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mhammett

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Posts posted by mhammett

    Cheapest way to get LTE service from Verizon/AT&T/USCC?

    in General Topics

    Posted

    Not sure you're going to get much cheaper on Verizon than the Moto E. You may have to reboot it now and then due to the bug with SCP (depending whether or not it impacts Cell Mapper). I had to reboot it twice on my drive back to northern Virginia on Sunday, both times after brief drops to 1X, which were exceedingly rare, and didn't cause the bug every time. On the trip down, I didn't have to reboot at all.

     

    The LG Leon LTE, at the time, was one of the only cheap MetroPCS phones with B12. That may have changed as that was during the summer.

     

    You could probably do something cheaper than the Nexus 5 on AT&T, but I wanted to be sure that SCP would work.

     

    I still have no solution for US Cellular.

     

    - Trip

    Source of the cheap SIMs?

     

    Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Posted

    A point about backhaul that I'm not sure people are aware of. The fiber used from the cell sites is not routed the same way your home internet would be. In order to get fiber backhaul, the link has to go directly to the switch site, not touching the Internet along the way. Usually that's where the AAVs and LECs come into play, since they have last-mile fiber and can provide point to point connections. 

    You can use MPLS or CE to provision cell site backhaul.

    Cheapest way to get LTE service from Verizon/AT&T/USCC?

    in General Topics

    Posted

     

     

    Just following up here. I got a Verizon phone from a member here (he can chime in if he wants; thanks again!) which supports B13/B4/B2 and SCP in full. No service required; I get LTE GCI and related data without service. The phone keeps bugging me to activate it, but as long as I keep saying no, all is well.

     

    In summary, here is where I stand.

     

    T-Mobile: LG Leon LTE (supports B2/B4/B12). Cost was about $110. No activation required.

    Sprint: Samsung Galaxy S5 (supports B25/B26/B41). This is my actual phone with my phone number and whatnot on it. Cost was effectively 0 since I would have had it anyway.

    AT&T: Google Nexus 5 (supports B2/B4/B5/B17). Cost was about $115, plus I have to put $10 on a pay-as-you-go H2O Wireless account every 3 months and keep background data disabled. Not bad.

    Verizon: Motorola Moto E (supports B2/B4/B13). Cost was much lower than others thanks to member here, as mentioned previously. No activation required.

     

    - Trip

    Is this still the lowest cost way to track all four with CellMapper?

     

    Did anyone come up with any USCC ideas?

     

    Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

    Cheapest way to get LTE service from Verizon/AT&T/USCC?

    in General Topics

    Posted

    You might want to bite the bullet and just pay $300 for the Nexus 5X. In one fell swoop, that would cover all of your bases -- except for AT&T band 30. It might not be as cost effective as buying individual handsets on the cheap, but it could be close. And you would gain the advantage of carrying around only separate SIMs, not juggling several different handsets while out and about.

     

    AJ

    I've been wanting to do something similar for a while, but haven't found the good options yet. I'd have mine in my truck running nearly 24/7. One handset for each provider so that I'm sure to map them all everywhere.

     

    I prefer multiple phones over a shared phone.

     

    I'll keep reading this thread to see what pops up.

     

    Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Posted

    Correct me if I am wrong but Clearwire was a big user of microwave backhaul.

    I was a Clearwire user and it worked well as long as there was no heavy rain within

    25 miles. Heavy rain was certain to cause interruptions because microwave is

    sensitive to things like that.

    All it takes is proper engineering. Most of the long haul phone and TV traffic in the US ran over microwave for 30+ years. It can be done, just don't cut corners.

     

    Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

    • Like 1

    Sprint and the Firstnet RFP

    in General Topics

    Posted

    I don't foresee the carrier that builds FirstNet (if a carrier builds FIrstNet) using their own gear for it. I believe it will be a 100% dedicated network with the private sector sharing being facilitated through something similar to Clear\Sprint LTE sharing or RRPP sharing. It'll be native and the carrier will be jockeying data around, but there will be separate RAD centers, antennas, RRUs, backhaul, cores, etc.

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Posted

    Article seems misinformed, I believe this is going forward with Sprint's micro-cell deployment and any new macro sites that are needed (NGN).

     

    Sprint could also be leveraging different ISPs such as smaller municipal providers for fiber backhaul to save money, help smaller ISPs, and still have tier 1 support.

    There is a lot they could do in this space. They don't seem all that interested in doing what's best for everyone except their competitors, though.

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Posted

    Much of their backhaul is backend fiber run to ATT or verizon.  one thing you have to realize is verizon owns more of the tier 1 backbone in the us than anybody and is in the top 5 in the entire world.  We have seen how vz prices it's wireless assets their backbone pricing is high as well and i am sure they are not giving sprint any kind of volume break either.  If they use microwave for their backhaul they can send the backhaul to places where they own the backbone fiber...drastically cutting their backhaul costs.  From a network engineering perspective this is something i thought sprint should have done long ago.  Leverage their own existing backbone assets.  using microwave backhaul allows them to do just that.,

    https://www.sprint.net/images/North-America-Global-IP.png

    Sprint doesn't have the fiber network depth to do much with it's own network. Sure, it can do some, but it is no match for Zayo, Windstream, cable, or any of dozens of other FTTT companies.

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Posted

    I know that there I like is not the dominant division of the company. That's what point I was trying to make. The article was saying that Sprint is paying jobs of money to AT&T and Verizon. They simply can't be paying that much money to Verizon. Also, I think you're mistaken about the cash cow. The mobile wireless network is the cash cow. Their former UUNet, WorldCom, MCA, Verizon Business, etc properties have been rumored to be up for sale. Their data center and cloud properties are also up for sale. All Verizon will have left in a couple of years will be there us wireless network and BIOS in the former Bell Atlantic region.

     

    Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Posted

    A) Given Verizon's small and decreasing ILEC footprint, I doubt there is much backhaul money going to Verizon.
    B) I've seen Sprint pass up competitive backhaul providers just to purchase from the incumbent. They have a lot of room to work.
    C) Most of their microwave link budgets are crap. Way too small of antennas...  fixing that increases tower rent.
    D) 10G backhaul isn't significantly different in price from 1G backhaul, so they could aggregate towers via microwave fairly reasonably...  at an increase in tower rent.
    E) Verizon is moving to dark fiber backhaul instead of DWDM or MPLS\CE, but dark fiber can be expensive. I don't know if Sprint has the cash to do the same.
    F) Sprint should probably just put me in charge of their backhaul and it'd be done right.  ;-)

    • Like 7

    Sprint wants to save $1B by relocating towers

    in General Topics

    Posted

    http://recode.net/2016/01/15/sprint-finalizes-plan-to-trim-network-costs-by-up-to-1-billion/


    "Sources familiar with the initiative said Sprint plans to cut its network costs by relocating its radio equipment from tower space it has leased from Crown Castle and American Tower to spots on government-owned properties, which costs much less. This process could begin as soon as June or July."



    Well, Sprint sold many of those towers to Crown Castle in the first place...

    • Like 1
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