Bumbershoot

This phone has never been rooted. I'll block the texts. Thanks for the response.

Is anyone else getting a series of texts after the update from the number 9485?. The content appears to be similar to:

itson:cAwASAQY3ODU0NDIBCAAAAUnOSAuq

I get one every few minutes. If it matters, I'm using Google Hangouts as my SMS client.

Thanks.

Has anyone had an issue where your GS5 will completely lose signal for about a minute?  This has happened to me twice (once while driving and once while standing still).  I will be on LTE, usually listening to streaming music, when the phone completely loses signal (no LTE, 3G or roaming).  I get a red X by my bars.  This will last for about a minute.  Then it eventually finds 3G.  Then eventually finds LTE.

 

During this minute, I can not make calls or access the internet.

I've seen that a time or two, but I've attributed it to the network.  I'm in an area where there has been plenty of NV activity since I got this phone upon it's release in April.

Although there haven't been many reported NV acceptances in the Seattle area in the past few weeks, it appears that Sprint is getting the issues with eCSFB on Band 41 ironed out.  This week, my Galaxy S5 is sitting natively on Band 41 while in the Pioneer Square area, where I used to have to force it to "LTE only" to get to it.  I'm receiving and sending voice calls perfectly, as well.  It's hard to see it, but it looks to me like progress is still being made in the area.

Does the GS5 still have problem receiving calls while on LTE NOT in a Spark market?

I'm not in a Spark market (yet, though it's getting close) and I'm receiving calls just as I would expect.

Do you know if they are replacing any equipment on the tower when they light up a former Clearwire site or is it just an equipment swap in the cabinet?

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

Tapatalk is still having issues so I can't post from my phone just yet but I believe it is the tower in south Marysville near I5

There's a map in the Premier Sponsors area that would show you, but it looks like three or four former Clearwire sites in Marysville that should be up and going.

For the B41 work, do they need to go through the permitting process again in Western WA?

It doesn't look like it.  In doing a quick check through King County permits, I found this language for a site where Band 25 was turned on in March, and is scheduled for Band 41 in Phase 2A (I don't know if Band 41 is available at this site at the moment).

This permit was closed in March, 2014, but here's the language in the original permit:

MODIFY EXISTING UNOCCUPIED TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITY WITH THE ADDITION OF (3) NEW PANEL ANTENNAS, (3) RRU'S, (2) MICROWAVE DISH ANTENNAS, (2) EQUIPMENT CABINETS AND (3) HYBRID CABLES. (6) ANTENNAS, (3) EQUIPMENT CABINETS AND ALL SPRINT COAX CABLES WILL BE REMOVED (PREA12-0182, L96AC023/E96E0182)

It looks like all the current Sprint permits have similar language, with the "...(3) NEW PANEL ANTENNAS, (3) RRU'S...".  I think this describes the original NV equipment.

I haven't been able to find any other new permits for sites scheduled to get Band 41, other than the original permits that were issued for the original NV work.  Nothing conclusive, but that's all I could find.

 

Well Seattle folks. Your patience has been rewarded! 

Thanks.  The latest update was a good one. 

It looks like most of the remaining work in Western Washington is in downtown Seattle and the Capitol Hill/Central District areas.  When the 3G sites have all switched on Band 25, and Band 41 is all up and running, it looks the Seattle metropolitan area (from Fort Lewis to the south, to Everett to the north, including the I-405 corridor), will absolutely be awash in 4G, even without Band 26.

For anyone wondering about downtown Seattle:  I got on internal email (from Sprint) a couple of weeks ago that a micro site in my building would go live at the same time that downtown Seattle would finally light up.  That was scheduled for May 28th.  I found out this morning that this had been pushed back a day to May 29th, and sure enough, the building site lit up this afternoon. 

Additionally, I noticed on my commute home this afternoon that I was getting a strong 3G signal at the Colman Ferry Dock that hadn't seen previously.  Maybe it's true!

Does anyone have the timetable for Band 41 deployment for Seattle, WA?

 

I know 1900Mhz is up and running, but I don't see how 2.5Ghz is gonna help me if I'm only getting 1-2 bars of service (on 1900mhz) at Barton St. & 15th Ave.

If you upgrade to Premier Sponsorship, you'll find a map of the Clearwire sites that will be converted to B41.  From that map, I strongly suspect that the White Center area will be well supported with B41.  If you have a tri-band phone that you can force to "LTE only" mode, then you might find it's already available.  Hopefully, very soon, in any event.  I've been getting B41 downtown, but I haven't been through White Center in a couple of weeks to test.

Sprint has repurposed iDEN for 800 MHz or band 26. They can't implement it up here yet because of IBEZ. Once the US and Canada come to an agreement, Sprint can start implementing band 26 up here. Hope that answers your question.

A.J. wrote in a forum in the Premier Sponsors area that this is because of channelization agreements with Canada. iDEN is apparently a narrowband technology, while LTE requires a wider footprint.

I was in downtown Seattle today when signalcheck pro alerted me that I had connected to 800MHz 1xRTT! I pulled my phone out and it wasn't connected to anything at the moment. This happened 3 times while I was out and about. I wanted to take a screen shot but it lost connection too quickly :/

 

Sent from my 831C using Tapatalk

When I've put my phone in LTE Only mode, toggling the radios off/on, I've seen some B26 show up momentarily on my LTE Engineering screen.  It isn't usable, and doesn't stay for long before the phone bounces to B25 or B41.  I posted a link to a screenshot of this in a premier sponsors forum, and folks there indicated that my phone wasn't connecting to Sprint, but something other.  It hasn't happened for a couple of days, but last week it seemed to happen frequently, even on a ferry boat on Puget Sound.

On another note, here's a link to a screenshot of the speeds I acquired on B41 this morning (4th Ave S/S Seattle St) down by CenturyLink field.  This is the fastest I've seen.

The *#0011# dialer code works on my Samsung Galaxy SIII (SPH-L710)

Screenshot_2014-05-13-03-37-581.png

It works on the Samsung Galaxy S5 as well.

I am not able to force LTE only from my S5. I don't see it as an option. I can see it on the Nexus 5. Anyone please help! Thanks!

Have a look at this link.  All you really need to do are steps 1,2 and 7.

I haven't noticed very many observations regarding B41 in the Puget Sound area.  I was able to get a speed test done in the north parking lot of CenturyLink Field this morning, using a Galaxy S5 in LTE only mode.  The results were good:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ejaxna9j0d857br/2014-04-29%2014.22.55.png

Here's another B41 observation, this time a Western and University down by the waterfront in downtown Seattle.  Almost 50 Mbps down...

I haven't noticed very many observations regarding B41 in the Puget Sound area.  I was able to get a speed test done in the north parking lot of CenturyLink Field this morning, using a Galaxy S5 in LTE only mode.  The results were good:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ejaxna9j0d857br/2014-04-29%2014.22.55.png

What is "Sprints Internal System?"  You said Everett, which tower?  Has anyone seen their phones connect to 800 MHz?  Great find!

I haven't run across any in southwest Seattle, downtown or Tacoma, but I'll be looking for it. 

Is there a true test some place of the S4 versus the S5 (or S5 versus the LG G2, HTC One, etc.) simply based on RF?  Not meaning anecdotal evidence like many here are providing, no offense I know that we all monitor our signals closely, but something more controlled?  I know Andrew did that preview article on the WiFi download booster (which isn't on these phones now anyways), but nothing purely on the RF comparisons in real world testing.

 

I'm growing concerned that there are real issues with the S5's performance based on this forum and a few others.

This is of course anecdotal and of no real help, but the difference in RF performance that I've observed between the S5 and the EVO 4G LTE that it replaced is astonishing.  That doesn't mean that there aren't issues in comparison to other tri-band phones, but the LTE performance of this phone, corroborated by SignalCheck, is *literally* miles better (as observed in my daily commute) than the EVO.  In comparison, I'm very pleased with my S5.

That said, it would be interesting to see an RF shootout between the tri-band phones, but that's not something I can provide with only one tri-band phone in the household.

I'm assuming i'm not the only one having LTE signal issues with my s5?

I'm not having any issues, but I'm coming from an HTC EVO 4G LTE, so this phone gets LTE in places I've never seen it before, and it seems to hang onto the signal way longer than the EVO.  If the S4T is better than this phone, then the EVO would be pathetic in comparison.

Interested in hearing about RF performance. Anyone get the phone yet?

 

Sent from my LG-LS980

So far, 3G is about the same as my EVO LTE 4G that this replaced.  4G, however, is quite a bit better on the S5, maybe 8-10 db better.  It acquires and hangs onto 4G way better in my limited testing so far.

Thank you so much.  I just broke down and called them as well.  I will wait it out.  I still have data so not that big of a deal.  Awesome phone so far. 

Mine finally activated.  Took about five hours of trying, but it's done.

Well I just got some lte from Vashon to my home in Burien and I can even send texts and calls now without roaming,

The site just above the Fauntleroy Ferry Dock got a 3G acceptance yesterday. I hope 4G is imminent, as I spend too much time there waiting for boats. There will be plenty of users spending idle time on their mobile devices while waiting for the next boat, so I hope that site in particular gets B41 sooner than later.

The race to the finish line. Which group of sites will go live next, central Seattle or Bellevue?

It looks like Bellevue gained the most with yesterdays update. Things are moving along quickly.

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk

There's getting to be quite a bit of 4G along the I5 corridor.  From Castle Rock on south, it isn't looking too bad.  Check out this Sensorly map (centered at Castle Rock).