Network Vision/LTE - Chicago Market

[Joeynach]

One of the three towers in Dekalb is finally showing LTE active as of Robert's last update.  I think Mhammett is going to jump for joy!

[S4GRU]

One of the three towers in Dekalb is finally showing LTE active as of Robert's last update.  I think Mhammett is going to jump for joy!

 

I thought of him and aerxx both when I saw that last night.

 

Robert

[mhammett]

I've been dropping a ton of calls in Wrigley. Just got the Evo LTE upgrade to 4.3 so I'll see if it continues.

I sent the email to them, but I haven't heard from them on actually getting it.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[briank101]

One of the three towers in Dekalb is finally showing LTE active as of Robert's last update.  I think Mhammett is going to jump for joy!

I was out that direction (DeKalb) last Friday (2/21) and captured this screenshot at IL-38 & Annie Glidden Rd. Must be nice at last for the 22,000 students at NIU, a few that may have a smartphone , to finally have 4G.

[Joeynach]

I was out that direction (DeKalb) last Friday (2/21) and captured this screenshot at IL-38 & Annie Glidden Rd. Must be nice at last for the 22,000 students at NIU, a few that may have a smartphone , to finally have 4G.

I don't know much about Dekalb, but with 22K students and the native population of the city of about 45K I wouldn't expect too good of an LTE experience while accessing this tower, especially on the sectors facing north (campus).  Were talking a population of about 65K and one LTE active tower.  The other campus and city tower are likely going to have be activated before the LTE experience probably reflects the LTE experience most are expecting/waiting for.  Maybe Mhammett can chime in since he is on the ground in that area.

[briank101]

It would be interesting to see at the 2 sites in close proximity to NIU if Sprint makes full use of the available spectrum with the maximum number of EV-DO and LTE carriers that can be crammed in and if they will put in a 2nd LTE carrier on the expanded PCS now with the recent freeing up of the US cellular spectrum. Might as well do this if they are working on these sites at present. There is possibly already good back haul infrastructure in the area feeding the university.

 

Nothing like improving customer satisfaction amongst a high concentration of university students as they could be a big part of your future high end smartphone business if they like the data speeds they are getting. Hopefully Sprint has some sense here

[Cubbiefan82]

I can see them adding band 41 to the sites for NIU, it would really help out so the network doesn't get over loaded

[Joeynach]

I can see them adding band 41 to the sites for NIU, it would really help out so the network doesn't get over loaded

Technically I can too, but I am not sure Dekalb had any WiMax coverage from Clearwire.  If they didn't (which I assume is the case) Dekalb will not be getting B41 anytime soon because as we have learned B41 is first being installed and activated at the old Clear Sites, most of which are within dense top urban markets.  It wont be until later than, towards the end of NV, when they come out and move all B41 to the Sprint NV towers, that Dekalb would get B41 service.

[lilotimz]

Technically I can too, but I am not sure Dekalb had any WiMax coverage from Clearwire.  If they didn't (which I assume is the case) Dekalb will not be getting B41 anytime soon because as we have learned B41 is first being installed and activated at the old Clear Sites, most of which are within dense top urban markets.  It wont be until later than, towards the end of NV, when they come out and move all B41 to the Sprint NV towers, that Dekalb would get B41 service.

 

????

 

Oh ... really... huh..

 

[Joeynach]

????

 

Oh ... really... huh..

 

 

I don't know what you are trying to show me with this snapshot of the City of Chicago's data portal for city permits.  I have heard many times on this site that B41 LTE won't be on any non clear sites until the end when they "come back" and move all the LTE broadcasting to the Sprint full NV equipment.  I don't think Dekalb had any clear sites for WiMax so they won't be getting the first wave of B41 LTE activation.  Hence my statement that Dekalb is likely to get B41 at the end of the program.

[Vince]

????

 

Oh ... really... huh..

 

What is this? I'm at work and can't search sites. Please tell us, wise one.

[lilotimz]

I don't know what you are trying to show me with this snapshot of the City of Chicago's data portal for city permits.  I have heard many times on this site that B41 LTE won't be on any non clear sites until the end when they "come back" and move all the LTE broadcasting to the Sprint full NV equipment.  I don't think Dekalb had any clear sites for WiMax so they won't be getting the first wave of B41 LTE activation.  Hence my statement that Dekalb is likely to get B41 at the end of the program.

 

Those are amongst the first NV 2.0 B41 8T8R antenna & remote radio head building permit applications for Sprint cellular sites. The nationwide B41 TDD-LTE deployment over the top 100 markets & more has begun. 

 

 

What is this? I'm at work and can't search sites. Please tell us, wise one.

 

https://data.cityofchicago.org/Buildings/Building-Permits/ydr8-5enu

 

Sort by date with the key word!

[S4GRU]

I don't know what you are trying to show me with this snapshot of the City of Chicago's data portal for city permits.  I have heard many times on this site that B41 LTE won't be on any non clear sites until the end when they "come back" and move all the LTE broadcasting to the Sprint full NV equipment.  I don't think Dekalb had any clear sites for WiMax so they won't be getting the first wave of B41 LTE activation.  Hence my statement that Dekalb is likely to get B41 at the end of the program.

 

I've not said "the end" before.  I keep saying Q2 2014 is when B41 work on NV sites was schedule to begin.  I have been saying that for almost a year now.

 

Robert

[Joeynach]

I've not said "the end" before.  I keep saying Q2 2014 is when B41 work on NV sites was schedule to begin.  I have been saying that for almost a year now.

 

Robert

Yeah but in this forum I didn't want to give away what the B41 map in Premier Sponsor section says about Chicago or Dekalb.  That is why I was trying to refer to things like "not first", or "last", or "when they come back" after the first sites are already live.

[S4GRU]

Yeah but in this forum I didn't want to give away what the B41 map in Premier Sponsor section says about Chicago or Dekalb.  That is why I was trying to refer to things like "not first", or "last", or "when they come back" after the first sites are already live.

 

OK, thanks for clarifying.  However, in regards to B41 deployment on Sprint Network Vision sites, there currently isn't any data in the Premier Sponsor section.  There are many references in the public section where we have stated B41 on Sprint NV sites begins in Q2 2014.  I really appreciate that you erred on the side of caution.  I can respect that!  

 

Robert

[kyle_4thousand]

How you all doing up there in the cold, Chicago? Think your speeds and SNR values will start increasing with the temperature? I'm looking forward to coming back in May, hopefully to see an additional PCS LTE carrier and B26 LTE. Think this is a reasonable wish?

[Vince]

How you all doing up there in the cold, Chicago? Think your speeds and SNR values will start increasing with the temperature? I'm looking forward to coming back in May, hopefully to see an additional PCS LTE carrier and B26 LTE. Think this is a reasonable wish?

Oh we can only hope. I've been waiting for around 2 years for the full triband experience around here. Someone (I think) caught a whiff of the USCC spectrum the day after the shutdown. I don't think anything has happened since, and it's definitely not market-wide. Things should be rolling here shortly. 41 is still pretty awesome in the city, and 26 will be welcomed with open arms. IMHO, 26 is way more important than 41. I want the coverage fill in/building coverage more than 60mbps. Nobody needs that. Although, it is fantastic for capacity. Give me a solid 5mbps everywhere I go, and I'm a happy Sprint customer. You can do almost anything on a phone with those speeds.

[AMD64]

I was out that direction (DeKalb) last Friday (2/21) and captured this screenshot at IL-38 & Annie Glidden Rd. Must be nice at last for the 22,000 students at NIU, a few that may have a smartphone , to finally have 4G.

That's a hell of a weak tower.I work on Harvestore Dr few miles from NIU,and the LTE single is 0 or very weak single bar.

How far does the single goes ?

 

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

 

[briank101]

That's a hell of a weak tower.I work on Harvestore Dr few miles from NIU,and the LTE single is 0 or very weak single bar.

How far does the single goes ?

 

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

Maybe I was getting the LTE from the tower nearer Sycamore.

[AMD64]

Maybe I was getting the LTE from the tower nearer Sycamore.

Maybe the one near kish hospital

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

 

[DsmIowaGuy]

This is a hoot !    Great billboard Sprint   

 

http://theexpiredmeter.com/2014/03/even-sprint-knows-chicago-has-a-pothole-problem/

[Vince]

This is a hoot ! Great billboard Sprint

 

http://theexpiredmeter.com/2014/03/even-sprint-knows-chicago-has-a-pothole-problem/

I actually enjoy the different sprint advertisements around town.

[bucdenny]

Oh we can only hope. I've been waiting for around 2 years for the full triband experience around here. Someone (I think) caught a whiff of the USCC spectrum the day after the shutdown. I don't think anything has happened since, and it's definitely not market-wide. Things should be rolling here shortly. 41 is still pretty awesome in the city, and 26 will be welcomed with open arms. IMHO, 26 is way more important than 41. I want the coverage fill in/building coverage more than 60mbps. Nobody needs that. Although, it is fantastic for capacity. Give me a solid 5mbps everywhere I go, and I'm a happy Sprint customer. You can do almost anything on a phone with those speeds.

 

How is the 1xAdvance on 800mhz coverage so far?  Most sites in Chicago has been live with that correct?

[Vince]

How is the 1xAdvance on 800mhz coverage so far? Most sites in Chicago has been live with that correct?

It's fantastic. Coverage for voice and data in Chicago have been excellent for a year or so. I always have a great signal wherever I go. I've never had a call not go through, or have people tell me it's going straight to voicemail ever since network vision 1.0 basically completed here. Dropped calls were never an issue for me until last week when I suddenly began dropping several calls per day in different areas on the south side. Not sure if that was some weird fluke, or if some kind of network tuning was going on at the time. There's so much potential from Sprint, especially here in Chicago. They just need to get the ball rolling a little faster on things. Patience will pay off. Not to mention, with Framily I've been able to knock my line down to $46/mo with insurance. No carrier can beat that price for unlimited everything.

[Cubbiefan82]

How is the 1xAdvance on 800mhz coverage so far?  Most sites in Chicago has been live with that correct?

I get mad at my phone when it switches to 1900 pcs, because 800 is so much better. I have typically 4 to 5 bars on 800 to 2-3 though in areas that pcs would have one if you were lucky.