk people know if this is possible in this country?
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I am from the UK and can't see how this breaks any trading standard laws. Listing what features the phone actually has does not break TS if the carrier you use it with does not support it. It's no different to listing the phone has quad band even though some of those frequencies are not used in UK. It is fine for Carphone warehouse to list features they know are not supported in UK because:
1. They may be supported in UK in future.
2. Some customers may go overseas and roam to other carriers that do support those features.
But, to answer your direct question. I have not heard about any UK carriers who support HSPA+. This wiki lists worldwide carriers that do support it but UK is not listed: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HSPA%2B.
Is there an app or command to log the different frequency bands available in an area? I'm thinking of getting a Galaxy Note 2, but the Note 2 doesn't support the 1700MHz frequency band, and I'm on T-mobile. Any way to figure out if the new phone will get reception, other than just plonking down ~$650 and hoping for the best?
TheEyes said:
Is there an app or command to log the different frequency bands available in an area? I'm thinking of getting a Galaxy Note 2, but the Note 2 doesn't support the 1700MHz frequency band, and I'm on T-mobile. Any way to figure out if the new phone will get reception, other than just plonking down ~$650 and hoping for the best?
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You will have EDGE coverage anywhere, but I wouldn't buy an expensive new phone that doesn't support 3G for your carrier.
Why aren't you buying via T-Mobile, that does support their speeds?
https://www.t-mobile.com/shop/phone...ll-phone=Samsung-Galaxy-Note-II-Titanium-Gray
stevedebi said:
You will have EDGE coverage anywhere, but I wouldn't buy an expensive new phone that doesn't support 3G for your carrier.
Why aren't you buying via T-Mobile, that does support their speeds?
https://www.t-mobile.com/shop/phone...ll-phone=Samsung-Galaxy-Note-II-Titanium-Gray
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First, because the phone is at least $70 more expensive on T-mobile's store.
Second, even that version of the phone does not do HSPA+ over 1700 MHz (it's actually the same N7100 you see everywhere). The trick is, T-mobile is supposedly switching all of their 1700-band HSPA+ towers to 1900 band, partly in preparation for their LTE rollout and partly because that's the only way they'll be able to get the iPhone to work with their network, but they haven't gotten it done everywhere and I'm concerned that I'll plop down ~$600 on a phone that only gets 2G speeds at work.
TheEyes said:
First, because the phone is at least $70 more expensive on T-mobile's store.
Second, even that version of the phone does not do HSPA+ over 1700 MHz (it's actually the same N7100 you see everywhere). The trick is, T-mobile is supposedly switching all of their 1700-band HSPA+ towers to 1900 band, partly in preparation for their LTE rollout and partly because that's the only way they'll be able to get the iPhone to work with their network, but they haven't gotten it done everywhere and I'm concerned that I'll plop down ~$600 on a phone that only gets 2G speeds at work.
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You had me worried so I looked it up. According to the news sources I found, T-Mobile is converting it's 1900 2g towers to support HSPA+. So for the present the current 3G network is not in danger. I suppose my Amaze will continue working for a while!
Where did you see a report that they are changing out the 1700 band HSPA+ towers?
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"In May, T-Mobile's chief technology officer Neville Ray said the company would be repurposing its existing 1900MHz 2G service with 4G HSPA+, in order to "provide customers with the ability to use a broader range of devices, including the iPhone, on T-Mobile's 4G network.""
http://appleinsider.com/articles/12...nvert_its_4g_network_to_support_apples_iphone
stevedebi said:
You had me worried so I looked it up. According to the news sources I found, T-Mobile is converting it's 1900 2g towers to support HSPA+. So for the present the current 3G network is not in danger. I suppose my Amaze will continue working for a while!
Where did you see a report that they are changing out the 1700 band HSPA+ towers?
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"In May, T-Mobile's chief technology officer Neville Ray said the company would be repurposing its existing 1900MHz 2G service with 4G HSPA+, in order to "provide customers with the ability to use a broader range of devices, including the iPhone, on T-Mobile's 4G network.""
http://appleinsider.com/articles/12...nvert_its_4g_network_to_support_apples_iphone
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Almost every tech news site that discusses the 1900 band refarming mentions that the reason is to re-deploy 1700 for LTE (that, and to get the iPhone running on T-mobile because Apple outright refuses to make the iPhone pentaband for some reason). It's a fairly easy Google away.
TheEyes said:
Almost every tech news site that discusses the 1900 band refarming mentions that the reason is to re-deploy 1700 for LTE (that, and to get the iPhone running on T-mobile because Apple outright refuses to make the iPhone pentaband for some reason). It's a fairly easy Google away.
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The link I provided quoted a t-mobile representative. And I got it from a Google search...
Sent from my IdeaTabA2109A using xda premium
I went from a note 2 on T-mobile to the mega. (paid $515 us, no tax). I knew what i was getting into, about the bands, but i went for it anyway. I think in retrospect it may have been a mistake. The issue is, that it doesnt have the right bands for hspa+ a lot of the time. It has the edge and the 1900 that was refarmed for hspa+. Granted, i live in NYC which was refarmed, and it my house i do have hspa+, but it was a mistake because a lot of places i go, i dont have service, or i only have edge. And i do wedding jobs all over the tri state area, and that is going to suck. To me, Tmo is awesome, they have 3g, hspa21, hspa42 and now also lte. I can do without the LTE but now i'm limiting myself to only one band of hspa.... Not the smartest idea.
I've heard that a new ported radio may help this but....
mottyengel said:
I went from a note 2 on T-mobile to the mega. (paid $515 us, no tax). I knew what i was getting into, about the bands, but i went for it anyway. I think in retrospect it may have been a mistake. The issue is, that it doesnt have the right bands for hspa+ a lot of the time. It has the edge and the 1900 that was refarmed for hspa+. Granted, i live in NYC which was refarmed, and it my house i do have hspa+, but it was a mistake because a lot of places i go, i dont have service, or i only have edge. And i do wedding jobs all over the tri state area, and that is going to suck. To me, Tmo is awesome, they have 3g, hspa21, hspa42 and now also lte. I can do without the LTE but now i'm limiting myself to only one band of hspa.... Not the smartest idea.
I've heard that a new ported radio may help this but....
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Why would you buy this phone knowing you wouldn't get consistent HSPA? I would return it if I were you. Good luck.
mottyengel said:
I've heard that a new ported radio may help this but....
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Do you have a link for this? I'm used to slow speeds where I am anyway, so edge to HSPA isnt a difference for me. The only places it gets faster is in the areas where they have the 1900 bands anyway...
mottyengel said:
I went from a note 2 on T-mobile to the mega. (paid $515 us, no tax). I knew what i was getting into, about the bands, but i went for it anyway. I think in retrospect it may have been a mistake.
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This is me pretty much exactly.
It is not bad in Atlanta, I get H+ most of the time and my prior tablet (LG G Slate) wasn't really better coverage wise so I'm not unhappy, I just keep thinking I could be happier if I had that extra band of H+
If you find out something that improves TMo experience please note it here so others can benefit also.
damastah said:
Do you have a link for this? I'm used to slow speeds where I am anyway, so edge to HSPA isnt a difference for me. The only places it gets faster is in the areas where they have the 1900 bands anyway...
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I don't think a modem has been ported yet. I don't think there is a compatible radio out there for this phone. AT&T MIGHT get a version of the Mega (the I-527). If so, someone might be able to port it's radio over to our device and we MIGHT get better signal. Until then, we will have spotty / inconsistent coverage. I get HSPA+, Edge, G, and complete loss of signal almost every day in New York (I drive around a quite a bit between Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan in New York). AT&T and T-Mobile (refarmed), for the most part, use the same bands now.
I came from the AT&T original Galaxy Note (LTE) which I used on T-Mobile's network. I knew I would be taking a step back in terms of data speed by getting the Mega but figured I would at least get HSPA+ which is sufficient for what I do (email, internat and streaming video). When I have HSPA+ signal, I have no data lag even when streaming live tv so it's definitely fast enough (for me at least).
The only issue is, as I already said, the inconsistency. I like the device though and am trying to stick with it until the AT&T Mega comes out (no telling when that will happen - it has been rumored for this month but I'm not holding my breath).
I see the Mega as a mini tablet with GSM phone connectivity, mobile internet connectivity, bluetooth, wifi, nfc, gps, and infra-red (for infrared tv remote control capability). Looking at it from that perspective, I stick with it (because not many tablets have this much connectivity).
Plus, it fits in my pocket (a lot more portable than normal sized tablets).
curgervending said:
I don't think a modem has been ported yet. I don't think there is a compatible radio out there for this phone. AT&T MIGHT get a version of the Mega (the I-527). If so, someone might be able to port it's radio over to our device and we MIGHT get better signal. Until then, we will have spotty / inconsistent coverage. I get HSPA+, Edge, G, and complete loss of signal almost every day in New York (I drive around a quite a bit between Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan in New York). AT&T and T-Mobile (refarmed), for the most part, use the same bands now.
I came from the AT&T original Galaxy Note (LTE) which I used on T-Mobile's network. I knew I would be taking a step back in terms of data speed by getting the Mega but figured I would at least get HSPA+ which is sufficient for what I do (email, internat and streaming video). When I have HSPA+ signal, I have no data lag even when streaming live tv so it's definitely fast enough (for me at least).
The only issue is, as I already said, the inconsistency. I like the device though and am trying to stick with it until the AT&T Mega comes out (no telling when that will happen - it has been rumored for this month but I'm not holding my breath).
I see the Mega as a mini tablet with GSM phone connectivity, mobile internet connectivity, bluetooth, wifi, nfc, gps, and infra-red (for infrared tv remote control capability). Looking at it from that perspective, I stick with it (because not many tablets have this much connectivity).
Plus, it fits in my pocket (a lot more portable than normal sized tablets).
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Right, I hear you. What will be the difference with the AT&T one? I'm really looking for a radio port like they did for the AT&T Note with the Galaxy Blaze and S II modems
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
damastah said:
Right, I hear you. What will be the difference with the AT&T one? I'm really looking for a radio port like they did for the AT&T Note with the Galaxy Blaze and S II modems
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
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The AT&T Mega will have LTE so the data speeds will be faster. However, if AT&T gets the Mega, it will be locked to their network and it's currently illegal to unlock your phone yourself (you're supposed to ask the carrier to unlock it for you). I would imagine that AT&T won't be so quick to unlock the phone for you since they wouldn't want to make it convenient for anyone to take the phone to another GSM carrier. Oh well...welcome to America. In Europe (and probably the rest of the world), when you get a phone (even if its carrier-branded and purchase directly from the carrier), it's unlocked. I usually only buy unlocked phones.
I want to wait for a radio port. If I get consistent HSPA+ connectivity, I'm fine. I got about 15mbps download and about 2mbps upload on an HSPA+ connection in Manhattan this morning. That's fast enough for my data needs. I WAS using a Galaxy Note on T-Mobile's LTE network and got up to 22mbps down and 11mbps up. To be honest though, I could only tell the difference between HSPA+ and LTE when downloading huge files (500MB and up). For web surfing, email, streaming video, and live tv, I saw no noticeable difference between LTE and HSPA+.
IF, at the end of the day, you get the data performance you need with HSPA+, having LTE won't really matter that much.
It's kinda like upgrading your car from one that has 160mph on the dash (current Mega with HSPA+) to the exact same car with 320mph on the dash (AT&T Mega with LTE) when the legal speed limit is 70mph (the data speed you need). You may be able to brag about it being faster but do you actually need the extra speed? Bottom line, you have to determine your data speed needs and then make a choice..
curgervending said:
The AT&T Mega will have LTE so the data speeds will be faster. However, if AT&T gets the Mega, it will be locked to their network and it's currently illegal to unlock your phone yourself (you're supposed to ask the carrier to unlock it for you). I would imagine that AT&T won't be so quick to unlock the phone for you since they wouldn't want to make it convenient for anyone to take the phone to another GSM carrier. Oh well...welcome to America. In Europe (and probably the rest of the world), when you get a phone (even if its carrier-branded and purchase directly from the carrier), it's unlocked. I usually only buy unlocked phones.
I want to wait for a radio port. If I get consistent HSPA+ connectivity, I'm fine. I got about 15mbps download and about 2mbps upload on an HSPA+ connection in Manhattan this morning. That's fast enough for my data needs. I WAS using a Galaxy Note on T-Mobile's LTE network and got up to 22mbps down and 11mbps up. To be honest though, I could only tell the difference between HSPA+ and LTE when downloading huge files (500MB and up). For web surfing, email, streaming video, and live tv, I saw no noticeable difference between LTE and HSPA+.
IF, at the end of the day, you get the data performance you need with HSPA+, having LTE won't really matter that much.
It's kinda like upgrading your car from one that has 160mph on the dash (current Mega with HSPA+) to the exact same car with 320mph on the dash (AT&T Mega with LTE) when the legal speed limit is 70mph (the data speed you need). You may be able to brag about it being faster but do you actually need the extra speed? Bottom line, you have to determine your data speed needs and then make a choice..
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I see. So the at&t one will have an extra T-Mobile compatible band in it? I thought the only one was the 1900 band getting converted into affect by T-Mobile
damastah said:
I see. So the at&t one will have an extra T-Mobile compatible band in it? I thought the only one was the 1900 band getting converted into affect by T-Mobile
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The AT&T Mega should have both the 1900 (the refarmed HSPA+ band on T-Mobile) and the LTE 1700/2100 band (which is the same frequency that both AT&T and T-Mobile use for LTE). The I-9200 version Mega only has the 1900 band and no LTE at all. The I-9205 version Mega has the 1900 band and LTE but not the 1700/2100 LTE band that works on T-Mobile and AT&T .
Radio Question
curgervending said:
The AT&T Mega should have both the 1900 (the refarmed HSPA+ band on T-Mobile) and the LTE 1700/2100 band (which is the same frequency that both AT&T and T-Mobile use for LTE). The I-9200 version Mega only has the 1900 band and no LTE at all. The I-9205 version Mega has the 1900 band and LTE but not the 1700/2100 LTE band that works on T-Mobile and AT&T .
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Sorry, bit of radio ignorance here. So is this a physical hardware difference or could it be adjusted on an existing I-9205 to use the 1700/2100 LTE band by flashing a new radio/rom once TMo/AT&T have a specific version out?
I must admit, this is the only thing that is keeping me from getting the Mega. IF I knew with certainty that a version of this phone would work 100% with T-Mobile, I would jump on it. Unfortunately, i'll probably just have to wait for the Note III. I know there will be a version of that for T-mo.
Mega
Coming to the US carriers soon?
http://www.engadget.com/2013/08/17/galaxy-mega-6-3-press-render-surfaces-with-navy-blue-body-atandt/
I know I want the Mega so bad & I see them unlocked on Ebay. I've asked a couple of sellers if it will work for TMobile but they say either edge or 3g. I have the Note 2 now and I'm more into size wise so not really looking forward to the Note 3. I was wondering if the AT&T one would work unlocked but they don't want you to leave the store without activating it. So I just have to wait patiently like you friend.
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jminatl said:
Sorry, bit of radio ignorance here. So is this a physical hardware difference or could it be adjusted on an existing I-9205 to use the 1700/2100 LTE band by flashing a new radio/rom once TMo/AT&T have a specific version out?
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Physical hardware difference. The I-9205's LTE physical hardware is "tuned" (for lack of a better word) to bands LTE2100, LTE850, LTE1800, LTE2600, LTE800. AT&T / T-Mobile uses band LTE 1700/2100 frequency. Using a different radio in the I-9205 won't change the bands that the phone is tuned to. If anyone out there knows better please chime in. I certainly don't claim to know much. One thing I'm not clear on is whether LTE2100 band in the I-9205 will partially work on T-Mobile / AT&T. I think the phone specifically has to have LTE1700/2100 which is different from LTE2100. Again, someone with more knowledge, please chime in.
would the att version work on T-Mobile? Here are the specs on it;
GSM850, GSM900, GSM1800, GSM1900,
UMTS850 (B5), UMTS900 (B8), UMTS1900 (B2), UMTS2100 (B1)
LTE700 (B17), LTE850 (B5), LTE1700/2100 (B4), LTE1900 (B2)
I live in a refarmed area with LTE.
mottyengel said:
I went from a note 2 on T-mobile to the mega. (paid $515 us, no tax). I knew what i was getting into, about the bands, but i went for it anyway. I think in retrospect it may have been a mistake. The issue is, that it doesnt have the right bands for hspa+ a lot of the time. It has the edge and the 1900 that was refarmed for hspa+. Granted, i live in NYC which was refarmed, and it my house i do have hspa+, but it was a mistake because a lot of places i go, i dont have service, or i only have edge. And i do wedding jobs all over the tri state area, and that is going to suck. To me, Tmo is awesome, they have 3g, hspa21, hspa42 and now also lte. I can do without the LTE but now i'm limiting myself to only one band of hspa.... Not the smartest idea.
I've heard that a new ported radio may help this but....
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By the way, what version of the Mega do you have (i9200 or i9205)? I have T-Mobile and live in a refarmed area (NYC). I've heard people say that the i9205 gives them H+ speeds here.
T-mob 4G with AT&T mega?
I have just bought an AT&T mega (SGH-I527) from a guy. It's 8 days old, unlocked and running T-mob 4GLTE no problem.
21940kbps dl with the 4GLTE icon.
Sweet!
Does it give you spurts of edge 3g and lte or is it steady lte. In other words does it work pretty good to get online or does it lag sometimes?
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MR.MEMORYLANE said:
Does it give you spurts of edge 3g and lte or is it steady lte. In other words does it work pretty good to get online or does it lag sometimes?
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I've had it for only a few hours but when 4GLTE lights up and I stay in the same position then it holds the icon no problem. The area is patchy and not far away I loose 4G and it drops to 3G but it gets back the 4G where it can. In that regard it works like my previous phone but it didn't have the benefit of of LTE!
I went to the AT&T store today and I can buy it cash without contract but I just don't want it to be just edge service if you know what I mean.
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Hi, im looking for a phone which would work with both verizon and T-mobile. Why both? well im in an odd situation, where im halfway through my contract with verizon, but want to switch to T-mobile. But my phone right now barely even works at the moment, so i need a new one, which I can bring over with me when i switch to T-mobile
I need a phone which works on both carriers or else I will end up buying to phones at full price, and I wouldnt want to do that!. Any help wpuld be extremely appreciated, there has to be some kind of smartphone out there thats capable of this
robotnikman said:
Hi, im looking for a phone which would work with both verizon and T-mobile. Why both? well im in an odd situation, where im halfway through my contract with verizon, but want to switch to T-mobile. But my phone right now barely even works at the moment, so i need a new one, which I can bring over with me when i switch to T-mobile
I need a phone which works on both carriers or else I will end up buying to phones at full price, and I wouldnt want to do that!. Any help wpuld be extremely appreciated, there has to be some kind of smartphone out there thats capable of this
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A lot of phones these days are tri/quad-band. This means they operate on 3 or 4 frequencies ranges.
I'm not from the US so I'm not 100% sure but I believe Verizon is a CDMA based network while T-Mobile uses GSM (or WCDMA).
This would mean that most phones cannot be taken from one to the other. However many newer phones are released in carrier specific versions but don't have any hardware differences. Its often very hard to test/confirm this without having the specific device in your hand.
Google suggests that the iPhone 5, 5C & 5S from Verizon is unlocked and works on T-Mobiles 3G & 4G networks. So this could be an option.
As far as android handsets go, most of the phones I can find dont have a good overlap of frequencies for both networks.
Using the LG G2 as an example, the T-Mobile versions of most handsets use 850/1700/1900/2100 for 3G and LTE Bands 2, 4, 17. Verizon uses 850/900/1900/2100 for 3G and LTE Bands 4, 13. There is a little overlap there, 3G @ 850, 900 & 2100, but the LTE coverage is limited to Band 4 which could result in some negative experiences coverage wise on T-Mobile.