Related
Hey folks, let me preface this with:
I am relatively a noob to hacking the G1, but I have installed Cyanogen's latest, and I know how to do basic hacks.
So what I was wondering, with all the hubub about 4g, and the big networks offering 3g/4g for laptops via one of their little USB dongles, could the G1 be configured to use the 3g/4g data signal from Comcast?
It would be cool, as I already pay for comcast, and the service might even be better. Best of all I can drop the data plan on my TMo service and save cash.
What do you think?
Thanks!-- BTW love the forum... thanks for all you folks do!
Comcasts' 4G is actually WiMax, which isn't compatible with any current Android device. Sprint is supposed to launch a WiMax Android device soon, which should be compatible.
Comcasts 3G is piggybacking off of Sprint's CDMA network. Which means it *might* be possible to use it with the Sprint CDMA HTC Hero, but honestly, your best bet is to contact Comcast and ask them, because they might lock their service down to only authorized devices.
I'm a Cellular South user who's reallllly lusting after the Epic 4G -- sadly it looks like it's going to be the only Galaxy S slider released. Once the phone is released and rooted, would it be possible for the phone to work on non-Sprint carriers? I've currently got a HTC Hero, and I know for the longest time our ROMs were based off of the Sprint RUU.
Just curious if this is plausible, very likely, or not a chance in hell.
Thanks,
DrHogie
Sure it will be possible just like the Hero was. 4G won't be possible, but the phone will be able to at least make calls until you figure out any of the other stuff needed for data and market.
How compatible do you think this phone would be with MetroPCS? Also, I heard that LTE could be added with a firmware update on this phone, or at least phones like it. Is that true? If so, do you think it might work on other future 4G networks, like that of Verizon or Metro? Sorry for all the potentially silly questions, I've never shopped for a CDMA phone before.
LTE uses a SIM card I believe so without the hardware built into the pone, you couldn't use it on that kind of network.
I read a blog with an interview of a Sprint higher up saying that they could potentially change the technology of 4g quickly and cheaply in places that currently have 4g. However, I don't know if that means another set of GSM 3G vs CDMA 3G like we have now. Maybe it would be a CDMA LTE that doesn't use a SIM?
Hopefully they just leave well enough alone. I know the technology will be different at Verizon (LTE) and T-MO(HSPA+), but differences usually foster growth for the best to keep up. I guess that would also eliminate a roaming data possiblity.
Who knows...lots of questions.
LTE isn't CDMZA based, it is its own beast.
This is where I read about the SIM card http://gizmodo.com/5590530/leaked-documents-and-lte-sim-show-verizon-4g-launch-is-imminent
Wikipedia is more info if you search LTE about the technology.
Welp, looks like it's going that way...
http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/15/sprint-evaluating-switch-to-lte-over-the-next-four-to-six-months/
...thing is, there hasn't been any new WiMAX phone announced this year, so either they're relying on riding that EVO and Epic wave to get new WiMAX customers, or maybe they do have something up their sleeve.
In any event, I don't see that many new customers signing up for Wimax, so to LTE Sprint will go. Now what do we do with our Evo at that point?
Other than the shifts but if they give me a choice to choose a new phone I'm in
Sent from my gingerbread evo 4g
It's like sprint is playing the "you can't get mad at me, i'm not touching you" while holding hand in front of face game with all these changes that piss everybody off without letting them go etf-free
Oh, they would have to provide us with a LTE phone if they do switch. At least offer us a pretty hefty discount. Otherwise, I see a huge class-action lawsuit headed over their way. I'd love for this switch to happen. WiMax is just not cutting it.
From the user comments of the linked article:
They're still going to roll out WiMax and then just add LTE functionality later on. Again, It's just a baseband card swap and a software upgrade. The phones would probably use a dual-mode WiMax/LTE chip (like the one introduced last year by Beceem). Sprint did a pretty good job of future-proofing their network and WiMax was a better/cheaper choice for "4G"... Verizon was having some major 3G/4G handoff issues in mid-December and there's still no word of that being resolved. That's a major issue for Big Red and could slow or kill LTE adoption (imagine having to either wait about 2 minutes or even having to reboot your phone whenever you go from 4G back to 3G). I'm not even getting into AT&T and Verizon's LTE spectrum limitations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
m4rk0358 said:
From the user comments of the linked article: They're still going to roll out WiMax and then just add LTE functionality later on. Again, It's just a baseband card swap and a software upgrade. The phones would probably use a dual-mode WiMax/LTE chip (like the one introduced last year by Beceem). Sprint did a pretty good job of future-proofing their network and WiMax was a better/cheaper choice for "4G"... Verizon was having some major 3G/4G handoff issues in mid-December and there's still no word of that being resolved. That's a major issue for Big Red and could slow or kill LTE adoption (imagine having to either wait about 2 minutes or even having to reboot your phone whenever you go from 4G back to 3G). I'm not even getting into AT&T and Verizon's LTE spectrum limitations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But they would eventually have to actually flip the switch to LTE.. would they not have to pick one or the other?
As long as I got a huge discount on an LTE phone, I'd be okay with this. I like WiMAX, but for the dev community, LTE is going to be way better.
akarol said:
Oh, they would have to provide us with a LTE phone if they do switch. At least offer us a pretty hefty discount. Otherwise, I see a huge class-action lawsuit headed over their way. I'd love for this switch to happen. WiMax is just not cutting it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They're facing this scenario now, if they turn off the iDen network to use LTE. Some speculate that Sprint will lose a lot of money on this, but all they have to do is sell the spectrum that wimax is on now. T-Mobile would buy it...
AbsolutZeroGI said:
As long as I got a huge discount on an LTE phone, I'd be okay with this. I like WiMAX, but for the dev community, LTE is going to be way better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm also curious about the stuff I've been reading recently regarding how tightly controlled LTE access can be by carrier. Presumably the same restrictions would apply when tethering?
they will have pry my evo from my cold dead hands....
cyanogen/evervol-acies flavored gingerbread
drbadass said:
But they would eventually have to actually flip the switch to LTE.. would they not have to pick one or the other?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really cause Wimaxx is just another channel or frequency. I mean they still have 2G/3G and now 4G, LTE will just be another channel that they will be able to accomidate
I say the only reason why the would make that switch is to keep up or ahead with the other carriers, t-mobile, att, Verizon so why not make the switch everyone gsm and running on sim chips mmm nice different phones on different networks sounds fun
Sent from my PC36100-EVO-using Tapatalk
drbadass said:
I'm also curious about the stuff I've been reading recently regarding how tightly controlled LTE access can be by carrier. Presumably the same restrictions would apply when tethering?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is what scares me. I know LTE is faster than wimax. (Job I work at sells both Wimax capable cards and LTE broadband cards now and I have installed both on computers, and speedtest wise, LTE was pulling 15 down and 1.5 up. Wimax in our area usually does 5-7 down, and 1 up.
But I don't want Sprint to be able to decide that what I do with the data access I am provided isn't what they think I should. The fact they can block sites, charge rates for sites, and so forth is very bothersome. It is the same crap certain ISP carries are looking to do.
It is this reason (among data caps) that I decided not to wait for the LTE thunderstorm phone(or w/e its called, im kinda tired ) and go with verizon over sprint.
I just with their Wimax was better in the Cincinnati, OH area than it currently is. Map shows I should have 4G outside everywhere but my backyard. And I barely get it in my front lawn where I should have a perfect signal.
Does anyone have a link to the story of how carriers can control access to the web using LTE. I read it but don't remember where. This is very disturbing that the carriers will have this much power over our web viewing habits
Don't worry fellow evonauts, they (probably) won't block your fetish adult entertainment.
But seriously, better speeds would be awesome, better coverage would be great but the capability to throttle or block what i want to do with my "unlimited" connection is unacceptable.
Here's some things to remember before anyone gets up in arms over this:
1. Between the Sprint, Clear, Comcast, and Time Warner brands there are millions of users on the Clearwire WiMax network, many of whom are in contracts based on WiMax devices or services. They're not going to just flip a switch in a few months and suddenly none of us have 4G anymore. I would not expect to see much further WiMax development beyond what's known about at the time of any LTE announcement, but by the time the WiMax network goes dead anyone posting here will have moved on to a newer phone.
2. There's no reason at all that this would need to be done as an on/off type switch. They install the hardware bits needed for LTE, then switch channels of their available spectrum over as dictated by utilization. AT&T's migration from TDMA to GSM after the Cingular buyout took years to complete.
3. The Evo Shift just came out and the Blackberry Playbook with WiMax has been announced and given a rough street date. Like most of us existing users, these users will likely for the most part be in contracts, meaning if Sprint does anything that significantly impacts the usability of those devices (such as terminating WiMax service) they'll need to either give us cheap/free upgrades to LTE phones or let us out of contract ETF-free.
tl;dr version: LTE is probably coming, since Sprint's rapidly becoming the odd man out in the 4G cell world, but there's no reason for current WiMax users to panic.
edit:
drbadass said:
I'm also curious about the stuff I've been reading recently regarding how tightly controlled LTE access can be by carrier. Presumably the same restrictions would apply when tethering?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ghodzilla5150 said:
Does anyone have a link to the story of how carriers can control access to the web using LTE. I read it but don't remember where. This is very disturbing that the carriers will have this much power over our web viewing habits
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any ISP has about the same power. It has nothing to do with the last mile medium and LTE will change nothing about this.
Regarding tethering, there is no way to tell for certain by looking at the data transmitted whether a user is tethering or not when a modern smartphone is involved, since they're capable of doing anything a full PC could do with that data connection. Certain types of data may be suspicious and more likely to have come from a PC, but nothing could be proven to any reasonable standard as long as they have not loaded a "tattler" program in to the OEM ROM to explicitly identify tethering. Assuming a rooted phone, this could be removed and of course would not even be in AOSP-based ROMs.
Good rational post. Thanks.
wolrah said:
Here's some things to remember before anyone gets up in arms over this:
1. Between the Sprint, Clear, Comcast, and Time Warner brands there are millions of users on the Clearwire WiMax network, many of whom are in contracts based on WiMax devices or services. They're not going to just flip a switch in a few months and suddenly none of us have 4G anymore. I would not expect to see much further WiMax development beyond what's known about at the time of any LTE announcement, but by the time the WiMax network goes dead anyone posting here will have moved on to a newer phone.
2. There's no reason at all that this would need to be done as an on/off type switch. They install the hardware bits needed for LTE, then switch channels of their available spectrum over as dictated by utilization. AT&T's migration from TDMA to GSM after the Cingular buyout took years to complete.
3. The Evo Shift just came out and the Blackberry Playbook with WiMax has been announced and given a rough street date. Like most of us existing users, these users will likely for the most part be in contracts, meaning if Sprint does anything that significantly impacts the usability of those devices (such as terminating WiMax service) they'll need to either give us cheap/free upgrades to LTE phones or let us out of contract ETF-free.
tl;dr version: LTE is probably coming, since Sprint's rapidly becoming the odd man out in the 4G cell world, but there's no reason for current WiMax users to panic.
edit:
Any ISP has about the same power. It has nothing to do with the last mile medium and LTE will change nothing about this.
Regarding tethering, there is no way to tell for certain by looking at the data transmitted whether a user is tethering or not when a modern smartphone is involved, since they're capable of doing anything a full PC could do with that data connection. Certain types of data may be suspicious and more likely to have come from a PC, but nothing could be proven to any reasonable standard as long as they have not loaded a "tattler" program in to the OEM ROM to explicitly identify tethering. Assuming a rooted phone, this could be removed and of course would not even be in AOSP-based ROMs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe I'm just misunderstanding something but I'm taking this switch from WiMAX to LTE as Sprint just has to change the cards on their ends and send us current WiMAX users a software update and we can use LTE.
rkjg24 said:
Maybe I'm just misunderstanding something but I'm taking this switch from WiMAX to LTE as Sprint just has to change the cards on their ends and send us current WiMAX users a software update and we can use LTE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Half right. The Wimax chip in the Evo is straight Wimax...no LTE capability.
Since the wiMax is actually from Clear as far as i know, Sprints choice shouldnt really matter in the long run. WiMax wont disappear so your "old" phone should work, and Sprint actually having its own 4G network means more than likely better battery life and better connection/coverage
Im actually leaning towards the 3g tab but now i can confirm that both have an exynos engine .
international version has slower 3g but with voice capability
US version has the faster LTE but without voice but i can still use GV for voice calls + it has the IR blaster.
so which one is better now i need to buy one now please help me decide. Also can i use the Straight Talk sim card on the lte tab?
mywingtophone said:
Im actually leaning towards the 3g tab but now i can confirm that both have an exynos engine .
international version has slower 3g but with voice capability
US version has the faster LTE but without voice but i can still use GV for voice calls + it has the IR blaster.
so which one is better now i need to buy one now please help me decide. Also can i use the Straight Talk sim card on the lte tab?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on carrier preference and LTE availability
Verizon 3G is ridiculously slow and you lose voice capability however, you do get IR port for universal remote app
ph00ny said:
Depends on carrier preference and LTE availability
Verizon 3G is ridiculously slow and you lose voice capability however, you do get IR port for universal remote app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait, only the Verizon LTE version has the IR blaster? Not the international version?
Diversion said:
Wait, only the Verizon LTE version has the IR blaster? Not the international version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it looks like it. One reason why i didn't get the international version because this is going to be sitting at home most of the time except when i'm traveling
Verizon LTE = Carrier locked, bloated up, no phone functionality, less community support, not too much of a cost difference, works as a universal remote with IR blaster.
Unlocked 3G = Works with just about any GSM carrier (though T-Mobile 3G not compatible), free of carrier bloat, double's as a phone, currently goes for about $650 on Negri, works as a universal remote with RedEye Remote. BONUS: RedEye Remote will continue to work with future devices when you decide to eventually replace the 7.7, as well as working with all your existing Android/iOS devices as well.
Jade Eyed Wolf said:
Verizon LTE = Carrier locked, bloated up, no phone functionality, less community support, not too much of a cost difference, works as a universal remote with IR blaster.
Unlocked 3G = Works with just about any GSM carrier (though T-Mobile 3G not compatible), free of carrier bloat, double's as a phone, currently goes for about $650 on Negri, works as a universal remote with RedEye Remote. BONUS: RedEye Remote will continue to work with future devices when you decide to eventually replace the 7.7, as well as working with all your existing Android/iOS devices as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmmmm that really make sence now i want an unlocked tab 7.7!!!!!
Jade Eyed Wolf said:
Verizon LTE = Carrier locked, bloated up, no phone functionality, less community support, not too much of a cost difference, works as a universal remote with IR blaster.
Unlocked 3G = Works with just about any GSM carrier (though T-Mobile 3G not compatible), free of carrier bloat, double's as a phone, currently goes for about $650 on Negri, works as a universal remote with RedEye Remote. BONUS: RedEye Remote will continue to work with future devices when you decide to eventually replace the 7.7, as well as working with all your existing Android/iOS devices as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i think logitech has a similar product as well.
Also one thing missing from your post is the LTE data speed vs HSPA+ on AT&T. LTE is much more reliable and faster but the coverage is limited to metropolitan area
ph00ny said:
i think logitech has a similar product as well.
Also one thing missing from your post is the LTE data speed vs HSPA+ on AT&T. LTE is much more reliable and faster but the coverage is limited to metropolitan area
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LTE will be faster.
But with my 7.7 and ATT service I am averaging 6-9mb download speeds. Which is plenty fast for me.
LTE for the Win !
ph00ny said:
i think logitech has a similar product as well.
Also one thing missing from your post is the LTE data speed vs HSPA+ on AT&T. LTE is much more reliable and faster but the coverage is limited to metropolitan area
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To be honest, I'm not really sold on the whole LTE thing. I mean, sure it's fast and reliable and all, which is great, but while throttling, caps, and other limits still exist, the benefits of LTE are kinda rendered useless to me...
It's like saying, "Here! You can drive this supercar as fast as you want!!*"
*Up to a certain point, at which time you have to reduce your speed to a crawl, or be charged $10 more for every mile past that point...
Really? Wow, no thanks. I'm good.
Jade Eyed Wolf said:
To be honest, I'm not really sold on the whole LTE thing. I mean, sure it's fast and reliable and all, which is great, but while throttling, caps, and other limits still exist, the benefits of LTE are kinda rendered useless to me...
It's like saying, "Here! You can drive this supercar as fast as you want!!*"
*Up to a certain point, at which time you have to reduce your speed to a crawl, or be charged $10 more for every mile past that point...
Really? Wow, no thanks. I'm good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My (fairly limited) experience with both AT&T's and Verizon's LTE networks has been pretty good, actually. It's not about 30+ Mbps downloads, but about landline-level latency. HSPA+ is plenty fast in terms of raw throughput--realistically getting 5-6Mbps regularly is more than enough for loading images off webpages or youtube clips. However, I found LTE to be much more responsive on top of being faster--though it's possible this is as much a function of newer, less-congested networks as of LTE itself. Still, I think you could fool me into thinking that an LTE connection was, in fact, a landline, whereas the latency involved in every webpage load over HSPA+ would never pass muster.
Throttling/bandwidth caps are another issue entirely, but I'm not looking to go on a jihad here, and I don't think they entirely negate the benefits of LTE.
Jade Eyed Wolf said:
It's like saying, "Here! You can drive this supercar as fast as you want!!*"
*Up to a certain point, at which time you have to reduce your speed to a crawl, or be charged $10 more for every mile past that point...
Really? Wow, no thanks. I'm good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bet you're someone who drives their superfast car as fast they want(!!) and wonders why they get speeding tickets or why car insurance is so required too.
Its your car, sure, but its the carriers road. Oh, and before you try the monthly bill argument... you pay your taxes to the state/city/fed too, still gotta pay your fine for going over the limit.
@OP: All that being said, I'd recommend just getting the wifi version and calling it a day.
Sent from my Galaxy Tab 7.7
unremarked said:
I bet you're someone who drives their superfast car as fast they want(!!) and wonders why they get speeding tickets or why car insurance is so required too.
Its your car, sure, but its the carriers road. Oh, and before you try the monthly bill argument... you pay your taxes to the state/city/fed too, still gotta pay your fine for going over the limit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I certainly do drive my supercar as fast as I want, and until recently, I have been doing so on the proverbial autobahn, with no limitations to my capabilities.
To put it another way, let's go ahead and compare AT&T/VZW LTE with other ISP technologies, like Cable and FiOS. Yes I know, the other two are landline based tech, but bear with me here...
See, all three of these tech's, whether wired or wireless, are all last-mile technologies. They all have some kind of local distribution point. With Cable, it would be your neighborhood's hub, or with FiOS, it's your local optical splitter, with LTE, it's the tower.
So, if LTE can consistently deliver bandwidth and latency on par with, or in competition to the other technologies, and in particular, if it costs the wireless carrier less in terms of maintaining service (no need for house calls for stupid things like one person not being able to figure out how to reboot their modem), then it stands to reason that data access and costs for LTE ought to be similar to what one already expects from the former technologies. Anything less than that is just being greedy.
I mean, you figure how much bandwidth land based ISP's are able to give to their customers, without limitation, and now LTE provides that same capability to wireless ISP's too? The wired ISP's are handling it just fine. Wireless ISP's are creating the illusion that they somehow can't do the same, which is just simply not true. LTE makes the carrier cost/per MB exponentially cheaper to provide service. So, why isn't that savings being passed on to the consumer? Hmmm...
Thus, I stand by my original position: While greedy artificial limitations, modeled for, and designed within the confines of the previous generation's technology, remain as they are, I see no point in upgrading.
Most of the would-be benefits of LTE are squelched by the limitations and artificial cost restrictions imposed upon us.
AT&T advertises all the time how you can stream video, or post your video's on Facebook, etc. Except that, the more I do all those things, the quicker I'm running into overages or throttling anyway, so what's the point?
Is LTE a big deal for you? Do you even live in the US ? What are your conditions regarding speeds in your area.
Yes LTE is a better technology... but in practice... HSPA is much more established and will give more than sufficient results:
http://www.phonearena.com/news/T-Mo...ter-than-Verizons-4G-LTE-in-11-cities_id31387
I'm not saying I'm glad the device doesn't have LTE, just that it doesn't really affect me in any way at this point in time.
I live in Vancouver, Canada where LTE is readily available and I don't use it. HSPA+ gets me plenty of speed for the /whopping/ 30 minutes a day my phone is on mobile data (commute to and from work; 15m each way). HSPA+ in Canada is from all providers and has great coverage. I regularly get 10-12Mbps. I've been testing a lot lately and I've managed to get 22Mbps and 25Mbps at certain points/times as well on HSPA+. I have zero need for anything faster than that as all I do is stream radio while walking.
I really hate how the American bias towards LTE, because your providers seem to suck, is affecting this phone. By all accounts in the reviews out there "If you don't live in the US, LTE isn't a big deal and this phone is amazing". That's enough for me. I'm on wifi for 95% of my usage anyways. 100Mbps line at home and 250Mbps line at work. Screw LTE.
Pragmata said:
I live in Vancouver, Canada where LTE is readily available and I don't use it. HSPA+ gets me plenty of speed for the /whopping/ 30 minutes a day my phone is on mobile data (commute to and from work; 15m each way). HSPA+ in Canada is from all providers and has great coverage. I regularly get 10-12Mbps. I've been testing a lot lately and I've managed to get 22Mbps and 25Mbps at certain points/times as well on HSPA+. I have zero need for anything faster than that as all I do is stream radio while walking.
I really hate how the American bias towards LTE, because your providers seem to suck, is affecting this phone. By all accounts in the reviews out there "If you don't live in the US, LTE isn't a big deal and this phone is amazing". That's enough for me. I'm on wifi for 95% of my usage anyways. 100Mbps line at home and 250Mbps line at work. Screw LTE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see your point, but US providers don't "suck" lol. People are bashing LTE on this phone because so many carriers on the US already provide it.
Don't care about lte
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
iAndropple said:
I see your point, but US providers don't "suck" lol. People are bashing LTE on this phone because so many carriers on the US already provide it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get that, but all the major carriers in Canada provide LTE too. The difference is all of our major carriers provide HSPA+ AND LTE so the absence of one simply means the use of the other and speeds on both are phenomenal for a bloody phone. xD I've never understood the necessity for residential internet speeds on your phone. I have a 100Mbps line at home so I can download Steam games really fast. What do people do on their phones that require LTE anyways?
My point about the "seem to suck" comment (which I admit I did say 'seem' because I don't have experience with them) is that from what I have learned, Verizon doesn't have HSPA so the lack of LTE means that the speeds then drop to 3G speeds for them? If that's accurate, a major provider not having both HSPA+ and LTE seems a bit sucky to me. I really guess I just don't understand what people need LTE for or how it affects your phone use. In terms of pure network, LTE is like getting a ferrari when you drive for maybe 5 minutes a day. HSPA+ does everything LTE does at more than acceptable speeds. If the issue is because some of the US networks coverage of HSPA+ is absent or limited, that should reflect upon the providers and not the phone.
I'm not too bothered about LTE either. Though it's available in the UK city in which I reside term-time, which is most of the time, it isn't available in my hometown where my family home is. Sure, by the time I'm done in my student city, LTE will most likely be available at "home" but by then the Nexus 4 will be old and in need of a replacement. I don't need it right now, so DC-HSPA is fine for me. More than fine, actually. Plus my phone is on WiFi most of the time anyway. ;D
TeRRa4 said:
I'm not too bothered about LTE either. Though it's available in the UK city in which I reside term-time, which is most of the time, it isn't available in my hometown where my family home is. Sure, by the time I'm done in my student city, LTE will most likely be available at "home" but by then the Nexus 4 will be old and in need of a replacement. I don't need it right now, so DC-HSPA is fine for me. More than fine, actually. Plus my phone is on WiFi most of the time anyway. ;D
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed
I live in the US but LTE doesn't exist within about a 250 mile radius of where I live so HSPA+ is fine by me!
I live outside the US and LTE is just starting here. I live in the second town of my nation and the first 4G antennas will start to emit here for the public on 1st quarter 2013. Google made the Nexus S 4G, then the Verizon Galaxy Nexus 4G, so why not a Nexus 4 4G tomorrow ?:highfive:
There is a good amount of LTE in my area (SF + the surrounding area), but I suppose I don't NEED it. I've been perfectly fine without it (currently with a Motorola Atrix). However like most of you here, you want the best you can get for your area.
Pragmata said:
.... The difference is all of our major carriers provide HSPA+ AND LTE so the absence of one simply means the use of the other and speeds on both are phenomenal for a bloody phone.....What do people do on their phones that require LTE anyways?
I really guess I just don't understand what people need LTE for or how it affects your phone use.
If the issue is because some of the US networks coverage of HSPA+ is absent or limited, that should reflect upon the providers and not the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. It's the idea that Google is pushing consumers to rely more on the cloud, yet "cripple" the phone's ability to CONNECT TO the cloud by not providing LTE. I live in San Diego - we have LTE here and it works great on all my friends' IPhone 5s.
2. While LTE is certainly NOT COMMONPLACE, it is non-negotiable that it is the infrastructure of the future. HSPA+ represents the pinnacle of it's infrastructure, while LTE is the infancy stage of the a newer, higher throughput technology. As a result, you're paying however much for a phone that is not really very future proof. Regardless of how good of a deal this phone is in the near term, you kind of lose out in the long term, especially when viewed in regards to item 1.
3. Since there is no CDMA version of the Nexus 4, it won't work on Verizon or Sprint in the US anyways. T-mobile has ONLY HSPA+ and AT&T has LTE and HSPA+, with HSPA+ coverage being greater than LTE (in San Diego anyways). LTE coverage, however, is expanding, and will be much more available within the next 2 years. Therefore it's not neccessarily that HSPA+ is limited, its that LTE is limited and that's why Google has chosen to omit it from their device, which may be smart in the near term, but again limits the long term relevance of the phone.
4. As a corollary to 3, Google is really just doing the same thing LG has done with the Optimus G but in a different form. Google doesn't provide LTE, so in 2 years you really will need to buy a new phone if you want to transfer large files to and from your cloud, which you will have to do because your phone only has 8GB or 16GB of on-board storage. LG forces you to buy a new phone because they haven't provided updates to their phone since it's release on day 1 and your phone is horribly laggy and bloated and it's bootloader is locked.
This resonates much like Apple's philosophy, which we all bash them for, yet we defend Google vehemently when it does the same in a more inconspicuous way.
I'm a complete loss for what to do now because I really need a new phone lol.
I live in the USA near Washington DC and I live in strong LTE coverage by Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint (allegedly). I've used LTE and while it's nice, I don't require it. In addition, I like being able to use a SIM card in any country I visit. HSPA+ is more than sufficient for me.
It doesn't bother me. I currently have Verizon and have a Galaxy Nexus. My plan for two lines and unlimited data on LTE costs me 180 USD a month. My same plan, but with more minutes would cost me 100 USD on T-Mobile. Almost double check the cost just for LTE speeds? My contract is up in January. So long, Verizon! Your business practises suck. Hspa+ isn't so bad that it's a steep departure. Half the price plus my phone is unlocked so I can switch carriers if T-Mobile starts to play games with my bill? Awesome.
I'm on TMo and there is no LTE.
So, I can care less atm.
TeRRa4 said:
I'm not too bothered about LTE either. Though it's available in the UK city in which I reside term-time, which is most of the time, it isn't available in my hometown where my family home is. Sure, by the time I'm done in my student city, LTE will most likely be available at "home" but by then the Nexus 4 will be old and in need of a replacement. I don't need it right now, so DC-HSPA is fine for me. More than fine, actually. Plus my phone is on WiFi most of the time anyway. ;D
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Has anyone actually tested the ee network in the real world yet? Here in the UK LTE has finally started to rollout but at the launch event the speeds were not that impressive anyway. Anyway at £26 a month for 500mb i think LTE won't be that popular here for some time when three are offering decent speeds with all you can eat data for £10
Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF300T using Tapatalk 2
dontdo_that said:
1. It's the idea that Google is pushing consumers to rely more on the cloud, yet "cripple" the phone's ability to CONNECT TO the cloud by not providing LTE. I live in San Diego - we have LTE here and it works great on all my friends' IPhone 5s.
2. While LTE is certainly NOT COMMONPLACE, it is non-negotiable that it is the infrastructure of the future. HSPA+ represents the pinnacle of it's infrastructure, while LTE is the infancy stage of the a newer, higher throughput technology. As a result, you're paying however much for a phone that is not really very future proof. Regardless of how good of a deal this phone is in the near term, you kind of lose out in the long term, especially when viewed in regards to item 1.
3. Since there is no CDMA version of the Nexus 4, it won't work on Verizon or Sprint in the US anyways. T-mobile has ONLY HSPA+ and AT&T has LTE and HSPA+, with HSPA+ coverage being greater than LTE (in San Diego anyways). LTE coverage, however, is expanding, and will be much more available within the next 2 years. Therefore it's not neccessarily that HSPA+ is limited, its that LTE is limited and that's why Google has chosen to omit it from their device, which may be smart in the near term, but again limits the long term relevance of the phone.
4. As a corollary to 3, Google is really just doing the same thing LG has done with the Optimus G but in a different form. Google doesn't provide LTE, so in 2 years you really will need to buy a new phone if you want to transfer large files to and from your cloud, which you will have to do because your phone only has 8GB or 16GB of on-board storage. LG forces you to buy a new phone because they haven't provided updates to their phone since it's release on day 1 and your phone is horribly laggy and bloated and it's bootloader is locked.
This resonates much like Apple's philosophy, which we all bash them for, yet we defend Google vehemently when it does the same in a more inconspicuous way.
I'm a complete loss for what to do now because I really need a new phone lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You make great points and I definitely understand where you are coming from, I would still argue that the speeds HSPA+ provides are more than enough for at least the next year and whether your carrier supports that or not is more on them and less on the manufacturer.
That said, I do have a couple follow-ups cause I think you raised some good points and I'm interested in getting your thoughts.
A) At (max) 350$, do you feel that you really wouldn't be opposed to upgrading in a years time when there could potentially be a new Nexus with LTE? For me 350$ is a steal when I regularly buy a new phone every year for 600+. I know not everyone upgrades on a yearly cadence, but if present and future Nexi were priced around that point, I think it might be something more widely adopted. Perhaps this isn't meant to be a "long-term" phone? Obivously the base argument is that you would want something to last, but if it's affordable why not speed up the upgrade cycle?
B) If we disregard carrier failings and just pit HSPA+ against LTE, I don't see how HSPA+ would be such a deprecated technology that it will be irrelevant within 2 years. Sure, LTE will be bigger and better by then with more coverage, but by no means is HSPA+ something to scoff at. A potential 42Mbps on your phone EASILY gives you all the Cloud throughput you need. I had a 50Mbps residential line for my home internet before upgrading to 100Mbps and I can tell you thinks moved seamlessly. 42Mbps is hardly something that won't let you push and pull content on the Cloud. So you might say that you don't get nearly that on X's network, but that isn't reflective of the technology itself. Maybe X just needs to improve their HSPA+ networks while working on LTE.
I kind of see it like the CPU progress on desktop computers. HSPA+ represents a Dual Core/Quad Core CPU that can be clocked at 4Ghz. Even in mainstream computing today most games/apps/programs barely take advantage of a full optimized Dual Core high clock CPU, yet manufacturers are pushing out Hexa- and even Octo-Core CPU's at low clock rates. Those are like LTE. It's going to be a WHILE before we can properly use 16 threads and 4Ghz of speed on a CPU. And just because those CPU's exist, doesn't mean someone should not buy a Dual/Quad Core CPU. Sure, you can't add more cores to it so it's not "future-proof", but we don't even take full advantage of it yet...
C) I'm still curious at what LTE users like yourself are pushing that you feel pressured in the near future that HSPA+ won't provide (again disregarding shortcomings of providers). Myself, I don't do any media use on my phone so I'm obviously the opposite, but even imagining if I was streaming video and pushing lots of media, I can't forsee the need for a connection faster than what I have to my home. The only possible thing I was able to think of is someone with an unlimited data plan (doesn't exist in Canada) that uses their cell connection as their internet connection and tether their computer through it 100% of the time. Just pure curiosity as per what LTE people push.
I suppose most of this all comes down to the provider limitations and as such necessity for LTE, but I'd be more upset at my provider than the manufacturer. Google has built a worldwide product that can reach amazing speeds on HSPA+ networks. I know America is a powerhouse, but you aren't the be-all-end-all in deciding how a phone should be made. LTE has a lot of reach in Canada on all major providers, but they all also have HSPA+ with great coverage. Only people on smaller or piggyback providers are losing out on LTE, but everyone has HSPA. Maybe the American providers should stop fighting with each other over proprietary LTE spectrums.
If you are hankering for a new phone and don't want this, I'd probably say the Razr Maxx or One X+. Those are my runner ups (Once they finally hit Canadian borders) Since you are on these forums I'll disregard suggesting the locked bootloader Optimus G.
I don't understand this.
LTE is available only in USA and a small amount of other countries as a whole. the world isn't only USA and the 10% places. They've made our such a big issue for everyone, and all the reviewers are complaining about no LTE like every country in the world has it.
There is world outside USA you know...
I don't care for LTE and micro SD slot. I just want this phone in my hands already!
UK here. 4G on just one network in only 10 cities. The lack of 4G means nothing to us Brits!