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hey all, i was wondering if anyone had any information on the SGSII potentially coming to T-Mobile in the US. I read online that we might not get an actual SGSII and the we might get the Hercules and i've also heard that the Hercules will be the T-Mo version of the SGSII. I really would love to get one so i'm just hoping that they come stateside.
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Havent heard of anything for tmobile, just sprint/bell and possibly att lte sgs2.
Juls317 said:
hey all, i was wondering if anyone had any information on the SGSII potentially coming to T-Mobile in the US. I read online that we might not get an actual SGSII and the we might get the Hercules and i've also heard that the Hercules will be the T-Mo version of the SGSII. I really would love to get one so i'm just hoping that they come stateside.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Hercules is a variant of the U.S. market Infuse with a dual-core TI SoC. What other features it has haven't been confirmed. It's due out in September. T-Mobile won't be getting a version of the SGS2.
http://thisismynext.com/2011/05/17/exclusive-samsung-hercules-t-mobile-dual-core-infuse-4g/
would it be possible to buy an I9100 and unlock it and use it on tmobile
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Juls317 said:
would it be possible to buy an I9100 and unlock it and use it on tmobile
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Click to collapse
You'd only get EDGE data speeds. Your only hope for a version that works on T-Mobile's bands is if Wind Canada gets one. But the Canadian's on the forum have said it's a Bell Canada exclusive so it's a long shot.
BarryH_GEG said:
You'd only get EDGE data speeds. Your only hope for a version that works on T-Mobile's bands is if Wind Canada gets one. But the Canadian's on the forum have said it's a Bell Canada exclusive so it's a long shot.
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Click to collapse
Just got SGS2, it is connected to t-mobile usa, and it does only get EDGE speeds, and no HSPA+.
I can still keep it for trying out stuff for a bit, and would install any custom mods to try. If won't work, I may want to return it.
Is Wind Canada the only one with HSPA+ which is an option here?
There is no way to add only that support on top of a stock android?
The other feature that's needed to make it an excellent offering it T-Mobile Wi-Fi calling.
Any suggestions?
Ok, got an att sim and hspa+ works getting 6mbit downloads wih sgs2 now. Will only have that sim for test for three days. Though att is definitly costlier than tmobile for data and phone plans and they charge for overage rather than throttle.
Still my preference would be to hspa+ on tmobile, get tmobile wifi calling to work etc.
Also noted that tmobile wifi calling wont show as an app that backup software can see.
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arntgur said:
Ok, got an att sim and hspa+ works getting 6mbit downloads wih sgs2 now. Will only have that sim for test for three days. Though att is definitly costlier than tmobile for data and phone plans and they charge for overage rather than throttle.
Still my preference would be to hspa+ on tmobile, get tmobile wifi calling to work etc.
Also noted that tmobile wifi calling wont show as an app that backup software can see.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
I don't see AT&T being quite more expensive unless you really need the unlimited minutes. Otherwise you could get the medianet plan since the S2 isn't detected as a smartphone, which will solve your data problem for overages.
On tmobile i pay $25 for 'unlimited' data which means after 5gb it is throttled. I am on a no contract plan. Price for contract plan is $30 for the same data plan.
If i dont pay for overage its great. Yet them not recognizing it as smartphone may not hold for too long, as us flavors of s2 are being prepared.
While it does last that they dont recognise it as a smartphone, are you also on smallest data plan and pay the minimum?
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arntgur said:
On tmobile i pay $25 for 'unlimited' data which means after 5gb it is throttled. I am on a no contract plan. Price for contract plan is $30 for the same data plan.
If i dont pay for overage its great. Yet them not recognizing it as smartphone may not hold for too long, as us flavors of s2 are being prepared.
While it does last that they dont recognise it as a smartphone, are you also on smallest data plan and pay the minimum?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
There is an unlimited non smartphone data plan in att for just $15 and many of us are on that plan.
We do get hspa+ speeds on this plan. Pretty good deal compared to tmobile.
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I just bought an unlocked SGSII http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16875176292 from Newegg on "sale." It states that it has UMTS 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 MHz.
I thought T-mobile used 900 and 2100. Can anyone explain why it doesn't work with T-mobile?
Thanks.
gspears said:
I just bought an unlocked SGSII http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16875176292 from Newegg on "sale." It states that it has UMTS 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 MHz.
I thought T-mobile used 900 and 2100. Can anyone explain why it doesn't work with T-mobile?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
T-mobile uses 1700 and 2100, not 900 and 2100.
That would explain it.
Rrr, guess i missed the same point about tmobile's bands. There was a list of the 4 freauencies and no distinction of which one is for voice, data etc.
So running a speed test using AnTuTu benchmark clearly shows sgsii is a great pick performance wise as it is dominating the charts. Though that app lack a distinction for original cpu speeds. I may overclock it if i get time as its a fun game, thouhgh not right now.
Data plan wise, on att usa, you are on $15 for non smartphone. The its ar their mercy, and they could identify sgsii as smartphone anytime in which case we'd loose that excellent option, right?
Now got my previous smartphone, mytouch 4g with tmobile on a family plan. And that one would likely not fit on att hspa+ eigher. I can validate it later with my test card from att.
Phone plan wise att family starts at $69 for 700 min for two lines, and they also got 550 min unadvertized for $10 less. This is still $10 above t mobile base for family at $49, yet no big deal if att data is cheaper at $15 with the mentioned 'non smartphone' option.
With att data on hspa+, you vuys easily use the mobile access point without limitations? Have anyone tried vpning and working on that, remote desktop to work machine for a significant time, full working day, etc?
With my att test sim, hspa+ downloads are fine, anywhere from 1.5 to 6 mbits, uploads sometimes were slow around 300
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
... uploads were around 300 kbit.
Will test it some more today and tomorrow from more locations in the area.
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arntgur said:
Now got my previous smartphone, mytouch 4g with tmobile on a family plan. And that one would likely not fit on att hspa+ eigher. I can validate it later with my test card from att.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To save you and everyone else the trouble, as of now:
- There is no AT&T phone that supports HSPA+ on T-Mobile's network
- There is no T-Mobile phone that supports HSPA+ on AT&T's network
- There is no unbranded phone that supports HSPA+ on T-Mobile and AT&T, you have to pick one or the other. The SGS2 does not support, and most likely will never support, T-Mobile's funky AWS bands.
The Hercules is rumored to have AT&T's bands. So was the G2X and it didn't.
Thanks, that clarifies.
To maintain at least HSPA+ speeds, I can either Of two options:
- keep sgsii, move to AT&T, find how to migrate another existing smartphone since my tough 4g won't work with AT&T's data. *Maybe sell it and get another AT&T phone.
- return sgsii and stay on tmobile.
Have talked to AT&T support, and they confirmed that data plans for non smartphones begin at $10. *And that sgsii does not show as anything in their systems now neither a smartphone nor a non-smartphone. *And that it is correct that they can't guarantee anything about not identifying it as a smartphone in future.
So the best chance of the $15 data for non smartphones to last is if we get lucky enough that when they do launch the us AT&T version of sgsii, then the international one will be left out.
I am not exactly clear why the $15 non smartphone plan is needed over the $10 one. *Though, cant test too much with my AT&T temp sim, as they didn't want to change the plan the store gave me due to being on a trial period.
Still got today to try att sim out and can return with no fees, so will call or step by the store and check if that would be possible. *One challenge is that they already saw the phone and got excited, and listed it as a smartphone plan. * ..., we'll see how it goes...
Then I am also reading that AT&T talks about a dual LTE/HSPA+ support, yet that lte may take time to be battery friendly (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1162330&page=2). *
So possibly waiting for LTE to mature is not practical, in which case maybe no point in waiting for AT&T us version of sgsii which may only add LTE.
Coming from tmobile hspa+ usage since nov 2010, now when testing AT&T, it is more influenced from during the day traffic and speeds are slower vs faster speeds at less conventional hours. *Also seeing some sporadic speed tests issues coming from another device using the wifi hotspot - usually the upload, sometimes download too is near zero speed. *While most speed tests are decent. *Then have not seen any of that on tmobile.
One issue making me consider moving to AT&T is that tmobiles speeds in my new place are very bad for hspa+ if it at all it gets an*hspa signal. *Used to never need wifi and get consistent 4-6 mbits downloads ..., now getting even 1 from tmobile is a challenge.
Then, would like fast Internet when traveling overseas. *And tmobiles phone worked well last time with fast speeds. * Then I have seen some mentioning that tmobiles bands could be better for world traveling than AT&T, is that so?
(For instance*http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/android/thread?tid=4d1bbd0f46632e8d&hl=en has:
I can only say I use T-Mobile version and it IS working. I don't have AT&T one, can say nothing about it. Reason I have in mind while selecting model - in the most of the world T-Mobile version will have better coverage.
)
arntgur said:
Thanks, that clarifies.
To maintain at least HSPA+ speeds, I can either Of two options:
- keep sgsii, move to AT&T, find how to migrate another existing smartphone since my tough 4g won't work with AT&T's data. *Maybe sell it and get another AT&T phone.
- return sgsii and stay on tmobile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- The $10 plan requires an unlimited messaging plan. The $15 plan is a stand-alone.
- The carrier versions of the SGS2 will have different model numbers and a different series of IMEI codes so I doubt that would effect the international SGS2 in AT&T's database.
- Our SGS2 won't support LTE. But it's going to take AT&T at least a year and a half to get any meaningful LTE penetration.
- I came from T-Mobile. AT&T's HSPA+ clocks a lot slower than T-Mobile's and isn't as widely available. For some reason though, things like video buffer less for me even though the speeds clock slower.
- AT&T is far better for international travel. They have roaming data plans you can pre-purchase that are less than 1/4 of what T-Mobile charges. Also, because the SGS2 is unlocked, you can pick up a SIM locally if you want to.
I'm surprised T-Mo isn't getting the GSII, they're usually good with Android.Well, this sucks...
jasonleb1 said:
I'm surprised T-Mo isn't getting the GSII, they're usually good with Android.Well, this sucks...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No offense, but they're also the smallest carrier and are in the process of going away. I'm guessing they're getting an Infuse variant instead because Samsung's got the production capacity and probably cut them a deal.
Im going to leave sprint and go to AT&T. Now Im new to AT&Ts phones, and I was wondering a few things.
1. How are the speeds in general? With sprint I'll usually pull only .500-.700 mb under 3g but 4g is 5+mb in a good area. Usually I cant get 4g though.
2. Im unsure on their phones, so which phone is the top contender now? Anything new coming out soon that I should wait for?
Thanks guys.
AT&T is pretty expensive, Im using it just because I get a discount. But if that doesnt bother you, I believe you will like the service compared to Sprint (depends on area)
•HSPA+ speeds range from 3 to 7mbps depending on area compared to the .2 to .8 I used to get on Sprint. Not to mention its LTE if u are covered where it ranged from 8 to 20mbps average where I live
•AT&T is notorious for getting most of the top phones, its gonna release the HTC One X, Skyrocket HD, Nokia Lumia 900 and HTC Titan 2 soon, but right now the top phone is the Galaxy Note LTE ImO.
Another good advantage is that its bands are compatible with the interational unlokced phones you can import so you get fast 3G / 4G speeds on its network unlike TMobile.
all in all, if price isnt an issue, you will like the choices and services from my experience
Best phones on AT&T are the note and if you don't want/care for LTE then the galaxy s 2. (not sky rocket)
I can get any were form 2Mb DL to 7MB DL on 3g and 8-12DL on H+ "4g".
You should try and buy a 2G iphone and get unlimited data first and then buy what ever phone you want.
P.S Why not verizon?
Hmm. Thanks guys.. 4ktvs any info on the 2g loophole?
Im paying 141 a mth on sprint for two lines with a discount of 24%. The speeds SUCK! WE have unlimited data etc, 1800 landline minutes and free mobile to mobile etc.
We ( being my fiance and I ) use 200 mins a mth, if that. I use around 2gb average a mth. the most Ive done was 2.9gb a mth. So AT&T is around the same price but way faster, given less data. I also have 700 mins shared, unlimited text/mobile to mobile.
I dont think verizon can do anything more for me, as their plans seem to be a bit more.
edit: Why the SGII Over the skyrocket version?
The Lumia 900 will reach att soon. Honestly, I can't see anything else you can't get elsewhere. My speeds are excellent though, on 3g I get 1.3 dl. It's dependant on your region though.
z33dev33l said:
The Lumia 900 will reach att soon. Honestly, I can't see anything else you can't get elsewhere. My speeds are excellent though, on 3g I get 1.3 dl. It's dependant on your region though.
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Click to collapse
what do you mean by" I cant see anything else you cant get where?" Sprints speeds suck. So I need to go with someone else. Verizon seemed more expensive, AT&T is almost the same price, but less mins, less data but faster speeds.
Tmo, Im guessing is out of the picture and Verizon is known for charging a lot more than others.
Well, pretty much every other big ticket phone has a clone on the other networks. That can't be said about the lumia 900.
mroneeyedboh said:
Hmm. Thanks guys.. 4ktvs any info on the 2g loophole?
Im paying 141 a mth on sprint for two lines with a discount of 24%. The speeds SUCK! WE have unlimited data etc, 1800 landline minutes and free mobile to mobile etc.
We ( being my fiance and I ) use 200 mins a mth, if that. I use around 2gb average a mth. the most Ive done was 2.9gb a mth. So AT&T is around the same price but way faster, given less data. I also have 700 mins shared, unlimited text/mobile to mobile.
I dont think verizon can do anything more for me, as their plans seem to be a bit more.
edit: Why the SGII Over the skyrocket version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) I am not 100% it works any more, but if you buy a iphone 2g and reset it to stock and put a sim in it to sign up for a plan with itunes, then unlimited data should be up there, if not try calling AT&T and tell them you got an iphone 2g and it needs the unlimited data plan to work right and update.
2)The non skyrocket has a better CPU. I have tryed both and I think you would likely like that one better and it cost less. The 900 won't come out for about 30 or so days, but if you can wait you may want to get one.
3) If you want a phone with 4gLTE then the note is better than the skyrocket.( the 1280x800 oled 5.3 vs 4.5 800x480. That is a lot lower rez)
If you are/can wait, then the 900 for 100 is not bad or what will likely be one of the best phones of the year the HTC ONE X would be a good pick and if you are/can wait, go for that one.( Is called the one x and I just called it the one. lol)
lolthanks man. I think I seen someone said they did it recently and it still worked.. I 'll look into the iphone 2g loop.
Lets bump this for the late night crew
T-Mobile has 2 lines unlimited everything for $100.I usually get about 23.mbps on 4g.
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Sent from my Dell Streak 7
I would just say to try all the phones that you think you would like and pick it based on what it is now.
OP, my take here.
If you want speed, I guess ATT and Verizon are good choices.
Both are expensive.
Both are trying to rip us off.
Both have top-notch phones.
Verizon is well-known for coverage, better if not much better than ATT coverage.
Verizon has better LTE coverage. LTE means faster and also mean draining phone's battery faster. Take your choice.
Verizon utilizes the CDMA technology while ATT using GSM.
GSM => you can unlock and use with other GSM providers, especially handy when travel abroad.
GSM => you can talk AND surf at the same time, CMDA can't.
---------- Post added at 01:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:35 PM ----------
Also, I don't know about Verizon but ATT does have free mobile-to-mobile minutes so take advanced of it.
I agree..I have had Att and Verizon...for me Att had been better...the gsm feature itself is nice if you break your phone..pop the Sim on another phone and keep going...there customer service sucks but if you ask for the resolutions department...they will give you about anything to make you happy...hence my wifes skyrocket 6 months before upgrade was available
Sent from my SGH-I777 using XDA
I've had AT&T for about 6 years now, I've never had a problem with service, dropped calls, poor signal, etc.
They've never wowed me, but I've not had a single problem that I can recall. I think people just like to complain about stuff. Everyone I know hates whatever carrier they're on, so pick the phone you like best and go with it
votinh said:
OP, my take here.
If you want speed, I guess ATT and Verizon are good choices.
Both are expensive.
Both are trying to rip us off.
Both have top-notch phones.
Verizon is well-known for coverage, better if not much better than ATT coverage.
Verizon has better LTE coverage. LTE means faster and also mean draining phone's battery faster. Take your choice.
Verizon utilizes the CDMA technology while ATT using GSM.
GSM => you can unlock and use with other GSM providers, especially handy when travel abroad.
GSM => you can talk AND surf at the same time, CMDA can't.
---------- Post added at 01:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:35 PM ----------
Also, I don't know about Verizon but ATT does have free mobile-to-mobile minutes so take advanced of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
my cdma phone can talk and surf at same time. all newer phones on verizon seem to be coming out with this functionality. needless to say, I've never actually needed to use this feature so find no advantage with it.
... ... ...
On the Rezound you can talk and surf while on 3G as well.
Sent from my ADR6425LVW
votinh said:
OP, my take here.
If you want speed, I guess ATT and Verizon are good choices.
Both are expensive.
Both are trying to rip us off.
Both have top-notch phones.
Verizon is well-known for coverage, better if not much better than ATT coverage.
Verizon has better LTE coverage. LTE means faster and also mean draining phone's battery faster. Take your choice.
Verizon utilizes the CDMA technology while ATT using GSM.
GSM => you can unlock and use with other GSM providers, especially handy when travel abroad.
GSM => you can talk AND surf at the same time, CMDA can't.
---------- Post added at 01:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:35 PM ----------
Also, I don't know about Verizon but ATT does have free mobile-to-mobile minutes so take advanced of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I heard AT&T are working on shared data plans for family plans. Instead of $30 every month for each phone that has a data plan, there will be a shared option in the near future. This will be pretty interesting.
It is really up to which carrier has the best coverage where you mainly reside. AT&T is pretty good since you have unlimited mobile to any mobile now. I barely tap into my 450 minutes and i have rollover minutes for days. I honestly say my choice came down to which one would be more economical but a better bang for my buck. AT&T ended up being that. 1. I don't pay for phone insurance because if our phones get stolen it would cost all of $25 dollars to get a cheap phone and a free replacement sim. To me being based on GSM is worth more. As far as internet speeds and all that I say it doesn't matter when it comes to our cell phones. The combination of chipsets and software.
So, its just about time to upgrade to upgrade my Sprint Phone (Evo). I got it coming up in May, unless something changes I might be going with the SG2, just looks great and it has capabilities for LTE as well as Wimax.
I just got a new job that lets me get a discount on T-Mobile, and I after looking at their plans, it would save me a few bucks (literally like 4). I have heard rumors that HSPA+ is slighly faster than Wimax but I never compared the two.
So HSPA+ faster than Wimax?
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I use my phone 90% of the time as a router. My college blocks everything so I am always on tether. I just looked it up and used 16GB last month, and that seems to be the lower average. My point is that Sprint's unlimited truly means unlimited with no caps. T-Mobile throttles after 2GB or 5GB according to the plan. How much of a throttle? Is it significant?
It throttles you down to EDGE speeds, so 2g. Around 20kbps, which won't load a black and white smiley face on your screen for 20 seconds. If you're going to use more than 5GB's per month, stick with Sprint.
T-Mobile throttles at different tiers on different plans, from 100MB-5GB
Speeds on HSPA+ seem to be faster for me on T-Mobile than on Sprint in Portland, Oregon. That could be different for you, but T-Mobile's 42mbps HSPA+ Is closer to LTE than WiMax in my opinion.
In some areas T-Mobile also forcibly compresses all images pulled down in web pages regardless of your data usage and data plan. There is no way to turn this "feature" off.
Well first the SGS2 does not support Wimax and lte...no device does except for a hotspot...
Imho you will be better off not getting the SGS2 and instead using your upgrade on a truly new device that the hardware spec is not a year old almost. That is unless $ is a big factor and you don't want to spend $250ish on a device...
Sent from my PG86100 using xda premium
Did some research and found you are right. It is really disappointing because I had a Sprint tech and a Sprint sales rep tell me point blank that the SG2 was Wimax and LTE. Can't trust people nowadays.
Battery consumption is much better with HSPA+ vs LTE.
TheBDub said:
It throttles you down to EDGE speeds, so 2g. Around 20kbps, which won't load a black and white smiley face on your screen for 20 seconds. If you're going to use more than 5GB's per month, stick with Sprint.
T-Mobile throttles at different tiers on different plans, from 100MB-5GB
Speeds on HSPA+ seem to be faster for me on T-Mobile than on Sprint in Portland, Oregon. That could be different for you, but T-Mobile's 42mbps HSPA+ Is closer to LTE than WiMax in my opinion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Goes to up to 10.
synaesthetic said:
In some areas T-Mobile also forcibly compresses all images pulled down in web pages regardless of your data usage and data plan. There is no way to turn this "feature" off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
False.
iball8888 said:
Did some research and found you are right. It is really disappointing because I had a Sprint tech and a Sprint sales rep tell me point blank that the SG2 was Wimax and LTE. Can't trust people nowadays.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah no problem, didn't want u going out and buying a device being that misled...
It's a shame when that crap happens to ppl.
Sent from my PG86100 using xda premium
sgt. slaughter said:
Yeah no problem, didn't want u going out and buying a device being that misled...
It's a shame when that crap happens to ppl.
Sent from my PG86100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used to be a Sprint store technician, and when the Epic Touch had the Loss of Signal issue (which has long been fixed, officially), Sprint's Tech Support over the phone told me that I should have bought an iPhone because Android always breaks. Word for word. I was like, ok so give me an iPhone, I'll give back the Epic Touch. And they said no.
These days you have to fend for yourself unfortunately. Chances are, if you're an XDA user, you know more than a carrier's tech support.
chrischoi said:
False.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Explain. I suffered this issue for four months and had to switch to AT&T to avoid it.
To the OP. I tried switching to t-mobile twice because IMO they have better phones and prices. but both times I had to switch back. my story: i knew tmobile had the 5gb data cap on teh monthly 4g plan i wanted so I checked my sprint data usage for 5 months and noticed i am only using 2-3 gb a month. I figured great so i went and got the Htc amaze after 6 days by data usage was over 1.5 gb. I went to the store and asked them is it possible that the data reading on the phone and website could be wrong? my setup was the same on my sprint evo and my htc amaze so it wasn't a program that could have been using that much data so i returned the phone. 2 weeks later i went back to the store drooling over the amaze but knew i couldn't get it because i would go over the 5gb easy. I spoke with a rep and he said he uses data heavily and never goes over so i said ok ill try it again maybe it was the phone. this time around i didn't tether at all except for 5 min to test it out. hardly used Pandora and made sure my setup was the same as the evo. this time i gave it 10 days and i was already over 3gb. i was half ass using my phone and still i would have been over. I have searched about this called tmobile and haven't come up with a good reason why this phone was using so much data. a buddy of mine went to att and i told him that he would def go over but after a few days he said no man im good . at the end of the month he called *****ing that he went over the att cap which was even lower than tmobile. until the come up with a prepaid plan that gives 10gb i have to stay away. oh yea and when they throttle you the above comments are correct its edge speed and way to slow for anything but email and light web surfing.
iball8888 said:
I just looked it up and used 16GB last month, and that seems to be the lower average. My point is that Sprint's unlimited truly means unlimited with no caps. T-Mobile throttles after 2GB or 5GB according to the plan. How much of a throttle? Is it significant?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this will be the main issue.
When I pass 5GB, I get throttled to EDGE (2G) speeds. For most purposes this is like running out of data. You're going to be stuck at 2GB or 5GB. Email is fine at EDGE speeds - anything else requires too much speed.
Stick with Sprint, as it seems the savings aren't really significant, anyway.
IMO Sprint sucks if you're not in a Wimax area and the Wimax isn't that great anyway.. Sprint's EVDO network is an absolute JOKE. I figured since I'm not covered by Wimax I'd switch my E4GT to Boost to save money, but Boost's(Sprint's) EVDO was nowhere near as fast as T-Mobile's 3G.. It really sucks because my E4GT is hands down the best phone I've ever used, but the internet is almost unusable it's so slow.. I'm putting it up for sale soon to switch back to T-Mobile.
Speeds really depend on where you live. I have spotty 4g in my area but never need it. at my house i have to use wifi but in most places i can stream Pandora without any buffering. everyone always talks about speed but as long as you can stream music and video without and buffering whats the issue? unless you are tethering to your pc and downloading torrents speeds over 250kps will stream just fine.
This is how Verizon does it:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDxJoGv3FLA&feature=channel
Now that is throttling right there. They send me a new phone and it does the same. They have lied to me 3 times now, one that was just needed a reset, that I just needed a new phone and they don't throttle. I had only used 12GB and they do that. OK thats BS
itsjefflol said:
IMO Sprint sucks if you're not in a Wimax area and the Wimax isn't that great anyway.. Sprint's EVDO network is an absolute JOKE. I figured since I'm not covered by Wimax I'd switch my E4GT to Boost to save money, but Boost's(Sprint's) EVDO was nowhere near as fast as T-Mobile's 3G.. It really sucks because my E4GT is hands down the best phone I've ever used, but the internet is almost unusable it's so slow.. I'm putting it up for sale soon to switch back to T-Mobile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Gonna be leaving right before the network takes a giant improvement with the network vision deployment set to be complete by end of next year....3G speeds 1-3Mbps....most all 3G coverage blanketed by LTE.....
Check S4GRU.com for some details on the rollout schedule. This isn't the sprint.com/network crap that's shown this is completely different and involves backhaul changes from the ancient T1 based to microwave/fiber based...
Sent from my PG86100 using xda premium
T-mobile rocks over Sprint for data, coverage and price
flexte said:
To the OP. I tried switching to t-mobile twice because IMO they have better phones and prices. but both times I had to switch back. my story: i knew tmobile had the 5gb data cap on teh monthly 4g plan i wanted so I checked my sprint data usage for 5 months and noticed i am only using 2-3 gb a month. I figured great so i went and got the Htc amaze after 6 days by data usage was over 1.5 gb. I went to the store and asked them is it possible that the data reading on the phone and website could be wrong? my setup was the same on my sprint evo and my htc amaze so it wasn't a program that could have been using that much data so i returned the phone. 2 weeks later i went back to the store drooling over the amaze but knew i couldn't get it because i would go over the 5gb easy. I spoke with a rep and he said he uses data heavily and never goes over so i said ok ill try it again maybe it was the phone. this time around i didn't tether at all except for 5 min to test it out. hardly used Pandora and made sure my setup was the same as the evo. this time i gave it 10 days and i was already over 3gb. i was half ass using my phone and still i would have been over. I have searched about this called tmobile and haven't come up with a good reason why this phone was using so much data. a buddy of mine went to att and i told him that he would def go over but after a few days he said no man im good . at the end of the month he called *****ing that he went over the att cap which was even lower than tmobile. until the come up with a prepaid plan that gives 10gb i have to stay away. oh yea and when they throttle you the above comments are correct its edge speed and way to slow for anything but email and light web surfing.
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I picked up my HTC Amaze (a 42.2 mbps device) on T-mobile in early January, and I live in a California city that has T-mobile HSPA+ 42.2 mbps coverage, just to be clear. When I bought my Amaze, I had to re-up my contract and at the time, I was asked to choose between a 5GB plan per month ($25 on top of the monthly $40 value plan) and a 10GB plan per month ($50 + my $40 value plan). So for price, it is impossible to beat T-mobile for the service you get.
I use my Amaze daily to go online, download and upload large files (I am a graphic designer) and watch videos and stream music. For the last 5 months I've had my phone, I've come close to 5GB twice. That is with heavy usage and this last month having a nearly two hour Skype conversation with a friend of mine where I used 2GB in one sitting!!! I also use my phone with the free WiFi Hotspot feature that comes with the 5GB & 10GB data plan as my computer's internet provider. I don't have a physical cable in my house, just my Amaze.
As far as speed, my friends with iPhones on ALL 3 NETWORKS (Sprint, Verizon and AT&T) all get slower speeds than I do. I was challenged by them and shut them all up in contests against google searches, Siri vs Google Voice Search and Speedtest.net. I have also speedtested the nicer handsets by Samsung and HTC running on AT&T and matched or beat them in my city in a few places around town. Sprint's speed was not even on the radar, barely chugging at 1mbps usually. I pull over 12 mbps usually everywhere I go, with upload speeds from 5-8 mbps on average.
As far as data, I have never gone over my 5GB but see how others could, and I bet when T-mobile gets LTE Advance up and running I'll add in the extra 5 gigs.
The greater points I'm making are the following:
A) Sprint's network it a sham. Even when they finally get around to offering LTE in California, which will be who-knows-when, T-mobile will have switched on its LTE advanced release 10 network, with HSPA+ 42.2 mbps backup, nationally. If you're a Sprint user, jump ship now or when T-mobile lights it up in 2013.
B) It's pretty darn hard to use up 5 Gigs per month if your not a power user. I don't know how someone with the HTC Amaze and the Usage monitor that is part of T-mobile's apps and in the HTC phone itself can't determine what was eating up data. That just doesn't make sense. You can easily pinpoint what's using your data by using the included Usage setting on your phone. And if 5GB isn't enough, get 10! But that option does exist.
C) T-mobile may not offer unlimited data speed at 4G, but get a 10GB plan and you will fly over the speeds you get on Sprint and save money while doing it. You could pay one price on Sprint for 1.5 mbps download speed unlimited (SLOW), or you could pay the same, maybe a little less and get 10GB at 4G speeds on T-mobile... and then in 2013 enjoy them lighting up a national LTE advance network that will arguably be the speediest LTE network on the planet.
D) The HTC Amaze is one bad-ass MoFo of a phone.
That is all.
for me i switched from t-mobile to boost because of their lack of 3g/4g in my town on t-mobile i was always on edge it is very slow, i switched to boost and i have EvDO now, its not the best of the best but atleast i can open a website now without my screen timing out. :good:
Product F(RED) said:
I used to be a Sprint store technician, and when the Epic Touch had the Loss of Signal issue (which has long been fixed, officially), Sprint's Tech Support over the phone told me that I should have bought an iPhone because Android always breaks. Word for word. I was like, ok so give me an iPhone, I'll give back the Epic Touch. And they said no.
These days you have to fend for yourself unfortunately. Chances are, if you're an XDA user, you know more than a carrier's tech support.
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You know what, they did the same thing to my dad. There was a hardware issue with his OG evo (a great phone during its day) where the speaker was going too quiet. The sales guy basically was telling him how it's because it's an android phone, how much better iphone is, etc.
Honestly I think the reason they are doing this is because they literally bet their future on the iphone. They are guaranteed to be paying apple 16 billion dollars over the next 4 years, regardless of whether or not they actually sell that much money worth of iphones. You better believe that they are going to try their damndest to sell them.
Anyways, I'm thinking of ditching sprint for t-mobile myself. I live in phoenix, which has zero 4g coverage from sprint. Several years back they told me that they would be deploying wimax here shortly. Where are we now? Nowhere.
I called them earlier today to cancel one of my lines, and they kept asking me if I want to use it for a data card, or if I just wanted to hold on to it "just in case" etc. I told the lady that I am thinking of switching to t-mobile, gave her all of these reasons why, and she brings up the "unlimited data" talking point. I kind of chuckle under my breath, and then tell her that their 3g service is really slow, their 4g service barely compares to other carrier's 3g service, and finally, they don't even offer 4g in my area, which is the 6th largest city in the US. She then tells me that they are going to be offering it here soon, so I tell her that that's what they told me a few years ago.
Yeah there are "rumors" that phoenix is due early in their second rollout, however similar rumors kept surfacing about wimax coming to phoenix next an entire year after it finished rolling out everywhere else. Other smaller towns outside of the valley (and I mean like over 70 miles away) got it, but not in the valley area.
In any case, I am on my third "4g" phone, and still have not ever had 4g. Even if LTE came soon to my area, I'm not terribly excited about it, mainly because the LTE gnex has a quarter of the battery life of the HSPA version when both are actively using 4g. I don't care if LTE is 10% faster, it's a huge f*cking battery drain.
Anyways, I'm not a heavy data user, so 4g hasn't been a huge priority to me. What is annoying is how I have to fight sprint's billing department every other month because they always manage to screw up something on my bill and overcharge me. I've been dealing with this for the last 7 years and I am tired of it. Sprint sucks, 'nuff said.
I really want to jump off of sprint, but I am hesitant because I don't know if t-mobile's voice service is more spotty, because according to sensorly their coverage is about 80% of that of sprint in my area. However, t-mobile would save me $40 a month, and because of the company I work for, I will have the activation fee waived.
Sprint coverage is so spotty. According to the coverage map I'm suppose to get 4g in my neighborhood and I don't. 98% percent of the time I'm on slow 3g. With T-Mobile I'm on 4g everywhere I go and its a good feeling to pull out your phone and handle your business with ease and speed unlike sprint.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
Like many other original Evo 4G owners, I'm now looking for the next phone as my contract is about to be over. And luckily enough, we have 2 new devices coming soon - HTC One X (or Evo One) to be revealed on 4th, and Galaxy SIII sometime soon.
Obviously the next phone will be LTE, but I don't know if Sprint can be trusted to give me coverage. Verizon already has LTE pretty much everywhere and its damn fast. Sprint is losing lots of money, who knows if they'll ever catch up. It's also not known if Sprint users will be able to roam on LTE.
im in the same situation and wondering the same thing. i guess we will have to just wait and see?
---------- Post added at 12:40 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:17 AM ----------
I am most likely going to be getting the htc evo one too. never seen such a beautiful phone lol
I trust Sprint's LTE plans.
It is a very aggressive roll out plan. If it does not work the repercussions could be huge.
I know personally I am going to stick with Sprint. If it takes a little while to get LTE in my area I know I still have 3G with a good plan.
I'm debating holding off on a new phone until towards the end of the year so there is time to get the LTE going.
Nope, don't trust them at all. Will believe in their LTE coverage when it's available in my area, already got burned once with Wimax.
According to the release maps, my area isn't slated to get LTE til at least the end of 2013. And that's not even technically my area, just a few cities around here, so I might not even get it at all. I am REALLY considering moving to Verizon next month, even though it will cost me at least 60 bucks more a month. But they do have working 4g everywhere in my area, AND 3g speeds that aren't sprint's dial-up speeds.
Just a little info for you guys about lte. When you look at a verison lte coverage map what your really looking at is the data coverage zone,not actual lte coverage. They have been caught doing this several times. Verison will admit that the map you look at is not actual lte coverage but data. Plus who wants a $130 monthly bill and no real unlimited. If you've never had them do yourself a favor and stay away.
Google it, you'll be surprised how they screw you,tell you about it then keep telling lies.
Sent from my PC36100 using xda premium
Being completely selfish here, but Atlanta has great Wimax coverage, so I'm fine if the LTE takes a long time to roll out. That said, I definitely don't believe Sprint (or any tech/mobile company) when they give dates for service/product improvements. Also, I will never go back to a provider with data caps. I use my phone for almost everything. I watch tons of stuff on Netflix, I wifi tether my laptop when I'm out and about (and my wife's Ipad when she needs a wifi connection), GPS Nav, Pandora/Last.fm music, skype video chat, etc. I would hit that 2GB-4GB cap in a matter of days.
Sleestax said:
Being completely selfish here, but Atlanta has great Wimax coverage, so I'm fine if the LTE takes a long time to roll out. That said, I definitely don't believe Sprint (or any tech/mobile company) when they give dates for service/product improvements. Also, I will never go back to a provider with data caps. I use my phone for almost everything. I watch tons of stuff on Netflix, I wifi tether my laptop when I'm out and about (and my wife's Ipad when she needs a wifi connection), GPS Nav, Pandora/Last.fm music, skype video chat, etc. I would hit that 2GB-4GB cap in a matter of days.
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Yea 4g coverage is amazing here in atlanta but I never use it even tho I'm full bars on 4g. It kills your battery to bad and I'm always on WiFi and 3g isn't that bad
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA
The fact of the matter is; when sprint's 3G is back up and running as good as it used to, it's plenty fast enough for almost anything you will be doing on your phone, including streaming Netflix, downloads, etc. Network vision is supposed to be a major improvement so I would have to assumed that the upgraded 3G on it's own would be more than capable of satisfying most data needs. I say this because right before the HTC EVO was released I was consistantly getting between 2 - 3mb download speeds on Sprint's 3G with the much lower spec'd HTC Touch Pro, Blackberry curve, and even the Palm Pre. Once the EVO came out it was like somebody turned off the light switch and 3G went to total crap overnight and never come back since. Just my opinion. I'm going to wait it out and see how the Network Vision performs before I bail or go to a different carrier with much more expensive and capped data plans. i'd advise others to do the same.
I do. After the less than stellar WiMax move, and them not exactly being in the best position, I expect a strong push. Remains to be seen, but I'm looking for a solid next step.
Sent from my EVO 4G using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5
The only thing I trust from Sprint is that my plan will remain 30 dollars cheaper than the other guys. I don't trust any sort of data speed at all from them, haha. If I were rich, I would be on Verizon.
I plan on giving them until May 7th (i can leave ETF free at that point)
If they don't have some decent phone offerings or significant LTE advancement, i'm going to AT&T with my wife. The speeds in Texas are insane and since i've gotten used to using WIFI while on sprint, a 5gb limit on mobile data with ATT should be no problem.
I don't trust them totally. With two different companies that went bust I hope they do something good.
personally i am sceptical, but i think that they should know that a botched LTE rollout would infuriate many customers. A lot of us got screwed with the whole Wimax deal. We got our nice new phones(Evo 4G) and had to pay an extra $10/month for "premium data", not 4G coverage, which never came to most areas. The kicker is if you call sprint and mention anything aboiut their 4G coverage or 3G speeds, they will tell you "go to another carrier". they know damn well they are the only ones offering unlimited and unthrottled data, and they sure do use that to their advantage.
But back to the topic at hand... I think if Sprint wants to stay competative, they MUST stay on track with their 4G rollout.
Well....
Since Baltimore is one of the scheduled first cities, I can't wait! But I will not be surprised if the unlimited plan goes up $10. Despite Verizon and AT&T having LTE first, they still have limitations on usage and data. We shall soon see.
well i hope dis LTE is batter then dis weak 4g
Sprint confirms LTE phones will feature unlimited data.
http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/03/sprint-lte-unlimited-data-everything-plan/
I wanted to switch to Verizon as they have lte in Bakersfield but my mom pays the bill at the moment so I'm stuck going to att getting the galaxy note. I would switch screw sprint I've been a customer since 2004 and now seeing everyone else with their new phones and 3g that actually hits pass 1meg.... I'm switching
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dbenney said:
personally i am sceptical, but i think that they should know that a botched LTE rollout would infuriate many customers. A lot of us got screwed with the whole Wimax deal. We got our nice new phones(Evo 4G) and had to pay an extra $10/month for "premium data", not 4G coverage, which never came to most areas. The kicker is if you call sprint and mention anything aboiut their 4G coverage or 3G speeds, they will tell you "go to another carrier". they know damn well they are the only ones offering unlimited and unthrottled data, and they sure do use that to their advantage.
But back to the topic at hand... I think if Sprint wants to stay competative, they MUST stay on track with their 4G rollout.
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They never tell me to go to another carrier. And they know their 3g sucks as I called and gave them **** over that. I would rather go to Verizon pay a little extra and actually get to use the lte network than being stuck with the slowest network offering unlimited data, you can't even use the damn data it's so slow
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA
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.
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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.
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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
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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.
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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
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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.
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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!