Dkoellerwx

You're positive this is a Sprint tower? It looks like there are three panels per sector on the top. That's not the norm for Sprint towers, though not impossible if you're in an extremely densely populated area. The top panels don't seem to look like Sprint panels either, but it's hard to tell. Sent from my GS3 using Tapatalk 2

Probably the update that came out in August for the rest of us. Wonder why it wasn't on the to begin with. Sent from my GS3 using Tapatalk 2

The bottom is not Sprint, there are RRUs on every panel. Sprint only has one NV panel per sector. From those photos, I can't tell which is Sprint, and I don't think I see any NV equipment. Sent from my GS3 using Tapatalk 2

Pretty normal update size I believe. I think the last update for the GS3 was in the range of 200MB. Sent from my GS3 using Tapatalk 2

We welcome any information, it's just nice to see something to back it up. If updates do start rolling on Sunday, everyone will be very happy, and kudos to you. However, until I see more conclusive evidence, I'll continue to assume we won't be seeing an update for a while.

And, Sprint is deploying much faster. They plan to have most of the network converted in 2 years or less. Verizon didn't deploy in 2 years, AT&T certainly didn't. They are behind, sure, but they're not deploying slowing, they're deploying "lightyears" faster that Verizon or AT&T did.

I would expect work to start closer to mid year. Though we don't have any more information that that. As far as how long til "launch," it will not take a year. I would bet money that by this time next year you will have plenty of LTE in your area, possibly even an official launch.

That's new! Looks like they've finally activated towers in VA. Was wondering when that would finally happen. There have been some completed sites there for a while.

The Sensorly issues is Apple not allowing access to the needed information. So unless Apple changes, Sensorly won't be able to collect information on iPhones any time soon. As far as which towers are first, there is no plan in regards to population or strategic locations. Sprint is doing whichever tower is ready first. This means whichever tower has the planning complete, the proper permits, backhaul in place, etc. If they waited until towers were ready for a strategic deployment, we would still be waiting for the first markets to start. So while the order doesn't really make sense, it means bringing LTE to the area sooner, even if it's not in the way that people would like.

Exactly. Robert posted about this elsewhere, I don't remember where, but essentially, if Sprint had waited until sites were ready for a strategic deployment, we would still be waiting for the first markets to start. By jumping on any and every tower that is ready to be upgraded, no matter where it is, they are much farther along. However, it makes it seems much less organized, and makes the coverage seem worse to the consumer. However, it will work out better for us in the long run.

That would be nice, but unfortunately that's not how it working. They are doing which ever sites have permitting, backhaul etc done first. So there is no real order to site production.

Well, that's what this overhaul is all about. Getting rid of those speeds. And it wasn't until really the last few years or so that it became such a problem to have those speeds. Not that long ago, those speeds would have worked for most people.

How do you know there is backhaul? Unless you saw it installed, or have tested the connection, you can't know. And there is always the possibility that there is some component that isn't ready yet. Something that's not connected. A piece that is missing. I've seen towers site for a couple of weeks before the signal comes on. We have no way of knowing what the issue is, but I'm betting that it has to do with backhaul not being up to par. And if they aren't accepted by Sprint yet, then there is no reason to expect an LTE signal from them. At this time, there are no sites accepted in the Tampa market. Why this is, we don't know. When sites start getting accepted, that's when you should start looking for LTE signals.

There's definitely something going on, either with your phone, or with the speedtest app, because those results are not possible on the Sprint network... anywhere! 3G can't give those speeds ever, nor can Sprint's LTE, so somethings up.

I believe they are getting to the sites that are easiest first, so if there is some other obstacle that adds more time to getting the site done, that's probably why they haven't done it yet. I don't have anything more technical than that lol

Great report! However, it may be in vain :-/ iPhones don't report to the Sensorly maps. But great info anyway! Keep us up to date!

Rolling out a complete network overhaul takes a long time, they aren't just slapping LTE on a couple of towers and then moving on like Verizon did. They could have done a 'blanket' coverage plan, where they put it on a few strategic sites that barely cover the city and call it good. But that's not what they are doing. They are replacing EVERY SINGLE TOWER in EVERY SINGLE MARKET. That takes time, a lot of time. I'm sure they wish it was moving along faster than it is. The first markets (ie. Atalanta, Dallas, KC, Houston) were slated to be done in December or January. However, Ericsson, the company doing the upgrades, had gotten a little behind due to equipment issues, and backhaul not getting to sites quick enough. But the work is still going on, and it will be complete. It just requires a little more patience. That's not true at all. Please see the site rules, as you are very near crossing them.

That's ok! Enjoy the LTE! Wish I had something to track here. Until then, I'll drool over sensorly, lol.

The plan is...... to do what ever tower is ready first. There is no plan by population, best strategic site, or anything like that. The towers are done in the order in which they are ready. That means planning, permits, backhaul securing contractors, getting equipment there, all that. They aren't picking and choosing, skipping over regions on purpose, it just happens these towers were the easiest to get done the fastest.

Did you intend to quote me? Basically the same thing I was saying. Just wondering.

Is the date always in the future? I can believe that.

There are couple of towers that are market complete in the Jacksonville market, they just aren't in Jacksonville. Towers are only marked complete when Robert gets the information that Sprint has signed off on the towers. Until then, we are marking them as in progress.

That still pretty good compared to what most people are seeing, generally anywhere from 0.1 - 0.5Mbps.

Or you were lucky. What time of day were those tests done? We haven't received any reports of NV working starting in Colorado. Though once we do, this will be the first site to know. It will likely be several more months before work starts in your market.

Is anyone in the Fayetteville area? There's a tower marked as complete there, but I haven't seen any reports yet.