Everything 800mhz (1xA, LTE, coverage, timeline, etc)

[COZisBack]

Sprint's Golden Goose is the 2.5 spectrum on Band 41. It holds the most capacity for Sprint as it is where Sprint has the most spectrum. So you're not going to see an expansion much in Band 26 LTE. You may see where more is dedicated to Band 25 when Voice Over LTE becomes the standards. It will be quite some time before that happens though.

 

Side-note: Help us out a little... No need to create a new topic every time you have a question. Your last three topics could have been answered in one, as well as, the search feature would have answered all of these for you.

[gusherb]

Took a drive from Bloomington down to French Lick yesterday to find decent LTE coverage on 37 between Bloomington and Mitchell. B26 was doing it's thing and working pretty well. Also after driving around rural Indiana a lot this weekend I'm pretty convinced they have B26 on across the state. Another thing was 1x800 was also doing it's job well! This is a very heavily forested hilly part of the state and there were many PCS dead spots that 1x800 filled in well. (And I'd like to make an observation, in my home area, Northwest IN my iPhone won't use 1x800 even if it's connected but it uses it just fine in Chicago and southern Indiana plus other places)

After Mitchell it just clung to 1x800 for awhile then I went over a hill and that was the end of that, I spent the day in French Lick on Verizon roaming (which btw was excellent on the back roads there, att wasn't so bad either)

 

The drive back home between Indianapolis and Crown Point on I65 I was stuck on 3G and 1x more then I had LTE! I feel like LTE has been shut off at several sites cuz I had strong 3G where I had LTE on B25 before. Service was worse then in April, and April went downhill from last August! Where there was LTE there was B26. Not sure what the deal is here but I wasn't happy...

[EmeraldReporter]

How likely is it that SMR/Public Safety 800Mhz band plan will be adopted by Mexico, or Canada to enable 800Mhz SMR LTE roaming?

[COZisBack]

How likely is it that SMR/Public Safety 800Mhz band plan will be adopted by Mexico, or Canada to enable 800Mhz SMR LTE roaming?

 

Merged topic as it's appropriate for this thread.

[KG4KBU]

I am now getting 1x 800 but the dbm signal is the same as when i am on 1900 in the same area -104 to -106 wonder why ?

[jgore43]

I am now getting 1x 800 but the dbm signal is the same as when i am on 1900 in the same area -104 to -106 wonder why ?

Most likely optimization hasn't occurred yet.

[KG4KBU]

Ok so just stay tuned ? How often does this usually take to occur

[jgore43]

Ok so just stay tuned ? How often does this usually take to occur

Could be tomorrow could be a few months based on what I've read around here. It's been 2 months since I noticed 1x 800 came on in my market and I still get the same experience as you.

[KG4KBU]

Ok thanks atleast its showing up.....now for 800 lte

[chamb]

Ok thanks atleast its showing up.....now for 800 lte

Your 800 signal may be coming from a site much further away too.  Have you proved it is coming from the same site??

[KG4KBU]

Yeah it is on the same site

[king_edmund12]

What are the current border issues with the 800 MHz LTE? I am in San Diego and i am having a lot of trouble getting LTE in my house, but as soon as i step outside it can grab a signal. I heard 800 is way better at furthering coverage. I also thought i read something about there was a delay because of something with the Mexican border and they weren't approved for 800 MHz LTE?

 

I thought Sprint's 3G and LTE ran on the same frequency (1900) and that means everywhere i got sprint 3G i would also receive LTE, Sprint assured me that i was in a LTE area and i should be getting it in my house too. They have called a technician and i am waiting for that to pan out.

 

In the mean time it would be awesome if someone could further explain this to me.

 

Thanks!

Edited August 16, 2014 by king_edmund12

[saywhatman]

What are the current border issues with the 800 MHz LTE? I am in San Diego and i am having a lot of trouble getting LTE in my house, but as soon as i step outside it can grab a signal. I heard 800 is way better at furthering coverage. I also thought i read something about there was a delay because of something with the Mexican border and they weren't approved for 800 MHz LTE?

 

I thought Sprint's 3G and LTE ran on the same frequency (1900) and that means everywhere i got sprint 3G i would also receive LTE, Sprint assured me that i was in a LTE area and i should be getting it in my house too. They have called a technician and i am waiting for that to pan out.

 

In the mean time it would be awesome if someone could further explain this to me.

 

Thanks!

San Diego is in the IBEZ, an international border area in which wide-band transmissions on Sprint's SMR spectrum are not allowed. Sprint and NII Holdings are working together with the Mexican and American governments to see what they can do about rebranding Mexican carriers and other local operations to allow Sprint to broadcast in that area. Similar negotiations are going on at the Canadian border as well.

 

As to your second point, Sprint's coverage maps and CS reps are very optimistic about LTE coverage. On 1900, there is no possible way that LTE will reach as far as EV-DO. LTE is fast because it uses a complex modulation scheme, which means that it can compress data more effectively over the airlink. This means that in order for LTE to work, you have to have a pretty good signal, becuase if a disruption occurs in that modulation, the data is useless. EV-DO has this problem as well, but it is more robust because the modulation is less complex and thus can better resist small signal defects. What this unfortunately means is that LTE will never reach as far as 1x or EV-DO on the same frequency. I encourage you to become a sponsor and check out the maps in your area of San Diego! You might see that a site nearby hasn't been upgraded yet and will soon provide you with LTE.

 

The good news is that at lower frequencies, signals will travel farther, and an LTE signal on 800 will travel about as far as a EV-DO signal on 1900, and have better building penetration to boot. When Sprint blankets its network in B26 for coverage and B41 for capacity, it will be awesome. In my opinion they need about 7,500-10,000 more sites to expand coverage and infill in major urban areas to do this.

 

People who are more knowledgeable than me, let me know if I left anything out!

[king_edmund12]

San Diego is in the IBEZ, an international border area in which wide-band transmissions on Sprint's SMR spectrum are not allowed. Sprint and NII Holdings are working together with the Mexican and American governments to see what they can do about rebranding Mexican carriers and other local operations to allow Sprint to broadcast in that area. Similar negotiations are going on at the Canadian border as well.

 

As to your second point, Sprint's coverage maps and CS reps are very optimistic about LTE coverage. On 1900, there is no possible way that LTE will reach as far as EV-DO. LTE is fast because it uses a complex modulation scheme, which means that it can compress data more effectively over the airlink. This means that in order for LTE to work, you have to have a pretty good signal, becuase if a disruption occurs in that modulation, the data is useless. EV-DO has this problem as well, but it is more robust because the modulation is less complex and thus can better resist small signal defects. What this unfortunately means is that LTE will never reach as far as 1x or EV-DO on the same frequency. I encourage you to become a sponsor and check out the maps in your area of San Diego! You might see that a site nearby hasn't been upgraded yet and will soon provide you with LTE.

 

The good news is that at lower frequencies, signals will travel farther, and an LTE signal on 800 will travel about as far as a EV-DO signal on 1900, and have better building penetration to boot. When Sprint blankets its network in B26 for coverage and B41 for capacity, it will be awesome. In my opinion they need about 7,500-10,000 more sites to expand coverage and infill in major urban areas to do this.

 

People who are more knowledgeable than me, let me know if I left anything out!

Do they have a time frame for the negotiations because the 1900 MHz is kinda crappy for penetrating walls, or maybe it is just because not all of the towers have been completed in my area. It seems when i step out side i can get a weak LTE signal but as soon as i step in i loose it. Maybe they are still working on the towers in my area. How reliable are the LTE maps on Sprint.com?

[anthony.spina97]

Do they have a time frame for the negotiations because the 1900 MHz is kinda crappy for penetrating walls, or maybe it is just because not all of the towers have been completed in my area. It seems when i step out side i can get a weak LTE signal but as soon as i step in i loose it. Maybe they are still working on the towers in my area. How reliable are the LTE maps on Sprint.com?

The problem you are having is probably because not all the towers around you are upgraded. And Sprint's LTE maps are not accurate what-so-ever. If you want a good picture of what coverage is like around you, I suggest that you either use Sensorly, or think about becoming a sponsor. Becoming a sponsor helps keep the lights on at S4GRU, and you get TONS of priceless information, including, but no limited to, knowing the NV upgrade status and location of every single one of Sprint's Cell Sites. (Mods, remove this and shoot me a PM if this is giving too much info away). Best of luck to you!

 

-Anthony

[king_edmund12]

The problem you are having is probably because not all the towers around you are upgraded. And Sprint's LTE maps are not accurate what-so-ever. If you want a good picture of what coverage is like around you, I suggest that you either use Sensorly, or think about becoming a sponsor. Becoming a sponsor helps keep the lights on at S4GRU, and you get TONS of priceless information, including, but no limited to, knowing the NV upgrade status and location of every single one of Sprint's Cell Sites. (Mods, remove this and shoot me a PM if this is giving too much info away). Best of luck to you!

 

-Anthony

What is the price to get access to this information? Do I need to donate a minimum amount of money or how much?

[lilotimz]

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/1195-information-about-s4gru-sponsorship-levels-and-how-to-become-a-sponsor/

 

The price of a good cup of coffee so Robert can stay up for many hours to compile the data for the sponsors to see.

[grimloch]

Your 800 signal may be coming from a site much further away too. Have you proved it is coming from the same site??

How do you prove the site if LTE doesn't broadcast address info, switch to 1x/3G?

[WiWavelength]

How do you prove the site if LTE doesn't broadcast address info, switch to 1x/3G?

 

No.  Either you circumnavigate the site or you do not prove it.

 

AJ

[king_edmund12]

I was reading on how 1900 provides broad coverage & 800 is used to penetrate buildings, but wouldn't 800 by it self be just as good? Please explain to me how these work because I'm fairly new and don't fully understand.

 

Thanks guys!

[david279]

800 penetrates better, its range is the same as 1900.

 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[caspar347]

I was reading on how 1900 provides broad coverage & 800 is used to penetrate buildings, but wouldn't 800 by it self be just as good? Please explain to me how these work because I'm fairly new and don't fully understand.

Thanks guys!

Both are needed because 800 fills up fast. If everyone were on 800 the network would be terribly slow.

[king_edmund12]

Oh okay, Thanks Guys!

[Galaxyguy]

I was reading on how 1900 provides broad coverage & 800 is used to penetrate buildings, but wouldn't 800 by it self be just as good? Please explain to me how these work because I'm fairly new and don't fully understand.

 

Thanks guys!

Sprint has more capacity on 1900 than 800. In my area (Shentel market) and a few others nationally, Sprint has two 5x5 LTE carriers on 1900mhz and one on 800mhz.

 

I believe in some areas, Sprint may have enough spectrum for a third carrier on 1900mhz, which would provide even more capacity.

 

Sent from my SPH-L720T using Tapatalk

[kineticman]

Good news for you New Mexico/TX gang:

 

On August 14, 2014, Sprint Corporation (Sprint) filed three requests for waiver of Section 90.209((7) of the Commission’s rules 1 to permit 800 MHz wideband operations in portions of the New Mexico (Region 29),2 Texas-El Paso (Region 50),3 and Texas-San Antonio (Region 53)4 National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee (NPSPAC) regions prior to completion of the 800 MHz Band reconfiguration in those regions (collectively “Sprint Waiver Requests”).

 

http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2014/db0826/DA-14-1238A1.pdf