Network Vision/LTE - Chicago Market

[wobbypetty]

I do have a question. I have an iPhone 4S and I still have terrible cell phone reception in my building located on the West Loop. I was wondering if the iPhone 4S handled 800MHz voice calls or it's just 1900MHz for this model. 

 

Thanks!

 

iPhone 4s does not support 800mhz cdma voice unfortunately. 

[ChiWestLoop]

iPhone 4s does not support 800mhz cdma voice unfortunately. 

Thank you for the quick response! So if I upgrade to a phone that supports 800MHz voice I can see a vast improvement in phone calls inside my building? Has Sprint already flipped the switch on 800MHz voice calls in the city? Thanks!

[wobbypetty]

Thank you for the quick response! So if I upgrade to a phone that supports 800MHz voice I can see a vast improvement in phone calls inside my building? Has Sprint already flipped the switch on 800MHz voice calls in the city? Thanks!

 

You will see a definite improvement in cdma signal quality yes. There are very few towers in the west loop that have not gotten their 800mhz upgrade.  Most of them are broadcasting 800mhz or will be shortly.  I would suggest becoming a sponsor so you have access to the full site map.  It would give you a clear view of where towers are located and what upgrades have been done to them. 

[ChiWestLoop]

You will see a definite improvement in cdma signal quality yes. There are very few towers in the west loop that have not gotten their 800mhz upgrade.  Most of them are broadcasting 800mhz or will be shortly.  I would suggest becoming a sponsor so you have access to the full site map.  It would give you a clear view of where towers are located and what upgrades have been done to them. 

Does the iPhone 5S support 800MHz CDMA? I originally thought so but now I'm not sure. Any thoughts?

[wobbypetty]

Does the iPhone 5S support 800MHz CDMA? I originally thought so but now I'm not sure. Any thoughts?

Yes the iPhone 5s supports 1900mhz cdma/evdo/lte as well as 800mhz cdma/lte

 

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[Dkoellerwx]

I ride the red line everyday, as soon as we hit the underground Subway portion my phone goes into 3G roam with a strong signal, but there is never any connectivity.  I never really understood why it would show 3G roam but you couldn't use your phone since it behaves like there is no service.  I guess I understand now, if its 1G its voice only?  So no data and texts then?

 

It's more likely 1x (not 1G) probably a typo or just plain confusion. 

 

1x is typically for voice and text, but does pass some data, albeit slowly, if at all. Most phones will show 3G even though you are connected to 1x. [Which is technically correct since 1xRTT is a 3G technology]

[hayzooos]

Just got done driving from the Chicagoland area to Rockford. Data was basically unusable all the way from Hoffman estates to basically Rockford. I even dropped a few calls. Not good. Anyone else experience this horribly long stretch of I-90?

 

Yup, that's a pretty horrid stretch. Even worse considering the whole freaking part is under construction. As the other guy said, once you get past Randall Rd, it's pretty much no good until you get around Rockford. I'm moving out to the Huntley area in a few months so I hope they get everything figured out by then. You can stream something like Pandora, but that's about it, and even that skips and has to re-buffer now and then.

[Vince]

Does anyone know if there could be something on sprints end that would be causing horrific speeds in Chicago on my end? I drive a truck in the city for a living and can really never get above .5mbps download night or day. Basically unusable at times for navigation and music streaming. Is this just the nature of sprints new network paired with their strained spectrum in this city? Does anyone else experience this?

[Joeynach]

Does anyone know if there could be something on sprints end that would be causing horrific speeds in Chicago on my end? I drive a truck in the city for a living and can really never get above .5mbps download night or day. Basically unusable at times for navigation and music streaming. Is this just the nature of sprints new network paired with their strained spectrum in this city? Does anyone else experience this?

I was just about to post the same exact thing.  I have noticed over the last couple of weeks horrid LTE speeds all around the city.  I have been speed testing (with OOKLA) everywhere I go and getting the same results, even when I have very strong LTE signals in the -85 to -105 DbM range.  I haven't seen my DL speeds above 200K, upload speeds are OK, consistently between 500K and 1Meg.  And this is for peak and non peak hours alike.  I'm getting the same 100K-200K DL speeds in the Loop, River North, Old Town, Lincoln Park, Wrigleyville, Wicker Park, etc etc.  Since its all over the city not just isolated that has to imply something is up, under construction, being worked on, etc.  Doesn't it??

[Vince]

Glad it's not only me. For a market that is almost finished, it's pretty horrid. I'm hoping it's related to some kind of market-wide work being done. Otherwise, we're in trouble. Maybe 800 LTE work?

[Vince]

It's almost an all or nothing scenario, and it definitely feels like a capacity issue. When I'm at my house out in the burbs, I can consistently, night or day, pull 20mbps on a speedtest off my tower. Once I hit the highway towards Chicago, the speeds just decrease the closer I get. Still some 3G/1X pockets on I-55 between Harlem and Lagrange, and when I'm working downtown, speeds are always less than 1mbps, causing web pages not to load, and pandora to constantly buffer, until off-peak hours (usually around 2am) speeds "sky rocket" up to 1-3mbps.

[runagun]

Theres a reason why Sprint bought US Cell 20Mhz of PCS spectrum.  In short order they will be a substantial boost.

 

Glad it's not only me. For a market that is almost finished, it's pretty horrid. I'm hoping it's related to some kind of market-wide work being done. Otherwise, we're in trouble. Maybe 800 LTE work?

[Vince]

Theres a reason why Sprint bought US Cell 20Mhz of PCS spectrum. In short order they will be a substantial boost.

But the USCC shutdown doesn't happen until January, right? How long does it take sprint to implement that spectrum past that point? Does adding spectrum require site visits? Or can it be added remotely.

[lilotimz]

But the USCC shutdown doesn't happen until January, right? How long does it take sprint to implement that spectrum past that point? Does adding spectrum require site visits? Or can it be added remotely.

 

USCC is shutting down in three phases starting oct 31 and then nov 31 and dec 31. 

 

Sprint (who is already broadcasting USCC spectrum at low power to avoid interference issues) will blast their newly acquired PCS spectrum at full power while at the same time USCC powers down their sites. This will alleviate congestion on 3G EVDO and, if sprint wants to, allow an additional 5mhz PCS LTE carrier to be deployed. 

[Vince]

 

This is most of the city during the day.

[gnoj]

USCC is shutting down in three phases starting oct 31 and then nov 31 and dec 31.

 

In Chicago, the final shutdown is January 31. Earlier dates are for other acquired markets like St. Louis and NW Indiana.

[Joeynach]

It's almost an all or nothing scenario, and it definitely feels like a capacity issue. When I'm at my house out in the burbs, I can consistently, night or day, pull 20mbps on a speedtest off my tower. Once I hit the highway towards Chicago, the speeds just decrease the closer I get. Still some 3G/1X pockets on I-55 between Harlem and Lagrange, and when I'm working downtown, speeds are always less than 1mbps, causing web pages not to load, and pandora to constantly buffer, until off-peak hours (usually around 2am) speeds "sky rocket" up to 1-3mbps.

Im stuck in dial up speeds man, on and off peak hours, anywhere I go in the city proper.  Right now, off peak, Saturday afternoon in Lincoln Park with a strong -100dbm signal I am getting LTE with DL/UL speeds below 56K.  I am getting this now all over the city, anytime, anyplace.  This can't be right can it?  Something has to be going on with Sprint's service?  The LTE network for the last 6 months has been fine, sure a few moments where speeds would drop off like this but nothing this consistent.  Its been weeks now since I have seen an LTE throughput over 100K.  What is going on??

 

[tongboy]

I have seen some slow 4g sites but that is crazy. How are you getting the signal strength? Have you seen a fast site anywhere recently? That would indicate a device issue.

 

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[Joeynach]

I have seen some slow 4g sites but that is crazy. How are you getting the signal strength? Have you seen a fast site anywhere recently? That would indicate a device issue.

 

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My signal strength has been excellent I always look at Signal Check LTE before I speed test.  Im usually between -85 dbm and -110 dbm all around town.  I haven't had LTE speeds over 100K for two weeks now.  On 3G I get the same OK speeds, between 100K-800K around time depending on time of day.  What could have happened with my device that would warrant such an issue with LTE?

[tongboy]

My signal strength has been excellent I always look at Signal Check LTE before I speed test. Im usually between -85 dbm and -110 dbm all around town. I haven't had LTE speeds over 100K for two weeks now. On 3G I get the same OK speeds, between 100K-800K around time depending on time of day. What could have happened with my device that would warrant such an issue with LTE?

I'm not sure, but the lowest 4g speed I have seen is around 1mbps and it was still usable. What device do you have? One thing you may be able to do for free (I like free) is go into a sprint store and see how your speeds on lte compare to the demo models.

 

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[Joeynach]

I'm not sure, but the lowest 4g speed I have seen is around 1mbps and it was still usable. What device do you have? One thing you may be able to do for free (I like free) is go into a sprint store and see how your speeds on lte compare to the demo models.

 

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Galaxy S3

[tongboy]

Galaxy S3

Ok, that's very strange. Its been a long time since I have been downtown so perhaps the network has taken a turn for the worse. I would go to a sprint store or grab a friends phone and see if they have the same problem. If they do, since we are an announced market and may be worth a phone call to sprint. Those speeds are way to slow.

 

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[drock2750]

Even pings have taken a nose dive. I wonder how sprint monitors the performance of the network...its disheartening because I cant imagine my home ISP ever having such problems for an extended period of time like this. 

[mhammett]

I don't think they monitor anything, or if they do, they don't do anything about it. I reported terrible speeds today and they acted like it was something new. No, its been slow here for three or four years.

 

Some new PCS LTE will help downtown, but the biggest help will be EBS/BRS.

 

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[drock2750]

It seems like it's an issue with the Chicago 4G core, but knowing nothing about how it really functions, I'm merely speculating.