T-Mobile LTE signal - Nexus 6 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I just got the phone on Monday. With the original ROM and after taking several OTA updates, my LTE signal strength at home and at work was horrible. I'd get around -120 dBm and it would frequently change to HSPA and even EVDO.
One thing that I noticed is that on LTE, it was using band 4, which is 2100 MHz. On my Note 2, it always used band 14, which is 700 MHz. The lower frequency penetrates buildings better and gave me a better signal at work and home (not great, but useable).
I just updated to the latest T-Mobile ROM from the developer site. The LTE signal strength is a bit better at -116 dBm and so far, it isn't changing to HSPA or worse. However, it is still using band 4.
Does anyone know why my old phone used band 14 and this new phone uses band 4? I would think that the phone would use whichever band gave it the best signal, which would certainly be band 14. Is there any way to force this?
Thanks.

I didn't look up the Note 2's specs but I'd guess it didn't have band 4. What are you using to see your band? OpenSignal?

Powell730 said:
I didn't look up the Note 2's specs but I'd guess it didn't have band 4. What are you using to see your band? OpenSignal?
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I just looked up the specs on Wikipedia. It says that the T-Mobile version uses band 17, but I know that the phone said band 14 before I swapped SIMs.
Wikipedia says the Nexus 6 uses bands 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 7 / 12 / 13 / 17 / 25 / 26 / 29 / 41.
This is from the T-Mobile Support site: "TMO uses bands 2 and 4 on LTE/4G & 3G". Also from Support: "LTE band 4(1700/2100), 17(700)". I'm not sure what to believe, or what is in use around here. Like I said above, I know that the Note 2 said it was using band 14.
On the Nexus 6, I'm using an app called LTE Discovery.

T mobile only uses band 2,4,12 for LTE. The note 2 doesn't support band 12. I never heard of band 14.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

mojoehand said:
I just looked up the specs on Wikipedia. It says that the T-Mobile version uses band 17, but I know that the phone said band 14 before I swapped SIMs.
Wikipedia says the Nexus 6 uses bands 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 7 / 12 / 13 / 17 / 25 / 26 / 29 / 41.
This is from the T-Mobile Support site: "TMO uses bands 2 and 4 on LTE/4G & 3G". Also from Support: "LTE band 4(1700/2100), 17(700)". I'm not sure what to believe, or what is in use around here. Like I said above, I know that the Note 2 said it was using band 14.
On the Nexus 6, I'm using an app called LTE Discovery.
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Click to collapse
I'm by no means an expert when it comes to bands/frequencies, however, if the app told you the Note 2 was on band 14, I think it was lying to you. I'm pretty sure there isn't even a band 14 in the U.S., and almost positive T-Mobile does not run LTE on that band.

When (if) band 12 reaches your neighborhood receiption indoors should improve drastically. On band 4 I usually get -109 to -101 dBm. On band 12 I get around -89 to -94 dBm.

I have tried different ROMs and different radio modems. Nothing I do gets me a decent signal. Very occasionally I have had a moderately strong LTE signal, but even then, the download speed is only usable and the upload speed sucks.
The phone doesn't stay on LTE for long. It switched to HSPA and even EVDO most of the time. On HSPA, my old Note 2 got at least 2 Mb downloads. This N6 can't even get a kilobyte down on HSPA.
I don't know if it really affects things, but I read some comments that a bad SIM could possibly cause this. Is this true? If so, I'll drop by the T-Mobile store again and ask them to try another SIM.
I love the phone for the big screen and other features, but I really can't live with this lousy data connection. If I can't get this resolved, I'll have to return the N6 and buy another phone.
I might consider a Note 5 if I have to. It only has a 5.7 inch screen, but my Note 2 had a 5.5 incher. I don't really use the pen and the price premium is high, but I don't know what other phones have a 5.7-6 inch display, except for some Chinese phones. I don't know if they are any good, or if I could use them on T-Mobile.
Call me frustrated.

have you verified apn settings? mine needed a few changes. band 12 should be rolling out soon. i saw it for a day here in portland and service was amazing. can't wait!

nigelorion said:
have you verified apn settings? mine needed a few changes. band 12 should be rolling out soon. i saw it for a day here in portland and service was amazing. can't wait!
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Anyway to see where band 12 is going live?
Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk

Powell730 said:
Anyway to see where band 12 is going live?
Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk
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not sure. saw a few people on reddit mentioning they had seen it in my area. i have been using an app called lte discovery to check what band i am on. 12 only popped up once and haven't seen it since.

mojoehand said:
I have tried different ROMs and different radio modems. Nothing I do gets me a decent signal. Very occasionally I have had a moderately strong LTE signal, but even then, the download speed is only usable and the upload speed sucks.
The phone doesn't stay on LTE for long. It switched to HSPA and even EVDO most of the time. On HSPA, my old Note 2 got at least 2 Mb downloads. This N6 can't even get a kilobyte down on HSPA.
I don't know if it really affects things, but I read some comments that a bad SIM could possibly cause this. Is this true? If so, I'll drop by the T-Mobile store again and ask them to try another SIM.
I love the phone for the big screen and other features, but I really can't live with this lousy data connection. If I can't get this resolved, I'll have to return the N6 and buy another phone.
I might consider a Note 5 if I have to. It only has a 5.7 inch screen, but my Note 2 had a 5.5 incher. I don't really use the pen and the price premium is high, but I don't know what other phones have a 5.7-6 inch display, except for some Chinese phones. I don't know if they are any good, or if I could use them on T-Mobile.
Call me frustrated.
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Are you sure that you're on T-Mobile? EVDO is CDMA network and T-Mobile is GSM...
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

BigDig said:
Are you sure that you're on T-Mobile? EVDO is CDMA network and T-Mobile is GSM...
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk
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Yes, I am on T-Mobile. I meant Edge, not EVDO. Too many acronyms.
I just got home and even though the phone is currently showing three bars on LTE, the signal level is only -118 dBm, which isn't good. Speed test won't even do 1/2 Mb/s on download. This is pathetic.
As much as I otherwise like this phone, I can't live with this lousy signal issue. Unless someone knows of a fix, I will have to return the phone to Amazon. As I said, I have tried different ROMS and modems. I have also tried changing various settings that others have suggested (clearing cache, APN settings, etc.). I don't know what else to do.

mojoehand said:
Yes, I am on T-Mobile. I meant Edge, not EVDO. Too many acronyms.
I just got home and even though the phone is currently showing three bars on LTE, the signal level is only -118 dBm, which isn't good. Speed test won't even do 1/2 Mb/s on download. This is pathetic.
As much as I otherwise like this phone, I can't live with this lousy signal issue. Unless someone knows of a fix, I will have to return the phone to Amazon. As I said, I have tried different ROMS and modems. I have also tried changing various settings that others have suggested (clearing cache, APN settings, etc.). I don't know what else to do.
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Have you tried calling tmobile and trouble shooting with them?

Andromendous said:
Have you tried calling tmobile and trouble shooting with them?
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Yes, I've been to the store.

mojoehand said:
Yes, I've been to the store.
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Call and speak to tech support. Most people in the store don't know what there doing.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app

mojoehand said:
Yes, I've been to the store.
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Or chat with t force on twitter. I have had great success with them. They're awesome.
Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk

Because of the choppy voice calls, as well as the lousy data connection, I am returning this phone and getting a Note 5. Although it is my personal phone, I also need a reliable phone for when I am on call at work.
I have spent all week on this and can't waste any more time. I need something that works. My Note 2 was reliable. I hope the Note 5 will be also.
Thanks to all for suggestions.

I too am having LTE data connection issues on LYZ28K. Anyone on LMY48M having data issues? I tried setting phone info to "LTE only", but that didn't help. I don't need wifi calling, so I'm wondering if I should switch to LMY48M?

Related

WiMax > LTE?

Will most areas with Wimax get LTE? I didn't care too much about this until I read that AT&T Ones get both Wimax and LTE. How exactly does this work? Has it to do with the GSM/CDMA thing?
I was with T-mobile before and you could say I was spoiled by their HSPA speeds. Now its normal for me to get anywhere from 80 to 100 kbps with Sprint. Occasionally I get an LTE signal and speeds upto 1.5 mbps. Would I get faster speeds if I had an older, Wimax phone?
Also, I was told by the Sprint rep that the Nextel towers will be converted to LTE. Is this true?
Where'd you read that att models support wimax?
Sent from my HTCONE using Tapatalk 4 Beta
It's magic, considering ATT never deployed wimax whatsoever. Sprint is the only major cellular provider who went with Wimax, everyone else went lte or HSPA+
Sent from my HTCONE using Tapatalk 4 Beta
sauprankul said:
Will most areas with Wimax get LTE? I didn't care too much about this until I read that AT&T Ones get both Wimax and LTE. How exactly does this work? Has it to do with the GSM/CDMA thing?
I was with T-mobile before and you could say I was spoiled by their HSPA speeds. Now its normal for me to get anywhere from 80 to 100 kbps with Sprint. Occasionally I get an LTE signal and speeds upto 1.5 mbps. Would I get faster speeds if I had an older, Wimax phone?
Also, I was told by the Sprint rep that the Nextel towers will be converted to LTE. Is this true?
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All of this is true except AT&T ONE getting WiMax. As was said, AT&T has never had WiMax and the ONE is not capable of it. Whoever told you that is either mistaken or lying.
Depending on where you are WiMax could be more available then LTE as of right now. As they shut down the 800mhz Nextel towers, Sprint will be rolling out LTE 800 on those is the story most have heard.
I'm in Chicago and we have a lot of wimax. But also a lot of lte too. I did get faster speeds on wimax, but I could only get wimax if I were outside. So... I kept it off and only used wimax if I really needed it. It was a major battery hog.
Sent from my HTCONE using xda app-developers app
I had og Evo and Evo 3d which were both wimax phones. The signal was much more consistent than I get on my Evo lte and HTC one. As far as speed, I HAVE spiked to 22mbps once or twice on lte but I have to be right there in that sweet spot which is on the side of a major hwy. I can pull 5-8 mbps on an average lte signal but I am constantly loosing it and switching back to 3g and going back and forth. My wimax signal was a goo 7-8 inside my house. Lte is very inconsistent and my area is suppose to be over 80% complete I think last time I checked.
And like gk said wimax was a battery hog. I could never get half a day if I left my wimax radio on and off the charger. My lte devices last a lot longer. This one I take it off the charger in the morning and still have half battery at night most times
Sent from my HTCONE using xda app-developers app
sauprankul said:
Will most areas with Wimax get LTE? I didn't care too much about this until I read that AT&T Ones get both Wimax and LTE. How exactly does this work? Has it to do with the GSM/CDMA thing?
I was with T-mobile before and you could say I was spoiled by their HSPA speeds. Now its normal for me to get anywhere from 80 to 100 kbps with Sprint. Occasionally I get an LTE signal and speeds upto 1.5 mbps. Would I get faster speeds if I had an older, Wimax phone?
Also, I was told by the Sprint rep that the Nextel towers will be converted to LTE. Is this true?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would be surprised if it were directly true. The Nextel towers were all IDEN-based and are in the process of being torn down. I have no doubt they will be eventually switched to CDMA/3G and then LTE (or maybe built with LTE from the get-go), but probably not until after Sprint rolls out LTE to its existing tower infrastructure.
Not to go off topic too much but when I lived in Columbus Ohio we had pretty good wimax coverage. And in complete honesty the battery hit was hardly any worse than 3g so I would leave wimax on all of the time. I could go a full 12 hour day at work on my 3d with moderate usage and get home with 30 percent left. Similar comparisons in battery life on my 4g, shift, and et4g as well. Apparently its similar to any other signal issue.... But if its a good area wimax doesn't hurt the battery too bad at all really.
I used to get really inconsistent lte a month ago. I'm not sure if they improved the network to correct it or what but when I unlocked the bootloader, I saw a very consistent experience. Not sure if wiping everything did something to correct it, placebo, or new towers were flipped on the same day.
But I only get 2-3 mbps on lte
Wimax I was getting about 8-10
In any case... Sprint is the only major wimax carrier in the USA and att doesn't use it - as mentioned earlier, OP was lied to about this.
Also, I hear the Nextel iden network will be configured to lte on 800 mhz which our phones don't support. None do at this point actually.
Sent from my HTCONE using xda app-developers app
wimax is awful & I live in a "good" wimax area. Besides Sprint quit building on the network once they realized it sucked.
All right thanks for the clarification guys. I was suspicious when I read it (no idea where, some random forums). Since Sprint is letting go of Wimax and replacing their Wimax devices with LTE, would it be safe to assume that places with "Best" Wimax coverage and/or Nextel coverage will get LTE at some point (6 mos-1 year)? It's really sad when it takes 30-45 minutes do download Cut the Rope at the local mall (in silicon Valley).
Sprint lte (any carried for that matter) is very signal dependent. Stronger signal = faster connection. If u connect to lte and its a slow connection, chances are you are connected to a site farther away then u think, or have a site (one that serves your voice coverage) between the lte site and your phone. All sprint sites are being converted to lte. Most Nextel sites are not. During the conversion, sprint is putting up panels has house both voice and lte on 1900mhz, voice on smr800 and lte on 800smr. No 800smr lte devices are out yet, will will be starting this fall. When Nextel is turned off (last day of this month), sprint will start turning on the 800smr on voice and lte but may take some time (especially lte side). 800smr voice is already being broadcasted in parts of the county, such as in Chicago. Most if not all native sprint coverage will have lte by this time next year. For much more info, go to s4gru.com
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I had Wimax on my evo3d as well as for my home internet through clear. Wimax signal is much weaker than LTE it is easily affected by weather and even wind.it has poor building penetration, hence Sprint dumped the Wimax program and began with lte!!!
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Paleryder said:
I had Wimax on my evo3d as well as for my home internet through clear. Wimax signal is much weaker than LTE it is easily affected by weather and even wind.it has poor building penetration, hence Sprint dumped the Wimax program and began with lte!!!
Sent from my HTCONE using Tapatalk 2
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It wasn't so much wimax sucked based on the symptoms you described, it's the frequency Clearwire was using. They used 2500 mhz for wimax and if it were lte on that same band, we'd still have poor building penetration and weak signal.
Sent from my HTCONE using xda app-developers app
jcwxguy said:
No 800smr lte devices are out yet, will will be starting this fall.
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the htc one should actually be capable of 800smr lte with some changes to the radio config (and possibly radio software too, but i'm pretty sure that won't be necessary)... once 800smr lte is up and running somewhere near where i live i'll be able to test and figure out what exactly needs to be done to make it work.
hotaru2k3 said:
the htc one should actually be capable of 800smr lte with some changes to the radio config (and possibly radio software too, but i'm pretty sure that won't be necessary)... once 800smr lte is up and running somewhere near where i live i'll be able to test and figure out what exactly needs to be done to make it work.
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it is not capable of 800smr lte....its a hardware thing (no 800smr antenna within the phone) with the HTC ONE, check out the FCC docs...
https://apps.fcc.gov/eas/GetApplicationAttachment.html?id=1898233 (note page 5, only LTE BAND 25 (g block, 1900 mhz, sprints current lte network)
http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-342-updated-all-for-htc-one-htc-one-for-all/
jcwxguy said:
it is not capable of 800smr....its a hardware thing (no 800smr antenna within the phone) with the HTC ONE, check out the FCC docs...
https://apps.fcc.gov/eas/GetApplicationAttachment.html?id=1898233 (note page 5, only LTE BAND 25 (g block, 1900 mhz, sprints current lte network)
http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-342-updated-all-for-htc-one-htc-one-for-all/
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first link just says "You are not authorized to access this page.", but i have already seen the fcc filings for the sprint htc one.
from the second link:
CDMA1X + EV-DO band classes 0, 1, 10 (i.e. CDMA1X + EV-DO 850/1900/800)
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Antenna 0 max RF ERP/EIRP: 20.10 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 850), 23.80 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 1900), 19.23 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 800), 12.30 dBm (LTE 1900)
Antenna 1 max RF ERP/EIRP: 13.78 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 850), 13.58 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 1900), 14.27 dBm (CDMA1X/EV-DO 800), 23.63 dBm (LTE 1900)
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cdma band class 10 is 800smr. both antennas work for 800smr. the radio can transmit and receive on 800smr frequencies.
it's very likely that a simple configuration change will enable lte on 800smr. if that turns out to not be the case, it's definitely possible to do it by modifying the baseband software.
I asked Sprint support about a month or 2 ago if the One would be compatible with 800 when they launch it and they said none of the currently released phones are capable and none will be released until Q3 or Q4
Sent from my HTCONE using xda app-developers app
Note that by the time Sprint actually deploys in large-scale any non-1900mhz LTE, you'll be up for a new phone (that is, 2 years). It's going to take a long, long time. They haven't even started yet.
hotaru2k3 said:
first link just says "You are not authorized to access this page.", but i have already seen the fcc filings for the sprint htc one.
from the second link:
cdma band class 10 is 800smr. both antennas work for 800smr. the radio can transmit and receive on 800smr frequencies.
it's very likely that a simple configuration change will enable lte on 800smr. if that turns out to not be the case, it's definitely possible to do it by modifying the baseband software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that radio (antenna) will not work on 800smr LTE. Voice 800smr yes, lte, no
The Sprint version of the HTC One is limited to band 25 LTE 1900. It does not support either of Sprint's upcoming LTE bands -- band 26 LTE 800 and band 41 TD-LTE 2600.
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---------- Post added at 12:05 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:03 PM ----------
Vincent Law said:
Note that by the time Sprint actually deploys in large-scale any non-1900mhz LTE, you'll be up for a new phone (that is, 2 years). It's going to take a long, long time. They haven't even started yet.
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Sprint has started an 800smr LTE fit in Montana.
---------- Post added at 12:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:05 PM ----------
gk1984 said:
I asked Sprint support about a month or 2 ago if the One would be compatible with 800 when they launch it and they said none of the currently released phones are capable and none will be released until Q3 or Q4
Sent from my HTCONE
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This is correct :good:
***THIS IS LIKE THE OLD "WILL MY WIMAX DEVICE WORK ON LTE" DEBATE " lol ....we all know how that ended up

Verizon LTE Band 4 Network 411380 live!!!

Just wanted to bring this to your awareness, Verizon's started to broadcast their AWS or Band 4 LTE network for testing purposes. If your Nexus 4 has old radio, put it in LTE Only mode, and manually search for networks.
If it shows up as 311480, please report here.
So far San Diego is live, although the user used another T-Mobile Band 4 capable LTE device to scan.
Cool but useless. There's no CDMA fall back for calling and text. So you'd have internet access and that's it. Stupid Verizon and their CDMA crap.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium
Ohgami_Ichiro said:
Cool but useless. There's no CDMA fall back for calling and text. So you'd have internet access and that's it. Stupid Verizon and their CDMA crap.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium
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If Verizon's 2x20Mhz internet access capable of 100+Mbps is useless to you then be it...
But what's the point. I suppose you could use all the workarounds to do VoIP but normal calling and texting is a no go since there's no CDMA fall back. My point is Verizon is only half in. Not to mention that Verizon has very little band 4 holdings at all. but hey like I said it's cool that it works.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium
This actually came up when I was searching through LTE in Chicago. I didn't know what that number was or meant
milan03 said:
If Verizon's 2x20Mhz internet access capable of 100+Mbps is useless to you then be it...
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Cool story and sounds great but a single line with a gig of data is hundred bucks sign me up
Ohgami_Ichiro said:
But what's the point. I suppose you could use all the workarounds to do VoIP but normal calling and texting is a no go since there's no CDMA fall back. My point is Verizon is only half in. Not to mention that Verizon has very little band 4 holdings at all. but hey like I said it's cool that it works.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium
Click to expand...
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Verizon has nearly nationwide Band 4 spectrum holdings. Completely unused, just sitting there.
Way more than AT&T for example who's divested most of their licenses to T-Mobile as a breakup fee.
And also way more free, unused AWS (Band 4) than T-Mobile which has to keep and maintain 20Mhz chunks for their existing HSPA+42 network for at least 1-2years.
That said, east of Mississippi Verizon is deploying 2x20Mhz LTE that can push 150Mbps on Cat 4 equipment. Just saying...
West of Mississippi they're mostly 2x15Mbps capable of over 100Mbps, with some markets with 2x10Mhz.
To put that in the perspective for you, their current nationwide Band 13 LTE is 2x10Mhz which is currently twice the capacity of T-Mobile's live LTE in most of their markets (2x5Mhz).
The point is, you can have your existing device besides being a smartphone also acting as a Verizon MiFi, if you ever wish to get access to Verizon's new stupid fast network with no one on it...
Has anyone popped a LTE Verizon Sim in and tired to connect?
Sent from my [email protected] GHz on Stock 4.2.2
IRX120 said:
Has anyone popped a LTE Verizon Sim in and tired to connect?
Sent from my [email protected] GHz on Stock 4.2.2
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I have a verizon gs4 as my dd. my nexus 4 is shipping, should be here friday. will test it when it gets here :laugh: :good:
rockingrubberducky said:
I have a verizon gs4 as my dd. my nexus 4 is shipping, should be here friday. will test it when it gets here :laugh: :good:
Click to expand...
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What's the point? You'll only get data
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
Smallsmx3 said:
What's the point? You'll only get data
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
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Why not?
Smallsmx3 said:
What's the point? You'll only get data
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
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hey, it's better than nothing. And testing things like that are fun, don't you think?
It's been widely reported that once they were done with their nationwide rollout of LTE later this year that they would then start using their band 4 aws holdings to fill in the holes and to augment their existing LTE service during peak loads.
http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/0...ice-to-operate-on-the-carriers-aws-lte-bands/
http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/0...ummer-start-selling-aws-friendly-phones-soon/
This is really awesome for people like me that only have Verizon's LTE in my area. If this could actually work, I'd switch to it, at least for a month; just to mess around with, and to blow people's minds when I tell them I have a GSM phone on Verizon's network (I know, not that impressive to the average XDA user, but to the ignorant masses, doing something like that is crazy).
The voice is no issue for me as I've used a tablet plan the past 2 months with a VoIP alternative.
The only problem is that Verizon only has pay-as-you-go 3G plans, you'd have to sign up for a regular LTE plan with a 2 year agreement and they are expensive. This might be an option for someone who's already a Verizon customer to try but not practical for most people.
kzoodroid said:
The only problem is that Verizon only has pay-as-you-go 3G plans, you'd have to sign up for a regular LTE plan with a 2 year agreement and they are expensive. This might be an option for someone who's already a Verizon customer to try but not practical for most people.
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Oh, well that's unfortunate. I guess I didn't even think about that. I suppose AT&T just enabled 4G on their prepaid network like last month. Dang it!
Oh well, I'm still gunna search for 4G in my area (flashing an old radio right now). If I find it, I'll see if my friend will let me try to pop his SIM into my phone and see if it could work in theory.
Johmama said:
Oh, well that's unfortunate. I guess I didn't even think about that. I suppose AT&T just enabled 4G on their prepaid network like last month. Dang it!
Oh well, I'm still gunna search for 4G in my area (flashing an old radio right now). If I find it, I'll see if my friend will let me try to pop his SIM into my phone and see if it could work in theory.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AT&T always had the HSPA+ 4G on pre-paid and just added LTE. You still have to have an LTE plan and live in an area with AWS, Chicago will be mostly AWS as AT&T didn't have a lot of 700 MHz licenses in that area but that's one of the few places that you will find it.
You can still scan for Verizon's LTE on your Nexus even if you don't have their SIM. At least you'll know if your area has that option available. They're still in the very early stage of deployment, San Diego report is literally the very first report of Verizon's Band 4 network broadcasting.
They won't be deploying on Band 4 nationwide from the get go, it's gonna be metro areas with heavy traffic first, then building inside-out.
It will be data only since Nexus 4 doesn't have CDMA radios, but as I said earlier, it's beneficial to have this option if you ever need another carrier for data hotspot.
Oh, and if you have Verizon's LTE iPad for instance, that's a prepaid service, you can totally use that SIM on any other LTE capable device.
Welp, I don't have any Band IV in my area so that came a quick halt.
kzoodroid said:
AT&T always had the HSPA+ 4G on pre-paid and just added LTE. You still have to have an LTE plan and live in an area with AWS, Chicago will be mostly AWS as AT&T didn't have a lot of 700 MHz licenses in that area but that's one of the few places that you will find it.
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Yeah, I meant LTE when I said 4G, since HSPA+ isn't really 4G (actually, LTE doesn't even meet the 4G standard as set by the 3GPP, but that's a whole other discussion)
milan03 said:
Oh, and if you have Verizon's LTE iPad for instance, that's a prepaid service, you can totally use that SIM on any other LTE capable device.
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Do they offer LTE on any prepaid tablet plan? I keep trying to look around and can't find a definite yes or no; usually if they don't stick '4G LTE!!!!!!' at least 100 places on the page, they don't offer it. I can't find anything.
Johmama said:
Welp, I don't have any Band IV in my area so that came a quick halt.
Yeah, I meant LTE when I said 4G, since HSPA+ isn't really 4G (actually, LTE doesn't even meet the 4G standard as set by the 3GPP, but that's a whole other discussion)
Do they offer LTE on any prepaid tablet plan? I keep trying to look around and can't find a definite yes or no; usually if they don't stick '4G LTE!!!!!!' at least 100 places on the page, they don't offer it. I can't find anything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah for the iPad 4 they offer month to month plans (I think, but it might only be hsdpa) and I believe they are LTE, but its like 30$ for 4gb shared
http://www.verizonwireless.com/wcms/consumer/explore/tablets.html
Sent from my Nexus 4 LTE @1.728 GHz on Stock 4.2.2

[SPRINT] Enable Tri-Band LTE on your N5!

[deleted]
Great work. Should be useful to Sprint users.
You can skip the computer part if you install logcat and begin at step 5 after launching.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Wouldn't battery use increase from enabling this? Because it would be constantly scanning for the other 2 frequencies?
This thread was already done by me a week ago. Use the search function to avoid repost clutter.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
sweet!! thanks been wanting to get my MSL since i got the phone.. just hate talking to sprint reps to get it.. worked great thanks!!:good:
i live in fort worth and set 41 to 1 and the others to zero and i have lte , so does mean i have tri band in my area? and will the other bands set to zero still be used when needed . thanks
randalldeflagg said:
You can skip the computer part if you install logcat and begin at step 5 after launching.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True enough, but you need to get the right logcat app, some don't work as well as others. I initially tried aLogCat, but didn't seem to work. CatLog app worked great, however.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using XDA Premium HD app
Just saying. No one has been able to get a B41 (TDD-LTE 2496-2690) connection with a Nexus 5 and that's with actual maps of Clearwire sites that's been upgraded and knowing where each site is located at. I've personally visited over 24 sites to no avail and know of others that visited many sites as well. Looks to be a much bigger issue than just changing up the LTE Engineering settings and may be network related.
Just got the phone but I'm pretty disappointed with the LTE speeds 1/2mb down, outside it's a bit better. Went downstairs and it disconnects from LTE altogether. Anyone know if it's a radio (hardware) issue with the phone or firmware radio? Some spots of my house won't even catch LTE, whereas my s2 would get wimax.
I've tried spark but it makes my connection more unreliable more pocket loss, but indeed it does seem to make it faster, placebo? I'm in Los Angeles don't know if it's been rolled out. I tried updating prl/profile to no avail. My next choice would be to try the LG 2 in hope of it having a better radio.
GPS is spot on, and wow this thing is fast!
Just a question, but wouldn't prioritizing band 26 make more sense since that is the 800MHz frequency band?
jxr94 said:
Just a question, but wouldn't prioritizing band 26 make more sense since that is the 800MHz frequency band?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, band 41 has the most capacity so you would want to connect to that if you are actually in range of it. It will automatically drop you down to the lower frequency bands as you move out of range of the higher frequency bands.
uh60james said:
No, band 41 has the most capacity so you would want to connect to that if you are actually in range of it. It will automatically drop you down to the lower frequency bands as you move out of range of the higher frequency bands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sweet, thanks for the explanation!
Hello, I tried this on my N% for Sprint today. btw. I live in N. OC, near Los Angeles. If I happen to be in and out of spotty LTE coverage areas. Will these adjustments cause more battery use or or worse performance?
When viewing HD youtube videos, it seems to play smoothly for a while, and then pauses as it the speed is going and up and down or being throttled.
About Band 41
So you means the Band 41 is unopen under default setting?
we need to open it by manual?
You know, the biggest mobile carrier China Mobile's 4G is TDD-LTE, and also use the band 41
But if I use the 4G sim card, it still work in 2G.
ggoomani said:
Hello, I tried this on my N% for Sprint today. btw. I live in N. OC, near Los Angeles. If I happen to be in and out of spotty LTE coverage areas. Will these adjustments cause more battery use or or worse performance?
When viewing HD youtube videos, it seems to play smoothly for a while, and then pauses as it the speed is going and up and down or being throttled.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am with uh60james spark seems to offer more throughput and less disconnects.
I drove to Corona from Carson the other day and i was shocked how much coverage sprint has improved on. I wasn't able to stay connected to LTE on my the entirety of my drive but it is impressive how Sprint has extended lte coverage around corona at least on the freeway.
Spark works better for me, less drop offs.
I am in Naperville. Will check this out and see if tri band goes this far out west from chicago.
parmend said:
i live in fort worth and set 41 to 1 and the others to zero and i have lte , so does mean i have tri band in my area? and will the other bands set to zero still be used when needed . thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't heard anything about DFW having Spark anytime soon, so more than likely not. I live in Arlington myself, and would love to see this area Spark-enabled sooner than later.
Enabled this on my n5 a couple weeks ago .... dismal speeds on lte in downtown Los Angeles as usual around 4 down and 2 up.... Yesterday for the first time spark kicked in and I got 44down and 14 up. BUUUUT today its back and slower than ever. around 2 down/1up on LTE
guoting2409 said:
So you means the Band 41 is unopen under default setting?
we need to open it by manual?
You know, the biggest mobile carrier China Mobile's 4G is TDD-LTE, and also use the band 41
But if I use the 4G sim card, it still work in 2G.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seems that due to Nexus 5 lacks TD-SCDMA for China Mobile 3G, it is very hard for Nexus 5 auto connect to LTE.
You need *#*#4636#*#*, change mode to "LTE Only" and wait connect to band 41/38 cell and then change it back to "LTE/GSM Auto (PRL)".
After it, you will on LTE until one of following happens: no LTE cell signal; incoming call; make a outgoing call. If fallback to GSM, you will need another round of "LTE Only" settings. Please check some chinese forums, there are plenty of guides.
It seems N5's baseband firmware did not implement some directly GSM to LTE function and do not support China Mobile 3G, so ...

[Q] Verizon Bands 4 & 13

Has anyone had issues with their Nexus 6 not wanting to stay on the stronger band? Using LTE Discovery I'll reset the radio, it will connect to band 13 usually between -90 and -94dBm, then after a couple of minutes it will jump to band 4 and sit at -105 to -108dBm. Is the phone making the decision to jump to band 4, or does the tower make that decision? I currently have the phone set to the LTE only mode, would I be better off in the Global mode?
You can leave the phone in global mode, and LTE discovery shows I am connected to band 13, and stay connected.
From what I have read band 4 is AWS aka XLTE . AWS is capable of higher speeds so I'm curious why would you want to switch to the slower band?
Because the slower band has poor reception.
I leave mine in global as when I am at home I cannot get band 4 and signal at my house is not good however when I am at work i'm on band 4 all day.
Omen87 said:
Because the slower band has poor reception.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you mean better reception?
zetsumeikuro said:
Do you mean better reception?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haha, yes I did. Sorry about that.
Omen87 said:
Haha, yes I did. Sorry about that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, I figured. Hope it works out for you!

Android M LTE bands check?

Hi Guys,
I had hard times finding how to get the MRA58X T-Mobile version of Android M, and by the time I got it, I'm not sure I'm getting Band 12.
I tried checking it using *#*#33284## but it doesn't seems to work. Do you have any idea how can I check it?
Thanks
fabiansc said:
Do you have any idea how can I check it? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is an app for that.
and youll only get it if tmobile has it in your area. i always get band 4, as im right outside band 12 coverage.
fabiansc said:
Hi Guys,
I had hard times finding how to get the MRA58X T-Mobile version of Android M, and by the time I got it, I'm not sure I'm getting Band 12.
I tried checking it using *#*#33284## but it doesn't seems to work. Do you have any idea how can I check it?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
unlike what less informed posters may say there IS an app for that... https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.blueline.signalchecklite I'm able to check what band I'm on with this app by looking next to the "sprint" carrier name it will say what band it's on (B41/B25) except while on band 26 since it's the default band they had before doing the multiple band thing, tmo should work the same, alternatively in the same app the frequency of the LTE will appear next to the "LTE" network descriptor no matter what band it's on (mine says LTE 2500 since it's on band 41 which uses 2500MHZ)
fabiansc said:
Hi Guys,
I had hard times finding how to get the MRA58X T-Mobile version of Android M, and by the time I got it, I'm not sure I'm getting Band 12.
I tried checking it using *#*#33284## but it doesn't seems to work. Do you have any idea how can I check it?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I always use the SignalCheck app. There is a free version and a paid version.
Thank you guys for your responses.
I actually live in the Bay Area at Stanford so I guess I should have B12 according to the coverage map.
I don't see it though, on both apps I just see the B4. Could it be that the Band4 signal is stronger and that's why I don't see the band 12 as well?
I remember that when I received the phone it had like a T-Mobile app and I had it until I upgraded to Android M on my own, now when I downgraded and upgraded to MRA58X I couldn't see that app again. Could there be anything connection between the two or should it be enough if I just have that firmware installed?
you'll get the bands if they're in the area, apps don't mess with connection on that level... b4 is faster and has more room for tons of subscribers (1700 mhz), so if your phone can see it it still prefer it to b12 which is slower and narrower (700mhz) however it does penetrate buildings better and go further in the country so it's more reliable. they also have b2 (1900mhz) is faster than b4 and b12 but goes less far from the tower and can barely go through a wall... if your phone can see b2 it will prefer it to bands 4 and 12

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