Marcelo Claure, Town Hall Meetings, New Family Share Pack Plan, Unlimited Individual Plan, Discussion Thread

[Trip]

I hate to be negative on the network, considering how many negative posts there have been here lately, but...

 

Today I started the first day of my two week trip to Florida and back.  We stopped at four locations (not counting stops I made to collect TV data for RabbitEars).

 

Bojangles in Fredericksburg, VA

Fried Turkey Sandwich Shop in Fayetteville, NC

Crackerbarrel in Walterboro, SC

Red Roof Inn in Walterboro, SC, where I'm typing this message.

 

Of the four locations, I only had LTE at the first one.  I could almost look out the window and see the tower from there.

 

At the others, I had either only 1X 800 or 1X/eHRPD that was so weak that no data would pass.  Meanwhile, my phones for Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile all had very usable LTE. 

 

For example, I'm sitting at the Red Roof Inn.  Here's what I have:

 

Verizon:  B4 -113 dBm

AT&T:  B17 -110 dBm

T-Mobile:  B2 -103 dBm

Sprint:  1X -102 dBm / eHRPD -117 dBm (-117 dBm is the minimum value SCP will report, and is not usable)

 

I'm surrounded by restaurants and hotels.  I-95 is 30 seconds from the end of the hotel's driveway.  Why does Sprint not have usable service here?  Why were there places on I-95 where my phone showed no service or, worse, started roaming on Verizon?  I-95 isn't exactly a small country dirt road, it's one of the busiest highways on the east coast.

 

I truly believe things like this are why people are fleeing Sprint.  I'm pretty tolerant of things like this.  I don't think most people are as forgiving as I am, and even I would be looking around if someone else had a US Cellular roaming deal or service in that area I frequent.

 

- Trip

[Flompholph]

So you can't connect to 00C07Cxx? Where your at it should only be one exit north. Not saying SC is good by any means as you could see in my logs the big gaps in data points. Another big road I80 the main road in between boston/nyc and chicago just launched parts of lte.

[shannonbrian]

They need band 26 power lot higher in theses areas.

[MileHI38]

Honestly the only thing that is holding me back from switching to Verizon is the fact that after the 2 year period is over for them crediting the "free phones" then I'll be on the hook for new phones, and that's if I go 2 years on the same phones that we currently have (V20 & S7 Edge).

 

Because right now 2 lines would be $140 + tax (same as what we're paying with Sprint) with 2 free phones. 

[RAvirani]

They need band 26 power lot higher in theses areas.

YES! I'm pretty sure AT&T and Sprint are on the same site one exit north of Trip's hotel but AT&T is pulling -110 B17 while Sprint can't pick up B26. It's truly baffling why Sprint isn't broadcasting B26 at full power on these rural sites…

[Trip]

So you can't connect to 00C07Cxx? Where your at it should only be one exit north. Not saying SC is good by any means as you could see in my logs the big gaps in data points. Another big road I80 the main road in between boston/nyc and chicago just launched parts of lte.

 

I saw 0C07C as I passed it on I-95, but my phone doesn't even try connecting to LTE inside the hotel.  If I toggle Airplane Mode, it jumps right onto 1X 800 and that's pretty much it.  I was trying to look at Gas Buddy at Crackerbarrel last night and it kept timing out as both the 1X and eHRPD were below -100 dBm.

 

I'm not even sure if I'm connected to 1X 800 from that site right now, it may be the one east of town.  I'm on the third sector and it's showing as northeast of here.

 

There are at least three towers at this interchange, with Verizon on one and T-Mobile on another.  Both carriers are on different towers one exit north of here, as well.  (Couldn't locate AT&T when I mapped them last week, so I can't tell you where they are right now.  Once I analyze my SCP logs, I'll be able to tell you.)  As far as I can tell, Sprint's just missing a site here where they should have one.  T-Mobile and Verizon, at least, saw fit to put sites at both interchanges.

 

- Trip

[WiseGuy321]

So you can't connect to 00C07Cxx? Where your at it should only be one exit north. Not saying SC is good by any means as you could see in my logs the big gaps in data points. Another big road I80 the main road in between boston/nyc and chicago just launched parts of lte.

There is no I-80 between Boston and NYC.

 

You have three major ways to get to NYC from Boston.

 

1. I-95 via Providence

2. I-90 (Mass-Pike) to 84 to 91 to 15 (Merrit Parkway)

3. 90 to 84 to 684 to 287

 

2 is the best way, but Sprint's LTE coverage is lackluster in most parts of CT, especially the Merritt.

 

 

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Edited March 5, 2017 by WiseGuy321

[Flompholph]

There is no I-80 between Boston and NYC.

 

You have three major ways to get to NYC from Boston.

 

1. I-95 via Providence

2. I-90 (Mass-Pike) to 84 to 91 to 15 (Merrit Parkway)

3. 90 to 84 to 684 to 287

 

2 is the best way, but Sprint's LTE coverage is lackluster in most parts of CT, especially the Merritt.

 

 

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Ahh. . . 

 

There is a slash not an "and" so those were grouped together as one big area. I-80 is a major road unless you feel like paying high PA tolls and going a southern road due to weather.

[Paynefanbro]

There is no I-80 between Boston and NYC.

 

You have three major ways to get to NYC from Boston.

 

1. I-95 via Providence

2. I-90 (Mass-Pike) to 84 to 91 to 15 (Merrit Parkway)

3. 90 to 84 to 684 to 287

 

2 is the best way, but Sprint's LTE coverage is lackluster in most parts of CT, especially the Merritt.

 

 

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The second route is the one I take but the only part where I experience any loss of LTE is by Nipmuck State Forest and Big Hollow State Park. It's been like that for years now so I don't expect much to change but it's kinda annoying and cool how I can tell exactly how far away I am from Boston because I'll look at my phone and it'll be on 3G for about 15 minutes.

 

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[WiseGuy321]

The second route is the one I take but the only part where I experience any loss of LTE is by Nipmuck State Forest and Big Hollow State Park. It's been like that for years now so I don't expect much to change but it's kinda annoying and cool how I can tell exactly how far away I am from Boston because I'll look at my phone and it'll be on 3G for about 15 minutes.

 

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The coverage on the Merritt is notoriously weak, especially once you get into Fairfield County. It's even worse as you go into the various small towns. Sprint's coverage starts to thin out considerably. New Caanan, Greenwich, Westport, etc.

 

 

The big 2 have no coverage problems in CT. We shouldn't be seeing *any* 3G areas between NYC/Boston in 2017. These roads are some of the most traveled in this area...

[caspar347]

Trip's experience matches up with what I've seen travelling in the Southeast. It's as if all towers outside of high traffic areas are still in 2014 pre-optimization low power mode. Sometimes I think it's got something to do with ALU gear being sub-par.

[red_dog007]

Trip's experience matches up with what I've seen travelling in the Southeast. It's as if all towers outside of high traffic areas are still in 2014 pre-optimization low power mode. Sometimes I think it's got something to do with ALU gear being sub-par.

I wonder if this has become part of Sprint's coverage map update initiative.  Looking at their map, a lot of areas have really small coverage areas, while others are larger.  In the same region too.  Look in the Southeast coverage map it is pretty easy to see.  Easy to spot where each tower is, one tower barely has any coverage while the next one down has 4x the coverage.  At lot fo the sites that are still 3G only along the highway don't even show having overlapping coverage.

 

As Sprint upgrades their proper LTE coverage on their map, makes me wonder if they have noticed and realized this and remoteing back into these units and pushing config changes.

[lilotimz]

I wonder if this has become part of Sprint's coverage map update initiative. Looking at their map, a lot of areas have really small coverage areas, while others are larger. In the same region too. Look in the Southeast coverage map it is pretty easy to see. Easy to spot where each tower is, one tower barely has any coverage while the next one down has 4x the coverage. At lot fo the sites that are still 3G only along the highway don't even show having overlapping coverage.

 

As Sprint upgrades their proper LTE coverage on their map, makes me wonder if they have noticed and realized this and remoteing back into these units and pushing config changes.

Engineering RF propagation maps are far more accurate than the public facing coverage maps.

 

The engineers know of it.

 

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[RAvirani]

Engineering RF propagation maps are far more accurate than the public facing coverage maps.

 

The engineers know of it.

 

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How different are these engineering RF propagation maps from the maps Sprint publishes?

[Hmight]

SC and VA are NOT in the southeast. I livr in south Florida and have tsken road trips from fort Lauderdale to atlanta. I only lost LTE when I het close to I-10.

 

 

I have also been to Tampa and Florida. Speeds are more than usable. On LTE all the time. Granted i dont check my phone every minute of the day. But whebi do, i always have LTE and usable data.

 

On a side note...Japan Roaming is awesome.

[bigsnake49]

Ahh. . . 

 

There is a slash not an "and" so those were grouped together as one big area. I-80 is a major road unless you feel like paying high PA tolls and going a southern road due to weather.

 

I have taken I-80 from Sacramento through Nebraska and also through Pennsylvania to Akron and I-10 from Jacksonville to LA. I-95 from Boston to Miami. Except for Verizon nobody covers the highways well. Well, Sprint for voice through Verizon . AT&T has major gaps in their coverage and so does T-Mobile.

[greenbastard]

I have taken I-80 from Sacramento through Nebraska and also through Pennsylvania to Akron and I-10 from Jacksonville to LA. I-95 from Boston to Miami. Except for Verizon nobody covers the highways well. Well, Sprint for voice through Verizon . AT&T has major gaps in their coverage and so does T-Mobile.

As far as coverage, Sprint has Verizon beat in all 878 miles of interstate 10 in Texas. From Anthony to Orange, At&t is first, followed by Sprint, then Verizon, and finally T-Mobile. Verizon has a few coverage gaps and has to rely on Sprint and West Central Wireless (formerly of Five Star Wireless) for roaming in the hill country.

 

A few years ago, I would have said Sprint was #1 due to At&t having no coverage southeast of El Paso. All GSM users would roam on Mexican carriers in that stretch of highway before veering off to Sierra Blanca. But it seems they've taken care of that now. Haven't been to El Paso in a while now, but I'm sure T-Mobile has improved as they now show LTE in areas where they had no coverage in the past.

[Trip]

SC and VA are NOT in the southeast.

 

Says who?  There is no universal definition of the regions of the US.  I consider Virginia to be part of the southeast, and definitely part of the South.  (I note that Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, who I would argue help to define the South, both were/are based in Virginia.)

 

- Trip

[kg4icg]

Says who? There is no universal definition of the regions of the US. I consider Virginia to be part of the southeast, and definitely part of the South. (I note that Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, who I would argue help to define the South, both were/are based in Virginia.)

 

- Trip

Virginia is part of the Mid- even though it is south of the Mason Dixon line.

 

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[Arysyn]

Says who?  There is no universal definition of the regions of the US.  I consider Virginia to be part of the southeast, and definitely part of the South.  (I note that Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, who I would argue help to define the South, both were/are based in Virginia.)

 

- Trip

 

This is something I never could understand or agree with people saying those states as being in the "south", To me, Texas is in the south. Virginia and the Carolinas are mideast. 

[JDD]

This is something I never could understand or agree with people saying those states as being in the "south", To me, Texas is in the south. Virginia and the Carolinas are mideast. 

The term "South" that most people refer to today is not based on their geographical location as much as if they were a part of the Union or Confederate armies during the Civil War.

[Jones]

Virginia is part of the Mid- even though it is south of the Mason Dixon line.

 

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Yet when you drive into Virginia, except for Fairfax and parts of Prince William and Loudon counties, everybody tries their hardest to act southern. I swear the southern accents are fake and most of the streets are named after Confederate generals. It still seems all about who side they fought with during the civil war.

[Paynefanbro]

Virginia while it's "officially" Southern, feels very mid-Atlantic much like Maryland and Delaware whenever I'm travelling along the East Coast.

 

I don't feel like I'm in the south until I get to North Carolina.

 

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[Arysyn]

The term "South" that most people refer to today is not based on their geographical location as much as if they were a part of the Union or Confederate armies during the Civil War.

 

Yes, I know the term, but I think it sounds bad using it that way nowadays. The confederacy lost, there isn't anything left of that era to give necessity to the term, so when its said nowadays, I think it just sounds wrong. The real "south", is in states like Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida.

[utiz4321]

I feel like Virginia while it's "officially" Southern, feels very mid-Atlantic much like Maryland and Delaware.

 

I don't feel like I'm in the south until I get to North Carolina.

 

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So what? Honestly, your feelings have nothing to do with it.

 

 

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