Network Vision/LTE - Milwaukee Market (including Madison)

[dequardo]

I was there also. No LTE is one thing but no usable 3G in my opinion is inexcusable. I'm 59 y/o and may not live long enough to have usable service. I'm seriously thinking of paying the ETF and being done with this nonsense. Yes I'm bitter.

[mmark27]

I was downtown for the Badger game yesterday and my phone was basically unusable by 9 a.m. I could not even send text messages... although I should not be surprised given that it's been like this on Badger game days for as long as I can remember. I really wish Sprint would beef up the service downtown and around the stadium by Regent street.

Fellas, the Old University tower (near Camp Randall) has antennas. Sprint (via Twitter, so whatever that's worth) says that tower will be active in a couple weeks. Regent/West Washington antennas are being worked on.... I also believe the state Street setup is close. Soon, so very soon it will be usable. It has been a pitiful mess in Madison for Sprint. We're almost there.

 

(unfortunately, I don't see any work in the burbs near me. Fitchburg's 3 or 4 towers and Verona's have nothing)

 

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk 4

 

 

[dequardo]

Sorry but I've heard 'soon' for too many years. Fool me once.....

[S4GRU]

I was there also. No LTE is one thing but no usable 3G in my opinion is inexcusable. I'm 59 y/o and may not live long enough to have usable service. I'm seriously thinking of paying the ETF and being done with this nonsense. Yes I'm bitter.

Sorry but I've heard 'soon' for too many years. Fool me once.....

Don't use our boards to complain. Go, or don't go. But follow our posting guidelines. http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/1197-s4gru-posting-guidelines-aka-the-rulez/

 

Robert via Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 using Tapatalk

 

 

[dequardo]

Fair enough. Bye.

[S4GRU]

I love it when they leave on their own.

 

Robert via Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 using Tapatalk

 

 

[mershfive]

Just thought I would let everybody know that I awoke to 4g in Monroe this morning. Its about 45 minutes sw of Madison. Hope I posted in the right thread.

 

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk 4

 

 

[Taxman]

Just thought I would let everybody know that I awoke to 4g in Monroe this morning. Its about 45 minutes sw of Madison. Hope I posted in the right thread.

 

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk 4

Congrats! Get mappin'

[jreuschl]

Just thought I would let everybody know that I awoke to 4g in Monroe this morning. Its about 45 minutes sw of Madison. Hope I posted in the right thread.

 

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk 4

 

Congrats! Looks like 4G is officially approved for Monroe on the map, but it may not have been turned on for everyone to use yet.

 

Make sure you donate so you can see other 4G pop up!

[norsairius]

As others have mentioned, LTE at Miller Park is amaaaaazing.

 

I did one test at the game on Sunday and got 17 Mb/s (~2100 KB/s) down and 5.45 Mb/s (681 KB/s) up. I was able to stream Pandora for a couple hours while tailgating and do all that fun social network checking regularly throughout the game with zero issues and for that 5-ish hour period I did all that, I used up maybe 30-40% battery life with all that heavy use.

 

The improved network with its faster data speeds and improved signal is just going to be awesome. Better functionality AND much better battery life. Yes, please! Here's hoping the anticipated launch of this fall/winter will be a reality! If so, it'll be here before we know it. It's already September, after all.

[andyp]

hey all just curious if any one has heard of any updates on when the go date is for Milwaukee? waiting to get a new phone till then. I thought i read a month or two ago end of august, and now its September and it seems as if people are saying it isn't? or is it? just looking for clarification.

 

not complaining so mod god's please dont get mad at me!

[tommym65]

hey all just curious if any one has heard of any updates on when the go date is for Milwaukee? waiting to get a new phone till then. I thought i read a month or two ago end of august, and now its September and it seems as if people are saying it isn't? or is it? just looking for clarification.

 

not complaining so mod god's please dont get mad at me!

 

Milwaukee is being upgraded like crazy as you ask:  There is no specific "go" date, but sites are being updated frequently, one piece at a time, as has been documented in many posts on this thread.  You can see this on sensorly.com's Sprint 4G LTE map, and also on the S4GRU Sponsor Maps.  Consider a few dollar donation to become a sponsor ( http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/1195-information-about-s4gru-sponsorship-levels-and-how-to-become-a-sponsor/ ) and you will have access to more information than you probably want!

[andyp]

Milwaukee is being upgraded like crazy as you ask:  There is no specific "go" date, but sites are being updated frequently, one piece at a time, as has been documented in many posts on this thread.  You can see this on sensorly.com's Sprint 4G LTE map, and also on the S4GRU Sponsor Maps.  Consider a few dollar donation to become a sponsor ( http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/1195-information-about-s4gru-sponsorship-levels-and-how-to-become-a-sponsor/ ) and you will have access to more information than you probably want!

 

sorry don't have $100 dollars lying around.... broke college graduate here. plus it sounds like the same information as sensory.com

 

so at this moment there is no consistent LTE signal in Milwaukee then?

[tommym65]

sorry don't have $100 dollars lying around.... broke college graduate here. plus it sounds like the same information as sensory.com

 

so at this moment there is no consistent LTE signal in Milwaukee then?

 

Don't need $100 (that's Premier Sponsor), $10 or $20 would work for Sponsor.  Robert will take less.  Sensorly (don't forget the "l") is very useful, but only shows part of the picture, because it only shows 4G LTE that people have actually mapped.  The Sponsor maps and discussions show much, much more.  Having said that, you are correct, LTE is currently fragmentary in southeast Wisconsin, depending on where you are:  For example, good coverage in Shorewood and near Lake Park, but virtually nothing at UWM, right between the 2.  This is changing almost daily, and has progressed very fast over the last few weeks.

[norsairius]

Yeah, Milwaukee is definitely being upgraded a lot, as evidenced by the much slower data speeds and lower quality data connections (I couldn't even get email on my phone today). It's something we'll have to endure as the improvements are made. I've seen LTE pop up a few times in a couple spots, but nothing consistent yet (except Miller Park). Sprint's LTE is amazing where it does work, so it'll be great when it goes live here.

[kb122]

My GS3 has been on EV-DO all afternoon (still is) between Pewaukee, Delafield and Sussex.  None of the towers have been worked on in Sussex yet that I can see.  Latency has improved quite a bit though in the past few weeks (~100ms) and I'm getting 500k-1M on 3G.  

 

Are there any other carriers deploying RRUs currently?  I've seen a tower with longer NV looking panels with RRUs, but they look like they're paired with another carrier's panels, not near the Sprint legacy panels.  It's on a water tower with at least Sprint, Verizon and USCC.

 

Here's a speed test I got near Goerke's Corners on Monday:

[Ffryguy29]

I am a new poster. My contract is up at the end of this month and I have to decide whether to re-up or move to Verizon. We live in downtown Middleton about 2 blocks from the post office. I have no idea about 4g coverage because I have a non LTE phone (iPhone 4s). Is there coverage near me? If its close, I'll wait to upgrade. If its here, I'll upgrade to a 4g phone now. Right now my 3G coverage isn't hot and I've been disappointed. I've been with sprint for 15 years, so I may speak to retention, but if the network is going to continue to be poor, nothing they can offer will be worth it. I really want to stay with sprint, but don't want to lock into another 2 years if it won't improve. What do you guys think?

[snowmobiler487]

I am a new poster. My contract is up at the end of this month and I have to decide whether to re-up or move to Verizon. We live in downtown Middleton about 2 blocks from the post office. I have no idea about 4g coverage because I have a non LTE phone (iPhone 4s). Is there coverage near me? If its close, I'll wait to upgrade. If its here, I'll upgrade to a 4g phone now. Right now my 3G coverage isn't hot and I've been disappointed. I've been with sprint for 15 years, so I may speak to retention, but if the network is going to continue to be poor, nothing they can offer will be worth it. I really want to stay with sprint, but don't want to lock into another 2 years if it won't improve. What do you guys think?

 

Well the question isn't if the network will get better, its when.  And the answer to that is Sprint is currently working on it.  Middleton currently has a 4G accepted tower and I'm guessing it would cover your home.  Take a look at sensorly.com and you can get an idea of what other users signal strengths were in your area.  Two things to remember when using sensorly:

1) The maps show only what other users have mapped so just because an area doesn't show LTE, doesn't mean it isn't there.

2) The LTE coverage that is in Middleton seems to only be coming from one tower currently that has gone live in the past few weeks so 4G coverage is guaranteed to increase when more towers go live.

 

If you can spare a few bucks, consider becoming a sponsor of this site.  You get access to maps showing all of the towers in your area that have been upgraded.  Even if you can't afford or don't want to become a sponsor, hang around the site a little and read some of the other threads about the future plans for the network.  I have learned TONS by reading through many threads here.

[mikepolinske]

I've been with Sprint for over 4 years (got hooked by the unlimited data) and am looking forward to 4G LTE coming to the Milwaukee area.  I don't really need it at home since I have Wi-Fi, but would love it by my work in Menomonee Falls near the intersection of Appleton and Good Hope.  Does anyone know if there is work going on in that area?

 

I downloaded SignalCheck Pro to my Samsung Galaxy S4 and also Sensorly.  How do I understand the RSSI?  Are values closer to zero better?  My 1xRTT is -87, eHRPD is -82 and Wi-Fi is -29.

 

Also curious about which is better EV-DO Rev A or eHPRD?  Yesterday I switched the Preferred Network Mode from Automatic to LTE/CDMA which moved me from EV-DO Rev A to eHPRD, but then my speed tests were slower.

 

I just contributed to be able to see the Sponsor maps, so after work this evening I'll take a look at them.

[aackmann]

I've been with Sprint for over 4 years (got hooked by the unlimited data) and am looking forward to 4G LTE coming to the Milwaukee area.  I don't really need it at home since I have Wi-Fi, but would love it by my work in Menomonee Falls near the intersection of Appleton and Good Hope.  Does anyone know if there is work going on in that area?

 

I downloaded SignalCheck Pro to my Samsung Galaxy S4 and also Sensorly.  How do I understand the RSSI?  Are values closer to zero better?  My 1xRTT is -87, eHRPD is -82 and Wi-Fi is -29.

 

Also curious about which is better EV-DO Rev A or eHPRD?  Yesterday I switched the Preferred Network Mode from Automatic to LTE/CDMA which moved me from EV-DO Rev A to eHPRD, but then my speed tests were slower.

 

I just contributed to be able to see the Sponsor maps, so after work this evening I'll take a look at them.

 

 

Do you work for Wells Fargo?? They've got a big building over there, the old Strong Funds building. I used to work there a few years back.

 

As for your other questions. I'm far from an expert on this stuff, so I'm sure someone else will chime in. But yes, the closer the number is to 0, the better the signal is. The different technologies don't measure signal strength the same though. So eHRPD, 1XRTT, and WiFi will have different thresholds for a "good" signal. I don't think you'll ever see 1XRTT or eHRPD at -29 like your WiFi is.

 

EVDO-A and eHRPD are similar, but eHRPD is the newer protocol that enables phones to switch from LTE to 3G smoothly without dropping connections real bad. So the whole Milwaukee market switched to eHRPD a few months ago. Alot of people report that their phones switch from eHRPD to EVDO. It happens to me every once in a while too. Then usually if you restart your phone or cycle airplane mode, it'll switch back to eHRPD. We all hope that means there is work going on near you, but I don't think anyone really knows exactly why it happens.

 

FInally, just to make sure, 1XRTT is your "voice" signal, and the EVDO or eHRPD is your data connection. However, when you pick up 4g, it'll say LTE instead of eHRPD or EVDO. I explained the stuff the best I can. Did I miss anything people?

[kb122]

eHRPD is just a software overlay on top of EV-DO revA, as stated for somewhat seamless handoff between LTE and EVDO.  I think it's needed because LTE is based on GSM, so it can switch between that and the CDMA network with little to no dropping.

 

The "highest" cell signal I've seen in SignalCheck standing really close to a tower was -44.

[mikepolinske]

Do you work for Wells Fargo?? They've got a big building over there, the old Strong Funds building. I used to work there a few years back. As for your other questions. I'm far from an expert on this stuff, so I'm sure someone else will chime in. But yes, the closer the number is to 0, the better the signal is. The different technologies don't measure signal strength the same though. So eHRPD, 1XRTT, and WiFi will have different thresholds for a "good" signal. I don't think you'll ever see 1XRTT or eHRPD at -29 like your WiFi is. EVDO-A and eHRPD are similar, but eHRPD is the newer protocol that enables phones to switch from LTE to 3G smoothly without dropping connections real bad. So the whole Milwaukee market switched to eHRPD a few months ago. Alot of people report that their phones switch from eHRPD to EVDO. It happens to me every once in a while too. Then usually if you restart your phone or cycle airplane mode, it'll switch back to eHRPD. We all hope that means there is work going on near you, but I don't think anyone really knows exactly why it happens. FInally, just to make sure, 1XRTT is your "voice" signal, and the EVDO or eHRPD is your data connection. However, when you pick up 4g, it'll say LTE instead of eHRPD or EVDO. I explained the stuff the best I can. Did I miss anything people?

No, I work for FIS (fka Metavante) in the Woodland Prime office park.

 

Thank you for your explanation. Much appreciated.

[aackmann]

Oh, nice. I worked in the Woodland Prime office park. Wells Fargo's server team, project managers, and some other tech nerds worked in that building, but the rest of the investment people work over in the old Strong Funds building. I was an intern on the windows server team.

[donjohnson]

Lots of useful info here...and yes, 4G Sprint service is starting to expand, but dont let this persuade you from making a change to ATT or Verizon.

 

I recently relocated here from a market that has has 4G service from ALL providers...my personal Sprint phone was still far behind what my Verizon work phone did..and my girlfriends ATT was even better!

 

Try them all out..they will let you for 30 days...although it is a little time consuming returning to the stores to have your service swapped/exchanged/returned.

 

Also of note..while I do not like complainers and whiners myself, the recent posts here were NOT out of line at all..come on..it's America..let someone occasionally chime in.  What is more annoying is the frequent suggestions and solicitations for donations on this site...those requests have gotten out of hand.

Edited September 5, 2013 by donjohnson

[eljayyy91]

Lots of useful info here...and yes, 4G Sprint service is starting to expand, but dont let this persuade you from making a change to ATT or Verizon.

 

I recently relocated here from a market that has has 4G service from ALL providers...my personal Sprint phone was still far behind what my Verizon work phone did..and my girlfriends ATT was even better!

 

Try them all out..they will let you for 30 days...although it is a little time consuming returning to the stores to have your service swapped/exchanged/returned.

 

Also of note..while I do not like complainers and whiners myself, the recent posts here were NOT out of line at all..come on..it's America..let someone occasionally chime in.  What is more annoying is the frequent suggestions and solicitations for donations on this site...those requests have gotten out of hand.

Well then we might as well shut the doors now. Because thats the only reason this site is running. Non profit and robet puts a shit lot of work into this site (including many others)