Paynefanbro

Forgot to mention that I traveled all over the lower Hudson Valley last weekend while using the Verizon eSIM trial to directly both carriers' coverage on one device as opposed to using a second phone. Coverage was virtually the same in my experience with the biggest exception being the Bear Mountain region. All along the Long Mountain Parkway from Woodbury Common going east, coverage remained virtually the same. Both carriers reported similar signal strength going all the way down to 1 bar at the same times but when I arrived at the roundabout near where Long Mountain and Palisades Parkway meet up with one another, Verizon had a much stronger signal compared to T-Mobile's 1 bar.

Verizon has a series of sites installed all over Bear Mountain State Park to provide signal to visitors. Unfortunately it doesn't seem like any other carrier attempted to do the same in the 2+ years since they got built. I just took a look at Cellmapper and it seems like AT&T may have collocated on one of the sites late last year but none of the others. Because of these sites when you're driving on Bear Mountain Bridge and along Bear Mountain Bridge Road going south, Verizon has slightly stronger signal than T-Mobile.

— — — — —

I'm thinking about buying a burner Android phone to get back into mapping again because I drive around the city a lot and never get the chance to do so. I have a Galaxy S7 Edge in a drawer with an inactive T-Mobile SIM but it doesn't register LTE at all and it doesn't have Band 71 so it's not that useful for me.

Any recommendations for phones/plans to map cheaply?

1. T-Mobile eNB 879491/879493/879494 on the keep site map is located at 40.77536940167816, -73.92011957697034.
2. Sprint eNB 5762 is now T-Mobile eNB 306271.
   1. Located at 40.582064139078206, -74.16175767702059

Weirdly both of the new Sprint conversions that have been found in Staten Island (eNB 306271 and eNB 326459) were sites I visited earlier this summer but neither of them were broadcasting the keep PLMN at the time. In fact, Sprint eNB 5762 was completely offline when I visited. I suspected both sites were keep sites based on their location relative to neighboring T-Mobile sites so I was surprised when I didn't spot 312-250 coming from them. Glad to see T-Mobile still kept them.

Also T-Mobile isn't done with non-conversion new builds in the city. T-Mobile eNB 894075 is a brand new site added this summer on Rockefeller University's campus in Manhattan. It gives me hope for neighborhoods like Red Hook and Williamsburg that desperately need sites along the waterfront.

Nearly every site I encountered in the Bronx was running N41 SA. Consistent pings in the low teens and speeds were actually great.

1. Sprint eNB 9294 got converted but isn't live yet.
   Location: 40.83091697219704, -73.8178106151994
   
    
2. Sprint eNB unknown, now T-Mobile eNB 310677
   Location:40.880070855974395, -73.83644046611454
   
    
3. Sprint eNB Unknown, now T-Mobile eNB 894775. Bonus speed test with 2CA and N41 SA.
   Location: 40.8989406640668, -73.84564472722599
   
    
4. Sprint eNB Unknown, now T-Mobile eNB 894854.
   40.86220687471859, -73.86242513896488
   

AT&T urges FCC not to grant T-Mobile’s latest 2.5 GHz licenses 

https://www.fiercewireless.com/wireless/att-urges-fcc-not-grant-t-mobiles-latest-25-ghz-licenses

Quote

The filing notes that counting all auctions except this one (Auction 108), the remaining three nationwide facilities-based carriers have the following mid-band assets on a weighted average basis:

T-Mobile: 205 megahertz (165 megahertz of non-auctioned 2.5 GHz spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band, 27 in the C-Band, and 12 in the 3.45 GHz band).

AT&T: 120 megahertz: (80 in the C-Band plus 40 in the 3.45 GHz band).

Verizon: 161 megahertz: (composed entirely of C-Band).

According to AT&T, T-Mobile’s claim that it has locked in a spectrum advantage for “the entirety of the 5G era” should raise “significant concerns because there is no new mid-band spectrum in the auction pipeline that could equalize the current imbalance in mid-band assets.”

AT&T also complains that T-Mobile has told different audiences two contradictory stories about the competitive significance of its spectrum holdings. To policymakers, T-Mobile presents itself as a “scrappy and under-resourced upstart” struggling to compete against Verizon and AT&T. But it tells investors the opposite, boasting about its spectrum advantage over the other two and how its rivals don’t have a path to match T-Mobile anytime soon.

— — — — —

Actual letter submitted to FCC by AT&T here: 

https://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsEntry/attachments/attachmentViewRD.jsp;ATTACHMENTS=JG3Kj8QGVvpprLw2hqTS7JQy1pxbs7gfvv33KxtSN3dBKTRWRQ3G!990034342!-414398754?applType=search&fileKey=1490028782&attachmentKey=21623913

T-Mobile's response letter here: 

https://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsEntry/attachments/attachmentViewRD.jsp?applType=search&fileKey=1824573146&attachmentKey=21628501

1 hour ago, dkyeager said:

must have posted at the same time.  was thinking they might have C-Spire., or maybe they are just using T-Mobile Licenses.

tried by Alabama and Mississippi and did not see it

C-Spire is listed as it's holding company Telapex, Inc. 

15 minutes ago, dkyeager said:

FCC broadband map based on June data:  fun to play around with the carriers (type in their name).  Dish is listed under Hughes. Toggle on and off carrier visbility.  drop and add carriers.  I started you off with the major carriers looking at the higher level of 5g performance.  be sure to drill al they way down in an area.

https://broadbandmap.fcc.gov/provider-detail/mobile?zoom=4.00&vlon=-98.221479&vlat=40.113366&providers=130077_500-2_on%2C131425_500-2_on%2C130403_500-2_on&env=0&pct_cvg=0

 

I have not figured out US Cellular yet.

U.S. Cellular is Telephone and Data Systems, Inc.

1. Sprint eNB 9410 got converted to T-Mobile eNB 315016/315017 
   Location: 40.59324792710544, -73.99464499188356
2. Sprint eNB Unknown got converted to T-Mobile eNB 219605
   Location: 40.6352148980485, -74.02952503317536
3. Sprint eNB 9019 is now T-Mobile eNB 894864
   Location: 40.58570059216386, -73.9444011027088

Sprint eNB 75141 on the keep site map has been converted since the summer but it wasn't live. Looks like it finally went live as eNB 307405. Location: 40.629401378763696, -74.07910762994678

— — — — —

Also I confirmed the location of most of the oDAS in Staten Island on Cellmapper so now we have a more accurate sense of site density. 99% of them are ancient Band 66 only small cells that were first installed as HSPA small cells back in 2009/10 and upgraded to LTE in 2015. 

2 hours ago, AirlineFlyer said:

That building, specifically DeKalb Market, installed its own DAS repeater system for the four carriers. It's really odd and interesting. Cel-Fi has a whole case study on the installation here: https://www.cel-fi.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/ebook_RCR12.pdf

Annoyingly, T-Mobile works great inside the Trader Joes but Verizon and AT&T are totally dead. Not sure how AT&T Passpoint Wi-Fi is managed, but it's a nice option since the building's own Wi-Fi captive portal really doesn't work.

I was on the 4th floor at Alamo Drafthouse. While Cricket was only showing LTE and absolutely refused to connect to 5G, T-Mobile was showing 5G UC in the status bar. Unfortunately I don't know if T-Mobile was connected to the neutral DAS on the LTE side of things and pulling 5G from the macro or if my phone just opted to connect to the macro for both.

AT&T has an LTE DAS and enterprise WiFi installed at City Point in Downtown Brooklyn. My phone automatically connected to attwifi because of the Cricket line. Pretty cool given that it's a relatively new building.

54 minutes ago, wispiANt said:

I spotted a new deployment in the LES, on Clinton Ave, and it is shockingly out of place. I didn't have a chance to take a pic but I believe it replaced this streetlight. 

All the streetlights on the sidestreets in this area are in the 15 foot range. IMO, replacing them with something 2x the height is totally inappropriate. Moreover, it takes up half the sidewalk in an area with already limited sidewalk space.

I agree it's horrible on a side street like that. However if it were placed somewhere on Delancey I wouldn't care. The street is extremely wide, the sidewalk is extremely wide, and nearly every building dwarfs it. I don't think the people deciding where these get places are taking into consideration things like that.

It seems like they're just going to carriers and asking "where are you struggling to get a lease for a site and need coverage the most?" then plopping them down wherever they point on a map.

I don't mind them in the more dense part of the city however I think they stick out like sore thumbs in areas like the one pictured above where they're taller than the buildings that surround them. I'm guessing that when they're rolled out citywide they'll start to be seen as just another piece of NYC infrastructure like lightpoles.

I prefer them shrouded like this as opposed to leaving the antennas exposed like I've seen in so many other cities. Exposed antennas look sloppy in my opinion.

T‑Mobile Lights Up Standalone Ultra Capacity 5G Nationwide

NYC residents complain about ‘ugly’ LinkNYC 5G poles

Quote

As of now, most of Link5Gs have not yet been activated and are in various stages of activation, optimization and testing processes, according to the New York City Office of Technology and Innovation (OTI). The OTI says 90% will be deployed in underserved areas – neighborhoods in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and above 96th Street in Manhattan.

It will take a while to get all the poles up. According to OTI, they’re now at the stage where major telecom carriers can request Link5G sites, based on how to best optimize 5G cellular service where it’s most needed in the city. LinkNYC then works with OTI to site the kiosks, in compliance with city rules and the franchise agreement with the city.

The structures include five independent, RF-optimized bays to house antennas and integrated radios, according to Comptek. Each of these bays can be accessed independently, and each section uses frequency specific shrouding to minimize losses. They’re capable of accommodating 5G millimeter wave, Wi-Fi, C-band and other licensed and unlicensed spectrums.

On 11/3/2022 at 3:14 PM, Paynefanbro said:

Thanks to this I was able to find a bunch of keep sites we missed. 

— — — — —

eNB known, permit submitted:

Sprint eNB 9294 Location: 40.830928401503634, -73.81780539746549

Sprint eNB 79179 Location: 40.67973691573384, -73.77804925050886

Sprint eNB 196636 Location: 40.68111913290647, -73.8339083121252

Sprint eNB 73974 Location: 40.67631783868167, -73.88721591955405

Sprint eNB 9019 Location: 40.58568338251566, -73.9445502357372

Sprint eNB 80078 Location: 40.74589946533523, -73.85602436482927

Sprint eNB 9987/9988 Location: 40.79461727593334, -73.79656358971245

Sprint eNB 9100 Location: 40.76766721423075, -73.99561632478108

— — — — —

eNBs unknown, permit submitted:

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.745437727615325, -73.89051607250086

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.756427706128086, -73.98882983223739

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.760189936486206, -73.96885442740289

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.840684672278606, -73.873443189382

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.86216305440526, -73.86242468456577

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.88011736054097, -73.83639761487673

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.898951728182226, -73.84563781456855

— — — — —

Sprint eNB 6714 is on the keep site map but is listed as location unknown. It's located at 40.715043365864, -74.01530642396074.

— — — — —

I'll probably visit some of these to determine if they've already been upgraded sometime this weekend.

@T-MoblieUser207 We can remove the following from the keep site tracker:

1. Sprint eNB 196636 Location: 40.68111913290647, -73.8339083121252.
   1. While it is upgraded, it turns out this one was a Sprint collocation and the permit was to decommission Sprint and upgrade the site at the same time.
2. Sprint eNB 80078 Location: 40.74589946533523, -73.85602436482927
   1. This one is just a decommission.
3. Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.745437727615325, -73.89051607250086
   1. Also just a decommission.

Next weekend I'll check out a bunch in the Bronx.

Two more conversions!

1. Sprint eNB 73974 is now T-Mobile eNB 306883
   
    
2. Sprint eNB 79179 is now T-Mobile eNB 326110
   

— — — — —

Bonus Link5G I spotted while driving. Located here.

18 hours ago, wispiANt said:

Seeing this in Brooklyn, as well.

T-Mobile loves giving us an EOY bump to n41. Surprised they didn't just go straight for the full 50MHz carrier and shut off Band 41. Maybe it's because they know that they want to launch n25 soon and they'd rather keep the 10MHz of Band 41 around for relief on the LTE side.

— — — — —

As an aside, I got the cricket test drive that gives you 3GB and 14 days to test the network. So far so good. 5G performance in my house is better than Verizon but worse than T-Mobile. For one, I can actually connect to C-band on AT&T in my living room whereas I can only get it on Verizon if I'm by a window. Similarly, AT&T's LTE performance is better than Verizon in my house and about equal to T-Mobile. Here are some speed tests on both networks in my living room, where I get the worst performance on any network. I'll likely take a walk to the AT&T site serving my home to see what peak speeds I can get tomorrow.

— — — — —

Edit:

Slightly faster on LTE and 5G when right under the site. I'm really impressed by AT&T's LTE speeds honestly. Verizon definitely has faster peak C-band speeds though at the moment. Too bad there's no DoD antenna on any of the sites in my neighborhood for me to test.

3 hours ago, RedSpark said:

Amazing what you can do with enough money.

Sigh....

Still waiting on them to open up the checkbook for the biggest spectrum squatter of them all, Nextwave. They recently announced that they’re gonna use the BRS/EBS to build out private networks. I feel like it’s BS and they’re just doing it to create a sense of urgency for T-Mobile to buy it before they start actually deploying it. 

T-Mobile may be looking to spend big on fiber home internet

https://www.theverge.com/2022/11/7/23445777/t-mobile-home-internet-fiber-5g-partnership-search

Original paywalled Bloomberg article here: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-07/t-mobile-seeks-fiber-optic-venture-aimed-at-home-internet

eNB 43268 in Downtown Brooklyn is likely another multi-gig backhaul site. I'd be able to confirm it if my phone would connect to n41 but unfortunately I kept getting stuck on mmWave. Speeds on mmWave were 600/50 which is a bit above average for mmWave here. 

Also the site on top of BMCC (eNB 41276) got a backhaul upgrade. Saw 767/119 while driving past it.

17 hours ago, wispiANt said:

Just FYI, it seems like most (if not all) the DOBNow building permits can be viewed here. I did a quick scan of how many Sprint keep sites there might be and we're looking at 196, give or take. Not too far from the 160 @T-MoblieUser207 has on their map.

As far as Dish permits go, we're looking at 400, give or take.

Thanks to this I was able to find a bunch of keep sites we missed. 

— — — — —

eNB known, permit submitted:

Sprint eNB 9294 Location: 40.830928401503634, -73.81780539746549

Sprint eNB 79179 Location: 40.67973691573384, -73.77804925050886

Sprint eNB 196636 Location: 40.68111913290647, -73.8339083121252

Sprint eNB 73974 Location: 40.67631783868167, -73.88721591955405

Sprint eNB 9019 Location: 40.58568338251566, -73.9445502357372

Sprint eNB 80078 Location: 40.74589946533523, -73.85602436482927

Sprint eNB 9987/9988 Location: 40.79461727593334, -73.79656358971245

Sprint eNB 9100 Location: 40.76766721423075, -73.99561632478108

— — — — —

eNBs unknown, permit submitted:

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.745437727615325, -73.89051607250086

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.756427706128086, -73.98882983223739

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.760189936486206, -73.96885442740289

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.840684672278606, -73.873443189382

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.86216305440526, -73.86242468456577

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.88011736054097, -73.83639761487673

Sprint eNB Unknown Location: 40.898951728182226, -73.84563781456855

— — — — —

Sprint eNB 6714 is on the keep site map but is listed as location unknown. It's located at 40.715043365864, -74.01530642396074.

— — — — —

I'll probably visit some of these to determine if they've already been upgraded sometime this weekend.

Another site with upgraded backhaul. eNB 45767 in Chelsea used to top out in the 600's a couple months back.

— — — — —

Nostrand Ave station on the 3 train has that switch flipped that makes your phone show 5G when you're only connected to LTE. My phone was reporting full bars on 5G but NrConnectionStats showed absolutely nothing on my phone. Still fast at 140Mbps but I'm not a fan of the false reporting. Also held signal well into the tunnels leaving the station so that was new for me.

Maybe I'm just late, I've ridden the subway only a handful of times since the pandemic started. Down from riding it literally every day of my life before that lol

On 9/17/2022 at 2:32 PM, Paynefanbro said:

Stopped by the infamous Greenpoint Sprint keep site and it's not broadcasting anything. Antennas still up though.

It's back! Pretty much nobody on it. I nearly maxed out the 5MHz Band 26 carrier on it and I never used to see pings that low on Sprint LTE.

Anyone else notice a backhaul increase recently in Lower Manhattan? Yesterday I ran into a number of sites between Canal and Houston that were showing speeds of 700Mbps+ in the middle of the day. 

For example:

Edit: eNB 50088 in Downtown Brooklyn too. This site never used to be this fast. First test on n41 120MHz, second test on mmWave 100MHz with the typical high ping. Once again these are at peak times so I'm assuming it can get over 1Gbps depending on the time of day.

On 10/21/2022 at 9:59 PM, Paynefanbro said:

Neville has mentioned in the past that T-Mobile has explored the idea of using their mmWave spectrum to provide internet to entire apartment buildings much like Starry has done. Picking up Starry could give them a bit of a head start on that plan.

Looks like Neville acknowledged the value of mmWave for FWA again.

https://www.lightreading.com/5g/t-mobile-shows-big-customer-gains-promises-more/d/d-id/781403?

Quote

"We've barely tapped our millimeter wave [spectrum] assets," T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert explained, noting that T-Mobile has additional spectrum resources it could allocate for extra FWA capacity.

Neville has mentioned in the past that T-Mobile has explored the idea of using their mmWave spectrum to provide internet to entire apartment buildings much like Starry has done. Picking up Starry could give them a bit of a head start on that plan.