Samsung Galaxy Note 3

[thewezgrays]

I'm just grasping at straws like everyone else, but maybe Sprint decided to do single band LTE so as to help the iPhone release. Sprint has to sell a lot of iPhones. Also, it may explain why their LGOG2 has been pushed out until November.

 

Just throwing a conspiracy theory out there for you all. I'm not saying I believe it, but it's sure fun watching all this.

 

Robert via Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 using Tapatalk

I can't believe I just read this.  Because of the GN3 fiasco -- I brought up to my wife today that I would take her Samsung Galaxy S4 **if** she wanted to go back to the iOS side of things -- and she said yes! she said she was kinda missing iOS (but only recently) but was afraid to say something (since we had just dropped the money on the S4)...

 

SO... due to the new iPhone being dual-band (which was the bad thing last week lol) and the note being single band -- Samsung has probably lost a sale and Apple gained one (with me now looking to next fall at a Note 4 or similar). 

 

Funny how things work.

[Yuhfhrh]

My guess is that note3 has been in development for longer period time than other upcoming phones and even though it is getting released around the same time as other first gen tri-band devices, the earlier development start time precluded note 3 tri-band support.

 

This is the only logical explanation I can think of.

[owensri2]

What a shame...

 

Not going to get the Note 3 now, but if the Mega supports LTE 800, I will pick that up.

[exadyne]

I'd imagine single band happened because they are just using warmed over parts from the Galaxy S4. I've seen it written before that Samsung has been disappointed in the S4 sales - even though it is their fastest moving phone ever, it isn't as fast as they had projected.

The result is they're pinning selling their materials in other phones like the Galaxy Megas and the Galaxy Notes. I'd be willing to take bets that if you pull the antenna + modem setup out of the Sprint Note 3, it will exactly match the Galaxy S4's.

[thewezgrays]

I'd imagine single band happened because they are just using warmed over parts from the Galaxy S4. I've seen it written before that Samsung has been disappointed in the S4 sales - even though it is their fastest moving phone ever, it isn't as fast as they had projected.

The result is they're pinning selling their materials in other phones like the Galaxy Megas and the Galaxy Notes. I'd be willing to take bets that if you pull the antenna + modem setup out of the Sprint Note 3, it will exactly match the Galaxy S4's.

Obviously everything is speculation... but I feel that the "we started on the Note 3 well before the tri-band thing had wings" is the most obvious reasoning.  The whole iPhones need to sell more thing is intriguing (but kinda conspiracy theory-ish).  This is plausible, but if it IS the reason -- shame on both Samsung and Sprint (for allowing it)... If they had the means to make the phone tri-band but didn't because they had "old parts laying around".. that would just be wrong.

[GiantJay]

I'd imagine single band happened because they are just using warmed over parts from the Galaxy S4. I've seen it written before that Samsung has been disappointed in the S4 sales - even though it is their fastest moving phone ever, it isn't as fast as they had projected.

The result is they're pinning selling their materials in other phones like the Galaxy Megas and the Galaxy Notes. I'd be willing to take bets that if you pull the antenna + modem setup out of the Sprint Note 3, it will exactly match the Galaxy S4's.

For anyone who hasn't seen this. http://gigaom.com/2013/09/05/thanks-to-a-new-chip-the-galaxy-note-3s-huge-screen-wont-kill-its-battery/

 

This message brought to you in part by Sprint and the letters GS and the number 4

 

 

[WiWavelength]

Galaxy Note 3 or Galaxy Mega 6.3?  You decide.

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-354-teaser-megalith-megahertzsamsung-galaxy-mega-63/

 

AJ

[chgoguy80]

Obviously everything is speculation... but I feel that the "we started on the Note 3 well before the tri-band thing had wings" is the most obvious reasoning.  The whole iPhones need to sell more thing is intriguing (but kinda conspiracy theory-ish).  This is plausible, but if it IS the reason -- shame on both Samsung and Sprint (for allowing it)... If they had the means to make the phone tri-band but didn't because they had "old parts laying around".. that would just be wrong.

 

The "we started on the Note 3 well before the tri-band thing" really makes no sense at all as a reason, IMHO. Sprint has had the plan for tri-band for a longtime well before the Note 2 even came out. Besides that, 800 LTE has been planned to be implemented in this timeframe for years, aka iDen shutdown, and refarm to LTE.

[supersanborn]

Galaxy Note 3 or Galaxy Mega 6.3?  You decide.

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-354-teaser-megalith-megahertzsamsung-galaxy-mega-63/

 

AJ

 

Thanks for the article, but sadly a single band Note 3 and a tri-band Mega mean I look elsewhere.

[Yuhfhrh]

Galaxy Note 3 or Galaxy Mega 6.3?  You decide.

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-354-teaser-megalith-megahertzsamsung-galaxy-mega-63/

 

AJ

 

LOL

 

I guess we now know what the two Samsung triband devices are for this year. The Galaxy s4 mini, and the Galaxy Mega.

 

 

[ericdabbs]

LOL

 

I guess we now know what the two Samsung triband devices are for this year. The Galaxy s4 mini, and the Galaxy Mega.

 

 

 

Yup the Galaxy Mega 6.3 must be the 2nd device with triband LTE support.

[JeffDTD]

It is likely that the wholesale costs and specs for all the devices being released at this time were negotiated prior to the softbank acquisition. If the only devices we find tri-band support in at this time are samsung devices with cheaper internals and an LG device (usually lower retail cost) then I can only assume that sprint considered the acquisition and subsidy cost requirement of including triband to be beyond their bearable cost structure at that time

 

Sent from my Note II. Its so big.

 

 

[A30N]

Thanks for all your informative posts. I was planning on getting a GN3 this holiday season out of contract, so it would have been doubly crushing to pay full retail and get crippled data connectivity.

 

The Mega looks interesting, but a bit ridiculous to use as a phone against the ear, kinda like how hipsters look using iPads to snap pictures at concerts.

 

The LG G2 also looks interesting, but I would want to make sure it fully supports custom recoveries and ROMs. I can't stand the bloat that comes with most phones these days, which is why I've clung desperately to my ailing Galaxy Nexus these past few years.

 

I will probably wait for the Nexus 5 to release. It seams like it will be the epitome of Android perfection.

[Yuhfhrh]

I'm still considering the Note 3. It has everything I want in a device (besides triband) and more. The size of the device is perfect, and I love the S Pen and SD card slot. Unless the Nexus 5/Android 4.4 has something amazing, I think I can last another year on just 1900mhz LTE and then just buy the Note 4 when it comes out.

 

Hopefully all the heavy data users around me upgrade to triband devices. 

[A30N]

Hopefully all the heavy data users around me upgrade to triband devices. 

 

In my experience as a freelance IT technician, there is a strong correlation between wealth and bandwidth used. The richer you are, the less bandwidth you consume (wealthy people go to clubs, concerts, go out to movies, etc instead of staying at home downloading TV shows and teh pr0n). So my guess is that the heavy data users near your are too poor to upgrade to a triband device, sorry! 

[ryry4ya]

In my experience as a freelance IT technician, there is a strong correlation between wealth and bandwidth used. The richer you are, the less bandwidth you consume (wealthy people go to clubs, concerts, go out to movies, etc instead of staying at home downloading TV shows and teh pr0n). So my guess is that the heavy data users near your are too poor to upgrade to a triband device, sorry!

your post just made me laugh

 

Sent from my Verizon Roaming Beast

 

 

[WiWavelength]

So my guess is that the heavy data users near your are too poor to upgrade to a triband device, sorry! 

 

I believe this.  The poor are more likely to take advantage of or even abuse "unlimited" data plans as their sole broadband connections at home.

 

AJ

[S4GRU]

The "we started on the Note 3 well before the tri-band thing" really makes no sense at all as a reason, IMHO. Sprint has had the plan for tri-band for a longtime well before the Note 2 even came out. Besides that, 800 LTE has been planned to be implemented in this timeframe for years, aka iDen shutdown, and refarm to LTE.

You do realize that Sprint only provided information to OEM's about Band 26 and Band 41 in the late Spring, right? Sprint had to do a lot of FIT testing to be able to create the docs for the OEM's to build from.

 

These bands have never been used before, despite the plan to use them for a long time. The FCC only authorized Sprint to use Band 26 for wideband operations last Fall. Then they had to start an FIT. Now is really the earliest any smartphone could support Band 26 and Band 41. It is no surprise that at this time that some will support Triband and some will not. After the transition is complete, all future devices will support Triband LTE.

 

Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 4

 

 

[gnoj]

My guess is that note3 has been in development for longer period time than other upcoming phones and even though it is getting released around the same time as other first gen tri-band devices, the earlier development start time precluded note 3 tri-band support.

 

You do realize that Sprint only provided information to OEM's about Band 26 and Band 41 in the late Spring, right? Sprint had to do a lot of FIT testing to be able to create the docs for the OEM's to build from.

 

These bands have never been used before, despite the plan to use them for a long time. The FCC only authorized Sprint to use Band 26 for wideband operations last Fall. Then they had to start an FIT. Now is really the earliest any smartphone could support Band 26 and Band 41. It is no surprise that at this time that some will support Triband and some will not. After the transition is complete, all future devices will support Triband LTE.

 

Last time I checked Samsung the turf vendor and Samsung the phone designer were the same company. If anyone is clued in to Sprint's network plans, it's them. Didn't some of those FITs use Samsung equipment? The FCC approved Band 26 16 months ago, a month after Sprint confirmed they would be using it. Are people really suggesting the radio configurations on this phone were locked in that long ago? Lack of time just does not seem like a valid reason why it couldn't at least have been dual band.

 

The lack of LTE 2600 is much more understandable, but even if Sprint didn't end up buying Clearwire, as a majority owner in that company, wouldn't they have continued to purchase wholesale access like they've been doing with WiMax? Either way TDD-LTE would likely have ended up being used by Sprint in some capacity.

 

If timing really was a problem, I don't think people would be that bothered to wait until November (like the LG G2) to have a dual or tri-band Note 3. Looking at the big picture, one more month is not that long of a wait for a phone most will use for 2 years, and since it will sell like hotcakes it is important for the long-term health of the network to get it right. I'm sure if Sprint put their PR team to work to emphasize "we're making sure this phone is made right and not rushed to market", their customers would appreciate them for that.

[lilotimz]

Last time I checked Samsung the turf vendor and Samsung the phone designer were the same company. If anyone is clued in to Sprint's network plans, it's them. Didn't some of those FITs use Samsung equipment? The FCC approved Band 26 16 months ago, a month after Sprint confirmed they would be using it. Are people really suggesting the radio configurations on this phone were locked in that long ago? Lack of time just does not seem like a valid reason why it couldn't at least have been dual band.

 

The lack of LTE 2600 is much more understandable, but even if Sprint didn't end up buying Clearwire, as a majority owner in that company, wouldn't they have continued to purchase wholesale access like they've been doing with WiMax? Either way TDD-LTE would likely have ended up being used by Sprint in some capacity.

 

If timing really was a problem, I don't think people would be that bothered to wait until November (like the LG G2) to have a dual or tri-band Note 3. Looking at the big picture, one more month is not that long of a wait for a phone most will use for 2 years, and since it will sell like hotcakes it is important for the long-term health of the network to get it right. I'm sure if Sprint put their PR team to work to emphasize "we're making sure this phone is made right and not rushed to market", their customers would appreciate them for that.

 

Um no. Samsung is a conglomerate or chaebol which is basically a huge consortium of companies operating under one name. Samsung telecommunications (telecommunication equipment... radios, cabinets, the like) =/= Samsung Electronics (phones, computers, computer screens etc) =/= Samsung Semiconductor (processors) =/= Samsung Heavy Industries (huge ships & war weaponry).

 

Each is basically a separate division part of the same parent company with own goals and aspirations with minimal communication with each other most of the time (see Exynos processors from semiconductor & galaxy S phones from electronics). 

[gnoj]

Um no. Samsung is a conglomerate or chaebol which is basically a huge consortium of companies operating under one name. Samsung telecommunications (telecommunication equipment... radios, cabinets, the like) =/= Samsung Electronics (phones, computers, computer screens etc) =/= Samsung Semiconductor (processors) =/= Samsung Heavy Industries (huge ships & war weaponry).

 

Each is basically a separate division part of the same parent company with own goals and aspirations with minimal communication with each other most of the time (see Exynos processors from semiconductor & galaxy S phones from electronics). 

 

Yes, so Samsung telecommunications and Samsung Electronics are subsidiaries of the same mega-company. For a tech-savvy company, it can't be that difficult for the engineers at SE to ask the guys at ST to fax/email over whatever network documentation they need..

 

This is not equivalent to two McDonald's owned by different people who just pay royalties to corporate to use the same name.

[ericdabbs]

So does anyone think now that the Galaxy Mega 6.3 and GS4 mini have triband LTE support that Sprint might hold off the Galaxy Note 3 release and try to fix the lack of triband LTE issue with Samsung?

[digiblur]

So does anyone think now that the Galaxy Mega 6.3 and GS4 mini have triband LTE support that Sprint might hold off the Galaxy Note 3 release and try to fix the lack of triband LTE issue with Samsung?

Slim to none.

[GiantJay]

Just got done playing with the Note 3 at my work. Ask any questions and I can try to answer.

 

This message brought to you in part by Sprint and the letters GS and the number 4

 

 

[chgoguy80]

You do realize that Sprint only provided information to OEM's about Band 26 and Band 41 in the late Spring, right? Sprint had to do a lot of FIT testing to be able to create the docs for the OEM's to build from.

 

These bands have never been used before, despite the plan to use them for a long time. The FCC only authorized Sprint to use Band 26 for wideband operations last Fall. Then they had to start an FIT. Now is really the earliest any smartphone could support Band 26 and Band 41. It is no surprise that at this time that some will support Triband and some will not. After the transition is complete, all future devices will support Triband LTE.

 

Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 4

 

True, I did not know the timing of Sprint giving the OEMs the information. Somehow they were able to get the triband testing done in put in the mini and the Mega, Just disappointed, would have thought they could have adjusted the Note 3 at the time they knew enough to bake tri-band into the other new phones.many months ago even if it delayed availability of the Note 3 by a month or 2.

Edited September 14, 2013 by chgoguy80