WiWavelength

It disabled your Google Voice integration capability. And that is a sad loss. I do not know how Sprint pulled off the coup of Google Voice integration that remains exclusive to this day. It is an excellent feature. However, you still could use Google Voice -- you just would have to sign up for a new Google Voice number. I realize that is not convenient now. It could have been convenient, though, a few years ago when you changed your phone number anyway. Your new Google Voice number could have been your permanent number. AJ

Yeah, many of the staff initially were not in favor of your data usage poll thread. It seemed like another needless thread -- also one that could serve to glorify excessive data usage. But as time has gone on, the poll has served as a valuable source of usage statistics. So, thanks. AJ

And if you want the TL;DR version of the thread and its stats, among S4GRU readers who responded to the poll, about 90 percent fall below the 23 GB threshold. That means about 10 percent are above the threshold. But here is the more interesting stat -- that 10 percent minority above 23 GB consumes in aggregate about 43 percent of all data usage. And that is even being conservative with the statistical estimates. It could be closer to 50 percent of all data usage. Basically, some of you have brought this upon yourself. You are using too much mobile data potentially to the detriment of many others. AJ

For those who are going to complain about data prioritization beyond 23 GB that may affect them in certain locations at certain times, I suggest that they review the statistics from a recent data usage poll thread. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few... http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/6992-s4gru-members-average-monthly-data-usage-with-poll/?mode=show AJ

Because many of the LTE engineering screen fields are not populated, I would tend to side with SignalCheck Pro on this one. On the 2015 Moto X, be sure not to leave the LTE engineering screen in the recent apps drawer for more than a day or two. For some reason, it does not like that and starts to misbehave. You have to close it and whip out the dialer code again. I really like the aesthetics of my white/bamboo 2015 Moto X. The screen to body ratio makes the size manageable, and the hand feel is solid. But the RF performance is only average. And the engineering screen/Signal Check Pro issues are beyond the pale. So, this beauty queen likely is going into very early retirement. I await the imminent shipment of my Nexus 5X. AJ

Yes, in a blog post or FCC ex parte filing, T-Mobile disclosed that it was paying something like $0.15 per MB for domestic data roaming. I do not recall, however, if that was average cost or peak cost. I put the Sprint estimate at $0.10 per MB to be conservative. And Sprint does seem to have more "friendly" domestic roaming partners than does T-Mobile. AJ

That varies per roaming agreement. But a conservative average estimate is $0.10 per MB, thus $10 per 100 MB and $100 per GB. AJ

That is mikejeep's tribute to The Innocence Mission. Bright as yellow, warm as yellow. AJ

Yes, to borrow an AT&T term, it would be roaming data rollover. And I like the idea, but I am not sure that it would be financially advisable. Even roaming 100 MB significantly cuts into Sprint's profit margin, so Sprint counts on most users to roam little, if at all most months. In other words, Sprint does not want to encourage or enable greater roaming data usage. What I would prefer that Sprint do instead -- and this would cover your vacation scenario -- is install a 500 MB yearly roaming data quota. That would be less than half of the monthly quota x 12 available now. And users who roam more than that could purchase additional roaming data allotments at market price or pursue other options -- because they might not be a good fit for Sprint and vice versa. Of course, I may have contradicted myself with my suggestion, as it could enable greater roaming data usage. Some users on current plans go on vacation once a year and consume up to 100 MB of roaming data. That is it for the entire year. Under my proposal, those same users could go on vacation once a year and consume up to 500 MB of roaming data. Sprint would absorb a greater financial hit. So, I am not sure. All I can say is that roaming data costs are high. AJ

Remember that joining Project Fi disables Google Voice capability -- I believe permanently -- on that Google account. Just FYI... AJ

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You dropped the ball. You're late again, MalzahnFanTN. I've never been so mad at anyone in my life. AJ

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You are welcome. But be careful not to deem it factual information. I do not have all of the answers. Maybe none of the answers. Mostly, I have critical thinking questions on this matter. And I can understand potentially why RootMetrics has normalized to a 100 point scale. Just like inflation causes $1000 not to be worth the same value in real money from one year to the next, for example, 10 Mbps may not be worth the same value from market to market or timeframe to timeframe. If RootMetrics let the scale extend infinitely, then a 125 score a year from now might not be perceived by end users in a given market as better performance than a 100 score right now -- because expectations change and grow. It is a sticky wicket. That is why I stress further analysis of the statistical results... AJ

The Beta Band now plays a song in honor. Fixing the glitch was no problem for mikejeep. It was "Simple"... AJ

Here is my later afternoon follow up about RootMetrics... This is not to criticize anyone, but many of you lack solid understanding of statistics and how they potentially can be misleading. These are the types critical thinking questions that you should ask yourself when you view RootMetrics scores. Why is the scale always relative to 100? Why are the typical results compressed into the 90s? Is that to assuage the operators who finance much of RootMetrics testing and to make those operators mostly look good? I suspect so. Are the results from one market directly comparable to another? For example, is a 97 in New York the same as a 97 in Kansas City? I doubt it. Does each market have different expected values, thus is judged upon different raw score conversion scales? Are the results from one timeframe directly comparable to another? For example, is a 97 in New York in 2H 2015 the same as a 97 in New York in 1H 2015? I doubt it. Does each timeframe have different expected values, thus is judged upon different raw score conversion scales? So, here are some takeaways... John Legere outwardly may attempt to discredit RootMetrics testing. However, that -- as is modus operandi for Legere -- is for public show. Behind the scenes, you know that he asks his team why T-Mobile purports to be on top, yet it does not come out on top in RootMetrics results. Clearly, RootMetrics is not perfect. But it is the most objective and comprehensive wireless network testing we have. The rankings it produces can be viewed as fairly accurate snapshots of network performance in given markets at given timeframes. If Sprint is ranked last in a given market during a given timeframe, for example, then Sprint probably is last there in network performance. Still, we should examine how tightly clustered those rankings are. The differences may not be meaningful -- they may be compressed or exaggerated. And we should not compare rankings to those from other markets and/or other timeframes. Now, if RootMetrics wants to refute anything that I have written, I welcome it. Inform us. The more transparency, the better. That has been an S4GRU founding tenet. AJ

Ryan, you miss my point. I merely was using RootMetrics results for T-Mobile in Omaha as one example off the top of my head of results that are truly embarrassing. Sprint results in Charlotte do not qualify as embarrassing, are not even in the same ballpark. Now, if someone wants to point out a Sprint top 100 market with results as bad as those for T-Mobile in Omaha, go ahead and post it. Equal opportunity. But that market is not Charlotte. People sometimes need a healthy dose of perspective. AJ

AJ

Good work. Nice data collation. I will have further comment when I have more time later this afternoon. And as much as I respect RootMetrics' methodology, its scale appears arbitrary and capricious, always pegged to 100, not truly comparable across different timeframes or markets. AJ

You're only a day away... AJ

I put forth a conditional statement. I said if Sprint service is usable, not that it is usable in Charlotte. That is for all of you to decide for yourselves. If it is unusable, then many of you may be hoping and praying for better but probably should be looking into other options. AJ

Tim is a young guy. Probably premature phonelation. AJ

The 2H 2015 RootMetrics market sample size is limited thus far. Unless most market results have declined, we should not jump to conclusions so soon. In the end of 2H 2015, if most results have declined, we have to look at all factors. Is Sprint getting better but just not as fast or as much as its competitors? Or are its competitors declining, too? Are existing users consuming disproportionately greater resources on an improved Sprint network? Has Sprint started acquiring positive net additions again? Etc. These are all factors not easily apparent in the RootMetrics results. AJ

No, I believe you are referring to engaging the thrusters. AJ