WiMax and network stress

[WiWavelength]

I wonder if Clearwire ever intends to max out their spectrum holdings for LTE-Advanced. They have ~140MHz per market, maybe do a full blown 20+20+20+20+20 config(since LTE-A Rev.10 only supports up to 100MHz).

 

Most/all LTE Advanced UEs will be carrier aggregation limited to two or three carriers. So, 40 MHz, maybe 60 MHz is likely to be the largest practical downlink.

 

AJ

[4ringsnbr]

Forget it! I've been trying to kill them and the stupid things don't want to die.

Try Boric Acid-- works quite well and is harmless to humans-- to reassure your houseguests...

[xcharles718]

Most/all LTE Advanced UEs will be carrier aggregation limited to two or three carriers. So, 40 MHz, maybe 60 MHz is likely to be the largest practical downlink.

 

AJ

Equipment manufacturer's don't want to support it? Is it a cost issue or just about practicality?

[omega]

 

Most/all LTE Advanced UEs will be carrier aggregation limited to two or three carriers. So' date=' 40 MHz, maybe 60 MHz is likely to be the largest practical downlink.

 

AJ[/quote']

 

What's stopping them from doing one large carrier at 60mhz or 100mhz?

 

Most of the tests that show extremely fast data are done with said configuration.

[4ringsnbr]

What's stopping them from doing one large carrier at 60mhz or 100mhz?

 

Most of the tests that show extremely fast data are done with said configuration.

The largest LTE carrier supported is 20 MHz x 20 MHz with a raw data rate of 108 mbps download (100 mbps download after overhead). LTE advanced will be able to aggregate numerous carriers (up to 20 x 20 each) together.

[MacinJosh]

Try Boric Acid-- works quite well and is harmless to humans-- to reassure your houseguests...

 

Killed them all already. Thanks for the idea though.

 

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[MacinJosh]

The largest LTE carrier supported is 20 MHz x 20 MHz with a raw data rate of 108 mbps download (100 mbps download after overhead). LTE advanced will be able to aggregate numerous carriers (up to 20 x 20 each) together.

 

Can't wait to see how fast Clearwire's LTE speeds will actually be.

 

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[simcha]

 

 

Killed them all already. Thanks for the idea though.

 

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Yes! All ants that invade human habitations must die!!! :-)

[irev210]

Can't wait to see how fast Clearwire's LTE speeds will actually be.

 

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Same here. I really wish we had more info on what they were doing. I wonder if all that microwave and backhaul they setup will be robust enough to handle the new surge in data. Me thinks not.

Edited April 15, 2012 by irev210

[Duffman]

Same here. I really wish we had more info on what they were doing. I wonder if all that microwave and backhaul they setup will be robust enough to handle the new surge in data. Me thinks not.

Why not? Here at S4GRU you must back up statements of opinion.

[MacinJosh]

Same here. I really wish we had more info on what they were doing. I wonder if all that microwave and backhaul they setup will be robust enough to handle the new surge in data. Me thinks not.

 

With the LTE tests that they have performed in the past, their backhaul and microwaves will be more than sufficient. It's making sure that they build out the network appropriately to make their new partners happy.

[irev210]

Why not?

 

I've just had such a bad experience using clearwire. Connection issues aside (I have a clearwire antenna right outside my window), speedtests are extremely variable, even in the dead of night when nobody is on the network.

 

Even when the network was brand new, it was just SO variable. When I do trace routes, it looks like it takes an identical path to whatever server I am doing a tracert on, and since I have no networking expertise, I can't tell you why it is slower.

 

For example, if I do a speedtest to using the G4 communications server in New Hampshire, I'll get under 1mbit on WiMAX. Using the same speedtest at the same time at night on 3G I get lower ping time and over 2mbit - even though it is the exact same traceroute.

 

I am not a network expert but whatever clearwire does to connect to sprint's network doesn't work all that well.

 

Maybe with their conversion to LTE-Advanced they will upgrade whatever network components that connect to Sprint's network.

 

Maybe this is just an issue in the Boston market.

 

It is interesting though and I wish I understood how Sprint<->clearwire works.

[simcha]

My evidence that Clearwire may not be able to hande an upgrade is having gone through the horrific and inept rollout of Wimax. Wimax never worked right here in Oakland. There have been no improvements. My Wimax here cuts in and out. The speeds vary widely from 400kbps down to 3000kbps down and 25kbps up to 100-150kbps up. Even when I'm right next to a tower I might not get a consistent signal or decent speeds. I'm not well-versed in all of the technical ins and outs of all of this. But as a consumer who was promised up to 15000kbps, and never gets close to that, if I can get a signal long rough to make it useful, while watching friends who have Verizon get 7000-12000kbps here on LTE, I'm not at all confident that Clearwire is competent enough to upgrade and make that upgrade seamless, fast, or consistent enough to be useful to me. I hope they prove me wrong.

Edited April 15, 2012 by simcha

[ericdabbs]

I wonder if Clearwire ever intends to max out their spectrum holdings for LTE-Advanced. They have ~140MHz per market, maybe do a full blown 20+20+20+20+20 config(since LTE-A Rev.10 only supports up to 100MHz).

Imagine the speeds...

 

I don't see Clearwire maxing out their spectrum holdings initially for LTE-Advanced. I can see them deploying at launch next year at least two ...maybe three 20 MHz carriers for its LTE network. Until Clearwire can claim those Lightsquared customers, there is just no need to deploy four to five 20 MHz carriers when there is not enough demand for it. Its better for Clearwire to have some reserve spectrum to use for future expansion as oppose to going all out initially.

 

Keep in mind that the speeds don't need to go dramatically higher to satisfy customers. I am sure most of us would be happy with a consistent 10-15 Mbps LTE connection in most places we go to.

[MacinJosh]

 

I don't see Clearwire maxing out their spectrum holdings initially for LTE-Advanced. I can see them deploying at launch next year at least two ...maybe three 20 MHz carriers for its LTE network. Until Clearwire can claim those Lightsquared customers' date=' there is just no need to deploy four to five 20 MHz carriers when there is not enough demand for it. Its better for Clearwire to have some reserve spectrum to use for future expansion as oppose to going all out initially.

 

Keep in mind that the speeds don't need to go dramatically higher to satisfy customers. I am sure most of us would be happy with a consistent 10-15 Mbps LTE connection in most places we go to.[/quote']

 

True, but I like lots of speed! Give me higher speed data connections! Now, now, now!

 

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[MacinJosh]

 

Some people and their lust for higher speed data are like some guys and their fixation on bigger boobs. More' date=' more, more, it is never enough. But what the heck are you gonna do with all of that?!

 

AJ[/quote']

 

I want faster data because all I have ever had was slow data speeds. I think I'm entitled to fast data once in my lifetime.

 

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[4GHoward]

I was told that Clearwire is working on making its LTE backward compatible with WiMAX by doing a firmware update, so it can work simultaneously with each other.

[Sgt. Slaughter]

Chive On....hehe

 

 

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[MacinJosh]

There is some network stress in Las Vegas, Nevada but on a strange side-note, upload speeds have started exceeding 1.5 Mbps. If i could post a pic I would.

 

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[iansltx]

My experience with Clear QiMAX has generally been poor. There have been a few bright spots...when I can get a signal in Denver the network is plenty fast (albeit not as fast as Verizon or TMobile) however the lack of coverage and inconsistent speeds get old really quickly.

 

That said, if Clear does LTE-TD "hot zones" in city centers across the US correctly, they could ensure that anyone roaming onto them (or using them for fixed/nomadic access) always had a solid 15x5 connection, where other carriers' lower frequency networks would choke due to not enough spectrum/cell density. Heck, they might even provide enough capacity to keep the network unlimited!

[ericdabbs]

I was told that Clearwire is working on making its LTE backward compatible with WiMAX by doing a firmware update, so it can work simultaneously with each other.

 

Just curious if you have a buddy that works at Clearwire?

[Josh]

Anyone with a wimax phone can say that the main reason that it sucks is that the network is not a perfect blanket in any town. They used a signal that has terrible propagation characteristics, and tried to us only that signal over the entire area. Backhaul and other problems existed as well, but most people I know get a fine speed when they can get a good signal. So the new idea to have LTE over the whole network and just use the high frequency to supplement dense urban areas is a great idea, and could have probably made wimax a real competitor technology.

 

One of the problems clearwire is having right now is that it does not have a LTE network up and running right yet, and no immediate cash inflows other than sprint and the few retail customers it has left. It would be nice if clearwire could snag some of the larger companies to roam on their network because once they start lighting up LTE, it would give them the cash to expand quicker and give us all better coverage. Even just offloading customers when clearwire has a good signal (like when outside in a city) would allow the rest of the networks to perform well and give everyone a great experience. If sprint was smart, they would buy clearwire and trade VZW city offloading for rural roaming (this would cut some costs from sprints current operating expenses, but initial costs would be high). They could do the same capping of data speeds for non customers, though what would a capped rate be on a TDD-LTE network, 10Mb/s? (still good in my book) That would just allow them to make sure sprint had a advantage. Also t-mobile does not yet have LTE, and is planning on starting a NV-ish plan to reorganize their spectrum and roll out LTE. If they could roam on clearwire's LTE in the cities and fill in the gaps and outlying areas with their own, it would significantly help them with deployment, as well as helping clearwire (which helps sprint).

 

One of the reasons that I believe this might be a possibility is because of Qualcomm's new LTE chip that is reported to support 7 different frequencies on the same chip. It is also made on a 28nm process chip, meaning it will be the most power efficient LTE chip ever. The most telling piece of the puzzle is that apple has ordered them to be put in their new iPhone 5, which hopefully means that the iPhone 5 for sprint will be able to use all the future LTE signals that sprint will have after next year!

(sorry it was off topic for a wimax discussion, but it seemed appropriate to mention this here)

Edited June 25, 2012 by Josh

[Josh]

I was told that Clearwire is working on making its LTE backward compatible with WiMAX by doing a firmware update, so it can work simultaneously with each other.

 

I would like to see your source for this. Although I do think they are mistaken since they are based on very different technologies (kinda like the difference between GSM and CDMA) it would be interesting to see if there is any merit to this.

[WiWavelength]

My experience with Clear QiMAX...

 

To maximize your qi, you must inhale the power of nature, young grasshopper.

 

 

AJ

[iansltx]

I would like to see your source for this. Although I do think they are mistaken since they are based on very different technologies (kinda like the difference between GSM and CDMA) it would be interesting to see if there is any merit to this.

 

LTE and WiMAX are actually quite a bit closer tech-wise than, say, CDMA and GSM, or even WCDMA and CDMA. However they aren't close enough, as far as I can tell, to allow for interoperability with any reasonable amount of effort.