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Has anyone tried using one of the white unlocked Lumia 920 from Clove (I guess the ones from Expansys are the same) on an LTE network?
Specifically, do you have the "4G" option in the "highest connection speed" settings?
In my case, although I am using an LTE SIM with an LTE network on a supported band, I only have "2G" and "3G" options in the Highest Connection Speed settings. So normally it is only connecting over HSPA. Through playing around a lot with scanning LTE bands with the Field Test tool (##3282#), I can sometimes get the device to connect to LTE, after which it works perfectly on LTE until reboot. But it's not really a long-term solution.
The default firmware on my device is country variant "CV GB SW Variant ID 276 v03" which (apart from the version number) seems to be the same firmware as that sold by Orange / T-Mobile in the UK (i.e. for 3G networks).
I was thinking about trying to flash the EE firmware, but concerned this could create other issues (such as end up locking the phone to EE, or to certain LTE bands, or something...). Any thoughts appreciated.
You don't mention where you are, but that might help respondents.
As you may know, the LTE bands are different between the NA and Europe. The LTE Bands listed on the international version are 800/900/1800/2100/2600 while the NA(Rogers & AT&T) version has 700/850/1700/1900/2100.
Are you sure you are connecting to the LTE bands? Do you have an LTE SIM installed?
tomdjp said:
Has anyone tried using one of the white unlocked Lumia 920 from Clove (I guess the ones from Expansys are the same) on an LTE network?
Specifically, do you have the "4G" option in the "highest connection speed" settings?
In my case, although I am using an LTE SIM with an LTE network on a supported band, I only have "2G" and "3G" options in the Highest Connection Speed settings. So normally it is only connecting over HSPA. Through playing around a lot with scanning LTE bands with the Field Test tool (##3282#), I can sometimes get the device to connect to LTE, after which it works perfectly on LTE until reboot. But it's not really a long-term solution.
The default firmware on my device is country variant "CV GB SW Variant ID 276 v03" which (apart from the version number) seems to be the same firmware as that sold by Orange / T-Mobile in the UK (i.e. for 3G networks).
I was thinking about trying to flash the EE firmware, but concerned this could create other issues (such as end up locking the phone to EE, or to certain LTE bands, or something...). Any thoughts appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have a look at this offivial Blog post from Nokia.
http://goo.gl/L2eiy
They basically saying that even-thought the new Lumias are LTE ready they will required a software update to turn LTE ON.
The information on that is very limited as Nokia didn't specify ANY details on how they will push this OTA.
What happens if you have an unlock device and use it in a different country of its origins? How they will push the update under what criteria?
Is the update is driven by the SIM ID? They will update the OS and turn ON LTE depending the SIM region or the device IMEI region?? Nobody knows...
Even worst there is a rumor that the latest Snapdragon S4 is supporting all 9 LTE bands at ONCE and the software just enable the appropriate ones, its programmable from the firmware. If this is true, then Nokia is committing a suicide here, they can simply program WP8 to recognize the SIM ID and turn ON/OFF LTE Bands depending the Network. Going with OTAs across different devices and regions will be a mess.
nMIK-3 said:
Have a look at this offivial Blog post from Nokia.
http://goo.gl/L2eiy
They basically saying that even-thought the new Lumias are LTE ready they will required a software update to turn LTE ON.
The information on that is very limited as Nokia didn't specify ANY details on how they will push this OTA.
What happens if you have an unlock device and use it in a different country of its origins? How they will push the update under what criteria?
Is the update is driven by the SIM ID? They will update the OS and turn ON LTE depending the SIM region or the device IMEI region?? Nobody knows...
Even worst there is a rumor that the latest Snapdragon S4 is supporting all 9 LTE bands at ONCE and the software just enable the appropriate ones, its programmable from the firmware. If this is true, then Nokia is committing a suicide here, they can simply program WP8 to recognize the SIM ID and turn ON/OFF LTE Bands depending the Network. Going with OTAs across different devices and regions will be a mess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are international versions that HAVE ALL 9 LTE bands enabled and also petaband 3G.
For example in Germany:
http://www.nokia.com/de-de/produkte/smartphones-und-handys/lumia920/technische-daten/ (expand where it says "Basisdaten")
or in Singapore:
http://www.nokia.com/sg-en/products/phone/lumia920/specifications/ (expand where it says "Hardware")
or also in Switzerland:
http://www.nokia.com/ch-de/produkte/smartphones-und-handys/lumia920/technische-daten/ (expand where it says "Basisdaten")
I think there might be a good chance that you can unlock those extra bands on international versions (RM-821) that have them disabled by flashing a different firmware version. However this is just me thinking out loud so please don't blame me if it doesn't work or if it breaks your phone!
However I would strong discourage you from flashing an RM-821 firmware to an RM-820 (North American version) as I know that sb around here almost broke his phone by doing so.
Hi all
Thanks for your replies so far.
Right now I am using the phone in Japan, where there are three carriers with Band 1 (2100 MHz) LTE networks. I only tried one carrier so far, and yes it is an LTE SIM. As mentioned, I can actually connect to LTE and have used it for several hours, it's just necessary to use an unreliable trick (with ##3282#) to get the phone to see the LTE network. This seems related to the fact there is no 4G option in my highest connection settings.
Thanks for the heads-up on the OTA updates, agreed it's not clear how this will work at all...
Regarding the LTE band support, personally (although it's just my intuition) I think the lists of 9 LTE supported bands on those regional Nokia websites are probably in error (it wouldn't be the first time). Normally the most reliable source in Nokia's website is Nokia Developers, which clearly shows five bands for global RM-821 (1, 3, 7, 8, 20) and four bands for AT&T RM-820 (2, 4, 5, 17).
While the Snapdragon baseband may be able to support all 9 bands, the most difficult part of the design is the RF - filters, amplifiers, etc. So I imagine different RF chains are used in the two variants to support these specific bands.
Again, if anyone has the unlocked RM-821 and tried with an LTE SIM, if you could confirm if the 4G setting is available in highest connection settings, it would be much appreciated.
karlmueller said:
There are international versions that HAVE ALL 9 LTE bands enabled and also petaband 3G.
For example in Germany:
http://www.nokia.com/de-de/produkte/smartphones-und-handys/lumia920/technische-daten/ (expand where it says "Basisdaten")
or in Singapore:
http://www.nokia.com/sg-en/products/phone/lumia920/specifications/ (expand where it says "Hardware")
or also in Switzerland:
http://www.nokia.com/ch-de/produkte/smartphones-und-handys/lumia920/technische-daten/ (expand where it says "Basisdaten")
I think there might be a good chance that you can unlock those extra bands on international versions (RM-821) that have them disabled by flashing a different firmware version. However this is just me thinking out loud so please don't blame me if it doesn't work or if it breaks your phone!
However I would strong discourage you from flashing an RM-821 firmware to an RM-820 (North American version) as I know that sb around here almost broke his phone by doing so.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought the same thing on PentaBand 3G and 9 Bands LTE, however in another discussion we verified (at least for the German model) that even thought the Nokia German website states PentaBand 3G and 9 Bands LTE, in the retail Box it only mentions QuadBand 3G (AWS missing) and PentaBand LTE.
With the Canadian model being PentaBand and Snapdragon's S4 Specs claiming that is fully supporting it, along with the programmable LTE, we really have no clue of whats really going on until Nokia, or anyone else clarify it...
I have a very bad feeling that the all 920s are PentaBand 3G and support all bands of LTE with programmable software but Nokia for some reason is locking specific bands on specific models/regions.
Hopefully in time we will clarify everything and hopefully its sooner rather than later..
nMIK-3 said:
I thought the same thing on PentaBand 3G and 9 Bands LTE, however in another discussion we verified (at least for the German model) that even thought the Nokia German website states PentaBand 3G and 9 Bands LTE, in the retail Box it only mentions QuadBand 3G (AWS missing) and PentaBand LTE.
With the Canadian model being PentaBand and Snapdragon's S4 Specs claiming that is fully supporting it, along with the programmable LTE, we really have no clue of whats really going on until Nokia, or anyone else clarify it...
I have a very bad feeling that the all 920s are PentaBand 3G and support all bands of LTE with programmable software but Nokia for some reason is locking specific bands on specific models/regions.
Hopefully in time we will clarify everything and hopefully its sooner rather than later..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Different frequency bands require different antenna design. It is probably very difficult to design an antenna that can satisfy all LTE bands even though the chipset can support it. So, instead, Nokia is probably going to selectively make different hardware with different antenna design to fit a specific region. Apple iPhone 5 uses the similar Qualcomm chipset and it only supports very limited LTE bands for international version.
foxbat121 said:
Different frequency bands require different antenna design. It is probably very difficult to design an antenna that can satisfy all LTE bands even though the chipset can support it. So, instead, Nokia is probably going to selectively make different hardware with different antenna design to fit a specific region. Apple iPhone 5 uses the similar Qualcomm chipset and it only supports very limited LTE bands for international version.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For 3G PentaBand is now standard in almost all chips and since the Canadian variant comes with PentaBand on board and the fact that is standard on the S4 I really see no reason of why Nokia will order a custom version of the S4 to just physically take off the AWS. It doesn't make any sense, so if its missing, most likely is turn off in firmware.
For the LTE. Qualcomm introduced a revolutionary technology called Software Defined Radio or simply SDR and the Snapdragon S4 Plus MSM8960 chip which is inside the Lumia 920, supports that technology. With SDR the chipset support all LTE bands from a low to high frequency, it can work in everything between, of course not at the same time, the software programs what frequency the antenna should be set.
If the Lumia 920 and its S4 really have SDR technology, they it will make sense for Nokia to have the firmware deride what LTE to make available to the user, by reading the SIM region and not providing individual updated per region, or based on device product number.
This finally solves a major issue for the manufactures because they do not have to build customs chips for specific countries, the software simply programs it. If you Google it you can find a lot of info regarding SDR. Of course we are not in the engineering team of the Lumia 920 line and its obvious whatever we say here is based on theory and specs that are available to us.
nMIK-3 said:
For 3G PentaBand is now standard in almost all chips and since the Canadian variant comes with PentaBand on board and the fact that is standard on the S4 I really see no reason of why Nokia will order a custom version of the S4 to just physically take off the AWS. It doesn't make any sense, so if its missing, most likely is turn off in firmware.
For the LTE. Qualcomm introduced a revolutionary technology called Software Defined Radio or simply SDR and the Snapdragon S4 Plus MSM8960 chip which is inside the Lumia 920, supports that technology. With SDR the chipset support all LTE bands from a low to high frequency, it can work in everything between, of course not at the same time, the software programs what frequency the antenna should be set.
If the Lumia 920 and its S4 really have SDR technology, they it will make sense for Nokia to have the firmware deride what LTE to make available to the user, by reading the SIM region and not providing individual updated per region, or based on device product number.
This finally solves a major issue for the manufactures because they do not have to build customs chips for specific countries, the software simply programs it. If you Google it you can find a lot of info regarding SDR. Of course we are not in the engineering team of the Lumia 920 line and its obvious whatever we say here is based on theory and specs that are available to us.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you understand radio technology at all, you should know the most important part that make all things work is the radio antenna, not the chipset. The chipset itself can't receive or transmit radio signal without a proper antenna. Try to disconnect your car radio antenna and see how many stations you can receive
foxbat121 said:
If you understand radio technology at all, you should know the most important part that make all things work is the radio antenna, not the chipset. The chipset itself can't receive or transmit radio signal without a proper antenna. Try to disconnect your car radio antenna and see how many stations you can receive
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We're going a bit off-topic from the thread here, but you're right - SDR defines the baseband, not the RF components.
If you look at Nokia's FCC filing for the RM-821, you can see it has two cellular antennas ("main" and "MIMO") for each of two bands ("HB" high-band and "LB" low-band). Presumably LB is used for bands below 1 GHz or so, while HB is used for bands above. So you can see it's not necessary to have different antennas for every band - bands 1 to 4 (including AWS) could also use the same antennas, for example.
However, each band needs its own RF filters to prevent interference from neighbouring channels, and also needs amplifiers that have flat gain over those bands. These RF components are usually band specific, relatively bulky and expensive, and there are some challenges to use several RF chains in parallel. To my understanding these are the limiting factors that explain why a given device tends to support maximum 4 or 5 LTE channels.
tomdjp said:
We're going a bit off-topic from the thread here, but you're right - SDR defines the baseband, not the RF components.
If you look at Nokia's FCC filing for the RM-821, you can see it has two cellular antennas ("main" and "MIMO") for each of two bands ("HB" high-band and "LB" low-band). Presumably LB is used for bands below 1 GHz or so, while HB is used for bands above. So you can see it's not necessary to have different antennas for every band - bands 1 to 4 (including AWS) could also use the same antennas, for example.
However, each band needs its own RF filters to prevent interference from neighbouring channels, and also needs amplifiers that have flat gain over those bands. These RF components are usually band specific, relatively bulky and expensive, and there are some challenges to use several RF chains in parallel. To my understanding these are the limiting factors that explain why a given device tends to support maximum 4 or 5 LTE channels.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You nail it.
foxbat121 said:
If you understand radio technology at all, you should know the most important part that make all things work is the radio antenna, not the chipset. The chipset itself can't receive or transmit radio signal without a proper antenna. Try to disconnect your car radio antenna and see how many stations you can receive
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is that a joke?? I am spending my time explaining what SDR is and I am getting that respond??
I am assuming that I am talking with a person that knows at least a modern chipset like the S4 package contains all the antennas for GSM/WCDMA/LTE a separate antenna for Bluetooth and Wifi, GPS (S4 also includes GLONASS), the CPU and the Adreno GPU.
All the above come in the same tinny chip that in the size of your nail. And all this is called the "chipset". Qualcomm does not use a separate antenna anymore its integrated to the chipset.
nMIK-3 said:
Is that a joke?? I am spending my time explaining what SDR is and I am getting that respond??
I am assuming that I am talking with a person that knows at least a modern chipset like the S4 package contains all the antennas for GSM/WCDMA/LTE a separate antenna for Bluetooth and Wifi, GPS (S4 also includes GLONASS), the CPU and the Adreno GPU.
All the above come in the same tinny chip that in the size of your nail. And all this is called the "chipset". Qualcomm does not use a separate antenna anymore its integrated to the chipset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With respect, that's not right - the antennas and RF components are external to the chipset.
Go and get the SAR compliance test report for Nokia 920 from the FCC's website, and you can see diagrams showing the external antennas for cellular, WLAN/BT and GPS which are positioned in various places inside the phone's chassis (btw, the LB MIMO antenna is about 7 cm long!)
Or go and check out the iFixit teardown for iPhone 5 and you can see the same kind of thing...
tomdjp said:
With respect, that's not right - the antennas and RF components are external to the chipset.
Go and get the SAR compliance test report for Nokia 920 from the FCC's website, and you can see diagrams showing the external antennas for cellular, WLAN/BT and GPS which are positioned in various places inside the phone's chassis (btw, the LB MIMO antenna is about 7 cm long!)
Or go and check out the iFixit teardown for iPhone 5 and you can see the same kind of thing...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is correct. Many manufactures are placing antenna extensions and putting additional GPS censor in more practical areas.
The actual GSM/WCDMA/LTE modem WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS for Qualacom solutions are placed inside the chipset.
Please see http://www.qualcomm.com/chipsets/snapdragon for more information.
4g / LTE
tomdjp said:
Has anyone tried using one of the white unlocked Lumia 920 from Clove (I guess the ones from Expansys are the same) on an LTE network?
Specifically, do you have the "4G" option in the "highest connection speed" settings?
In my case, although I am using an LTE SIM with an LTE network on a supported band, I only have "2G" and "3G" options in the Highest Connection Speed settings. So normally it is only connecting over HSPA. Through playing around a lot with scanning LTE bands with the Field Test tool (##3282#), I can sometimes get the device to connect to LTE, after which it works perfectly on LTE until reboot. But it's not really a long-term solution.
The default firmware on my device is country variant "CV GB SW Variant ID 276 v03" which (apart from the version number) seems to be the same firmware as that sold by Orange / T-Mobile in the UK (i.e. for 3G networks).
I was thinking about trying to flash the EE firmware, but concerned this could create other issues (such as end up locking the phone to EE, or to certain LTE bands, or something...). Any thoughts appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I go into into field test mode and it says 4g then asks what LTE Band. My phone shows 4G not LTE in top left... is it LTE or 3G+?
Does anyone know what the different bands stand for? (band 5 etc) under the field service menu?
zok-star said:
Does anyone know what the different bands stand for? (band 5 etc) under the field service menu?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Likely they are LTE bands (e.g. band 5 = 850 MHz), but as you probably noticed they don't completely match with the LTE band support of the device. Keep in mind this field test program was probably thrown together by Nokia's R&D guys for internal testing only (not for consumers), so could be a legacy of earlier testing, another device variant, or some other reason...
Anyway, it seems fine to keep this setting on Automatic.
dougwallace said:
I go into into field test mode and it says 4g then asks what LTE Band. My phone shows 4G not LTE in top left... is it LTE or 3G+?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Doug, could you share what version of the Lumia 920 you have, and which firmware?
As mentioned in my mail above, there seems no problem to leave the 4G band on automatic, and the bands available to be selected don't seem relevant. (My device picks up Band 1 LTE networks even though band 1 is not in the list).
Regarding 4G vs LTE, my device (unlocked UK CV) shows 4G in the top left when it is connected to LTE. I assume this can be changed by Nokia depending on the operator's requirement (esp in the US where 4G means HSPA...). You can be sure you're on LTE by going back to the field test menu, selecting GSM option, then looking at "Radio Access Technology". If you're on LTE, it should say LTE there.
tomdjp said:
Likely they are LTE bands (e.g. band 5 = 850 MHz), but as you probably noticed they don't completely match with the LTE band support of the device. Keep in mind this field test program was probably thrown together by Nokia's R&D guys for internal testing only (not for consumers), so could be a legacy of earlier testing, another device variant, or some other reason...
Anyway, it seems fine to keep this setting on Automatic.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've kept mine on all automatic and i have noticed it switch to 4G at times, but then when i go to use it, it'll flick back to 3G... I'll need to test this in CBD sometime this week.
I got my device from clove, but im in Australia on Telstra 4G network. They use 1800mhz.
zok-star said:
I've kept mine on all automatic and i have noticed it switch to 4G at times, but then when i go to use it, it'll flick back to 3G... I'll need to test this in CBD sometime this week.
I got my device from clove, but im in Australia on Telstra 4G network. They use 1800mhz.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, yes better to test in CBD where there's strong LTE signal.
In your Settings => Mobile Network, do you have a "4G" option under "Highest connection speed", or is it 2G and 3G only?
The Snapdragon 800 includes a built-in cellular radio. Some phones that use this chip support all/nearly all common carrier frequencies. Other phones that use it support only certain frequency bands, usually those of the particular carrier that is selling the phone. I have seen some speculation that the chips in all of these phones may be capable of supporting the full list of frequencies, and that the carrier-locked phones simply disable some bands, possibly via firmware.
Does anyone know whether or not this is true? If so, has anyone looked into whether or not it might be possible to reconfigure which bands are available in any way? If it matters, I would be particularly interested in using the new (A86) Padfone Infinity in the U.S., but T-Mobile and AT&T 4g/LTE frequencies are not listed in the specs.
Thanks!
Moved to the right forum, thanks!
These models, do they all work on diff carries network? What I mean is, can I bring a Tmo to Verizon to ATT ... etc?
Because it looks like they all use simcard.
Samsung SM-G900F - for Europe
Samsung SM-G900I - for Asia
Samsung SM-G900K/G900L/G900S - for Korea
Samsung SM-G900M - for Vodafone
Samsung SM-G900A - for AT&T
Samsung SM-G900T - for T-Mobile
Samsung SM-G900V - for Verizon
Samsung SM-G900R4 - for US Cellular
Samsung SM-G900P - for Sprint
navy2012 said:
These models, do they all work on diff carries network? What I mean is, can I bring a Tmo to Verizon to ATT ... etc?
Because it looks like they all use simcard.
Samsung SM-G900F - for Europe
Samsung SM-G900I - for Asia
Samsung SM-G900K/G900L/G900S - for Korea
Samsung SM-G900M - for Vodafone
Samsung SM-G900A - for AT&T
Samsung SM-G900T - for T-Mobile
Samsung SM-G900V - for Verizon
Samsung SM-G900R4 - for US Cellular
Samsung SM-G900P - for Sprint
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good question. I'd like to know as well. You can def unlock the TMO and ATT GSM versions and pop each others SIM's in I doubt it's the same for CDMA versions.
Isn't the bootloader on the TMO unlocked?
ookba said:
Good question. I'd like to know as well. You can def unlock the TMO and ATT GSM versions and pop each others SIM's in I doubt it's the same for CDMA versions.
Isn't the bootloader on the TMO unlocked?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm curious as well if these phones are unique to each carrier due to the model numbers specifically can verizons work on tmobile & att
navy2012 said:
These models, do they all work on diff carries network? What I mean is, can I bring a Tmo to Verizon to ATT ... etc?
Because it looks like they all use simcard.
Samsung SM-G900F - for Europe
Samsung SM-G900I - for Asia
Samsung SM-G900K/G900L/G900S - for Korea
Samsung SM-G900M - for Vodafone
Samsung SM-G900A - for AT&T
Samsung SM-G900T - for T-Mobile
Samsung SM-G900V - for Verizon
Samsung SM-G900R4 - for US Cellular
Samsung SM-G900P - for Sprint
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know this is an old thread and I'm sure you have your answer by now, but I have seen others asking the same, so I hope this helps
900s and 900k are GSM 900l is CDMA
Samsung SM-G900K - for Korea Telecom
Samsung SM-G900S - for SK Telecom
Samsung SM-G900L - for LG U+
Well the g900t works fine on AT&T with the exception of lte. Not sure why it's not supported considering the g900t supports all the same bands ad g900a... I suppose it is a firmware issue
Sent from my SM-G900T using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
strker45 said:
Well the g900t works fine on AT&T with the exception of lte. Not sure why it's not supported considering the g900t supports all the same bands ad g900a... I suppose it is a firmware issue
Sent from my SM-G900T using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LTE works fine on the 900T using AT&T's network. I answered this in your other thread. I'm currently using a 900T with AT&T's service, getting full LTE.
navy2012 said:
These models, do they all work on diff carries network? What I mean is, can I bring a Tmo to Verizon to ATT ... etc?t
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The short answer is no. First you divide the phones into two groups; GSM and CDMA which are incompatible networks, apart from limited overlap on the data side. Note that Sprint in particular, locks down their CDMA phones pretty tight so that it is very difficult to use them on other networks, particularly competing domestic CDMA carriers.
GSM phones, at least the higher end models like the S5 are multi band and will work on pretty much all GSM networks. However each model is optimized for a given carrier's frequencies. So your phone may roam or (if unlocked) accept a SIM from another network, it probably won't work on all of the frequencies of the other network. The effect of that may not be much in a dense urban area, perhaps a little more network congestion or slower data speeds. But in fringe areas served by only one frequency, it could mean no coverage for the foreign handset.
The TMobile model is one of the best, generally speaking, in that it is capable of operating on more frequency bands than most other models. However what is best is subjective depending on where you want to use it and what model you have in hand. The Samsung support site lists the frequency bands that each variant will work on and you can see that they vary between carriers.
Interestingly it appears that the GSM S5's are manufactured with the hardware capability to operate on all GSM and LTE bands. But the different models only enable the frequencies used on the native carrier. Which is to say marketing (or by a real stretch, perhaps cost saving) initiatives are locking us out of better roaming capabilities.
.
The Asian models do not have LTE antenna on them.
---------- Post added at 10:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:37 PM ----------
Christopher3712 said:
LTE works fine on the 900T using AT&T's network. I answered this in your other thread. I'm currently using a 900T with AT&T's service, getting full LTE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 to this. Am using TMo S5 on AT&T and am getting LTE.
I'm not quite sure what you meant by that statement. The Korean S5s all have LTE and with the Galaxy F being released in a few weeks there is also LTE-A.
Sent from my SM-G900K using XDA Free mobile app
2ndcarpenter said:
I'm not quite sure what you meant by that statement. The Korean S5s all have LTE and with the Galaxy F being released in a few weeks there is also LTE-A.
Sent from my SM-G900K using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not all markets have LTE. Maybe Korea has. Countries like India don't yet have. It could also be that the bands being supported cos adding each band adds to phone cost.
Sent from my SM-G900T using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
diablo009 said:
The Asian models do not have LTE antenna on them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a sweeping statment. And incorrect. Some asian phones may not use LTE, but many asian countries like Japan, Korea, Phillipines, Australia, etc do have LTE antennae.
.
That's interesting. I was unaware. So EDGE would be the high speed data there I suppose?
Sent from my SM-G900K using XDA Free mobile app
2ndcarpenter said:
That's interesting. I was unaware. So EDGE would be the high speed data there I suppose?
Sent from my SM-G900K using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is until HSPDA/4G. But no LTE.
---------- Post added at 02:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:34 AM ----------
fffft said:
That's a sweeping statment. And incorrect. Some asian phones may not use LTE, but many asian countries like Japan, Korea, Phillipines, Australia, etc do have LTE antennae.
.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The reason I gave for that is 'cos I know S3 in Americas version had 2 cores and LTE, wherein Asia version had 4 cores and no LTE. Maybe things changed in S5.
diablo009 said:
fffft said:
That's a sweeping statment. And incorrect. Some asian phones may not use LTE, but many asian countries like Japan, Korea, Phillipines, Australia, etc do have LTE antennae
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The reason I gave for that is 'cos I know S3 in Americas version had 2 cores and LTE, wherein Asia version had 4 cores and no LTE. Maybe things changed in S5.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well again what you say is only correct for certain countries in asia. Not to single you out but there is a lot of misinformation, usually assumptions on this subject and it's productive to clarify the facts.
There were both LTE and non-LTE versions of the Exynos (4 core) S3. The GT-I9300[N/T], SHV-E210K/L/S and SGH-N035 had 4 cores and LTE and the GT-I9300[N] had 4 cores without LTE support. Not to mention that various asian counties like Japan and Australia use the dual core Qualcomm S3 with LTE. So it's not as clearly delineated as you believe.
You also suggested that it costs more to add additional frequency band support to a S5 variant. But this isn't so because the S5 uses WRL-1625 transceiver chipset which has unified support for all GSM and LTE bands. So it costs nothing extra in hardware to add additional bands.
One could argue that omitting secondary parts such as an antenna in a variant intended for a region that doesn't use LTE at all (if such exists) could make unified support moot. But the reality is that increased manufacturing and logistical costs of changing the hardware provisioning on variant handsets is usually prohibitive. It's generally believed that band limitations between variants reside in firmware with the purpose of detering grey market sales and carrier churn.
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2ndcarpenter said:
That's interesting. I was unaware. So EDGE would be the high speed data there I suppose?
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No, most of the non-LTE asian carriers are using HSPA+ networks which are considerably faster than Edge. The faster HSPA+ implentations are characterized as 42 Mbps networks, which is as fast as some LTE footprints. Advanced LTE rollouts however can double those speeds.
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I had several people ask me about real world LTE speeds. All I can say is that speeds are highly dependent on carrier networks and will vary considerably between carriers and quite a bit by location as well. One LTE network might see speeds < 5 Mbps while another may be twenty times that fast.
I am seeing 60 Mbps typical speeds with my LTE and ~ 90 Mbps with a strong signal in larger cities. Carrier aggregation which is just rolling out now (and supported by the S5) should see some networks achieving 125+ Mbps speeds.
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3 G in europe
Hello! I'm looking for some help.
I got back fron the US with an AT&T galaxy S5 active (SM 870A) and it works well ewcept the 3G. I directly sitch from 4G in urban areas to Edge...
Do you know if I could get 3G with this phone, since it looks likes a software issue?
Thanks
fffft said:
The short answer is no. First you divide the phones into two groups; GSM and CDMA which are incompatible networks, apart from limited overlap on the data side. Note that Sprint in particular, locks down their CDMA phones pretty tight so that it is very difficult to use them on other networks, particularly competing domestic CDMA carriers.
GSM phones, at least the higher end models like the S5 are multi band and will work on pretty much all GSM networks. However each model is optimized for a given carrier's frequencies. So your phone may roam or (if unlocked) accept a SIM from another network, it probably won't work on all of the frequencies of the other network. The effect of that may not be much in a dense urban area, perhaps a little more network congestion or slower data speeds. But in fringe areas served by only one frequency, it could mean no coverage for the foreign handset.
The TMobile model is one of the best, generally speaking, in that it is capable of operating on more frequency bands than most other models. However what is best is subjective depending on where you want to use it and what model you have in hand. The Samsung support site lists the frequency bands that each variant will work on and you can see that they vary between carriers.
Interestingly it appears that the GSM S5's are manufactured with the hardware capability to operate on all GSM and LTE bands. But the different models only enable the frequencies used on the native carrier. Which is to say marketing (or by a real stretch, perhaps cost saving) initiatives are locking us out of better roaming capabilities.
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..
Galaxy S5 SM-900M
Supports these Bands:
3G: HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100, 4G: LTE 700 / 850 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 / 2600 (Bands 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 17)
Current Baseband Version:
G900MUBU1BOJ2 (Lollipop 5.0)
I'm wanting to roll back to KitKat 4.4.2
Does anyone know for sure if this will work with T-Mobile? It appears to have all the bands to support T-Mobile, but I guess what I'm asking is what firmware do I download if I want to roll it back to KitKat 4.4.2? A link to the firmware would be fantastic.
This is the closest thing I've found for KitKat 4.4.2 on this SM-900M S5 that I have....but it's Uruguay. All the other firmwares are for South American countries too....
Thanks in advance.
i am trying to use a program to retrieve files from a broken screen s5 (model sm-g900v U.S. verizon) but my model isnt listed as compatible and offers the doomsday scenario of bricking it if i continue. Whats the difference if i tell the program im one of the models offered? is there a different program i can use to access my black screen S5 thats not in debugging mode when plugged in? (i plug it in computer now and it doesnt recognize that theres files becuase its in "charge only" mode)
I have a ATT version which i have unlocked and been using with Tmobile for about 5 days without issues.
I then wanted to use it internationally since i have Verizon for phone. I wanted to take advantage of the free texting and internet when abroad. my wife has Tmobile as well on her phone.
So we have been to Munich, Athens, and Barcelona and i have not been able to get any service whatsoever. meanwhile my wife with her Note edge has no problems with service.
Does it have to do with the bands of this att version?
has anyone used their ATT version Gear S internationally?
North American bands only. it's a dual-band phone. All Gear S versions are dual-band only. So, North America version will only work in North America (850 and 1900Mhz). Rest of the world uses different bands (900 and 1800Mhz).
What foxbat said. Sadly, Samsung didn't deem it necessary to make this quadband
Maybe the next version...
I don't think it is about the need but about the technical difficulties to squeeze in enough RF components and antenna for all four bands in such a small watch body. Remember, even in US, T-Mobile version should support at least 3 bands to get full 3G coverage but the T-Mo version of the Gear S only has two bands
ha....
May be the next version.
I don't about size limitation. i see cheap quad band watch phones from Asia that are slightly "smaller" than the Gear S.
I think of taking the sim out and putting it in an unlocked phone next time I am out of country to take advantage of tmobile great international perks.
i know usually Tmobile will be able to detect that i put it in a normal phone, but i am wondering if they will be able to do so while international roaming. Any thoughts?
Does anyone have an authoritative link or source for the different S23 ultra regional model variants and their respective bandwidth frequencies such as for 4g and 5g?
Can't find this information for any including the USA variant eg which specific frequencies of 4g and 5g does the USA model support?
The chipset and x70 modem makes it possible for this phone to truly be a global phone but.....
asking the same as well, cant find these details.
Here's hoping that the band unlock methods for the s22's and s21's also work on the s23's.
jcsww said:
Here's hoping that the band unlock methods for the s22's and s21's also work on the s23's.
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I'm sure it will be the same to unlock the bands, no one will really know until they have one in hand.
Can you elaborate on these band unlock methods?
And could they unlock mmwave for example on the international variants so that 5g could work in US? And unlock international bands on US version so it could work everywhere else?
evangelionpunk said:
Can you elaborate on these band unlock methods?
And could they unlock mmwave for example on the international variants so that 5g could work in US? And unlock international bands on US version so it could work everywhere else?
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This is the thread you probably want to have a look at. This method also worked for the s21's.
How to Enable All Bands Through Service Menu on US/CA S22 series (including Sub-6 and mmWave)
What is this? This is a guide on how to enable all LTE and 5G bands on the US or Canadian S22 series phones by going through the service menu. This guide is mostly based on this S20U guide by mellojosh, but has been adapted for the S22U phone...
forum.xda-developers.com
jcsww said:
This is the thread you probably want to have a look at. This method also worked for the s21's.
How to Enable All Bands Through Service Menu on US/CA S22 series (including Sub-6 and mmWave)
What is this? This is a guide on how to enable all LTE and 5G bands on the US or Canadian S22 series phones by going through the service menu. This guide is mostly based on this S20U guide by mellojosh, but has been adapted for the S22U phone...
forum.xda-developers.com
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Interesting....
So basically you could enter the service menu and turn on all the extra bands?
In that case wouldn't the US version be the best one to have since it would have mmwave hardware baked in too? It should then work everywhere.
Though it sounds like you'll lose the function on os updates and resets?
evangelionpunk said:
Interesting....
So basically you could enter the service menu and turn on all the extra bands?
In that case wouldn't the US version be the best one to have since it would have mmwave hardware baked in too? It should then work everywhere.
Though it sounds like you'll lose the function on os updates and resets?
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OS updates from Samsung are never fast. Doing so once every 2 to 3 months isn't so bad for the extra band support.
Samsung's modem software works well for the US and Canada because the hardware is the same and only the modem software separates the bands based on carrier/region. Due to the wide spread of mess across North America, US and Canadian models are always a good choice for potential band support. In some cases though, mixed ROM's can also bridge the support. In the S9 days, you could.jeep.the base.for.your region but flash the carrier side of the firmware to unlock band 71 on some overseas models. I don't know if this is still possible today but with all devices being very similar. I am hoping the hardware, including dual-SIM pins on the main board, will be there to enable through a firmware change or mod.
Do we know if the international dual sim variant has the same USA hardware based on s22/21/20?
Does it have mmwave baked in but just disabled by software?
I am still not clear what 5G bands are supported on the SM-S918BZKPEUB, nor if unlocking the bands through the service menu works. @UK S23, your deliveries are in place already, has anyone tried?
It seems as though the bands might only be disabled in software? If so, then it should be possible to enable whatever band you need. The only exception would be if a hardware component is needed or missing then it wouldn't be possible which likely wouldn't be the case for your 3g, 4g and 5g standard range. Maybe only 5g mmwave which is essentially only in US anyway.
If that's the case it sounds like US variant might be the best to get for global coverage barring lack of dual sim (though it does have physical+esim).
evangelionpunk said:
It seems as though the bands might only be disabled in software? If so, then it should be possible to enable whatever band you need. The only exception would be if a hardware component is needed or missing then it wouldn't be possible which likely wouldn't be the case for your 3g, 4g and 5g standard range. Maybe only 5g mmwave which is essentially only in US anyway.
If that's the case it sounds like US variant might be the best to get for global coverage barring lack of dual sim (though it does have physical+esim).
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Samsung's band support is mostly software, at least when it comes to 4G and 5G. I have never bothered to change 2G and 3G bands because there is no use for them unless you are in a very rural area or roaming. This is why it is so easy to convert the North American models and why in the days of the S9+, you could get band 71 on international models with dual-SIM.
jcsww said:
Samsung's band support is mostly software, at least when it comes to 4G and 5G. I have never bothered to change 2G and 3G bands because there is no use for them unless you are in a very rural area or roaming. This is why it is so easy to convert the North American models and why in the days of the S9+, you could get band 71 on international models with dual-SIM.
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Correct me if I'm wrong but you can't get mmwave bands on the international dual sim models right?
evangelionpunk said:
Correct me if I'm wrong but you can't get mmwave bands on the international dual sim models right?
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I'm not sure when it comes to mmWave. You can enable it on the W for Canada even though the cell coverage and technologies used up there are probably never going to deploy it. Overseas, I have no idea.
jcsww said:
I'm not sure when it comes to mmWave. You can enable it on the W for Canada even though the cell coverage and technologies used up there are probably never going to deploy it. Overseas, I have no idea.
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I've read that the US and CA models are basically identical so that might explain it. It's also possible I suppose that in s23 since it uses x70 modem, which has native support built in, that all model variants might be able to do it but for software. Though we won't know for sure till someone from different region goes into their service menu and checks.
mmWave requires a specific antenna to function. This antenna used to cost like $50 but I'd be surprised if it's gone down much beyond $30 so manufacturers will still leave it out if it's not necessary.
EtherealRemnant said:
mmWave requires a specific antenna to function. This antenna used to cost like $50 but I'd be surprised if it's gone down much beyond $30 so manufacturers will still leave it out if it's not necessary.
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Thanks and that probably means it likely won't be in other region variants.
Personally, I'd just make a single phone that is globally universal and can be used everywhere. The massive scale should drop the component pricing considerably. Carrier exclusives and market restrictions if any needed in software only. But that's just me lol.
evangelionpunk said:
Thanks and that probably means it likely won't be in other region variants.
Personally, I'd just make a single phone that is globally universal and can be used everywhere. The massive scale should drop the component pricing considerably. Carrier exclusives and market restrictions if any needed in software only. But that's just me lol.
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Yes, you would think they would do this, but Samsung has always customized difference models for different regions so it must not be that straightforward. I believe that regulatory bodies would require them to test and submit all the documentation for that extra antenna, for example. It also wouldn't surprise me if the mmWave equipment is outright banned in some regions either for whatever reason.
EtherealRemnant said:
Yes, you would think they would do this, but Samsung has always customized difference models for different regions so it must not be that straightforward. I believe that regulatory bodies would require them to test and submit all the documentation for that extra antenna, for example. It also wouldn't surprise me if the mmWave equipment is outright banned in some regions either for whatever reason.
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Yeah.
Are iphones globally all exactly the same now?
evangelionpunk said:
Yeah.
Are iphones globally all exactly the same now?
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No. There are 5 different models of iPhone 14 Pro Max, for example, and each will have different band configurations.
That said, the NA models have the most complete bands of any device released so far this year and it was released last year with an older modem. They even have support for Dish Network's n70, a band exclusive to them worldwide, something Samsung didn't even choose to support on their NA variant this year despite having a contract with Dish for radio equipment supporting that band.
I actually think the NA iPhone 14 Pro models support every commercially available band worldwide but I don't really keep up on bands not used in the US.
iPhone 14 Pro Max Model Number A2651, A2893, A2894, A2896, A2895 Differences - TechWalls
The iPhone 14 Pro Max comes in 5 model numbers, which are A2651, A2893, A2894, A2896, and A2895. Let's check out their differences and all the part numbers.
www.techwalls.com