Hey guys, I just got my new HTC hero. I'm with AT&T now and having the unlimited 3G data plan. I setup the configurations of APN settings as following:
Access point: wap.cingular
Username: [email protected]
Password: CINGULAR1
But I only see an "E" at the connection status which I believe indicates EDGE. Can anyone tell me how to get 3G work on this device?
Thanks a lot!!!
I didn't realise the hero was out in the us yet but if it is i don't know why and if it isn't out its because i don't think it surpports american 3g networks i think you can only get 2g.
Yes I got this phone out of the US.
So you mean there's no way at all to get 3G to work on this phone with AT&T or any other carriers?
In its current state the phone does not support the AT&T bands for 3g.
There are rumors of an AT&T version coming October 11th, that would support 3g.
European/Asian version of this phone does not work with US 3G. AT&T's 3G network requires the bands 850 & 1900, while T-mobile's 3G requires the bands 1700 & 2100. European/Asian version supports only the bands 900 & 2100.
Does this mean T-mobile 3G may work on this phone?
T-Mob's 3g should connect to this phone, if you could find a signal, haha.
http://www.androidauthority.com/index.php/2009/07/03/htc-hero-approved-by-the-fcc-with-att-3g/
Neither T-Mobile US nor AT&T will work with this phone for 3G. The only version of this phone that exists at the moment supports ONLY European 3G. There are rumors of the device coming to AT&T, but nothing confirmed. IF that happens, the new phones would work, but that wouldn't change the fact that the device you have will still only function on Edge.
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it's true.
It's actually Sprint pal. Also, there was a picture for Tmobile also (this appears to be a rumor).
T-Mob uses the 2100 spectrum so i dont see why it wouldnt work.
And a CDMA and a GSM (With AT&T 3g bands) has gone through the FCC recently.
RBFG said:
T-Mob uses the 2100 spectrum so i dont see why it wouldnt work.
And a CDMA and a GSM (With AT&T 3g bands) has gone through the FCC recently.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it won't work with t-mobile USA's 3G network.
Yes, T-mobile in Europe use the 2100 band for 3G so the Hero works. But T-mobile USA use 1700 and 2100 bands for 3G, and you need a phone that support BOTH bands to connect to its 3G network.
Unfortunately, unless T-mobile USA decides to carry this phone (and they have already said that they wouldn't), there won't be a version of Hero that support its 3G network. This is because T-mobile USA is the only carrier in the world that uses the 1700 band for 3G. You may ask why T-mobile uses different bands for 3G in different countries. This is more of a regulatory decision than a business decision. If you are interested, go read about those FCC spectrum auctions.
All in all, European/Asian version of the Hero won't work with any 3G network in the US. The product id of the European/Asian Hero is HERO100, it supports only the bands 900 and 2100 for 3G. There will be a North American version with product id HERO130 that supports the bands 850 and 1900. It will be released either on AT&T or on the Canadian carrier Rogers, because only these two carriers use these bands for 3G. Currently it is not know whether it will be on AT&T or Rogers, but that latter is more likely IMO. Finally, there will be a CDMA version, with product id HERO200, for Sprint. This is more or less confirmed to be coming in October.
T-mobile US 3G uses 1700 for down and 2100 mhz for uplink. So 2100 alone isn't enough as you need both directions to connect.
tsekh501 said:
No, it won't work with t-mobile USA's 3G network.
Yes, T-mobile in Europe use the 2100 band for 3G so the Hero works. But T-mobile USA use 1700 and 2100 bands for 3G, and you need a phone that support BOTH bands to connect to its 3G network.
Unfortunately, unless T-mobile USA decides to carry this phone (and they have already said that they wouldn't), there won't be a version of Hero that support its 3G network. This is because T-mobile USA is the only carrier in the world that uses the 1700 band for 3G. You may ask why T-mobile uses different bands for 3G in different countries. This is more of a regulatory decision than a business decision. If you are interested, go read about those FCC spectrum auctions.
All in all, European/Asian version of the Hero won't work with any 3G network in the US. The product id of the European/Asian Hero is HERO100, it supports only the bands 900 and 2100 for 3G. There will be a North American version with product id HERO130 that supports the bands 850 and 1900. It will be released either on AT&T or on the Canadian carrier Rogers, because only these two carriers use these bands for 3G. Currently it is not know whether it will be on AT&T or Rogers, but that latter is more likely IMO. Finally, there will be a CDMA version, with product id HERO200, for Sprint. This is more or less confirmed to be coming in October.
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Click to collapse
Thanks! That was very informative, although it totally crushed my dreams of owning a Hero while remaining on the T-Mobile network.
Related
I know telus used to be strictly cdma, however i know as of 2010 they have made some upgrades.
Does anyone know if unlocked phones such as this one:
(add http) cgi.ebay.com/MOTOROLA-DROID-MILESTONE-2-ANDROID-SMARTPHONE-UNLOCKED-/140483114173?pt=Cell_Phones&hash=item20b57234bd
would fully funcionall work on telus?
Just by looking at the supported bands it won't work on Telus or Bell. It will only work on Rogers but at EDGE speeds. The current supported bands by Telus and Bell are 3G only which are 850/1900 frequency. The only other provider in Canada which has a different one is Wind which is on the AWS 1700 frequency so T-Mobile 3G phones should work.
Telus and Bell Canada are not GSM because that refers to 2G which is a legacy network they do not have. They are 3G which all the 2G providers such as AT&T have upgraded to. Their CDMA network is still there running in parallel for now.
They use the exact same 3G system and frequencies as AT&T. So any AT&T 3G phone will also work on Bell or Telus. They do not have the legacy network so 2G phones will not work. Only 3G phones.
To put it another more technical way:
They support 3G UMTS/HSPA 850MHz and/or 1900MHz
They do NOT support 2G GSM/EDGE on any frequency
Hello All,
I am on tmobile and had samsung galaxy s before i got SGS2 from at&t (my wife upgraded). i unlocked/rooted the phone after reading through the posts and it worked like a charm!
My concern right now is that I am always on edge data network with tmobile. can anyone help me on this. Tethering is also not much of use when i am on the slowest connection. Please help.
Can't do much about it since AT&T version doesn't support the 3g/4g band for T-mobile.
At&t gs2 doesn't support t-mobile frequency for 3 g.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
I thought this phone has all the bands to support all networks.
parags1982 said:
I thought this phone has all the bands to support all networks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No only AT&T.
My guess is that international version supports all the bands not the carrier branded sgII
^Even international version doesn't support T-Mobile 3g/4g (HSPA+) network.. Not many phones support their network. Or maybe it will.. but not everywhere
AT&T SGSII
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
T-Mobile SGSII
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 1700 / 2100
International SGSII
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
I am following another post that lets says HOW TO: "Enable 850Mhz 3G Network Frequency on your Samsung i9000 Galaxy S''. will update how it goes... fingers crossed..
parags1982 said:
I am following another post that lets says HOW TO: "Enable 850Mhz 3G Network Frequency on your Samsung i9000 Galaxy S''. will update how it goes... fingers crossed..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No luck. i read somewhere that i may need to install another modem?
Is there anyone out there with the same issue as mine?
any experts out there?
parags1982 said:
I thought this phone has all the bands to support all networks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The AWS (1700) bands are supported only by a handful of carriers. It doesn't exist at all in Europe and Asia. There's little reason for manufacturers to include it on their global phones as so few people use it. It's the reason the T-Mobile SGS2 has a Qualcomm chip instead of Exynos like the rest of them. After the merger, it won't even exist in the U.S. any longer as AT&T plans on using it (1700) for LTE. If you want versatility and the ability to use unlocked phones, change to AT&T.
parags1982 said:
I am following another post that lets says HOW TO: "Enable 850Mhz 3G Network Frequency on your Samsung i9000 Galaxy S''. will update how it goes... fingers crossed..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In order to get T-mo 3G, a phone must support HSPA on 1700MHz AWS band, not 850MHz. As such, only phones from T-Mo or some Candadian carrier support 1700 band. Rest of the world use 900/2100 for 3G and AT&T uses 850/1900 for 3G/4G.
You are never going to get 3G on T-Mo on any phones from AT&T. Period. Give it up.
foxbat121 said:
In order to get T-mo 3G, a phone must support HSPA on 1700MHz AWS band, not 850MHz. As such, only phones from T-Mo or some Candadian carrier support 1700 band. Rest of the world use 900/2100 for 3G and AT&T uses 850/1900 for 3G/4G.
You are never going to get 3G on T-Mo on any phones from AT&T. Period. Give it up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks. i give up
TMobile uses 1700 up, 2100 down. If the handset doesn't support 1700, you are out of luck.
Correct. Many phones support the 2100 MHz International band.
T-Mobile's network is weird though, and uses both 1700 and 2100 MHz at the same time.
My guess is that UMTS1700 support and not 42 Mbps HSPA+ is why the T-Mobile variant of the GS2 is such an oddball phone.
NO AT&T phone and only a small handful of international phones support T-Mobile's 1700 MHz band.
Similarly, only one or two T-Mobile phones (The Vibrant being one of them) support any of AT&T's 3G bands, but none support all of AT&T's 3G bands to my knowledge.
The interesting thing about this entire thing is that if you go into the modem band selection it lists 5 different wcdma bands including the aws 1700. I enabled those bands and tried using a tmo sim but alas it still only worked on edge. It may have just been there cosmetically rather then actually supporting aws bands. use dialer code *#2263# to access the band selection menu. Maybe there is a way to get it to work.
pb1866 said:
The interesting thing about this entire thing is that if you go into the modem band selection it lists 5 different wcdma bands including the aws 1700. I enabled those bands and tried using a tmo sim but alas it still only worked on edge. It may have just been there cosmetically rather then actually supporting aws bands. use dialer code *#2263# to access the band selection menu. Maybe there is a way to get it to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you and have tried exactly what you did (along with other bands) but still not working.
pb1866 said:
The interesting thing about this entire thing is that if you go into the modem band selection it lists 5 different wcdma bands including the aws 1700. I enabled those bands and tried using a tmo sim but alas it still only worked on edge. It may have just been there cosmetically rather then actually supporting aws bands. use dialer code *#2263# to access the band selection menu. Maybe there is a way to get it to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Typically, the s/w supports multiple versions of h/w. Just because an option's in the menu doesn't mean the h/w's available to support it. The same thing happened with the T-Mobile G2X. It was supposed to be quad-band, the option was in the ROM, but the radio wasn't there to support all the bands.
Ok guys I have an atrix 4g running on t-mobile. My question is why cant I get 4g/3g on this phone ? T-mobile runs on the 2100 band and the phone does support that band so why no 4g or 3g? common sense would tell me that if t-mo runs 4g on 2100 and the phone is capable of running on 2100 that it would work. have searched for a total of about 4 hours or so over the past couple days and cant find a straight answer only thing i can find is that att doesnt run on 2100 band yet the phone does. thanks in advance to anybody that can answer and taking the time to read.
are you getting H+ or H? (This is "3.5g") The Atrix 4g is not a true 4g phone.
Because the 2100 spectrum that you're using the phone on now is part of the quad-band gsm which is edge/2g. The difference lies in the bands used for 3g/4g, in which case AT&T only uses 850/1900 and tmobile only uses 1700/2100.
There is also a bunch of things that include HSPA, AWS, WCDMA, and so on and so on but I don't know enough about that to comment.
EDIT: Also, the only phones I know that can be used on both AT&T and Tmobile 3g/4g are "penta-band" phones like some European Nokia phones and the unlocked Galaxy Nexus that needs to be imported as well.
shattar01 said:
Ok guys I have an atrix 4g running on t-mobile. My question is why cant I get 4g/3g on this phone ? T-mobile runs on the 2100 band and the phone does support that band so why no 4g or 3g? common sense would tell me that if t-mo runs 4g on 2100 and the phone is capable of running on 2100 that it would work. have searched for a total of about 4 hours or so over the past couple days and cant find a straight answer only thing i can find is that att doesnt run on 2100 band yet the phone does. thanks in advance to anybody that can answer and taking the time to read.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wcdma=utms=3g
Yes, WCDMA and AWS(1700), as far as I know, are both from UMTS and the differences in regards to 3G between AT&T and Tmobile lie in the spectrum use (850&1900 vs 1700&2100). And both AT&T and Tmobile use HSPA(+) based off their respected UMTS frequencies.
I just don't understand the "leap" in GSM technology that breaks the quad-band compatibility, that's all.
matthew5025 said:
Wcdma=utms=3g
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Also I've read 850 is att's main spectrum for large areas and 900 for T-Mobile. All higher spectrums are for smaller, rural areas.
If your looking for 3g maybe find a town or, buy a dual band amplifier? That's IF they have 2100 MHz band working where you are located.
Lower bands ie 850/900 are the download streams. 1700/1900/2100 are upload streams. If I'm not mistaken
Also a T-Mobile vibrant supports att, it also has our main band, 850mhz. Again which is the main large areas, like T-Mobile 900mhz. 1700-2100mhz for att/T-Mobile range is only as good as the towns that still has that band currently operating for hspa/3g data. I've seen alot of T-Mobile phones that have 850/1900/2100, and work on att. If they were 1600/1900/2100 did not for me.
You need that lower frequencies to ensure it to work. Then....
Also for regional based frequencies...
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Mobile_Telecommunications_System
That link will let you know what that all really means.
I think you are mixing up gsm and umts.
GSM = 2G/Edge
UMTS (HSPA, HSPA+, HSDPA/HSUPA, WCDMA, AWS) = 3G
Have a look here. You will see they label "3G" as "UMTS" which is HSPA/WCDMA. A little more down you can see they label their data as "HSDPA", which is download, and "HSUPA" which is upload. Further delineating the speeds they label either one as UMTS for down and Edge as up, which to me tells me they use gsm for the upload and only use UMTS for download. Either way, there is not a T-mobile phone available that can be unlocked and used on AT&T's 3G, just 2G and vice versa. As I have previously mentioned, you will need a penta-band phone for that.
Ciloteille said:
Also I've read 850 is att's main spectrum for large areas and 900 for T-Mobile. All higher spectrums are for smaller, rural areas.
If your looking for 3g maybe find a town or, buy a dual band amplifier? That's IF they have 2100 MHz band working where you are located.
Lower bands ie 850/900 are the download streams. 1700/1900/2100 are upload streams. If I'm not mistaken
Also a T-Mobile vibrant supports att, it also has our main band, 850mhz. Again which is the main large areas, like T-Mobile 900mhz. 1700-2100mhz for att/T-Mobile range is only as good as the towns that still has that band currently operating for hspa/3g data. I've seen alot of T-Mobile phones that have 850/1900/2100, and work on att. If they were 1600/1900/2100 did not for me.
You need that lower frequencies to ensure it to work. Then....
Also for regional based frequencies...
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Mobile_Telecommunications_System
That link will let you know what that all really means.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to give anyone a hard time but it's misinformation to tell anyone that a T-mobile phone can work on AT&T 3G.
And I'll say it again, I'm not an expert so if anyone can better explain then I'm all ears (eyes).
live4nyy said:
I think you are mixing up gsm and umts.
GSM = 2G/Edge
UMTS (HSPA, HSPA+, HSDPA/HSUPA, WCDMA, AWS) = 3G
Have a look here. You will see they label "3G" as "UMTS" which is HSPA/WCDMA. A little more down you can see they label their data as "HSDPA", which is download, and "HSUPA" which is upload. Further delineating the speeds they label either one as UMTS for down and Edge as up, which to me tells me they use gsm for the upload and only use UMTS for download. Either way, there is not a T-mobile phone available that can be unlocked and used on AT&T's 3G, just 2G and vice versa. As I have previously mentioned, you will need a penta-band phone for that.
And don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to give anyone a hard time but it's misinformation to tell anyone that a T-mobile phone can work on AT&T 3G.
And I'll say it again, I'm not an expert so if anyone can better explain then I'm all ears (eyes).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am just merely stating that I have a motorola defy on ATT, and it worked great for a long time with great speeds before I got a motorola atrix and infuse.
Im not saying that every tmobile phone will have working talk/text, or data for that matter. I have just posted an idea, or atleast what to look for when you are cruising for phones not labeled for your carrier.
I was getting my motorola defy with the att "grand fathered internet" for 10 dollars a month and it was about 160-420KB/s down, and 80-190KB/s up. but some phones are capable of this, others arent. I have a general idea, and have played with several different carrier cellphones and used them with att and att's 3g data.
Rogers HTC Dream (x2 of them)
Telus Milestone
Tmobile Defy
Rogers Atrix
ATT Atrix (x2 of them)
ATT Infuse
Rogers and Telus actually use the same 3G bands as AT&T so as long as those are unlocked they will work. And I'm not saying an unlocked T-mobile can't work on AT&T, because they can (they both use quad-band gsm) but you can not use an unlocked T-mobile phone an AT&T 3G. That's all I'm saying.
Now, they did make an European version of the Defy that uses the 850 3G band but not the T-mobile "branded" one.
I'm going to stick to my guns on this one because I don't want to give anyone the wrong idea about interchanging AT&T and T-mobile phones and expecting 3G service. I'm fairly certain about this and unless someone can prove otherwise that's how I will think.
Ciloteille said:
I am just merely stating that I have a motorola defy on ATT, and it worked great for a long time with great speeds before I got a motorola atrix and infuse.
Im not saying that every tmobile phone will have working talk/text, or data for that matter. I have just posted an idea, or atleast what to look for when you are cruising for phones not labeled for your carrier.
I was getting my motorola defy with the att "grand fathered internet" for 10 dollars a month and it was about 160-420KB/s down, and 80-190KB/s up. but some phones are capable of this, others arent. I have a general idea, and have played with several different carrier cellphones and used them with att and att's 3g data.
Rogers HTC Dream (x2 of them)
Telus Milestone
Tmobile Defy
Rogers Atrix
ATT Atrix (x2 of them)
ATT Infuse
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
---------- Post added at 08:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:36 AM ----------
Upon further research, I have found this article, where under certain circumstances, you can use an unlocked AT&T iPhone with T-mobile 3G:
http://www.gsmarena.com/tmobile_usa_running_1900mhz_3g_in_some_areas_iphones_invited-news-3537.php
Now, this shows that an AT&T phone can maybe use T-mobile 3G but not the other way around. Again, I'm always up for learning something new but I need references/proof.
Well I do get att 3g on the defy and vibrant. I am currently getting about 300ish KB/s on them and 600+KB/s on my attic, I'm just going with the facts. Those facts are that certain T-Mobile phones will work with Att, provided they have 850mhz band. That allows you in most towns (near me) to get 3g
False.
300KB/s is Edge speed, which is only 2G.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2G
http://www.phonescoop.com/glossary/term.php?gid=107
That's why you get faster speeds on the Atrix because it actually uses 3G.
Again, both AT&T and T-mobile use quad-band GSM. Which is why you can unlock a T-mobile phone and use it on AT&T, and vice versa, but it is only 2G/Edge and NOT 3G.
http://www.phonescoop.com/glossary/term.php?gid=139
http://www.phonescoop.com/glossary/term.php?gid=3
Furthermore, here are the wiki pages for AT&T and T-mobile which both inlcude frequency charts outlining the technology (2G or 3G) each one uses:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AT&T_Wireless
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-Mobile_USA
Here are the charts:
AT&T:
Frequency Protocol Class
Frequencies used on the AT&T Network
850 MHz GSM/GPRS/EDGE 2G
1900 MHz GSM/GPRS/EDGE 2G
850 MHz UMTS/HSPA 3G
1900 MHz UMTS/HSPA 3G
700 MHz LTE 4G
T-mobile:
Frequency Band Protocol
850 MHz GSM/GPRS/EDGE 2G
1900 MHz GSM/GPRS/EDGE 2G
1700 MHz UMTS (W-CDMA)/HSPA/HSPA+ 4G (formerly 3G[34])
1900 MHz UMTS (W-CDMA)/HSPA/HSPA+ 4G
I check for facts and references, I'm only saying what I find in research.
Again, when unlocked, a T-mobile phone can use AT&T 2G/Edge, not 3G
Ciloteille said:
Well I do get att 3g on the defy and vibrant. I am currently getting about 300ish KB/s on them and 600+KB/s on my attic, I'm just going with the facts. Those facts are that certain T-Mobile phones will work with Att, provided they have 850mhz band. That allows you in most towns (near me) to get 3g
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know the Jetstream was designed to be run on AT&T and Rogers, but I am curious if it is possible to flash a radio to enable usage of T-Mobile's HSPA network, much like the Samsung Galaxy Note has been enabled to, as seen here.
Can any of the amazing Devs out there shed some light on this?
jdavis08 said:
I know the Jetstream was designed to be run on AT&T and Rogers, but I am curious if it is possible to flash a radio to enable usage of T-Mobile's HSPA network, much like the Samsung Galaxy Note has been enabled to, as seen here.
Can any of the amazing Devs out there shed some light on this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
jdavis08, Simple answer is yes. It is a standard 2G / 3G / LTE (AT&T / AWS band) phone. So you can use it on ANY 2G / 3G / LTE network with a SIM. But you may need to break the SIM Lock on any handset.
Just wanted to clarify. The Jetstream is 2G/3G/LTE /capable, 2G (GSM): 850/900/1800/1900MHz, 3G (UMTS/HSPA): 850/1900/2100, and LTE: 700mhz & AWS-1700/2100.
Currently, T-Mobile only uses the AWS for their HSPA+ network, not LTE (from what I understand, AWS will be transitioned for LTE and 1900mhz refarmed for 3G/4G early 2013) - and if I'm not mistaken, the HSPA+ is only supported by the "3G" band of this device, not the "LTE"
So - to make a long story short. I am a T-Mobile subscriber with various "4G" phones from T-Mobile. Their 4G only works if the phone has a radio with AWS for HSPA as T-Mobile (unlike AT&T) does not use the 1900mhz for their HSPA (yet). I own this tablet.. It has been SIM unlocked and it simply does not get anything above EDGE... and I live near and visit major cities in Washington State, Seattle/Bellevue/Tacoma, which definitely have TMo's 4G coverage.
I know I should just cool my jets until TMo rolls out the network upgrades, as I have no interest in joining AT&T. I was just curious if there was some way to "trick" the phone to use the AWS frequencies for HSPA, like the Galaxy Note has been made to do as the radio specs are identical.
I know that the Note was enabled to do this by flashing another radio. Support is minimal for the Jetstream these days... so I was just reaching out.
Thanks guys
Hi guys,
I am on T-Mobile prepaid plan. I bought a Lumia 920 from Singapore few months ago in anticipation of the 1900 refarm from T-Mobile. But while the default APN profile has been updated to "T-Mobile LTE" from the carrier from months ago, the max speed I see now is 3G in Chicago. I've done some research and tried a couple of the following:
1 Added new APN under epc.tmobile.com
2 Enable ENS
3 Limit the connection speed to 3G instead of 4G
But none seems to bring me to the LTE speed. I thought maybe because LTE has not arrived in Chicago yet, but few days ago I went to one of the T-Mobile store and found that their demo Lumia 925 showed LTE. The stuff from the store said because I am using an unlocked 920, LTE is not supported. I don't think this is the right answer.
Does anyone has the same issue with your international 920 under T-Mobile in the US?
t_huankiat said:
Hi guys,
I am on T-Mobile prepaid plan. I bought a Lumia 920 from Singapore few months ago in anticipation of the 1900 refarm from T-Mobile. But while the default APN profile has been updated to "T-Mobile LTE" from the carrier from months ago, the max speed I see now is 3G in Chicago. I've done some research and tried a couple of the following:
1 Added new APN under epc.tmobile.com
2 Enable ENS
3 Limit the connection speed to 3G instead of 4G
But none seems to bring me to the LTE speed. I thought maybe because LTE has not arrived in Chicago yet, but few days ago I went to one of the T-Mobile store and found that their demo Lumia 925 showed LTE. The stuff from the store said because I am using an unlocked 920, LTE is not supported. I don't think this is the right answer.
Does anyone has the same issue with your international 920 under T-Mobile in the US?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What version you bough RM-820, 821 or 822 from Singapore. I think you have not supported LTE bands, so probably you got 821 / 822
boril said:
What version you bough RM-820, 821 or 822 from Singapore. I think you have not supported LTE bands, so probably you got 821 / 822
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow I just checked, it's indeed a RM 821! I did a search and found the following info from WP Central forum:
RM820 is the North American variant. Has pentaband UMTS (850/900/1700/1900/2100) and North American LTE bands.
RM821 is rest-of-world (except China). Has quadband UMTS (850/900/1900/2100) and European LTE bands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My understanding is as long as it supports 1900 band it can access the LTE speed on T-Mobile. That's not the case then?
t_huankiat said:
Wow I just checked, it's indeed a RM 821! I did a search and found the following info from WP Central forum:
My understanding is as long as it supports 1900 band it can access the LTE speed on T-Mobile. That's not the case then?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just because it supports the 1900 band, does not mean that the ROM and hardware are setup to support LTE. The market the 821 was released for does not have LTE so the protocols where never implemented in that model. The 3G you see the phone operating at is the highest speed the market it came from supports. So that is the highest protocol that was installed into that model. You may want to sell it and get one of the other models.
Incompatible Bands
t_huankiat said:
Wow I just checked, it's indeed a RM 821! I did a search and found the following info from WP Central forum:
My understanding is as long as it supports 1900 band it can access the LTE speed on T-Mobile. That's not the case then?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi t_huankiat,
To the extent of my knowledge, T-Mobile has only deployed LTE on the 1700/2100MHz frequency band (different from 2100MHz, that is IMT) commonly known as AWS spectrum or Band 4. The only variants of the 920 that contains these are RM-820 models. The good news is, an unlocked AT&T Nokia Lumia 920 can be used on T-Mobile's LTE network because they both use AWS spectrum to deliver LTE service. The downside is that in areas without LTE or refarmed HSPA+, your service will drop to 2G. In order to prevent these shortfalls, the only RM-820 variants that run on AWS HSPA+ are the Canadian and Developer Edition, given out at Microsoft BUILD 2012.
You may be thinking, what is with this confusion. Previously, T-Mobile USA rolled out their 3G HSPA network on AWS spectrum, because they hadn't won any PCS spectrum (1900MHz). In the Americas, AWS spectrum was not deployed as prevalent as PCS. The result, T-Mobile required special handsets to access 3G. When they transitioned over to HSPA+ and DC-HSPA+, they continued to use AWS widening the compatibility gap. After the AT&T/T-Mobile buyout fell through, T-Mobile gained PCS licenses as part of the deal. T-Mobile, shortly after, announced the jump to LTE and the refarm of HSPA+ (current 3G/4G service) to the PCS spectrum. As of now, the refarm isn't fully complete so some areas still broadcast 3G/4G on on the AWS spectrum. To add insult to injury, these areas do not have have LTE deployed either. Summing up what has been said, the best options for a seamless wireless experience is to use a Nokia Lumia 925 or find a non-AT&T RM-820. If you look on eBay, you will find a few for sale right now. I really hope this helps!
-Arekusandaa
Solarenemy68 said:
Just because it supports the 1900 band, does not mean that the ROM and hardware are setup to support LTE. The market the 821 was released for does not have LTE so the protocols where never implemented in that model. The 3G you see the phone operating at is the highest speed the market it came from supports. So that is the highest protocol that was installed into that model. You may want to sell it and get one of the other models.
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I should have done more research before I bought the phone! I did not realize 920 has so many variation even in Singapore! While I will miss the LTE, I can live with 3G speed since I don't use the phone for streaming or anything bandwidth intensive.
Arekusandaa said:
Hi t_huankiat,
To the extent of my knowledge, T-Mobile has only deployed LTE on the 1700/2100MHz frequency band (different from 2100MHz, that is IMT) commonly known as AWS spectrum or Band 4. The only variants of the 920 that contains these are RM-820 models. The good news is, an unlocked AT&T Nokia Lumia 920 can be used on T-Mobile's LTE network because they both use AWS spectrum to deliver LTE service. The downside is that in areas without LTE or refarmed HSPA+, your service will drop to 2G. In order to prevent these shortfalls, the only RM-820 variants that run on AWS HSPA+ are the Canadian and Developer Edition, given out at Microsoft BUILD 2012.
You may be thinking, what is with this confusion. Previously, T-Mobile USA rolled out their 3G HSPA network on AWS spectrum, because they hadn't won any PCS spectrum (1900MHz). In the Americas, AWS spectrum was not deployed as prevalent as PCS. The result, T-Mobile required special handsets to access 3G. When they transitioned over to HSPA+ and DC-HSPA+, they continued to use AWS widening the compatibility gap. After the AT&T/T-Mobile buyout fell through, T-Mobile gained PCS licenses as part of the deal. T-Mobile, shortly after, announced the jump to LTE and the refarm of HSPA+ (current 3G/4G service) to the PCS spectrum. As of now, the refarm isn't fully complete so some areas still broadcast 3G/4G on on the AWS spectrum. To add insult to injury, these areas do not have have LTE deployed either. Summing up what has been said, the best options for a seamless wireless experience is to use a Nokia Lumia 925 or find a non-AT&T RM-820. If you look on eBay, you will find a few for sale right now. I really hope this helps!
-Arekusandaa
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The main reason I got the phone from Singapore was because it supports 1900MHz and it's in Chicago now. But I overlooked the fact that the ROM matters too. So now I am pretty much stuck with 3G speed. It's a lesson learned, I will have to be extra careful next time when I get an unlocked phone. Thanks for your insight!
It's Not The End of the World
t_huankiat said:
The main reason I got the phone from Singapore was because it supports 1900MHz and it's in Chicago now. But I overlooked the fact that the ROM matters too. So now I am pretty much stuck with 3G speed. It's a lesson learned, I will have to be extra careful next time when I get an unlocked phone. Thanks for your insight!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't worry, you will still be able to use their DC-HSPA+ network, where available. This technology is capable of up to 42.1Mbps theoretically. Even before T-Mobile began deploying LTE, their DC-HSPA+ network was usually testing faster than Verizon's LTE network. While you may not see LTE until you upgrade to an AWS capable handset, their "fallback" 4G should suffice.
-arekusandaa