hiltonMIA

Has anybody in the Miami area picked up a Nexus5? Just curious to see what the LTE connectivity is like with this phone in Miami

 

Sent from my HTC EVO 4G LTE

Yes, I used it for a few hours and got extremely frustrated by the fact that if I lost LTE connectivity it wouldn't come back until I toggled airplane mode. Checking forums it seemed a common complaint. I didn't notice any increase in speeds, but it did pick up LTE in areas that my iPhone hadn't. Eventually I switched back to my iPhone and put a Tmobile sim in the Nexus. Very cool that you can switch carriers by just switching out the sim.

Great info and good to know~! I'm currently enjoying my N5 on a prepaid T-Mobile Kim card and the speeds & experience have been great.

 

Quick question: when you activated the N5 on Sprint after putting in a Sprint card, what were the subsequent steps? Were you able to activate the N5 on Sprint via website or did you have to call in to Sprint?

 

Also, were you made to pay an activation charge? I thought one didn't have to pay an activation charge but I was charged the fee earlier this year when I switched from the E4GT to the GS4.

I actually did the initial switch in a Sprint store. There was no charge and all they did was enter the MEID number in their database. Turned the phone off and back on and it had switched over to Sprint. When I switched back to my iPhone I had to call in - I had tried online but it required a chat session and no chat operators were available - but the lady was great and she did say that future swaps would be easy online. Probably took 3 or 4 minutes max.

Nexus 5. Fort Lauderdale FL

Connects to LTE, but if I'm driving and it drops to 3G it won't switch back to LTE unless I toggle airplane mode.

Okay, I was successfully able to remove my Tmobile sim from my Nexus 5, put in a Sprint sim (which I got at the local store) and transfer the existing Sprint service from my iPhone 5.  I'm supposedly in a Spark area, but I didn't notice a stronger signal or better speeds.  What I did find is that if I lost LTE and the phone went to 3G, even once I returned to an area that I know had strong LTE, the phone stayed on 3G unless I toggled airplane mode.  I played around with it for a few hours, mapped the areas around my house on Sensorly, but ultimately the Sprint experience on this phone was extremely inferior to what I was getting with the Tmobile SIM, so I just switched back.  Maybe in time I'll try it again, but for now I'm going to keep my iPhone on Sprint and the Nexus 5 on Tmobile.  What is good to know is that switching between Sprint and Tmobile is *almost* as easy as it is between GSM carriers - and activating on Sprint doesn't affect the fact that the Google Play version is unlocked.  (The rep at the store told me that once I activated it would lock the phone to Sprint - not so!!)

Are any N5 users in cities that have Spark activated noticing that they get better and more reliable data speeds than they were with their previous device on regular LTE and 3G? I have a N5 that I'm using on Tmobile because my iPhone 5 on Sprint is so slow - data in downtown Fort Lauderdale is always 1x. I'm wondering whether it's worth trying the N5 on Sprint to see if tri-band makes any improvement? I guess my next question would be, if I try it and it doesn't work, how easy is it going back to Tmobile? I gather I can't just switch sims like you can between tmobile and ATT.

If I use a nano-to-micro sim adapter, could I remove the sim from my iPhone 5 and use it in the N5 - keeping my existing line and plan but just switching phones? I was definitely able to do that with the GSM carriers, but I'm not sure how that works with CDMA.

Wow, no comments or postings here in almost a month! I wish that meant that the network was completely built out in this area and nobody had any new observations, but I know that's not the case. Personally I am still incredibly frustrated by how bad things are in downtown Fort Lauderdale, where I get 1x along Broward Blvd from US1 all the way to 95. It's one of the busiest roads in the area, you would think Sprint would give it more priority. A year ago when I switched from AT&T I knew that the data service on Sprint was shoddy, but the voice quality was superb and I never had dropped calls. Now my data still sucks, but voice quality has also deteriorated and I get several dropped calls a day. It's very frustrating and when I called to ask about getting an Airave I was told I would have to pay $99... which is absurd. I had perfectly good reception when I signed up - they've made changes and now my calls drop and people say it sounds like I'm underwater. Argh!!!

Are you guys having issues with the 3G signal constantly dropping to 1x if there is no strong LTE?  We have two phones running iOS 7 GM and 2 still on 6.  When there is not LTE signal the 2 that are on 7 struggle to get data.  The other two don't have this problem - demonstrated by using all 4 phones to try and get data in the same place - the two that have iOS 6 get 3G, the other two start off with 3G and within seconds drop to 1x and start getting error messages. I spoke to Sprint Tech Support and was told they don't support iOS 7, so I kept quiet waiting for public release. I did a clean install of GM, and both phones still have the same problem.  

I'm aware of the limitations of my iPhone, which is why I tried using a ZTE Force, which is a LTE capable prepaid phone using the Boost network. On the Sensorly app it said I've collected over 6k measurements but none of them are showing on the Sprint maps.

If I'm using a Boost LTE phone with Sensorly running, will it map to the Sprint maps? I spent a few hours the other day riding around our neighborhood, but so far nothing has shown up on the maps. Wasn't sure if this was because it isn't a pure Sprint phone, even though it uses their network.

I managed to snag a good condition Boost Force for only $40 and with their $3/day plan I figure I can map LTE in my immediate area once a week on my bike rides or runs.  I covered quite a few miles this morning so hopefully it will show up fairly soon.  

Finally seeing tons of LTE on South Beach along Washington Avenue, as well as along A1A in Fort Lauderdale. My neighborhood in Victoria Park now has pretty good coverage on the east side, the west along US1 is still a bit spotty and Broward Blvd to 95 is obviously still being worked on because most of the time I just show 1x. The Sensorly maps still aren't showing most of these updates yet (I've been getting solid LTE there for about 3 weeks) and most of my friends on Sprint are also using iPhones so sorry we can't report this progress. I'm really glad that I stuck it out with Sprint, this last year has been pretty frustrating, but I think in the long run it will be worth it.

I found where the LTE signal in Victoria Park is coming from. There is a tower on top of a building on the corner of Las Olas and Bontona.

Finally getting consistent LTE in the Victoria Park area, just east of downtown Fort Lauderdale. Sorry I can't map on Sensorly since I have an iPhone, but the signal is strong from the Gateway Theater on Sunrise, all the way along Victoria Park Road to Broward Blvd. Was able to stream Sirius uninterrupted on my drive to work from Victoria Park to 595/University where I lost the signal. That is a first for me!!

I'm in Lauderdale and my data service is still horrible - particularly in the downtown area where I can no longer get 3G. There is a new LTE tower somewhere near Searstown, but the signal is gone by the time you get to Broward Blvd. Sprint won't run any tests for me because I'm using iOS 7 which they say is unsupported, but friends who are using other phones all seem to be experiencing similar problems.

Well it's the really slow thing that preceded 3G. On my wife's iPhone it has an O where the 3G or LTE icon normally shows up. I'm running iOS 7 and it shows 1x on mine. The guy at the Sprint store said it meant that it was using EDGE. All I know is that it sucks!!!

Things got really quiet here recently! I have a question: for over a week my signal in downtown Fort Lauderdale keeps dropping to EDGE. Internet usage and even iMessage transmission has been impossible. I went to the Sprint Store on the corner of Broward and US1 and the representative there said it's the network, not the phone - and that I need to be patient, it's a know issue. Inside the store there was no 3G!! The signal in this area has never been great, but this is the worst it's been since I switched from ATT last September. Is this a sign that they are about to turn on an LTE tower in the area, or is that just wishful thinking on my part?

Same thing driving along 595 east to US1 and then heading north towards the tunnel - had LTE for months but only 3G yesterday and today.

So LTE in Miami is now officially turned on? I just saw the Sprint Press Release and I'm disappointed that they launched without decent service in Miami Beach. I wonder if Fort Lauderdale is being considered a separate market, because there are so many holes in coverage, particularly in East Fort Lauderdale

Although its not showing up on Sensorly yet, I got a strong LTE signal on my iPhone driving along US1 in Fort Lauderdale from the Gateway Curve on Sunrise up until Oakland Park. First noticed it last night and it was still working a short while ago in both directions. Finally some progress in this part of town!!!

I was just looking at Sensorly on a desktop and comparing the Sprint 4G mapped areas to Verizon and AT&T. I was really surprised to see how many areas have not been mapped by either of the other two carriers and Verizon, who started rolling out ages ago, still don't have any coverage on the turnpike 821 east of 75 up to University! If you zoom out so that the map shows the area from 595 down to 195/112 and toggle between AT&T, Verizon and Sprint, it is amazing how much more coverage Sprint seems to have in areas away from the highways. Can this possibly be correct?

I was getting LTE on Commercial at the Intracoastal (at Kaluz restaurant) tonight. Nothing shows up on Sensorly, yet so I'm hoping maybe they turned on a new tower in East Fort Lauderdale?

This morning for the first time I got LTE driving west on Broward Blvd through the downtown area. I was aware of the signal from US1 to just before the Police Department, when it went back to 3G. Sorry I can't map on Sensorly since I have an iPhone.

I'm in Royal Palm. Signal has reverted back to 3G now, but hopefully they will turn LTE back on again soon

Today I'm getting LTE for the first time at work in Plantation. I'm on Pine Island and Peters, a few blocks north of 595. Only 1 bar but still getting decent speeds.