LTE

That's hilarious! Did they take the antenna panels from the top as well?

That's a great point. Considering non-technical reasons, once Sprint gets the SDC service working on 1x and roaming, the need for Direct Talk will also diminish. DT itself was a clever, yet somewhat clumsily implemented solution for the large number of holes in iDEN coverage. The 'clumsily implemented' statement refers to the fact that users must manually activate and deactivate DT, which is likely related to what AJ stated about the possible use of RF components for both iDEN and ISM modes. In fact, when looking at the FCC docs for the i355 and i335 (and likely other DT capable handsets), Motorola clearly states that only one mode can be operational at a time. It's not a huge deal, but, forget to turn off DT and you won't be receiving any communications, nor will you know when network service is available again because only one mode can be active at a time. It's also tough to coordinate group activation of DT. Interesting - that's the first I've heard of DT being used in such a way.

I can't imagine they'd try to deploy a PTT solution without Group Connect. As for Direct Talk, probably not. That's a Motorola feature which is specific to a small subset of iDEN devices. It's a really nice feature that I use frequently on my i355 handsets, but I doubt it will make an appearance until (if ever?) Motorola starts making devices for Sprint Direct Connect.

This is a nice step forward for Direct Connect. I do hope that they will bring dedicated SDC devices like the Duramax to Boost for prepaid use, though. Maybe after the iDEN shutdown?

Does anyone know what actually happens to the old equipment that gets removed from the cell sites as Network Vision upgrades are brought online? I would assume that it either gets sold to recyclers, or to smaller carriers in the US and other countries. Perhaps SouthernLINC would buy some of the iDEN gear (I'm not sure if they are actively expanding their iDEN network)? I've always been curious about this, so if anyone has any information I'd love to hear it!

I got curious and did a little more research. At the base of the tower there is a building with a big red Verizon sticker on the door, and the fence around it has placards with warnings about RF exposure limits at the site, and a placard that says 'Crown Castle' (if that means anything to anyone, maybe an OEM?). Also, these little panels are only on 2 sectors of this site, and they both point directly at what I call 'Mega Towers' in the area which have loads of antennas on them. Your backhaul theory is probably right on. I'm not sure how valid the data at www.antennasearch.com is, but it shows Clear using 11,19 and 23GHz at this site, and Verizon using 10GHz.

No local WiMax... just Clear. Right under that big dish in the second picture I posted is another set of WiMax antennas that are almost identical to the set in the first picture. T-Mo and AT&T are really strong on top of this bluff as well, so maybe some of that is GSM gear?

Thanks for the compliments on the picture. I've got lots more of various antennas in my area which I will post soon... you can even read the brand labels on the antennae in some of them! All taken with a Nikon D5100 and 55-300 Nikkor lens. How about this one: does anyone know what the funky little antennas with the gold and silver plates around them are? They're only on two sectors of the tower; the sector with the long antennas angled downward is shooting off the side of a bluff. Also, that big dish with the lighting bolt logo seems to be where many of the smaller Clear WiMax sites are backhauling to. Based on the maps in the sponsors section, and my abysmal Sprint coverage near it, I'm certain this isn't a Sprint tower. I get a great LTE signal on my Verizon iPad, though.

Here's one of my local towers. I've always thought that the top rack was just iDEN, but was just recently told that CDMA is on this tower as well. I believe that the lower setup is Clear's WiMax. Every WiMax site in my area has those little microwave radomes pointing at another clear site, and eventually they lead back to bigger dishes. Too bad Sprint isn't using that backhaul yet... Clear gives me 8-10Mbps consistently when I'm in range.

You may already know this, but you can verify whether or not you're connected to an Airave by calling *99 If you are connected, you'll hear a looping voice message that says 'You are now within Airave coverage' If you're not, it will say 'The feature code is not available', or something along those lines. Give that a try next time you hear the beeps.

Alright, 2+ Mbps! Just kidding... this is from my Airave, which I have to use because I get 1 bar of 1x at my office and no reliable EVDO at all. It's the worst possible area for Sprint, being on a bluff that's located at the effective middle point of 3-4 Sprint towers and surrounded by trees. The Airave works well enough, I suppose. It is a little strange with SMS on occasion, though, and I can't use my iPhone's visual voicemail at all while connected to it. It was free, however, so I try to limit my complaints about it