Network Vision/LTE - Winston/Salem Market (including Greensboro)

[anthony.spina97]

http://newsroom.sprint.com/news-releases/4glte-launchedmarkets.htm is showing "4G LTE launched markets as of 2/24/2014," which is tomorrow. This is the first time I've ever seen Winston-Salem on a launch list. Or am I very late?

 

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Or you haven't been paying attention to this thread:

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/5523-new-sprint-lte-cities-and-spark-markets-launching-soon-2192014/

 

 

-Anthony

[calitwin26]

Looks like Winston Salem is turned on 

[calitwin26]

anybody looking for a framily plan code 

[SprintHTC]

Hadn't seen that thread. But I wondered if I missed an "official appointment." I signed up for Sprint to notify me when it came here.

 

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Edited February 24, 2014 by SprintHTC

[Dkoellerwx]

Hadn't seen that thread. But I wondered if I missed an "official appointment." I signed up for Sprint to notify me when it came here.Sent from my HTC One Max using Tapatalk

LTE has been available in Winston-Salem for quite some time. Sprint is just making it official today.

 

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[SprintHTC]

Exactly what I thought.

 

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[map0824]

Winston has had LTE in many areas but some times the towers were not on or you would see LTE then when you tried to use it the speed would go back to 3G.  Now that it is announced you should expect to see LTE on almost always if you are near a tower that has been upgraded.  I have seen more consistent signals over the past month.  Does anyone know if Sprint is going to turn on data sharing for existing members or do you have to be on one of the new plans?  The newest plans say 5GB of shared data.

[SprintHTC]

I wish all phone companies would just allow tethering. 5GB across their network is 5GB across their network...whether it comes directly over a phone, or is tethered to a tablet or laptop. Some day...

 

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[Dkoellerwx]

SprintHTC, on 24 Feb 2014 - 2:17 PM, said:

I wish all phone companies would just allow tethering. 5GB across their network is 5GB across their network...whether it comes directly over a phone, or is tethered to a tablet or laptop. Some day...

 

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If you want tiered service, you'll get your wish. If you want unlimited, you'll have to pay for tethering separately.

[SprintHTC]

Yea, basically. But I bet T-MOBILE will be the company that eventually does it the way it SHOULD be done. Time will tell...

 

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[parkwoodtech]

I am currently with Verizon. I used to have Sprint until about 2 years ago. I had issues with getting text messages several days late when I was with Sprint before. I am considering a Framily plan for my family. Right now at home I get 10Mbps with Verizon on LTE. I bought a Boost phone to "test" while I travel to see if I can deal with Sprint's 4G coverage. With the Boost phone while at home and in town I get 1Mbps. The tower closest to my house is one of the towers in the county that hasn't been upgraded. If they would get that upgraded I am sure I would be ready to get away from Verizon.

[map0824]

I am currently with Verizon. I used to have Sprint until about 2 years ago. I had issues with getting text messages several days late when I was with Sprint before. I am considering a Framily plan for my family. Right now at home I get 10Mbps with Verizon on LTE. I bought a Boost phone to "test" while I travel to see if I can deal with Sprint's 4G coverage. With the Boost phone while at home and in town I get 1Mbps. The tower closest to my house is one of the towers in the county that hasn't been upgraded. If they would get that upgraded I am sure I would be ready to get away from Verizon.

Obvoiusly all cell phone carriers have areas where the coverage needs to be improved.  Sprint is making improvements and if you have one of the newest phones that has all 3 bands on it you have the best chance for great data.  I also have Verizon and I have not had any reason to complain.  My wife still has Sprint.  I had sprint up to maybe 4 months ago.  Verizon is also in the process of upgrading thier towers to compete with Sprint's triband service.  Also Time Warner and Comcast are upgrading thier equipment since cell phones are able to provide speeds of a traditional cable modem.  You have to be with a carrier that meets your needs.  One who gives great service where you need it.  Advances in technologies have given the consumer more choices.  Tomorrow will be better than today.  If you are still tired of Verizon by then you will have many choices available.

[parkwoodtech]

I actually work in IT so I am aware of all that. There are 5 towers here in Rockingham County (the county north of Guilford County) that are still 3G. And the one that is closest to my house, which I can see the beacon strobe from here, hasn't been upgraded yet. I did run a test since I purchased a Boost phone got it yesterday. Where I can get 3G here in Eden, the speeds in some places are as good as Verizon's LTE. But move down the road a bit and it is horrible differences. Like Verizon is still at 15-16Mbps and Sprint is down to 2-3Mbps. But I have had Verizon for 2 years now and was with Sprint previously. I travel all over the Southeast and I am gone 4-5 days per week and home on weekends. Over the past few weeks I can not get signal in some place I used to be able to with Verizon. I have experienced a high rate of dropped calls. Also where I know I have gotten 4G before I can only get 3G now. I was happy with Sprint before I left, with the exception of some of my texts were coming 10-12 hours late and had some come 3 days after it was sent. Up to that point everything was good with Sprint. Then all of a sudden that happens. It went on for several weeks and multiple calls to Sprint told me there was no problem. Then mysteriously 2 days before I switched to Verizon everything was back to normal. I had already purchased my Verizon phones online and was awaiting delivery. 

 

But now Verizon is having issues and I am paying $350 a month for 4 phones and data. so I am looking for cheaper alternatives even if I have to pay full price for phones or "finance" them through the carrier. So I got this Boost phone to carry with me for a few weeks on my travels and see how it stacks up to my Verizon phone and if all is well then I might switch.

[map0824]

I agree and understand.  I believe it is all related to the race to upgrade towers.  $350 is a huge bill so I would be upset if everything was not perfect also.  I know that if you saw the guy saying can you hear me now you may punch him in the face.  Still Sprint has set a new standard with triband service.  Completed area's may see 100MB down stream.  Verizon is talking about 50 downstream when done.  If you are close to being free from Verizon take the time to research well.  As a fellow IT expert I know you know what to look for.  A lot of people switch thinking they will get a bill in a particular range and then the bill is much higher.  I loved Sprint like a brother but I waited years for upgrades and could not wait anymore.  Now that I have left they have made huge progress but since my wife is still with them it is much easier to see who is better and where they are better.  I am not sorry I left but I wish I had not felt that it was necessary.  Most of the conversations have been about Guilford and Forsyth counties.  There has been little news about Rockingham. do drive up 68 and 220 to Madison scanning with Sensorly just to see where new towers are active.  With all the new service in Guilford county there may be many towers getting ready to be active in Rockingham county.  They worked on Forsyth for a year before they announced it.  Most of the improvements in Guilford have been since December.

[map0824]

Was looking at CNET and they had a story about Sprint layoffs. I wonder how Sprint's financial issues will affect LTE rollout?

[map0824]

As of March 17th Greensboro and High Point are on the list of available LTE markets.

[kyle_4thousand]

Haven't been up to WS in a few months but it looks like you guys are experiencing some outstanding progress on your NV deployment. Have any of you observed any blips of 1x800 or B26 yet? I'm curious as I'll be heading up there in about 6 weeks or so, just in time for peak allergy season -__-

[S4GRU]

Was looking at CNET and they had a story about Sprint layoffs. I wonder how Sprint's financial issues will affect LTE rollout?

Sprint doesn't have financial issues. They are fully funded and spending more on the network than they ever have. LTE deployment is speeding up.

 

Robert via Samsung Note 8.0 using Tapatalk Pro

 

 

[map0824]

Sprint doesn't have financial issues. They are fully funded and spending more on the network than they ever have. LTE deployment is speeding up.

 

Robert via Samsung Note 8.0 using Tapatalk Pro

 

This is the article I read.

 

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57620587-94/sprint-lays-off-330-techs-shutters-55-stores-as-part-of-broader-cuts/

 

Maybe I misunderstood it.

[S4GRU]

This is the article I read.

 

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57620587-94/sprint-lays-off-330-techs-shutters-55-stores-as-part-of-broader-cuts/

 

Maybe I misunderstood it.

 

Yeah, it's not as if Sprint is struggling to pay these people.  Sprint doesn't need as many employees as they used to in call centers, and they are closing stores that lose money.  They are stopping the waste of additional money.  It's good business.

 

This is not a desperate decision they have to make because they are losing money.  Sprint was losing money last quarter, last year and two years ago too.  And they have lots of cash to continue to waste this money if they wanted.  But the new Japanese leadership is not going to allow money to be spent on things that will not improve the company.  That money is better spent somewhere else.  If Sprint was desperate for every dollar, they would not be giving severance packages to their employees.  They would be trying to keep those dollars.  This is about better long term strategies in running the business.

 

If AT&T and Verizon were cutting a small percentage of their call center workers because call volume was down and unprofitable stores, no one would mischaracterize it this way.  But I love how the tech media takes a sound management decision into a desperate act to keep Sprint from going bankrupt.  

 

Sprint, under the new SoftBank ownership, will be spending $8 Billion on the network this year.  More than any year Sprint ever has.  Including under Network Vision the past two years.  So none of this has any bearing on the LTE deployment.  If anything, it strengthens it.

 

Robert

[k4ax]

Picking up 800mhz this morning in Greensboro, at my home, off towers at Westover and Wendover, and battleground and Brian Blvd.

 

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[RightNow]

Has anyone, especially in Randolph County, seen a dramatic reduction in available LTE in the past month? It had been improving for ages and seems to have gone backwards in the area now. I rarely get LTE in spots I got it before. (Have tested on several phones.) 

[map0824]

Has anyone, especially in Randolph County, seen a dramatic reduction in available LTE in the past month? It had been improving for ages and seems to have gone backwards in the area now. I rarely get LTE in spots I got it before. (Have tested on several phones.) 

I can only assume that there are some upgrades going on.  I have noticed the same thing at many locations.  I only have the GS3 but I have seen no data and then the phone switched back to 3G.  I have also noticed some of the same issues with Verizon so I am sure it is tower upgrade related.

[appstate1000]

Hi! I live in winston -salem, really close to coliseum and reynolda road, just about a block south.

 

I seem to be going between 4G and 3G ALL the time there and within a mile of there. 4G LTE is found often in Winston and when I have it its always 5+Mbps.

 

But if all of the close by towers to my house have been upgraded and broadcast LTE, is there a reason I get 3G almost always at my house including outside? Thought 3G and LTE were both on 1900mhz? Is 3g penetration better than LTE significantly ?

 

I may be misinformed, but thanks to you guys in s4GRU I've learned a lot...more than the knowledgeable employee I spoke with who said LTE wasn't even on 1900 hahaha then asking for cross syreets , you know all that BS...PRL updates did nothing to fix it.

 

I have a Samsung galaxy s4, pre-triband phone.

 

Would love to know if there's anything I should do for stronger LTE, other than wait for 800? Do you guys think there is a tower problem, or is it just an over exaggeration of sprint's coverage maps? I'm listed as moderate coverage and occasionally a wave of LTE comes through and it works great when so, but thay's like 30% of the time...

 

Thanks for all y'all do! This is the only source Ive seen people actually know what's going on - even the sprint rep told me to go here! Lol.

[SprintHTC]

As of today, Sprint has OFFICIALLY announced Winston-Salem and Greensboro as Sprint Spark markets!! We should see new 2.5 GHz tower improvements soon, for better signal strength and faster speed on the Spark network. Also, HD voice is available nationwide, starting today!! Check it out...

 

http://newsroom.sprint.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=11469

 

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