Airave - Epic 4G Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hello all. I have seen posts within threads about the samsung airave. I am thinking of obtaining one because a lot of places I go to away from my home don't have good sprint coverage. I am just curious as to how many people have one and how much u paid for the unit ad how much u pay per month. I have seen posts where people got it for free (no monthly and no initial cost) and others that have to pay per month or only paid for the unit. Any insist and help would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.
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MedicStuder said:
Hello all. I have seen posts within threads about the samsung airave. I am thinking of obtaining one because a lot of places I go to away from my home don't have good sprint coverage. I am just curious as to how many people have one and how much u paid for the unit ad how much u pay per month. I have seen posts where people got it for free (no monthly and no initial cost) and others that have to pay per month or only paid for the unit. Any insist and help would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
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It'll only cover your home, and up to 5,000 feet (probably very poor signal outside the 1,000 foot radius). If you signal is poor inside your house, then you can get on for free.

Overstew said:
It'll only cover your home, and up to 5,000 feet (probably very poor signal outside the 1,000 foot radius). If you signal is poor inside your house, then you can get on for free.
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So I couldn't get one and take it with me to a family members house when I visit and plug into their internet and use it. I would have to leave it at home and only use it there?
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Yes, there is a gps chip in the airrave to ensure its not used to get service in an area other than your home.

063_XOBX said:
Yes, there is a gps chip in the airrave to ensure its not used to get service in an area other than your home.
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Really??? Wow!!! Did not know that. In my opionion that's kinda sh**y. But that's just my opionion. Thanks for the info everyone.
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I might be wrong but I thought the gps chip is to keep people from using it internationally.
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Jesse Buck said:
I might be wrong but I thought the gps chip is to keep people from using it internationally.
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This too. You have to also have the airave hooked up to a high internet packaged router/modem.

MedicStuder said:
Really??? Wow!!! Did not know that. In my opionion that's kinda sh**y. But that's just my opionion. Thanks for the info everyone.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
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063_XOBX said:
Yes, there is a gps chip in the airrave to ensure its not used to get service in an area other than your home.
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Click to collapse
That is not accurate. I have an Airave and I will try to answer all your questions.
On price, the hardware costs $99 retail. As you mention, there is lots of wiggle room there. I called retentions and told them I have no service out my house, which is true, and is why I need the Airave. You have to pay on your credit card upfront but they will give you a $99 statement credit, making it free. Then, to use the Airwave, the feature must be added to you account. It costs $5/month. The rep I spoke to would not wave this fee. I decided to pay it but you could try talking to a few people. They claim they cannot wave it because making calls using the Airave does not count against your minutes and so you have to pay something for the service. This is true, a tleast that it doesn't use your minutes. I never worry about minutes anyway, and I bet a nice rep could wave it, but it really is a good deal for $5/month to go from no bars to full bars in your house.
How does the Airwave work? It is a mini CDMA cell tower that uses VoIP as the backend to connect your call to the phone network. Specifically, the Airwave establishes a secure VPN to Sprint when it is booted, which can take a good few minutes. By default, any Sprint phone can connect to your Airave. You can choose to restrict to certain phone numbers to keep your neighbors from hogging your bandwidth. This is configured through Sprint, not locally on the device. Verizon phones cannot connect. I do not know about Boost or Virgin but I think I read they do not work either.
So why the GPS? While Sprint ideally only wants you using the Airave in your "home" location, the reality is that the GPS is required so that the Airave doesn't
run afoul of the FCC. Broadcasting in the CDMA spectrum must only be done in locations for which Sprint has a license, otherwise laws are broken, and ridiculous fines are theoretically involved. In other words, the GPS is there to keep you from using the Airave in other countries, but it should work most anywhere in the US. Otherwise, a specific "home address" is not being enforced. You can use it California today and Kansas tomorrow and it should work fine. If you do go oversees, I can think of a few cool hacks you could use, including spoofed GPS signals at the broadcast/antenna level using software radio, cutting the GPS output from the chip on the circuit board and replacing it with a microcontroller that just outs NMEA data, custom firmware hacks, the list goes on
The one hack I have done is replacing the stock antenna with a high gain one. I had to get a pigtail and cut the stock antenna "lock" ring with a dremel. I haven't measured the signal gain so I can't really say it was worth it, but it was fun.

emkman said:
That is not accurate. I have an Airave and I will try to answer all your questions.
On price, the hardware costs $99 retail. As you mention, there is lots of wiggle room there. I called retentions and told them I have no service out my house, which is true, and is why I need the Airave. You have to pay on your credit card upfront but they will give you a $99 statement credit, making it free. Then, to use the Airwave, the feature must be added to you account. It costs $5/month. The rep I spoke to would not wave this fee. I decided to pay it but you could try talking to a few people. They claim they cannot wave it because making calls using the Airave does not count against your minutes and so you have to pay something for the service. This is true, a tleast that it doesn't use your minutes. I never worry about minutes anyway, and I bet a nice rep could wave it, but it really is a good deal for $5/month to go from no bars to full bars in your house.
How does the Airwave work? It is a mini CDMA cell tower that uses VoIP as the backend to connect your call to the phone network. Specifically, the Airwave establishes a secure VPN to Sprint when it is booted, which can take a good few minutes. By default, any Sprint phone can connect to your Airave. You can choose to restrict to certain phone numbers to keep your neighbors from hogging your bandwidth. This is configured through Sprint, not locally on the device. Verizon phones cannot connect. I do not know about Boost or Virgin but I think I read they do not work either.
So why the GPS? While Sprint ideally only wants you using the Airave in your "home" location, the reality is that the GPS is required so that the Airave doesn't
run afoul of the FCC. Broadcasting in the CDMA spectrum must only be done in locations for which Sprint has a license, otherwise laws are broken, and ridiculous fines are theoretically involved. In other words, the GPS is there to keep you from using the Airave in other countries, but it should work most anywhere in the US. Otherwise, a specific "home address" is not being enforced. You can use it California today and Kansas tomorrow and it should work fine. If you do go oversees, I can think of a few cool hacks you could use, including spoofed GPS signals at the broadcast/antenna level using software radio, cutting the GPS output from the chip on the circuit board and replacing it with a microcontroller that just outs NMEA data, custom firmware hacks, the list goes on
The one hack I have done is replacing the stock antenna with a high gain one. I had to get a pigtail and cut the stock antenna "lock" ring with a dremel. I haven't measured the signal gain so I can't really say it was worth it, but it was fun.
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Thank you. Now that makes logical sense.
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Emkman- would an airrave be.of any benefit.if you have say half signal at your house? Would sprint give it to me for free it do they only do that if you have no signal? Also are the speeds the same connected to an airrave or different? Thanks
Sent From My Evo Killer!

@emkman
The one hack I have done is replacing the stock antenna with a high gain one. I had to get a pigtail and cut the stock antenna "lock" ring with a dremel. I haven't measured the signal gain so I can't really say it was worth it, but it was fun.
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but it was fun
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Click to collapse
/high five

I got my Airave for free, and it cost absolutely nothing per month on my bill, i got that waived too. The Airave is assigned a phone number on your Sprint bill, take it wherever you want to, you might have to call Sprint though when you relocate it to get it up and running again, I took mine to my fiancee's house, plugged it in the router, and was able to use it there with no issues.

I have an airave that Sprint gave me for free due to many dropped calls around my house. In my situation it does more harm than good, so it's been unplugged for the last 2 weeks or so. If you're on an airave call, it doesn't get handed off to the real cell tower network. So if you're on the phone and you want to leave your house, too bad. Likewise, if your on a call when you come home, it doesn't hand the active call off to your airave, so if I come inside and go downstairs to my office I drop the call anyway. Also, it only allows 5 or 6 sprint phones to connect to it - and not ones that you choose. So if you have some friends/neighbors with Sprint that come over and they fill up the airave before you do - too bad again. In many cases I had to power cycle the airave to get my own phone to connect again (which takes forever). Sprint also mandates that the Airave be the 1st device behind your cable modem. So if your modem is integrated with your router, WAP, etc... you'll have a problem. There are ways to get it to work behind your own device, but Sprint will always point the finger if you configure it as such (even when there is a known airave outage going on, gotta love scripted tech support). When you combine the fact that I have to quite often power cycle the airave and it sits between the Internet connection and my LAN - I had to kill internet to my house several times a week in order to use the thing.
On the plus side, you get blazing fast 3g speeds through the new generation airave (you damn well better, its your own broadband!) In the case of the smartphone, who cares - just fire up your Wifi. If you have very bad or no cell coverage whatsoever this is probably a very good solution. Personally I find Roam Control to be a better solution for my specific situation.

I am thinking about getting the Airave but this is what Sprint says:
Great news! You will be able to use the AIRAVE Access Point in the areas displayed below. However, there is no coverage for the AIRAVE at this location yet.
Now that is totally confusing! The map shows that I am covered. Guess I need to call sprint.

You actually can limit the users on the airave. I've done it just for that reason. Only my wife and I can use the airave. I believe you can set it by telephone #, look through the manual you will find it.
Edit: you can limit access on www.sprint.com you have to access your account.
insanity213 said:
I have an airave that Sprint gave me for free due to many dropped calls around my house. In my situation it does more harm than good, so it's been unplugged for the last 2 weeks or so. If you're on an airave call, it doesn't get handed off to the real cell tower network. So if you're on the phone and you want to leave your house, too bad. Likewise, if your on a call when you come home, it doesn't hand the active call off to your airave, so if I come inside and go downstairs to my office I drop the call anyway. Also, it only allows 5 or 6 sprint phones to connect to it - and not ones that you choose. So if you have some friends/neighbors with Sprint that come over and they fill up the airave before you do - too bad again. In many cases I had to power cycle the airave to get my own phone to connect again (which takes forever). Sprint also mandates that the Airave be the 1st device behind your cable modem. So if your modem is integrated with your router, WAP, etc... you'll have a problem. There are ways to get it to work behind your own device, but Sprint will always point the finger if you configure it as such (even when there is a known airave outage going on, gotta love scripted tech support). When you combine the fact that I have to quite often power cycle the airave and it sits between the Internet connection and my LAN - I had to kill internet to my house several times a week in order to use the thing.
On the plus side, you get blazing fast 3g speeds through the new generation airave (you damn well better, its your own broadband!) In the case of the smartphone, who cares - just fire up your Wifi. If you have very bad or no cell coverage whatsoever this is probably a very good solution. Personally I find Roam Control to be a better solution for my specific situation.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Airrave will go 8,000 square feet. I have the soc on my account. They can power it up that far. I was able to get it free, you can restrict phones in your account settings or keep it open.

Did not work out!
Recieved the Airave tried to make calls but 2 out of 10 would drop after starting the conversation.
Tried to get Sprint Tech to help with FIOS router but to no avail.
Call FIOS but as far as they were concerned I had a 'Great' singnal, which I did.
Just called Sprint to return, I'm in Pgh, PA area.
Hope this helps.
ps-Sprint should take the time to provide instructions to provide info to setup different routers, ie FIOS.

ive seen some misconceptions in this thread.
on sprint.com you can limit and restrict airave usage to only numbers on your account, or just numbers of your choosing.
also on sprint.com you can provision it to broadcast up to 8000 feet. mine works well 14 houses up the block. i dont know how many feet that is.
to who said it doesnt hand off to hard towers, you are correct. mine drops the call on the 15th house. also, when me and the old lady are fighting, and i hear her out on the porch talking **** to her friends, i can unplug it and it drops the call instantly. she hates me.
i have an airave 2 (capable of 3g). i was not charged anything for this. not for the equiptment or the service fee. i was told by a sprint rep that they didnt even have a way to charge for it and it was specifficaly a free item upon approval by retentions. im not sure why one would have to put it on their credit card, doesnt sprint bill to the account for small charges like the supposed 99 dollars?
last point. it is "airave" not airwave.

I heard that they stopped doing the free deal.....but not 100% on that....I got mine for free back about 6 months ago....I never paid a penny nor do I pay $5 a month for it.....but as I said I have heard they changed their policies.....so you may want to check it out first....

My dad got one around the first of january for free. Its not even at his house. My grandmas house burned down last year and he's rebuilding. He just told them he was spending most of his time there and she's down in a deep valley with no service, so they gave him a second one. (for free)
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Related

AIRAVE

I am sorry if the question has been mentioned before...how exactly do u get an airave..i keep hearing that it gives you full bars in your home..i get pretty low singals in my house and wondering what is the best way to get it...
kobby2k6 said:
I am sorry if the question has been mentioned before...how exactly do u get an airave..i keep hearing that it gives you full bars in your home..i get pretty low singals in my house and wondering what is the best way to get it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Call sprint
nikon120 said:
Call sprint
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I wish it was that simple. I have the Epic. I bought my mother the Moment (she wanted that one) and I have the Sprint USB wireless internet. Well, my mother gets NO reception at home so I called to get a free Airave which many posted they have done. They told me I had to add another line and pay upfront $200. Can someone post exactly how they got the Airave for free? I pay for 3 lines plus TEP on both phones and $30 For Hotspot. Its rediculous the my mother has to heave her house to make an effen call. Thanks for any feedback
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JohnCorleone said:
I wish it was that simple. I have the Epic. I bought my mother the Moment (she wanted that one) and I have the Sprint USB wireless internet. Well, my mother gets NO reception at home so I called to get a free Airave which many posted they have done. They told me I had to add another line and pay upfront $200. Can someone post exactly how they got the Airave for free? I pay for 3 lines plus TEP on both phones and $30 For Hotspot. Its rediculous the my mother has to heave her house to make an effen call. Thanks for any feedback
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Get to the retentions dept, they'll give you one in a heartbeat for free.
so retention center is the way to go??
I just told them I am paying too much for my plan to have no service in my house. You need to have enough credit to get an additional line. It costs like a dollar and something for extra taxes a month but that is it. If you don't have good enough credit they will charge you a deposit or something. If you don't get it right away ask for a supervisor.
Maybe my experience will help you out. I called about the Airave and was told the same as you, that I would have to buy it for $200. I called back and talked to someone in technical assistance who then passed me on to retentions. They offered me the free Airave instantly. It was very easy to get once I explained the problem to them.
I have had some definite issues though with the airave. It constantly drops calls while I am using it. It does do a good job at boosting signal though. If you don't have a higher download speed through your internet provider though I believe it wont work as well and this may be the reason that i am getting dropped calls.
Anyways, try retentions and see what they can do for you.
Call 877-775-4886 and tell them you get no signal in your house on any of your phones, not just the one. This is a direct number too, no waiting or menus involved.
Thanks for all of the feedback guys. Its definately appreciated!
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JohnCorleone said:
Thanks for all of the feedback guys. Its definately appreciated!
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It literally was a 10 min call for me. Just complained about having a poor signal at home, didn't need a supervisor or retentions. Just be nice with the reps, they'll get you there.
Sent from the Epic Dark Horse via Tapatalk
I just stated "nicely" (that is KEY!) that I hardly get any bars, ie 0 to 1 bars in my house. Not only that, but I have a small home and it is a rambler only 2 floors - my office is downstairs, my wifes office is upstairs - when I go upstairs I loss signal especially when I walk to the other end of thouse in the upper level.
So I actually have two Airaves - one upper level on one side of the house where my wifes office is and one in the lower level on the other side of the house. I also have two identical wireless N routers so each of us can have great wifi speeds.
BTW, I didn't pay for either of my Airaves or monthly fees - you can even look at Sprints coverage map where I live and it looks like I should get good signal - but if you zoom in, I live in a fricken doughnut hole - sheez, just my luck!
Also each of my Airaves are boosted to max signal - default is for a 5,000 sq ft house - mine are boosted to cover an 8,000 sq ft house.
My cell signal and wifi truly sucks in my home.

Poor service at home? Free AIRWAVE

Call this #: 866 556 7310
A Sprint representative will pick up directly- no machines.
*edit* If the above number doesn't work out for you, try: 855-790-4878 (thanks coldcaffeine)
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=25069171&postcount=145
Tell them you've been having problems getting a signal where you live and have to walk around outside to use it.
They sent me a free AIRAVE. I mentioned this to my coworker a few days later and they sent him a free one too
[edit 12-27-11]
Was curious about this myself:
page 6 of Airave FAQs @ nextel.com:
29. Can other Sprint customers use my Sprint AIRAVE?
All Sprint customers with a Sprint phone can use the AIRAVE and benefit from the
enhanced coverage as long as you have not restricted the AIRAVE. However, the
“visiting” customer must have the Unlimited AIRAVE Voice calling Plan on their
own account in order to take advantage of unlimited domestic calling.
30. Can I limit access to my Sprint AIRAVE?
Yes, you can limit access to your AIRAVE device by creating a list of approved
Sprint phone numbers (up to 50 phone numbers). You can create your list by
calling Sprint Customer Service at (866) 556-731
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[edit 08-18-12]
See following post about how to configure who can access your AIRWAVE (and also to set the zip code for where it will be used):
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=29087683&postcount=194
[edit 08-18-12]
Some uses report problems with certain websites/ internet connectivity when using the AIRWAVE behind a router.
See following posts for reports/ solutions:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=30233927&postcount=206
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=30234036&postcount=207
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=30236434&postcount=208
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=30236557&postcount=209
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=30403429&postcount=214
This seems a little sketchy... Are you sure they're not charging you a monthly fee?
Master Thief-117 said:
This seems a little sketchy... Are you sure they're not charging you a monthly fee?
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I'm pretty sure they're not :]
Although they still own it, so once I am no longer using it/ cancel my account they're going to take it back.
My primary device shows:
`Your agreement with us, which started on xx/xx/xx, will be completed on xx/xx/xx.`
The AIRAVE shows:
`You have no agreement or your agreement with us is complete.`
You don't get charged a "service fee" but it is considered a "line" so you are charged the $1.49 "administrative surcharge". Also you are charged electricity every month to fix a Sprint issue.
This is NOT really a big deal, but I estimate you are paying around $30-$36/yr to fix a Sprint problem.
I did this.
I got my new service and part of my house didn't have service and would roam, I was really upset because I really liked the phone and wanted to stay on Sprint.
They offered the Airave and sent it out, service is great. I don't mind paying the 1.49 or whatever if that's true.
Got one after I picked up the evo3d and couldn't get a signal in my house. Now I don't need one I turned it off. For some reason it dosent work half the time.
Well, I hadn't seen this before 10 minutes ago.
I called the direct # in the OP, guy picks up the phone on the first ring.
5 MINUTES later, and I have a new, completely free Airrave being shipped to my house.
Thanks, OP... I prolly never would have even messed with the whole thing if you hadn't made the process so simple.
**** like this is why I love XDA.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
I got one awhile ago, no fees or anything. Im sure it uses a fraction of the electricity a light bulb uses. I got one primarily due to basement coverage, but every carrier has poor coverage in my basement.
Its worth it, its tougher to make a deal with sprint when you're in an excellent coverage zone like I am. They told me they don't guarantee coverage indoors bit then they sent me a free airave.
Also your account has to have enough available credit and be in good standing, even though its "free"
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I live in a three family home and there are four or five phones in my building in Brooklyn.
As of three days ago we allbjave been having problems with sprint service in a 3 block radius. I called sprint and worked with one of the reps and after a few phone calls she is sending this device to us. It's funny because we have been living on this block for 5 years with sprint and never had a probably and supposedly they don't know what the problem is.
bbedward said:
I got one awhile ago, no fees or anything. Im sure it uses a fraction of the electricity a light bulb uses. I got one primarily due to basement coverage, but every carrier has poor coverage in my basement.
Its worth it, its tougher to make a deal with sprint when you're in an excellent coverage zone like I am. They told me they don't guarantee coverage indoors bit then they sent me a free airave.
Also your account has to have enough available credit and be in good standing, even though its "free"
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in an excellent coverage zone, but Sprint doesn't get service in my basement... T mobile got full bars anywhere in my home.
I've had one for about a year and the 3G version (current offering) has been invaluable to me. My data speeds are 1800-2300 kbps deep within what I'm convinced is a bunker of a basement, texting and voice calls are great, and of course there is a noticeable improvement in battery life as a result.
Downsides include unreliable operation (unit goes offline at times requiring a reboot), incompatibility with texting certain short codes like 1311, and power consumption. It gets pretty warm...
Not worth the regular monthly fee and purchase price; definitely worth when offered as a concession.
I've had two Sprint Airaves, one for Illinois (Verizon Land) and one in South Texas (Sprint Land). I got the one in Texas to try and fix LOS. It only helped my giving a much stronger signal.
If you go this route, get the Airave that has the external GPS Antenna. Airave works best in GPS antenna is in or close to window.
My first Airave didn't have external GPS Antenne, but I was lucky and a window was close to DSL wireless router.
Hope this helps someone.
I live in a rural area where there are no sprint towers anywhere close to me. They sent me one and I have been using it for two years now strong signal no problems, free of charge.
Yea, I can voucher that they'll send one out for free to you if you needed one. It helped in my house so that I'm not always at one bar or searching for signal. Sprint's speed and coverage around my area still sucks in general.
I actually have had both of these devices. The first one was the Samsung Airave that worked decently except it only did 1xrtt data..which blew chunks. I ended up getting the new Sprint Airvana due to the fact the Airave was having issues with my HTC Evo 4G. The Airvana supports 3G data speeds over your broadband connection. Coverage on these devices are actually pretty good. If you call into Sprint Airave department they can acutally change the coverage output on the Airvana so that it covers up to I believe 5000sqft. I actually did this when I lived in a downstair apartment and the phone would disconnect right outside my door...after the update the airvana would go across the street. I would really recommend you get one of these if you have coverage issues...call the department, tell them your issue they will send you one. Also make sure they don't charge you a month fee for it. It should show you getting charged and then credited on your bill. I have a new one coming out next week (lost cables) and hopefully my Epic 4G Touch works well with it.
Thank you so much for this! I just did this and they're sending me one now, too. [=
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this might be a noob question but does airwave support 3g or 4g signal?
and i just called and the rep said he need approval from the airwave tech and once he got a approval from the tech and the supervisor which will takes about 2business day then he will send me one.
I can confirm this. I went today to get a new phone and complained about the signal in my town. The manager gave me an AirRave for free. Its a loan since I need to return it if I bail out. I did not have to pay anything for it and they are not going to charge any monthly fee. I even got the activation free!
This is all true, I'm a tech for Sprint, you just have to pay the monthly regulatory fees and taxes(mine is like $1.16). If you end your services you do have to return it, or you will be charged. It is a awesome device. Keep in mind that the airave team is open Monday through Friday 9-9 central time.
Merry Christmas °<
Sent from my PG86100 using xda premium
Yep. called last night and told the guy I was Googling ways to improve my sprint signal and came across some info with the number and decided to call. He asked what was happening and I told him I was getting the roaming indicator alot while at home. Told him I was really happy with my service when I was out running around it just kinda sucked at home. He said OK and set up and order for the air wave. Should have it before too long. Just asked if I had DSL or broadband. Thats it. Took like five minutes total. Thanks a ton for the info.

Couple of questions for those of you with an Airrave.

So I'm moving to a new apartment in a couple of weeks, and the area is notorious for having crappy sprint coverage. Being as that I'm a 3rd party retailer for sprint, my rep set me up with a free airrave, no questions asked.
MY question is, does the Airrave have some sort of password protection so that i won't have 5 neighbors constantly using my Airrave? I know it works through my internet, so I don't want to have a bunch of people slowing down my internet.
Also, I was reading about an issue with text messaging with the airrave. Does anyone know if they fixed the problem yet?
Slash8915 said:
So I'm moving to a new apartment in a couple of weeks, and the area is notorious for having crappy sprint coverage. Being as that I'm a 3rd party retailer for sprint, my rep set me up with a free airrave, no questions asked.
MY question is, does the Airrave have some sort of password protection so that i won't have 5 neighbors constantly using my Airrave? I know it works through my internet, so I don't want to have a bunch of people slowing down my internet.
Also, I was reading about an issue with text messaging with the airrave. Does anyone know if they fixed the problem yet?
Click to expand...
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You can lock your airave to just your number. And I have no problems at all when using the airave, texting, calling, or data
Slash8915 said:
MY question is, does the Airrave have some sort of password protection so that i won't have 5 neighbors constantly using my Airrave? I know it works through my internet, so I don't want to have a bunch of people slowing down my internet.
Also, I was reading about an issue with text messaging with the airrave. Does anyone know if they fixed the problem yet?
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The Airrave has made a tremendous difference for my coverage at home-- I live 35 flights in the sky here in Chicago and prior to the Airrave there were some places in my condo unit that I got full signal strength and other places within the unit that I got no signal; with the Airrave I am full strength and no longer need to worry about missed calls/texts due to my phone being in one of the dead zones in my unit.
I don't have password protection enabled on the Airrave (my Wi-Fi & broadband is PW protected) and haven't noticed a negative impact on my web speeds due to the potential of other's accessing Airrave. I would be happy to see if PW protection makes a difference if you'd like me to test it out.
As far as the sending of texts issue-- yes on RARE occasions w/the E4GT on wi-fi (which is connected to Airrave) I will get a Failed message when trying to send a text (surprisingly NO issues receiving texts, I even get texts at the same time I am getting Failed to Send notifications). My solutions, both which have worked consistently: 1) Disconnect the E4GT from wi-fi and try to resend 2) If that doesn't work reboot and try to resend.
Hope that helps
There is a way to lock it down so only you could use it.. and possibly any other lines on your acct. However when i asked sprint about it they either didnt want to hassle with it or it really doesnt matter because they didnt want me to lockit down.. either way it has a certain range which can be extended.. i think 800ft then can be extendended to a certain amt of feet. Rarely does it have issues and the only thing they make you do is reset everything. The speeds are still 3g speeds but where you have no service it works perfectly.. i use the antennae and have it close to the ceiling (i have two floors) and of course practically in thw window which is needed to maintain a good gps lock.. other than that, cant complain about something your using free of charge. There is also the time i wanted the gs2.. and what would ya know, my airrave was elig for a full upgrade ;-). So got the sgs2, did esn chng with my line, switched airrave back, sold the og epic.. win/win situation!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
Slash8915 said:
So I'm moving to a new apartment in a couple of weeks, and the area is notorious for having crappy sprint coverage. Being as that I'm a 3rd party retailer for sprint, my rep set me up with a free airrave, no questions asked.
MY question is, does the Airrave have some sort of password protection so that i won't have 5 neighbors constantly using my Airrave? I know it works through my internet, so I don't want to have a bunch of people slowing down my internet.
Also, I was reading about an issue with text messaging with the airrave. Does anyone know if they fixed the problem yet?
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Once you get it...it'll be an active line on your account.. click and open it online and put in numbers you only want to have access.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
The moment you get your airwave up and running marks the end of texting as you know it. It is really that bad.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
revamper said:
The moment you get your airwave up and running marks the end of texting as you know it. It is really that bad.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
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Lol probably a sprint issue in your area..no problems here at all.. once upon a time there was until i got my airrave replaced.. no problems since and ive been on it over a year
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
revamper said:
The moment you get your airwave up and running marks the end of texting as you know it. It is really that bad.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
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Had mine 6 months and haven't had any problems sending or receiving any texts
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
I got my airrave in late November and hated it.
The unit caused my phone to constantly think that it was in Tulsa, OK (when in fact I live just north of Oklahoma City, OK) - which was pretty annoying as trying to get the weather or GPS navigation was pretty useless until I got out of the airrave's range.
Then I did some testing and found out that in fact I was missing a rare amount of incoming text messages - like perhaps 1 in 20 or so.
I hate missing any message so that combined with the GPS issue was enough to make me discontinue using the airrave. Fortunately by then some of the better modems for our device had been released which made it to where I didn't need the airrave just to get reliable service at home anymore. I still occasionally miss a call because it takes so long for the phone to receive notification of the call, but I'd rather miss a call than a text message, as voicemail ALWAYS goes through, whereas a missed text message just goes off into the ether.
I came to this thread hoping to see if the problems had been solved yet, but I figured I should share my issues as well. Also I tried a ton of stuff to get the airrave to work properly even with some really knowledgable sprint techs and nothing worked - there was supposed to be an update out "sometime 2012" though so not sure if that's been pushed yet or not.
Edit: Oh also, I wanted to mention that yes you can lock down the unit to only respond to your phone number(s) pretty easily. Thing has a HUGE range as well so it has that going for it. Oh and it's not a big deal for me but do keep in mind your bill will go up by $1.50 a month for that stupid "administration fee" - but you can work it to get a free upgrade out of the line sometimes so you can make it worth it for you.
Hope this helps!
The only time I needed it was when I had the evo3d, I had no signal in my house. Since I had it I've had the texting bug, it been unplugged in my kitchen for the past 3 months.
I have had the Airvana with no issues with the Evo and then Evo3D. Got my E4TG and had texting issues for the first day, then I was fine for a few months. Starting last Thursday, I can no longer receive texts from Sprint or any carrier, I can send fine. I reset the Airave at least 15 times and still the same issue. Sprint says that's just the way the Airavana model works and sometimes it has text problems. They can't explain why it worked fine for months and then just stopped. I am going to hook up my original Samsung Airave that only did 1x data and see if it still happens. I use wifi at home so no need for the Airvana 3G data, especially if I am going to have more texting issues.
I've had my airave since October 2011 and it's made a HUGE difference in service. I live in an area that the Sprint coverage map says has great voice and full 3G, but in actuality I can barely get 1 bar anywhere in my neighborhood, data is deplorable and, often I was roaming in my own apartment. Because of this I had to argue through 3 CS reps before they just gave me one without trying to charge the $120. I do not have it locked down to my number, and i have not noticed any issues with my internet speed - Netflix works flawlessly on my laptop and through my bluray. I have noticed that my phone will sometimes not switch over once in range and I have to toggle airplane mode to straighten it out. Frustrating, but rare.
I would like to know how one of the the previous posters was able to finagle an upgrade out of the Airave line though.
luckychef28 said:
I've had my airave since October 2011 and it's made a HUGE difference in service. I live in an area that the Sprint coverage map says has great voice and full 3G, but in actuality I can barely get 1 bar anywhere in my neighborhood, data is deplorable and, often I was roaming in my own apartment. Because of this I had to argue through 3 CS reps before they just gave me one without trying to charge the $120. I do not have it locked down to my number, and i have not noticed any issues with my internet speed - Netflix works flawlessly on my laptop and through my bluray. I have noticed that my phone will sometimes not switch over once in range and I have to toggle airplane mode to straighten it out. Frustrating, but rare.
I would like to know how one of the the previous posters was able to finagle an upgrade out of the Airave line though.
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+1
my airrave is awesome .. i had to ***** to like 3 people to get it free with no monthly payment but i finally got it . but when i leave my house i dont get the reception .. even like in my driveway so unless your in an apartment building with thin walls i dont think the reception would even reach anyone elses place
I love mine. You finally get some decent 3g speeds. I don't think you have to worry about locking it though. The range isn't that far and you have to also take into account that not everyone has a sprint phone. Plus it doesn't effect my computer speeds at home. We can have Netflix going on two computers and i can talk on the phone with no hiccups.
Sent from Team KC's founding member HTC Evo 4G LTE.
Thanks for the replies, everyone. Where I currently live, I have decent coverage, but I wanted to have it before I moved. I REALLY hope I don't have any text issues, because that would really irritate me. As far as admin fees, I doubt I'll be charged anything. Being as that I'm a store manager, every fee so far has been waived. It also meant I was able to get my E4GT for $50 the day it came out.
I have the texting issue... they have reset the air rave continuously, replaced it twice... and it still base the same problem. Doesn't matter if I am connected to wifi or not.
Slash8915 said:
Thanks for the replies, everyone. Where I currently live, I have decent coverage, but I wanted to have it before I moved. I REALLY hope I don't have any text issues, because that would really irritate me. As far as admin fees, I doubt I'll be charged anything. Being as that I'm a store manager, every fee so far has been waived. It also meant I was able to get my E4GT for $50 the day it came out.
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The Epic 4G Touch forum, as well as the XDA site is rife with complaints about the Airave. I had it and I had the problem with handing off calls once I left its range but my kids had tons of problems with text messages queuing up. Others swear by it.
Just remember: You have to return it or they will charge you for the device. Not hard but when I returned mine they tried to charge me. I think it was $250. I kept my tracking number tho so no problem... Except for one more 30 minute to Sprint.
Do not, I repeat do not lock the airrave down so only you can use it.
This results in anyone else trying to use a sprint phone within the airraves coverage not able to get service at all.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
R1ptide said:
Do not, I repeat do not lock the airrave down so only you can use it.
This results in anyone else trying to use a sprint phone within the airraves coverage not able to get service at all.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
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And yet if you don't lock it down you allow anybody with Sprint service to use your internet... unlimited... unknowingly... Yeah, the last thing I want is for my wacked out neighbor downloading kiddie porn through my internet connection.

How to Leave Sprint

My phone is basically unusable and I am either always roaming or without service (I drop calls constantly and call quality makes the calls indecipherable). I am jumping on to a ATT prepaid service. The question is:
To leave sprint do I:
A) Call, cancel and pay the ETF ($320)
B) Switch PRLs and get kicked off for high data/voice roaming (all while using my GNex)
C) Call, explain I will start purposely data/voice roaming in excess and see if they let me out of my contract?
Normally I am stickler for agreements and upholding my end, but Sprint service has been so bad my E4GT GS2 is basically unusable.
Loki047 said:
My phone is basically unusable and I am either always roaming or without service (I drop calls constantly and call quality makes the calls indecipherable). I am jumping on to a ATT prepaid service. The question is:
To leave sprint do I:
A) Call, cancel and pay the ETF ($320)
B) Switch PRLs and get kicked off for high data/voice roaming (all while using my GNex)
C) Call, explain I will start purposely data/voice roaming in excess and see if they let me out of my contract?
Normally I am stickler for agreements and upholding my end, but Sprint service has been so bad my E4GT GS2 is basically unusable.
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If you decide to pay the ETF, before you do, invest in a cheap non-smart phone and switch to it. This way the ETF you will pay will be decreased.
I know a few people who have been kicked for extensive roaming. 50% still had to pay the ETF because under your contract, sprint is not obligated to waive it.
Surprised to read this as your location shows not even 10 miles away from me - and I have occasional issues but I've found it's usually a tower-specific issue. (At least by being with Sprint you can call and address those - I had to go through my MVNO which took a lot longer.)
I know people are going to possibly disagree but I've found the coverage map to be fairly accurate with the exception of being in a building. All bets are off there, I can't seem to get a decent signal in most buildings, even if I get a full signal + 4G by walking outside! But the signal in Lake County doesn't seem that bad - about the same I get in Northern Cook & DuPage.
First off, have you tried a profile/PRL update to make sure that it's updated? Possibly updating your device? (Maybe there is a hw issue with your E4GT?)
If you're dead set on leaving, consider one thing please. Being aggressive or threatening to a front line employee is probably not going to get you far in my experience. If you know someone that can help you out, that may be another way. I've found that in 90% of the time being upfront and honest with the other party will get the most amicable results.
Doing #2 will at least take 1 month to probably flag so you're out that much. Maybe start there to propose a reduced ETF and negotiate if you find someone willing to do so?
garwynn said:
Surprised to read this as your location shows not even 10 miles away from me - and I have occasional issues but I've found it's usually a tower-specific issue. (At least by being with Sprint you can call and address those - I had to go through my MVNO which took a lot longer.)
I know people are going to possibly disagree but I've found the coverage map to be fairly accurate with the exception of being in a building. All bets are off there, I can't seem to get a decent signal in most buildings, even if I get a full signal + 4G by walking outside! But the signal in Lake County doesn't seem that bad - about the same I get in Northern Cook & DuPage.
First off, have you tried a profile/PRL update to make sure that it's updated? Possibly updating your device? (Maybe there is a hw issue with your E4GT?)
If you're dead set on leaving, consider one thing please. Being aggressive or threatening to a front line employee is probably not going to get you far in my experience. If you know someone that can help you out, that may be another way. I've found that in 90% of the time being upfront and honest with the other party will get the most amicable results.
Doing #2 will at least take 1 month to probably flag so you're out that much. Maybe start there to propose a reduced ETF and negotiate if you find someone willing to do so?
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Well I travel all over chicagoland on a daily basis (my office is in Elmhurst, i have customers downtown, out west and south). I have issues everywhere. I assumed that it was my phone and swapped it out, I am having the same issues. I have updated the PRLs/Profiles routinely. I have called sprint customer service multiple times, been elevated and even have a direct line for a singe person to deal with. Sprint has not been able to correct the issue, they have office discounted rates and credits, which is great, but what I need is working voice and data service. I have no problem paying a premium $150+/month for premium service, right now I am receiving no service. I offered to swap to a different type of phone and pay whatever difference. The only phone available was the photon or an echo. I asked about the nexus and was told I would have to pay full retail. I tried, Sprint didn't.
No reason for me to pay.suffer for Sprint's growing pains.
JSverbal said:
If you decide to pay the ETF, before you do, invest in a cheap non-smart phone and switch to it. This way the ETF you will pay will be decreased.
I know a few people who have been kicked for extensive roaming. 50% still had to pay the ETF because under your contract, sprint is not obligated to waive it.
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I tried this, it didn't work. Maybe if you've had the phone on that line, and only that line, for long enough it'll work for you but here's what happened to me.
I bought my E4GT on a secondary line but wanted it for my main line. So once I had the phone I swapped it for my main and put some cheap Sanyo flip phone on the number the E4GT was originally bought on.
When I called Sprint to cancel that line I was told they would do it without the ETF but that I had to send the E4GT phone back, which I didn't want to do and I mentioned that the line I wanted to cancel had a flip phone on it but, of course, she has all my records right in front of her and called my bluff.
Garwynn made a good suggestion, and one I ended up using myself. Tell them what's going on (again) and ask them very humbly "what can you do for me?" that's what I did and ended up with an acceptable resolution to my issue.
Just pay your ETF and get out the honest way. Sell your phone (I bought one for $315 recently that will probably cover your ETF depending on when your contract started) and then move on to whomever you choose to go with, just remember all carriers have their issues.
Loki047 said:
Well I travel all over chicagoland on a daily basis (my office is in Elmhurst, i have customers downtown, out west and south). I have issues everywhere. I assumed that it was my phone and swapped it out, I am having the same issues. I have updated the PRLs/Profiles routinely. I have called sprint customer service multiple times, been elevated and even have a direct line for a singe person to deal with. Sprint has not been able to correct the issue, they have office discounted rates and credits, which is great, but what I need is working voice and data service. I have no problem paying a premium $150+/month for premium service, right now I am receiving no service. I offered to swap to a different type of phone and pay whatever difference. The only phone available was the photon or an echo. I asked about the nexus and was told I would have to pay full retail. I tried, Sprint didn't.
No reason for me to pay.suffer for Sprint's growing pains.
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Since I use the wi-fi at work and home I just recently started playing with the 4G and realized it can't lock while I'm driving. I'm wondering if this is part of what you might be noticing. I know there was also a tower problem in Wood Dale because that's the one I reported and it's been corrected now. I could try my device over in some of those trouble spots if near O'Hare and give you something to compare against if it would help.
And out of curiosity, are you going to one of the local offices to talk to someone? There's a corp store on Lake St. in Addison (next to Giordano's) where they've been usually quite happy to talk about things even though I'm on an MVNO. I've found that either that one or at another across from Meijer in Arlington Heights (in the old Arby's) the staff were much easier to work with than other locations.
About your last comment - unfortunately they're going to say that you signed the contract and they're under no obligation to let you out of it. Getting aggressive with them - as I did one time before - actually got every possible charge that they could hit me with done. Just explain it as you have here and a reasonable manager would probably try to help work out a solution to avoid burning the bridge. (Doesn't do their business good either to end on bad terms.)
Wish you the best of luck in getting this resolved.
Esoteric68 said:
I tried this, it didn't work. Maybe if you've had the phone on that line, and only that line, for long enough it'll work for you but here's what happened to me.
I bought my E4GT on a secondary line but wanted it for my main line. So once I had the phone I swapped it for my main and put some cheap Sanyo flip phone on the number the E4GT was originally bought on.
When I called Sprint to cancel that line I was told they would do it without the ETF but that I had to send the E4GT phone back, which I didn't want to do and I mentioned that the line I wanted to cancel had a flip phone on it but, of course, she has all my records right in front of her and called my bluff.
Garwynn made a good suggestion, and one I ended up using myself. Tell them what's going on (again) and ask them very humbly "what can you do for me?" that's what I did and ended up with an acceptable resolution to my issue.
Just pay your ETF and get out the honest way. Sell your phone (I bought one for $315 recently that will probably cover your ETF depending on when your contract started) and then move on to whomever you choose to go with, just remember all carriers have their issues.
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Worked for me. I had an Evo and ran into financial issues so I sold my Evo, activated a flip phone to reduce my monthly bill. A couple weeks later I canceled service and paid reduced(not smart phone) ETF. I agree that the honest road is always best taken.
garwynn said:
Since I use the wi-fi at work and home I just recently started playing with the 4G and realized it can't lock while I'm driving. I'm wondering if this is part of what you might be noticing. I know there was also a tower problem in Wood Dale because that's the one I reported and it's been corrected now. I could try my device over in some of those trouble spots if near O'Hare and give you something to compare against if it would help.
And out of curiosity, are you going to one of the local offices to talk to someone? There's a corp store on Lake St. in Addison (next to Giordano's) where they've been usually quite happy to talk about things even though I'm on an MVNO. I've found that either that one or at another across from Meijer in Arlington Heights (in the old Arby's) the staff were much easier to work with than other locations.
About your last comment - unfortunately they're going to say that you signed the contract and they're under no obligation to let you out of it. Getting aggressive with them - as I did one time before - actually got every possible charge that they could hit me with done. Just explain it as you have here and a reasonable manager would probably try to help work out a solution to avoid burning the bridge. (Doesn't do their business good either to end on bad terms.)
Wish you the best of luck in getting this resolved.
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Im not.mad or aggressive. Just frustrated. haha i dont even bother turning on 4g its just a joke.
I have trouble spots in multiple locations ohare is definitly one of them, i can barely keep a call going on 294
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
PRLs to the rescue. I really have no interest in holding up my end of the contract when sprint never held up theirs.
Option b for sure
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
JsVerbal said:
If you decide to pay the ETF, before you do, invest in a cheap non-smart phone and switch to it. This way the ETF you will pay will be decreased.
I know a few people who have been kicked for extensive roaming. 50% still had to pay the ETF because under your contract, sprint is not obligated to waive it.
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Click to collapse
lol you do not have to pay an etf if they boot you, your friends got ripped off.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
I would try the Motorola Photon and see if there is a noticeable difference in service. That phone has the best radios (imo) and you should see your signal increase.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
kawaski47 said:
I would try the Motorola Photon and see if there is a noticeable difference in service. That phone has the best radios (imo) and you should see your signal increase.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
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I would, but I need my phone basically everyday I already have my GSM Nexus and the T-mobile prepaid service is significantly better than Sprint (my 3g speeds - in my house with basically 0 to 1 bars are 4-5 times faster than sprint), but the great thing is I can make phone calls again and receive them!
Between a refurbished photon and a new GSM Nexus, ill take the nexus. The investment ($450 for the phone, $320 ETF) will pay for its self in 8 months, then the extra money can go towards buying the next Nexus.

AirRave is on its way!

All I did was call customer service, complained that my 4G speed was worse than my 3G speed (it really is most of the time!) and after a few transfers and no arguments, my AirRave should arrive this Wednesday.
So those who have tried to get one of these boxes before, you might try the 4G vs 3G argument like I did and I had no problems getting one!
AiRave does NOTHING for 4G-WiMax. Period. Besides, if you have broadband at home, the best connection speed you're going to get is limited to your broadband speed, so you might as well just use Wi-Fi.
It is mainly for call quality but will raise your 3G speeds but will do nothing for your 4G
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Lol, I just sent mine back. Just about the only thing worse than dealing with crappy Sprint service is using the Airave. GPS would cut out overnight most of the time (yes I had the antenna next to the window, whereas my phone would pick up a GPS signal even away from the windows), and when it worked, the voice quality was terrible with constant stuttering. I hope you have better luck with your device than I did.
sputnik767 said:
Lol, I just sent mine back. Just about the only thing worse than dealing with crappy Sprint service is using the Airave. GPS would cut out overnight most of the time (yes I had the antenna next to the window, whereas my phone would pick up a GPS signal even away from the windows), and when it worked, the voice quality was terrible with constant stuttering. I hope you have better luck with your device than I did.
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I had your luck with the airave when I had to use one a few years back, although it helped a little (I had no signal despite being a half mile from a tower) with calls it was more a pain in the butt to deal with, especially whenever the power went out and I had to get it up and running again.
And I must've done something wrong because no matter what I said I couldn't get them to send one for free lol I even had to drive down the road from my house to call them and request one, told the guy "I'm sitting in the parking lot of the mall down the road because I can't call you from home", he was like "wow that's bad". Uh, duh.
Also it seems like I paid $4.99 a month (on top of the $99 I paid for the device) and that only covered two lines on my five line account, I would've had to pay more to have it cover the other numbers. I hope they've improved the service since then.
iSaint said:
It is mainly for call quality but will raise your 3G speeds but will do nothing for your 4G
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
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Yes, I know that it has nothing to do with 4G, I just like sticking it to Sprint and getting free stuff from them!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
I got mine for free and it worked like a cgarm minus a few sms issues but didnt last long for me.. even used it to upgrade to the sgs2 last year when it came out.. signed a 2yr contract on it.. however dont have wifi right now so they sent a letter to return it or be charged for it.. so i called and they cancelled the line and sent for a return kit all not costing anything.. now im eligible for a third line and since itd be new can get a new phone at discounted price and we needed a third line anyways win win situation and then some!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
Esoteric68 said:
I had your luck with the airave when I had to use one a few years back, although it helped a little (I had no signal despite being a half mile from a tower) with calls it was more a pain in the butt to deal with, especially whenever the power went out and I had to get it up and running again.
And I must've done something wrong because no matter what I said I couldn't get them to send one for free lol I even had to drive down the road from my house to call them and request one, told the guy "I'm sitting in the parking lot of the mall down the road because I can't call you from home", he was like "wow that's bad". Uh, duh.
Also it seems like I paid $4.99 a month (on top of the $99 I paid for the device) and that only covered two lines on my five line account, I would've had to pay more to have it cover the other numbers. I hope they've improved the service since then.
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I got mine for free. Everything was an they even said so over the phone. I've had no problems. **** don't even have the GPS antenna near a window. The only bad thing I've experienced is if i'm talking in my house an go to leave. I get disconnected. Better then having to stand next to a window or move around the house.
Esoteric68 said:
I had your luck with the airave when I had to use one a few years back, although it helped a little (I had no signal despite being a half mile from a tower) with calls it was more a pain in the butt to deal with, especially whenever the power went out and I had to get it up and running again.
And I must've done something wrong because no matter what I said I couldn't get them to send one for free lol I even had to drive down the road from my house to call them and request one, told the guy "I'm sitting in the parking lot of the mall down the road because I can't call you from home", he was like "wow that's bad". Uh, duh.
Also it seems like I paid $4.99 a month (on top of the $99 I paid for the device) and that only covered two lines on my five line account, I would've had to pay more to have it cover the other numbers. I hope they've improved the service since then.
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Click to collapse
wow, youve been getting ripped, i had the old samsung airave when i called to complain about the service at my home, they fedexed me one for free overnight and charged me $4.99 every month but with a $4.99 credit every month as long as i kept that service on my plan. i noticed when torrenting i had ****ty ****ty call quality, the original samsung device also did not help evdo speeds with my then smartphone, it was a PITA so i unplugged it about a year ago and its been sitting in my closet until about a month ago when i decided to call sprint again, i told them it hadnt been powering up and if i could exchange it, they sent me out a new model called the airvana and i shipped the old one back, it was a bit of a hassle to get the new one activated but i guess that was because i just called *2 from my sprint line, i let it sit a few hours as they said and it never worked, so i call the 866 number on the instructions like i should have in the first place and they got it all set up and it was active within the 1st hour of placing that call...since then i've upgraded my time warner cable to verizon fios 25/25, call quality is great and it was horrible before. also my 3g at home sucked ass, it felt like the worst 1x signal so i always have to use wifi, however with the new airvana i tested the 3g speeds it puts out and its not bad, much better than the ****ty cell towers 3g to my house, i prefer the high speed of wifi when i'm home though so i'll continue to use 802.11g/n when i can, i guess the 3g is good for when sprint guests come over so i wont have to give them my wpa2 password
t0mmyr said:
wow, youve been getting ripped, i had the old samsung airave when i called to complain about the service at my home, they fedexed me one for free overnight and charged me $4.99 every month but with a $4.99 credit every month as long as i kept that service on my plan. i noticed when torrenting i had ****ty ****ty call quality, the original samsung device also did not help evdo speeds with my then smartphone, it was a PITA so i unplugged it about a year ago and its been sitting in my closet until about a month ago when i decided to call sprint again, i told them it hadnt been powering up and if i could exchange it, they sent me out a new model called the airvana and i shipped the old one back, it was a bit of a hassle to get the new one activated but i guess that was because i just called *2 from my sprint line, i let it sit a few hours as they said and it never worked, so i call the 866 number on the instructions like i should have in the first place and they got it all set up and it was active within the 1st hour of placing that call...since then i've upgraded my time warner cable to verizon fios 25/25, call quality is great and it was horrible before. also my 3g at home sucked ass, it felt like the worst 1x signal so i always have to use wifi, however with the new airvana i tested the 3g speeds it puts out and its not bad, much better than the ****ty cell towers 3g to my house, i prefer the high speed of wifi when i'm home though so i'll continue to use 802.11g/n when i can, i guess the 3g is good for when sprint guests come over so i wont have to give them my wpa2 password
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lol I only used it for a year and disconnected the thing over two years ago. I now live in a good signal area and recently donated my device to Sprint, along with an old, old blackberry for recycling.
FYI, the AirRave is NOT completely free. Since it counts as another line, you pay additional fees. In my case it was ~$3 per month. It was a nightmare to get them to refund it.
Mattheyu said:
FYI, the AirRave is NOT completely free. Since it counts as another line, you pay additional fees. In my case it was ~$3 per month. It was a nightmare to get them to refund it.
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Actually, if they give it to you as a service promotion, it's completely free as is the unit itself.
However, the unit is on LOAN, they want it back if/when you terminate sprint service or they will charge you for it.
Mine is 100% free, no charge, nada. So, you can get it free.
Compusmurf said:
Actually, if they give it to you as a service promotion, it's completely free as is the unit itself.
However, the unit is on LOAN, they want it back if/when you terminate sprint service or they will charge you for it. I was told it was automatic because on their end, it is an additional phone line.
Mine is 100% free, no charge, nada. So, you can get it free.
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I guarantee that if you look at the breakdown of Sprint Surcharges at the end of your bill, it increased when they added the AirRave. I was told it was automatic since on their end, it appears as a second line, which means the fees for a second line.
On mine, it was:
Administrative fee - $1.50 for one line to $3.00 with the AirRave)
Regulatory charge - $0.40 to $0.80
State Cost Recovery Fee - $0.30 - $0.60
Slightly higher taxes
Also on the bill: "Sprint Surcharges are rates we choose to collect from you..."
That means Sprint is NOT required to collect those by law or regulation. Since they are, it is a fee/charge.
I am in an area with horrible reception so bad that without the air rave my phone would be useless that thing helped me a LOT I went from always roaming to always full bars! Only problem is it seems to make my wifi a bit slower but nothing enough to complain about.
Mattheyu said:
I guarantee that if you look at the breakdown of Sprint Surcharges at the end of your bill, it increased when they added the AirRave. I was told it was automatic since on their end, it appears as a second line, which means the fees for a second line.
On mine, it was:
Administrative fee - $1.50 for one line to $3.00 with the AirRave)
Regulatory charge - $0.40 to $0.80
State Cost Recovery Fee - $0.30 - $0.60
Slightly higher taxes
Also on the bill: "Sprint Surcharges are rates we choose to collect from you..."
That means Sprint is NOT required to collect those by law or regulation. Since they are, it is a fee/charge.
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****, you're right, for the past 2 years I've been paying about $2-$3 in taxes for this 3rd line of crap they were supposed to be providing at no charge
heres mine:
Federal-Univ Serv Assess Non-LD ............................................................. $1.89
California State-PUC User Fee .................................................................... $0.08
Administrative Charge ................................................................................ $4.50
Regulatory Charge ...................................................................................... $1.20
$7.67
The thing that blows me away is that you have to spend hundreds of dollars on a carrier like sprint, then on top of it have to go through this kinda of BS to even get a signal in your home so you can receive calls etc....something wrong with this picture.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
Duce HD2 said:
The thing that blows me away is that you have to spend hundreds of dollars on a carrier like sprint, then on top of it have to go through this kinda of BS to even get a signal in your home so you can receive calls etc....something wrong with this picture.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
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You do realize there are other carriers besides sprint right?
My general cell phone rule of thumb, never get a carrier just because of a phone.
It burns when I Tapatalk...
Love my airvana. Had the issue where the phone would think it failed to send a text and it would send like twenty but they fixed it a few months back.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
jklong03 said:
Yes, I know that it has nothing to do with 4G, I just like sticking it to Sprint and getting free stuff from them!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
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It's nothing special. Sprint gives away free Airaves like they can't get rid of them fast enough. Just tell them your signal has degraded and they'll usually hook you up with no questions asked. Problem is, a lot of us have them for legit reasons. My signal here was great for years and years, then one day it dropped like a rock, was lucky to get more than 1 bar. It's been that way ever since.

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