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(UPDATED) All for HTC One, HTC One for all?


WiWavelength

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by Andrew J. Shepherd

Sprint 4G Rollout Updates

Friday, February 22, 2013 - 2:55 PM MST

 

Update: Many hands on reviews of the HTC One are emerging this week. Courtesy of Engadget, we can report that the Sprint variant is one of the very first Sprint LTE handsets to include a removable micro-SIM. Removable SIM cards have long been part of the Network Vision roadmap for 2013, so it looks like that time may have arrived.

 

S4GRU welcomes you to the first major Sprint handset announcement of 2013. Earlier this week, the upcoming HTC One was revealed at an event in New York City. Not to be confused with last year's HTC One X, the HTC One is the new flagship of the line and will be offered by dozens of carriers around the world, including AT&T and T-Mobile in the US. Last year, Sprint got essentially a customized version of the HTC One X in the HTC EVO 4G LTE. This year, however, another EVO handset is not currently in the offing, and Sprint is joining its fellow carriers in standardizing around a universal HTC One platform. The only notable customization is for Sprint's specific CDMA2000 band classes and LTE band. And that Sprint variant had its authorization documents uploaded to the FCC OET (Office of Engineering and Technology) database earlier today.

 

If you have followed our series of articles on the EVO LTE, Samsung Galaxy S3, Motorola Photon Q 4G, LG Optimus G, and Samsung Galaxy Note 2, then you know what is at hand. Here is an RF focused breakdown of the HTC One coming to Sprint:

  • CDMA1X + EV-DO band classes 0, 1, 10 (i.e. CDMA1X + EV-DO 850/1900/800)
  • LTE band class 25 (i.e. LTE 1900; PCS A-G blocks)
  • LTE 5/10 MHz FDD carrier bandwidth
  • LTE UE category 3
  • 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi
  • 802.11n MCS index 7, 40 MHz carrier bandwidth
  • 802.11ac MCS index 9, 80 MHz carrier bandwidth
  • SVLTE support, including SVLTE and simultaneous 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi tether
  • NFC
  • Antenna 0 max RF ERP/EIRP: 20.10 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 850), 23.80 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 1900), 19.23 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 800), 12.30 dBm (LTE 1900)
  • Antenna 1 max RF ERP/EIRP: 13.78 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 850), 13.58 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 1900), 14.27 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 800), 23.63 dBm (LTE 1900)
  • Antenna locations: (see FCC OET diagram below)
  • Simultaneous transmission modes: (see FCC OET diagram below)

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As for analysis of the specs, the HTC One is the world's first handset to include the new 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard. But let us address right away another potential first that has become the so called elephant in the room. The Sprint version of the HTC One is limited to band 25 LTE 1900. It does not support either of Sprint's upcoming LTE bands -- band 26 LTE 800 and band 41 TD-LTE 2600. One or both of those bands are expected to be incorporated in new handsets sometime this year, but the HTC One will not be the first.

 

The other notable absence is SVDO support for simultaneous CDMA1X voice + EV-DO data, though its omission is growing less and less notable as time goes on. SVDO requires separate RF paths for CDMA1X and EV-DO. The first few Sprint LTE handsets did support SVDO, utilizing separate paths for CDMA1X and EV-DO/LTE. But the last nine Sprint LTE handsets have foregone SVDO, combining CDMA1X/EV-DO on a single path, so SVDO was likely just a temporary measure or a fringe benefit of the Qualcomm MSM8960 chipset and will not be a common Sprint handset feature going forward.

 

In its press release earlier this week, Sprint calls its HTC One an "international" smartphone, and that could be interpreted to mean world roaming capabilities. The FCC authorization documents show no evidence of this, but they are not required to do so, since the FCC is a US authority. What is lacking, though, is any GSM 850/1900 or W-CDMA 850/1900. So, if the HTC One is world roaming capable, it will most likely be limited to GSM 900/1800 and band 1 W-CDMA 2100+1900.

 

Since the HTC One is really the de facto successor to the EVO LTE, a little bit of comparison would be in order. In our RF rundown article on the EVO LTE last spring, we stated that it "does not look to be a stellar RF performer" based on its low to moderate ERP/EIRP figures. And our prediction proved quite prescient, as the EVO LTE has not been noted for its performance with weak signals. The good news is that, on paper, the HTC One looks to be a notable improvement in this regard.

 

First, the dual antenna system is optimized for CDMA1X/EV-DO on antenna 0 and LTE on antenna 1. But as long as only one antenna is in use (i.e. SVLTE is not active), the dual antennas can be switched at will to combat an RF fade at one antenna but not the other. Second, LTE max EIRP has been increased by 4 dB over that of the EVO LTE. Furthermore, LTE EIRP has been maximized around the 1912.5 MHz center frequency, 5 MHz FDD carrier bandwidth configuration that Sprint is currently deploying nationwide in its PCS G block spectrum. In short, the Sprint variant of the HTC One has been tweaked specifically for the Sprint LTE network.

 

Source: FCC

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I was thinking it would be the first to store information like contacts on it like other carriers. Also, a quick question when you travel internationally, do you just buy a sim and pop it in? Since Sprint has never allowed this in the past it is all new to me.

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I was thinking it would be the first to store information like contacts on it like other carriers.

 

Prior to the smartphone revolution, storing personal info on the SIM was a big deal because that meant contacts, for example, were easily portable from handset to handset. But, now, the shoe is on the other foot.

 

The SIM is really needed only for wireless sub authentication. Personal info should be stored both on the smartphone and in the cloud. Then, should you switch devices, your personal info is synced via your Google account just as it is now.

 

AJ

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with how smartphones are being able to back up everything are various cloud services, why is sprint move towards sim card? does that mean they are slowly converting to gsm? i know this is kind of a dumb question

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with how smartphones are being able to back up everything are various cloud services, why is sprint move towards sim card? does that mean they are slowly converting to gsm? i know this is kind of a dumb question

 

No, Sprint is not converting to GSM. No carrier at this late stage in the game is converting to GSM, which is a technology nearing the end of its lifespan.

 

And I do not get the hullabaloo over SIM cards. Sure, they matter to the very few subs who travel overseas (and others who think that they might travel overseas but rarely, if ever do).

 

AJ

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No, Sprint is not converting to GSM. No carrier at this late stage in the game is converting to GSM, which is a technology nearing the end of its lifespan.And I do not get the hullabaloo over SIM cards. Sure, they matter to the very few subs who travel overseas (and others who think that they might travel overseas but rarely, if ever do).AJ

AJ, plus aren't the SIMs on Sprint only for LTE? Meaning that you won't be able to get a new phone in a year after you buy the HTC One and pop out the SIM and put it in the new phone and expect it to work. I just want to clarify for those who might be reading and think they can. Sprint phones still require programming correct? Al o when do you think Sprint will get rid of 1X & CDMA and use Voice over LTE solely? Thanks for all your hard work AJ. And get back on vacation Robert!
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AJ, plus aren't the SIMs on Sprint only for LTE? Meaning that you won't be able to get a new phone in a year after you buy the HTC One and pop out the SIM and put it in the new phone and expect it to work. I just want to clarify for those who might be reading and think they can. Sprint phones still require programming correct?

 

I am not certain that we know at this point.

 

My best guess is that any new Sprint CDMA2000/LTE device with removable SIM will require at least a first time activation on your account. Then, once it is attached to your account, you may be able to swap the SIM into other CDMA2000/LTE devices with removable SIMs, provided that they, too, have been attached to your account.

 

That, however, may not be accurate, and a device switch may require both a SIM swap and an online activation. We shall see...

 

Al o when do you think Sprint will get rid of 1X & CDMA and use Voice over LTE solely?

 

For coverage and reliability, VoLTE is not ready to take over any time soon. CDMA1X voice will still be around for at least the next five years.

 

AJ

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