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Prepared to support and actually performing testing are two different things. I started looking through the FIT schedules and I could not locate a single one that said 800 LTE testing. There is indeed 800 CDMA testing that is occurring in FIT's though. However, FCC approval of 800 wideband operations is emminent. http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-90-fcc-ready-to-give-sprint-official-go-ahead-on-smr-800-mhz-wideband-operation/ And I don't think we are certain that a yet separate approval to use LTE in that band would be required on top of that. Robert

This is an under-reported aspect of combining such dissimilar frequencies into LTE Advanced. You will only be able to get the advantages of LTE Advanced carrier aggregation if you are in good range of both the 800 signal and the 1900 signal. If you are in range of just the 800, you would just run on the lower standard 5x5 carrier. You would likely need to have a good LTE 1900 signal to boot. There will be lots of places where you will get a mediocre 1900 and good 800. And these areas will not llikely be good for LTE Advanced and aggregated carriers. Robert

Understood. However, I have seen on those mentioned devices the lab reports where they say they can support 3MHz LTE channels. Also, I just came across LTE FIT performance reports from Ericsson, A/L and Samsung in the field where they acknowledge they are prepared to support 3MHz LTE channels. I sure wish one of these references mentioned band!!! Robert

I don't think anyone will disagree with your statement. Sprint has the solutions worked out, the plan is in place and it's being implemented. Unfortunately, they cannot get to every corner of the country first. The cavalry is coming to Phoenix. The horses just can't handle the hot summers. Robert

You are very observant!!! Kudos. The devices marked yes to being able to support 3MHz LTE channels were all LTE 1900 devices. Does this mean they can physically support 800 LTE now, but not being tested that way? Unlikely. 4rings would tell you no, for certain. I don't know any more details other than that category that is listed on all Sprint devices that go into lab testing. We are just speculating what it means. Since we are going deep into speculation land, I will take a stab at it... My guess is that Sprint has requested to all of it's OEMs to include 3MHz channel support in all of its LTE Band Classes. Even 1900. That's my guess. So even though these three devices (actually six devices ) don't appear to need 3MHz LTE at a glance, maybe they actually do. Maybe Sprint is thinking about adding some 3x3 PCS LTE carriers in A-F blocks? They have enough spectrum in many markets where they could do that. It's not far fetched. If the single 5x5 LTE carrier starts to get burdened down to the performance of a 3x3 LTE carrier, why not add a 3x3 LTE carrier on PCS in A-F for additional capacity? Remember, even when 800MHz gets turned on in 2013, these first LTE devices won't be able to run on it. What will they use for additional capacity? My theory...some additional PCS 3x3's. This is definitely speculative. I will keep scouring the data I have. I may already have the answer and just don't know it at the moment. AJ and I discovered we had some answers on a related subject yesterday, and just didn't realize it. Robert

Sometimes it pains me to admit the things they do right. But any objective person has to agree with this. They obviously understand the human psyche. Robert

Denny: You will see what I mean. It's more of a spreading out resources for a better outcome. It's nothing earth shattering. But it is game changing for Sprint. I have eluded to it in chats already. I am going to try to cover it more in depth and how it relates to every first round market soon. More details to follow in articles. And it's going to allow Phoenix, Cleveland, Tucson/Yuma and Milwaukee to move up a little. I am a significant bottle neck in this enterprise! Robert

800 CDMA is supported by many devices now. 800 LTE will require more engineering to get into devices. 800 LTE is not expected to be in any Sprint devices in 2012. Robert

Danny Bullard Sprint 4G Rollout Updates Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 9:45 AM MDT Hello S4GRU readers. In this article, I will give you my 3 reasons why Apple is successful. I will go into extensive detail on each reason why Apple is successful. These are my opinions, so feel free to comment telling me your reasons why Apple is successful and how you think Apple could improve in each category. Note: These are in no specific order. 1. Marketing Apple markets their products like no other. If you've ever seen Apple's TV commercials, you'll notice how they're simple and cut to the chase. During most Apple commercials, Apple talks about the simplicity and beauty of their products. Example, Apple's new ad for the new iPad talks about the iPad's new retina display saying "When a screen becomes this good, it is simply you and the things you care about." When it comes to presentations, Apple is no slouch. When going over the product and such, they explain it all where the common buyer can understand everything about the product, not just tech geeks. Apple isn't only about marketing, they are also about engaging with their fans, and that is exactly what Steve Jobs did and Tim Cook is doing. 2. Simplicity The average consumer usually doesn't usually care about specs when looking into purchasing a smartphone or a tablet. They just want something that is easy to use and just "works". If you have ever used the iPhone or iPad, I'm sure you know how simple they are to operate/use on a daily basis unlike other devices. The iPhone 4S is so simple that your younger children can operate it without any hiccups (ever seen the Sprint iPhone Unlimited ad with the young child?). Apple's programs like iTunes and the App Store provide seamless experiences for downloading music and apps. Almost everything Apple releases is easy to use, and that's why we love them. Simplicity is a virtue to Apple, case closed. 3. Innovation Apple is known for innovation. They are always thinking of ways to improve their products while making them "different" from others. If you've seen the new iPad, I'm sure you've noticed the iPad's new display packing a whopping 2048x1536 resolution. That is the highest resolution of any tablet/mobile device. Impressive huh? Apple doesn't stop innovating there. Apple's iPhone 4S rocks an 8MP camera with F/2.4 Lens. It's the "The you-can't-believe-it's-on-a-phone camera." Innovation never stops at Apple. Those are my three reasons why Apple is successful. Please weigh in with your thoughts below! Constructive and well thought out comments only, please.

I did? Hmmm. I keep a log of articles to write. I only see one mentioning Chicago, and it has a low priority. And one article must be written before it for it to make sense. I wouldn't expect it earlier than 7 days from now. But its not a comprehensive overview of work in the Chicago market. That's already been done. It will be a schedule clarification. There has been a significant NV deployment reprioritization that occurred in February. And I think its a good idea. More info to follow. Robert

I'm just glad I get to hang out with you guys. It won't be long until I'm thrown off the island! Robert

Tool Time

Although I don't know much about SouthernLINC, I understand they have a very loyal following. And they will be the last bastion of iDEN left. Which still remains popular for what it is. However, SL is going to start having problems getting devices built for a decent cost with the world's largest iDEN network shutting down. Robert

This is true. But that doesn't leave out an unspoken caveat that they may use 3x3 LTE temporarily in some markets (and possibly permanently in others). Sprint is planning to deploy one 1xA carrier on Channel 476 and one 5x5 LTE carrier on their 800 holdings in 90% of their markets. Robert

Samuel - Welcome to S4GRU. Thanks for accepting my invitation to come over from Facebook. As for making money, ehhh... Right now, S4GRU.com is like the PBS of the internet...viewer supported. Thanks for joining! Robert

I don't remember which one it was, but one of the tech sites that covered our story mistakenly stated that LTE would be locked out. To miss something that clear in the article would be very embarrassing for a website that is supposed to deliver accurate news. I winced when I read it! Robert

We have added 36 members since the first device story broke. That's a 10% increase in 3 days! Robert

Don't be so sure about that. In each market, Network Vision has two Phases. Phase 1 covers mostly urban and some rural. Phase 2 completes the remaining urban and rural. You would be surprised at the rural sites that get into Phase 1. You could be lucky and be one of those Rural Phase 1 sites. Ask the folks in Wamego Kansas, Marlin Texas, Freehold New Jersey and Oxford, Mass why they are in the first round. They couldn't tell ya. But happy that they are. Sprint cannot get 800 LTE ready now, not on the device side, nor on the network side. They either had to choose between delaying all LTE device until next year, or just going with 1900 LTE now. In my estimation, with one 5x5 LTE 1900 PCS LTE carrier, Sprint will be able to serve even it's busiest sites for 12 to 18 months without significant decrease in performance. And even at 18 months, only 15% to 25% of their sites would be over burdened. This just isn't a big problem in the short term, IMO. It wasn't worth waiting another year for Sprint to hold LTE devices. That would have sunk Sprint. They just didn't have many choices. They are making the best decision for the circumstances they are in. By the time capacity gets to be an issue at some sites, Sprint will be able to deploy 800LTE and 2500 TD-LTE and the devices that will benefit from it. Robert

I don't disagree. However, in the testing data I saw for the new LTE devices we reported about this weekend, each had a field that said "3MHz LTE Channel Support?" All three were marked "Y". I also know that in Atlanta, the 1xA carrier is at Channel 526, instead of 476 like in most markets. So when I consider the amount of SMR spectrum left beyond the 1xA carrier, to me, I draw the conclusion that Sprint must be planning a 3x3 LTE carrier on 800 in places they put the 1xA carrier at Channel 526. That's the only deduction I can take from the information I have. Robert