Network Vision/LTE - Utah Market (Salt Lake City/Ogden/Provo/St. George/Cedar City)

[dmplus]

Well I currently use my phones hotspot and its only 3g so it blows. I do a lot of s4gru work at work.....don't tell my boss lol....so it can be painfully slow sometimes. It would be nice to have in general. I don't have a contract uobfor another year and since the note 3 was a let down I don't know if I can justify full price for a device I really don't want. We will see I'm sure I could unload my note 2 for a good price to pay for a good part of an off contract phone? Who knows its only October I'm sure we will see more high end devices in the next 6 months.

 

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There's a pretty good chance that your note 2 would sell for most, if not all of the nexus 5.  Which should be triband.

 

On a side note you should grab an inexpensive no contract vzw/att/tmo lte hotspot from ksl until Sprint finally gets SLC built out, then sell the hotspot for the same or close to what you bought it for.  Then no more painful 3G for your s4gru tethering :-)

[bacjbbrooks]

I hear all the hype about the tri band phone and everyone foaming at the mouth to get ahold of one when there finally released. I'm probably a technological misfit but what's the huge advantage of having 3 different frequencies? I heard that a big plus is the coverage when traveling internationally to take advantage of the frequencies over in Europe(900 mhz/1800 mhz). Is there other advantages like speed, extended coverage, roaming capabilities OR is it mostly the advantage of being able to travel over seas or out of the country and have service? I don't travel out of the country and my current htc evo works just fine. The faster 4g service will be cool and whatever benefits a tri band phone would offer would be cool I guess BUT I don't need the fast 4g service during the day and I don't see how getting a tri band phone would make my life any better. I have a FAST wireless network at home that I connect to when I'm home, so not having blazing fast speeds NOW or having a tri band phone is not really affecting me or my usage. What am I missing here?

 

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[rgcrockett]

I hear all the hype about the tri band phone and everyone foaming at the mouth to get ahold of one when there finally released. I'm probably a technological misfit but what's the huge advantage of having 3 different frequencies? I heard that a big plus is the coverage when traveling internationally to take advantage of the frequencies over in Europe(900 mhz/1800 mhz). Is there other advantages like speed, extended coverage, roaming capabilities OR is it mostly the advantage of being able to travel over seas or out of the country and have service? I don't travel out of the country and my current htc evo works just fine. The faster 4g service will be cool and whatever benefits a tri band phone would offer would be cool I guess BUT I don't need the fast 4g service during the day and I don't see how getting a tri band phone would make my life any better. I have a FAST wireless network at home that I connect to when I'm home, so not having blazing fast speeds NOW or having a tri band phone is not really affecting me or my usage. What am I missing here?

 

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I'd like a Tri-Band phone because (1) it will give me the broadest possible coverage, considering that some markets will have 800 mhz coverage or band 41 coverage, and not the typical LTE.  From what I am reading, deployment of the band 41 coverage will be very fast in areas with good WiMax coverage. Salt Lake is one of the identified areas. 

 

And (2) the 800 and band 41 spectrum will not have as much congestion because there aren't many people with devices that can use them. But even when there are a lot of devices, with a tri-band phone you have access to a lot of spectrum. If one is congested, jump to another one. I tell you, I'd love to have a great connection at a big event like a ball game or a concert. I was at a concert at ESA in September and I had basically no 3G because of the congestion. 

[bacjbbrooks]

Good place to get information, thx for the explanation rgcrockett!

 

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[lvanders]

To add just one thing the 800 LTE frequency will be useful for building penetration and getting a better quality signal at times.  

[illest_ios]

i think its going to make a HUGE difference with congestion. 3 bands for LTE beat one

[floorguy]

that and you still have the evo....so you are use to the slower stuff...

 

i have fast wifi at home to....and when i go out, and it takes 30sec (which is a lifetime) to load a simple web page...it bugs....

 

and yea the tri band gives you 3 lte freq...1900 (everyone will be on this)  2600 (the old wimax airwaves...so a few)  and 800 (while shorter range, it gets inside well, and as i read somewhere NO ONE ELSE USES 800)....talk about no congestion....

 

i am trying to decide if i want to pull the trigger on a G2

[Dkoellerwx]

and yea the tri band gives you 3 lte freq...1900 (everyone will be on this)  2600 (the old wimax airwaves...so a few)  and 800 (while shorter range, it gets inside well, and as i read somewhere NO ONE ELSE USES 800)....talk about no congestion....

 

i am trying to decide if i want to pull the trigger on a G2

 

Close but not quite, 800 have a much LONGER range. 

 

Here's the advantages to a Tri-Band device.

 

You have access to three bands of LTE: 1900 (PCS), 800 (SMR), and 25/2600 (TD-LTE).

 

PCS LTE is the band that currently has the widest deployment across the country. PCS LTE has generally the same coverage as the current EVDO footprint. Speeds on PCS max out at 37.5Mbps under excellent conditions. Speeds generally average between 5 and 15Mbps.  Every single Sprint tower will receive PCS LTE once the Network Vision project is complete. 

 

At the same time that PCS LTE is being installed, SMR LTE equipment is being installed as well. SMR LTE will be activated in select markets soon, and nationwide during the next 6-9 months. Approximately 80% of Sprint sites will see SMR LTE. It has a much greater range than PCS, and penetrates building much better. This will virtually eliminate coverage holes within the Sprint footprint. Because of the greater range, fewer sites are needed to completely blanket the network. Hence only 80% will see it. However, as more are needed, it is easy to activate. 

 

TD-LTE is currently being deployed in WiMax markets, and is already widespread several markets. SLC will see pretty good TD-LTE coverage by the end of the year, and the entire WiMax footprint will be converted to LTE by next Sprint. The TD-LTE airlink is a little more robust than WiMax, which means you will not drop the signal quite as fast as you did WiMax. TD-LTE is also capable of speeds maxing out near 90Mbps under ideal conditions. We have yet to see those types of speeds, mainly because the backhaul to those active sites is not upgraded yet. In Robert's testing, he averaged 10-20Mbps with a weak signal, and 30+ with a moderate to good signal.

 

TD-LTE does have a much shorter range than PCS, and doesn't do quite so well indoors, but it makes for a very nice experience where you have it, and provides the much needed offloading to keep the PCS and SMR bands from getting overloaded. 

 

Additionally, Sprint is deploying CDMA (Voice, 1x) on the SMR band as well. We have seen 1x on 800 traveling 20-30+ miles from the site, versus the traditional 10-15 that you get on PCS. So that will also greatly increases Sprint's voice footprint, and should fill in most coverage holes (where coverage already exists, they are not building additional network, at least not yet.).

[floorguy]

ohh i thought the 800 was shorter range, but better building penetration...

 

with 2600 being opposite....

 

thanks for that

[bosox801]

We have a great staff that always knows when to chime in and help us out!

 

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[Dkoellerwx]

ohh i thought the 800 was shorter range, but better building penetration...

 

with 2600 being opposite....

 

thanks for that

 

Shorter range generally doesn't equal better in-building performance. You need longer range to do that. 

 

Lower frequencies travel farther, and have better penetration. Higher frequencies, the opposite. 

 

Glad to help!

[Dkoellerwx]

I forgot to mention that TD-LTE will begin to be deployed nation wide next year. Very important fact! Can't believe I forgot that. 

 

This means TD-LTE will be added to every single Sprint site, or as close as they can get.

 

It will be much like T-Mobile's LTE deployment in that the base station equipment and backhaul are already present, all they have to do is slap on the additional antennas. The deployment should be complete within about a year or so. 

[floorguy]

i guess thats true...if  i thought back to my younger days of car stereos....

 

the bass could be heard from farther away, and indoors (or those old people who rolled up their windows      )

[Anaknipedro]

I wish they did. They put in China's TD band. Don't think would have been hard for them too.

I'm having the same frustration. I am hesitant to get the iPhone 5s because I don't want it to be obsolete in 4 months when TD-LTE comes to my area. But I suppose no matter when I buy my next phone something about it will be obsolete quickly. It's just the nature of electronics.

[Anaknipedro]

Apple did do a mid year frequency support upgrade on their GSM model to support HSPA+ on AWS, but that was not a software update, they rolled new hardware.  It had the same model number, but iphone 5's that do not have the new circuitry are not compatible with HSPA+ on AWS, nor will they ever be. 

It's not just Apple either, Samsung did the same thing wtih their t-mobile galaxy S3. It required a new hardware revision to add LTE support and so early t-mobile S3's do not support LTE but current ones do.

 

So, for this reason, I still maintain that it is foolish to sign a 2 year contract on a non triband iphone 5S.

With current supplies of the iPhone 5s it won't even be a choice. The iPhone 6 might be out before the American Fork Sprint store gets my phone in! They've only received 15 iPhone 5s since launch.

[bosox801]

With current supplies of the iPhone 5s it won't even be a choice. The iPhone 6 might be out before the American Fork Sprint store gets my phone in! They've only received 15 iPhone 5s since launch.

there are other sprint stores, you also have best buy or amazon wireless? Usually better prices at the later two anyways.

 

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[Bosco]

With current supplies of the iPhone 5s it won't even be a choice. The iPhone 6 might be out before the American Fork Sprint store gets my phone in! They've only received 15 iPhone 5s since launch.

if it makes you feel any better, that's 9 more than the AF best buy has received where i'm waiting for my wife's 5s to arrive.

[Anaknipedro]

there are other sprint stores, you also have best buy or amazon wireless? Usually better prices at the later two anyways.

 

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Unfortunately the supplies at other stores are just as constrained. I've checked with the Orem Sprint Store and with Best Buy. I also don't see any iPhone 5s available on amazon.com. I could try the Apple Store, but I'm afraid they won't let me keep my current plan and discount—any more ideas?

[Anaknipedro]

After lunch today I'll be hiking up to the top of the hill on  Eagle Mountain to take some pictures.

Edited October 5, 2013 by lilotimz

[bosox801]

After lunch today I'll be hiking up to the top of the hill where is in Eagle Mountain to take some pictures.

I'll save you a trip I was up there Thursday nothing happening up there yet.

 

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[Anaknipedro]

Thanks

[bosox801]

Thanks

no problem also keep in mind we track these in the spreadsheet no work is the last known visit to the site with no work being visible.

[bacjbbrooks]

Close but not quite, 800 have a much LONGER range.

 

Here's the advantages to a Tri-Band device.

 

You have access to three bands of LTE: 1900 (PCS), 800 (SMR), and 25/2600 (TD-LTE).

 

PCS LTE is the band that currently has the widest deployment across the country. PCS LTE has generally the same coverage as the current EVDO footprint. Speeds on PCS max out at 37.5Mbps under excellent conditions. Speeds generally average between 5 and 15Mbps. Every single Sprint tower will receive PCS LTE once the Network Vision project is complete.

 

At the same time that PCS LTE is being installed, SMR LTE equipment is being installed as well. SMR LTE will be activated in select markets soon, and nationwide during the next 6-9 months. Approximately 80% of Sprint sites will see SMR LTE. It has a much greater range than PCS, and penetrates building much better. This will virtually eliminate coverage holes within the Sprint footprint. Because of the greater range, fewer sites are needed to completely blanket the network. Hence only 80% will see it. However, as more are needed, it is easy to activate.

 

TD-LTE is currently being deployed in WiMax markets, and is already widespread several markets. SLC will see pretty good TD-LTE coverage by the end of the year, and the entire WiMax footprint will be converted to LTE by next Sprint. The TD-LTE airlink is a little more robust than WiMax, which means you will not drop the signal quite as fast as you did WiMax. TD-LTE is also capable of speeds maxing out near 90Mbps under ideal conditions. We have yet to see those types of speeds, mainly because the backhaul to those active sites is not upgraded yet. In Robert's testing, he averaged 10-20Mbps with a weak signal, and 30+ with a moderate to good signal.

 

TD-LTE does have a much shorter range than PCS, and doesn't do quite so well indoors, but it makes for a very nice experience where you have it, and provides the much needed offloading to keep the PCS and SMR bands from getting overloaded.

 

Additionally, Sprint is deploying CDMA (Voice, 1x) on the SMR band as well. We have seen 1x on 800 traveling 20-30+ miles from the site, versus the traditional 10-15 that you get on PCS. So that will also greatly increases Sprint's voice footprint, and should fill in most coverage holes (where coverage already exists, they are not building additional network, at least not yet.).

Wow good information.....you guys on here are walking encyclopedias. Is there any websites or material that I can get my hands so I can read up on all this any learn more about this technology? I've googled all this stuff and I'm not getting any websites that explains much of anything. Maybe I should try, "lte for dummies"?

 

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[bosox801]

Wow good information.....you guys on here are walking encyclopedias. Is there any websites or material that I can get my hands so I can read up on all this any learn more about this technology? I've googled all this stuff and I'm not getting any websites that explains much of anything. Maybe I should try, "lte for dummies"?

 

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there is an 800 thread And a 2600 thread on here I'd start there

 

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[illest_ios]

It's insane how much knowledge is here on this site. 100x more info then any sprint store... I love it!