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Just in case anybody cares.. thought I'd throw in my 2 cents after having it for a couple hours.
My last phone was the Tmobile galaxyS 4g . First as far as size.. normally I may have an issue with it but being so thin and light and the beauty of the screen makes up for the footprint. Biggest improvement for me would be internet cruising.. screen size/font size and general slick and quickness makes it a huge benefit over older phones for browsing. I typically use my tablet for light couch browsing.. but this phone may possibly change that. Flash video loading .. for example justin tv or twitch tv is insanely fast close to desktop speeds. Netflix works like a champ as well. Everything at this point has been pretty much instant.. this phone is bloody fast especially for being right out of the box.. will be cool to see how custom roms and kernels will do with it. Oh yeah and the gps is super quick to lock on.. 10 seconds or so versus an inconsistent 1 to 2 minutes with the original galaxy.
I would have to say the only downside of this for me is the network speeds.. 3g speed test in my area show if I'm lucky 1mb at best.. and 3-4mbps with 4g. My tmobile was a solid 5+mbps at the very least.. I traded tmobile's faster yet limited network for Sprint's slower yet steadier and consistent wider spread network.
Thanks for your initial impressions. I'm also making the switch from T-Mobile to Sprint and knew I'd have to compromise with network speed. T-Mobile's HSPA+ is pretty damn fast and Sprint has paused their WiMax rollout. I had an Evo before returning it and noticed that WiMax was tough to get indoors. I'm hoping Sprint will be making a major infrastructure transition over to LTE (it's in the plans) and by switching now I'll grandfather into a nice unlimited plan.
25% off monthly, unlimited data, nights @ 7pm, unlimited mobile to any mobile, google voice integration made the switch pretty easy for me.. but I don't expect data speeds to be that impressive
25 percent off? that'd be great.. how? Sprint guy told me to join a local credit union and I'd receive 10 percent off.. I thought that was great.
Also yeah it kinda sucks about Wimax.. are they going to transition completely away from it?
I think data speeds have been getting worse for Sprint as Boost and Virgin mobile get more popular .. that's alot of data usage
I currently have the droid bionic with a iPhone as my back up. Is it worth me switching to sprint to pick up the Epic touch? How's the battery life and reception with sprint compared to VZW? Right now with juice defender I get about a consistent 20 hrs actually using my phone.
Verizons network is better as far as data speeds go. I don't think it's worth the switch for just a device.
Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk
Depends on where you are and where you tend to travel to.
I get 2-2.5Mb 3G speeds with Sprint (250 - 300KBytes/s) at home and and work. I also get 1-1.5Mb 3G in the middle of the forest up in northern Wisconsin. All with a lowly Moment.
There is an active 4G tower where I work (according to a friend's Evo) despite it not being on the coverage map.
On the other hand, if you are stuck anywhere where Verizon has the only network, you will have crappy data speeds because Verizon refuses to allow anything more than 1x roaming to Sprint customers. This also applies if you are on the edge of a Sprint tower... Sprint tends to want to keep you connected to a Sprint signal, regardless of its strength. This can get frustrating at times.
If you do go with Sprint, the first app you should download and pay for is Roam Control.
That all depends on your needs...
Sprint's voice and data plans are much cheaper and 4g data is unlimited. 3g is limited to 5gb per month.
If you do need coverage in remote areas, check Sprint's coverage maps and see if there is signal where you need it.
http://coverage.sprint.com/IMPACT.jsp
If you dont use much data and want to spend more to get faster speeds while paying more for voice as well, Verizon is the way to go. I would only hang with Verizon if coverage is an issue.
I had Verizon for many years and switched to Sprint in 2006. I've never regretted making the change.
-logik- said:
That all depends on your needs...
Sprint's voice and data plans are much cheaper and 4g data is unlimited. 3g is limited to 5gb per month.
If you do need coverage in remote areas, check Sprint's coverage maps and see if there is signal where you need it.
http://coverage.sprint.com/IMPACT.jsp
If you dont use much data and want to spend more to get faster speeds while paying more for voice as well, Verizon is the way to go. I would only hang with Verizon if coverage is an issue.
I had Verizon for many years and switched to Sprint in 2006. I've never regretted making the change.
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Click to collapse
Sprint doesn't cap data at 5GB for mobile phones. Only on their usb cards.
eakrish said:
I currently have the droid bionic with a iPhone as my back up. Is it worth me switching to sprint to pick up the Epic touch? How's the battery life and reception with sprint compared to VZW? Right now with juice defender I get about a consistent 20 hrs actually using my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pick your provider FIRST, then pick your device.
As stated be sure to not just check a coverage map but to check with friends and coworkers who have Sprint and live/commute/work in your area.
I've traveled the country a little and I have never been without Sprint coverage except in two tiny holes in my home town...where not a single provider has anything but threshold levels of service out doors, indoors you get squat from any of them. These "holes", however, can be deal breakers if you happen to live and/or work in them. Coverage maps help, a little, but asking people (and looking at their signal meters) is far more precise.
As far as data speed is concerned it's a mixed bag. I came from a line of HTC devices where changing the PRL on-the-go was simple so I used the "00001.prl" a lot. This PRL, essentially, puts you on Verizon's towers, full speed 3G. I can honestly say that while Verizon's speeds tend to be far more consistent than Sprint's that even though I had the chance to get out of Sprint this month (for free) that instead of going to Big Red I used that to upgrade to the Epic Touch without hesitation...The data speeds can drag-ass in a highly congested area at times but unless it's lunch time in a 1-bar area I don't tend to dip below 500kbps and if it is later in the day (or evening) and/or in a sparsely populated area (or higher-income area, draw your own conclusions) I have seen as high as 2.7mbps...my friend lives in a low-population high income area and he may be the only Sprint subscriber for miles, lol, and they get 2.5~2.7mbps all day every day. There are also times/places where Sprint's 3G speed absolutely spanks Verizon's.
...as far as 4G goes it can be blazing fast but you probably won't ever get the signal indoors unless you are in a 4G saturated metropolitan environment. I hear lots of complaints about 4G speed but when I get connected it's always faster than my home internet (6mbps, the most you can get from residential ATT DSL around here), I have seen 15mbps too.
As far as price is concerned Sprint wins hands down especially if you consider the unlimited data and free roaming. Voice roaming is unlimited. There is a "soft" limit of 3G roaming at 300mb, but, that is a floating line. If you aren't usually roaming but happen to travel somewhere that you are forced to roam at worst they will call or send you a letter telling you that if you do it again your contract may be terminated. But as long as it doesn't happen at work or at home they are mostly forgiving...and if not? That's a free out on your contract and now you have a $500-$700 (retail) phone for trade-up or resale to go back to Verizon.
EDIT: Oh yeah, battery life. It's killer. Very very killer compared to a Moment, Hero, Evo 4G and Evo 3D this thing slaughters them all. It's hard to say since I have been using my phone more than breathing these past 2 days, but, considering that I'm very impressed....*very* impressed.
I agree with most everyone here take a look and see what you are using and what you need. make sure you have coverage at home and work and other places you visit regularly. if it works out for you make the switch. You can save alot of money with Sprint depending on your needs and they have a great selection of phones, I just the the GSII and it is awesome about 50% faster then the evo3d it just flies. but all of that power doesn't mean anything if you can't get signal.
I just switched from Verizon because I wanted the GS2 really bad.
I live in Seattle and Sprint has good coverage here so I'm pretty happy. (i've had Sprint in the past as well)
You can always switch and test drive Sprint for 14 days (or maybe it's 30) and if you don't like it, return to Verizon. No big deal.
PS: I had the Droid Bionic for a few days before switching to Sprint. Honestly, I think the GS2 is simply better in every way. That's just my opinion. Couldn't deal with the Pentile display and the camera was quite a disappointment.
If the service is good in the area then go for it. Of not I wouldn't change. If I could do it all over again I would have switched to vz before they started the data caps.
Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk
I switched about 6 years ago and never looked back. I had voice and data with them for over 10 years, back in the Bell Mobile days. They kicked me off of a BroadbandAccess for using too much data claiming I HAD to have violated the ToS (P2P, video streaming, web hosting) by using over 5GB in a month. Really, that is only 150MB a day and that goes very quickly with just web and e-mail if you use it daily. I work on the road a LOT so naturally, I went over this regularly. I had to explain what I do and that I did NOT violate the ToS, which said NOTHING about 5GB. I didn't do any of the activities it stated. This was back when everything was unlimited with no fine print. They didn't charge an ETF and asked if I wanted to reactivate the account. I declined and moved to Sprint and eventually took voice too. Have been very happy since.
I still consider Sprint to be the best value in wireless. It always seemed that VZW nickle and dime'd me to death. My bill fluctuated month to month by $20 with no changes in service and additional fees. Just "taxes". They charged for web order shipping, activation, and everything they could have.
I forgot to mention I have unlimited data
Bigjim1488 said:
If the service is good in the area then go for it. Of not I wouldn't change. If I could do it all over again I would have switched to vz before they started the data caps.
Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
I wouldn't have switched. As stated below I was on them with true unlimited before they started the caps. Then they terminated the account and offered to reactivate, probably to instate a cap on me. I suspect the same would have happened to you.
When I switched data to Sprint, I asked if they had unlimited data and bandwidth, and got multiple confirmations (with chat transcripts) that it was 100% unlimited. They introduced the 5GB limit a year or two later. And, since I haven't renewed the contract or accepted any new modems on that line, it today is still unlimited and I use 8-10GB (sometimes more) monthly. They've called and tried to get me to renew, which would activate 4G but put a cap on 3G... and I've declined. Until 4G is everywhere I need on the road, I can't do it.
Phones are still unlimited, so I wonder if a cheap phone to tether with an unlimited plan is worth it for tethering only?? Just a thought.
I don't need a phone to tether, just need a bad ass phone that looks great, feels super fast and has great battery life. I also want a great looking display and widgets that are good for social media.
daneurysm said:
Pick your provider FIRST, then pick your device.
As stated be sure to not just check a coverage map but to check with friends and coworkers who have Sprint and live/commute/work in your area.
I've traveled the country a little and I have never been without Sprint coverage except in two tiny holes in my home town...where not a single provider has anything but threshold levels of service out doors, indoors you get squat from any of them. These "holes", however, can be deal breakers if you happen to live and/or work in them. Coverage maps help, a little, but asking people (and looking at their signal meters) is far more precise.
As far as data speed is concerned it's a mixed bag. I came from a line of HTC devices where changing the PRL on-the-go was simple so I used the "00001.prl" a lot. This PRL, essentially, puts you on Verizon's towers, full speed 3G. I can honestly say that while Verizon's speeds tend to be far more consistent than Sprint's that even though I had the chance to get out of Sprint this month (for free) that instead of going to Big Red I used that to upgrade to the Epic Touch without hesitation...The data speeds can drag-ass in a highly congested area at times but unless it's lunch time in a 1-bar area I don't tend to dip below 500kbps and if it is later in the day (or evening) and/or in a sparsely populated area (or higher-income area, draw your own conclusions) I have seen as high as 2.7mbps...my friend lives in a low-population high income area and he may be the only Sprint subscriber for miles, lol, and they get 2.5~2.7mbps all day every day. There are also times/places where Sprint's 3G speed absolutely spanks Verizon's.
...as far as 4G goes it can be blazing fast but you probably won't ever get the signal indoors unless you are in a 4G saturated metropolitan environment. I hear lots of complaints about 4G speed but when I get connected it's always faster than my home internet (6mbps, the most you can get from residential ATT DSL around here), I have seen 15mbps too.
As far as price is concerned Sprint wins hands down especially if you consider the unlimited data and free roaming. Voice roaming is unlimited. There is a "soft" limit of 3G roaming at 300mb, but, that is a floating line. If you aren't usually roaming but happen to travel somewhere that you are forced to roam at worst they will call or send you a letter telling you that if you do it again your contract may be terminated. But as long as it doesn't happen at work or at home they are mostly forgiving...and if not? That's a free out on your contract and now you have a $500-$700 (retail) phone for trade-up or resale to go back to Verizon.
EDIT: Oh yeah, battery life. It's killer. Very very killer compared to a Moment, Hero, Evo 4G and Evo 3D this thing slaughters them all. It's hard to say since I have been using my phone more than breathing these past 2 days, but, considering that I'm very impressed....*very* impressed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sprint does NOT offer unlimited roaming.....I found this out while traveling to Florida in August. When I got done with explaining the Ambiguity in their false claims it has now since changed from unlimited roaming to unlimitting roaming on their network. They are such good corporate game players(liars).
Misleading people is what I don't agree with, but they are the cheapest game in town and suffice "if" you can get a signal. That said you get 800 minutes of roaming on their unlimited plan, and what ever your land line minutes are on their lower plans is the amount of roaming you will have before you have to PAY overages. If the overages happen too much they void your contract after making you aware that their is no unlimited. Now before any one starts debating this look at the advertisements and if that doesn't clue you in call and ask what I said.
They advertised unlimited roaming until I got done with them. They had a little fine print in the back of that agreement letting unsuspecting people that went over know that there was no unlimited roaming. Then they try to collect money for it. But, I let them know that ambiguity in contract law goes to the consumer, and that we can all void our contracts based on this lil tidbit of a lie, because many of us joined because of the roaming plan when we lose their coverage, and since it was a hoax the contract was null and void. They have now changed it to read unlimited roaming on their network only. How can you roam on the very network that you reside.
eakrish said:
I currently have the droid bionic with a iPhone as my back up. Is it worth me switching to sprint to pick up the Epic touch? How's the battery life and reception with sprint compared to VZW? Right now with juice defender I get about a consistent 20 hrs actually using my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
QWIKSTRIKE said:
Sprint does NOT offer unlimited roaming.....I found this out while traveling to Florida in August. When I got done with explaining the Ambiguity in their false claims it has now since changed from unlimited roaming to unlimitting roaming on their network. They are such good corporate game players(liars).
Misleading people is what I don't agree with, but they are the cheapest game in town and suffice "if" you can get a signal. That said you get 800 minutes of roaming on their unlimited plan, and what ever your land line minutes are on their lower plans is the amount of roaming you will have before you have to PAY overages. If the overages happen too much they void your contract after making you aware that their is no unlimited. Now before any one starts debating this look at the advertisements and if that doesn't clue you in call and ask what I said.
They advertised unlimited roaming until I got done with them. They had a little fine print in the back of that agreement letting unsuspecting people that went over know that there was no unlimited roaming. Then they try to collect money for it. But, I let them know that ambiguity in contract law goes to the consumer, and that we can all void our contracts based on this lil tidbit of a lie, because many of us joined because of the roaming plan when we lose their coverage, and since it was a hoax the contract was null and void. They have now changed it to read unlimited roaming on their network only. How can you roam on the very network that you reside.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Roaming on their network!? I'm trying really hard to find some way to make sense out of that... my legalese-to-english converter is usually pretty good but I just can't....wrap my....anything around that.
daneurysm said:
Pick your provider FIRST, then pick your device.
As stated be sure to not just check a coverage map but to check with friends and coworkers who have Sprint and live/commute/work in your area.
I've traveled the country a little and I have never been without Sprint coverage except in two tiny holes in my home town...where not a single provider has anything but threshold levels of service out doors, indoors you get squat from any of them. These "holes", however, can be deal breakers if you happen to live and/or work in them. Coverage maps help, a little, but asking people (and looking at their signal meters) is far more precise.
As far as data speed is concerned it's a mixed bag. I came from a line of HTC devices where changing the PRL on-the-go was simple so I used the "00001.prl" a lot. This PRL, essentially, puts you on Verizon's towers, full speed 3G. I can honestly say that while Verizon's speeds tend to be far more consistent than Sprint's that even though I had the chance to get out of Sprint this month (for free) that instead of going to Big Red I used that to upgrade to the Epic Touch without hesitation...The data speeds can drag-ass in a highly congested area at times but unless it's lunch time in a 1-bar area I don't tend to dip below 500kbps and if it is later in the day (or evening) and/or in a sparsely populated area (or higher-income area, draw your own conclusions) I have seen as high as 2.7mbps...my friend lives in a low-population high income area and he may be the only Sprint subscriber for miles, lol, and they get 2.5~2.7mbps all day every day. There are also times/places where Sprint's 3G speed absolutely spanks Verizon's.
...as far as 4G goes it can be blazing fast but you probably won't ever get the signal indoors unless you are in a 4G saturated metropolitan environment. I hear lots of complaints about 4G speed but when I get connected it's always faster than my home internet (6mbps, the most you can get from residential ATT DSL around here), I have seen 15mbps too.
As far as price is concerned Sprint wins hands down especially if you consider the unlimited data and free roaming. Voice roaming is unlimited. There is a "soft" limit of 3G roaming at 300mb, but, that is a floating line. If you aren't usually roaming but happen to travel somewhere that you are forced to roam at worst they will call or send you a letter telling you that if you do it again your contract may be terminated. But as long as it doesn't happen at work or at home they are mostly forgiving...and if not? That's a free out on your contract and now you have a $500-$700 (retail) phone for trade-up or resale to go back to Verizon.
EDIT: Oh yeah, battery life. It's killer. Very very killer compared to a Moment, Hero, Evo 4G and Evo 3D this thing slaughters them all. It's hard to say since I have been using my phone more than breathing these past 2 days, but, considering that I'm very impressed....*very* impressed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed. Carrier first. A phone shouldn't really be a reason to switch, although this phone is pretty awesome.
Sprint has been AWESOME in nearly all areas. They seem better than VZW for me in rural areas. I live in the middle of nowhere and have EXCELLENT EVDOrA signal.
---------- Post added at 03:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:35 PM ----------
eakrish said:
I don't need a phone to tether, just need a bad ass phone that looks great, feels super fast and has great battery life. I also want a great looking display and widgets that are good for social media.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Verizon has plenty of phones in that department.. and nearly any Android phone would fill those needs. If you want the best Android phone available right now, this is it.
Also you may want to keep an eye out for the sprint network meeting October 7th. They are going to talk about this new thing called "network vision".
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
I switched on Friday and I'm already starting to regret it - I haven't seen a 3G download speed higher than around 90kbps here. The phone is absolutely amazing on wifi and I love the device itself, but out around town it's pretty bad. I tried to download a 2MB or so app at a restaurant where I had a full 5 bars of signal last night and it was still trying to download 15+ minutes later because of how slow the actual download rate was. It's worse than a dial-up modem at time.
I wasn't even thinking about the unlimited data on VZW when I did it too - did I lose that now even if I do a winback?
TabsAZ said:
I switched on Friday and I'm already starting to regret it - I haven't seen a 3G download speed higher than around 90kbps here. The phone is absolutely amazing on wifi and I love the device itself, but out around town it's pretty bad. I tried to download a 2MB or so app at a restaurant where I had a full 5 bars of signal last night and it was still trying to download 15+ minutes later because of how slow the actual download rate was. It's worse than a dial-up modem at time.
I wasn't even thinking about the unlimited data on VZW when I did it too - did I lose that now even if I do a winback?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think they are doing something for the launch of the iPHONE. It was never this slow until recently. It had better go back to how it was or I will ditch their asses
TabsAZ said:
I switched on Friday and I'm already starting to regret it - I haven't seen a 3G download speed higher than around 90kbps here. The phone is absolutely amazing on wifi and I love the device itself, but out around town it's pretty bad. I tried to download a 2MB or so app at a restaurant where I had a full 5 bars of signal last night and it was still trying to download 15+ minutes later because of how slow the actual download rate was. It's worse than a dial-up modem at time.
I wasn't even thinking about the unlimited data on VZW when I did it too - did I lose that now even if I do a winback?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you investigate Sprint coverage before you switched? What is signal strength like? Are you metering 90 kbps with SpeedTest app, tethering, or a program like DU Meter?
I'm guessing your PRL is up to date..
I'd also make sure you don't have any background apps downloading stuff.
Also, are you saying 90 kilo-bytes per second or 90 kilo-bits per second. 90 kilo-bytes is almost 1Mbps, and is a low-side average for 3G. That could also vary by network congestion, etc.
90 kilo-bits sounds like 1xRTT and not EVDO.
I'd also check with other users, or try a mobile broadband card if you can.
You will lose unlimited from VZW if you go back, but like I posted earlier, I am surprised they didn't terminate you to get you on limited like they did me.
I bought my S2 yesterday and so far I love it. I came from an HTC Sensation and what a difference! Nevertheless, I must say I was expecting a little bit more out of the data connection. I'm constantly getting 3 -5 MB/s nothing close to what done reviewers were claiming (9-18+) on speedtest.net. I live in Houston and believe to be inside the 42mbps spectrum. Should I be concerned about this?
What kind of speeds is everyone getting?
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA App
There are a lot of factors that make up your realized data speeds. Being in a 42mbps coverage area means you have the potential to see the highest data speeds offered by T-Mobile. However the actual performance you experience is based on amount of back haul (fiber optic connectivity) coming into the cell site you are connected to and how much demand is on that tower at any given time. I work in a densely populated 42mbps coverage area in central Maryland where the tower I connect to at work also serves two neighboring Colleges. Ever since school went back in session I have been getting ~3mbps data speeds on average during the day. A week ago T-Mobile saw the spike in data demand on that site and brought more back haul into the cell site. Now I get ~15mbps regularly. Now as more people start to use data on that tower it will start to go down again and at some point in the future if the demand gets high enough and speeds slow down enough T-Mobile will presumably have to bring in more back haul to keep up with the demand.
What you can do is call T-Mobile Customer Care and let them know where you are experiencing the slower speeds and they can forward it over to the engineering team. If there is enough demand on that site they will add it to their list of sites to be back hauled.
Your issue is not your phone and most likely not even your coverage it is probably just a cell site that needs more pipe coming into it to serve the demand in that area.
Hope that helps.
Yes it does help, and thanks for clearing this up for me. Undoubtedly, this is the "elephant in the room" spec although the processor isn't bad either. Time to make some phone calls.
Appreciate it mate!
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA App
Honestly if you aren't seeing at least 6-8Mbps during peak usage times the cell site you are on does NOT have dual cell HSPA deployed on it.
I'm in SW Houston. Both my ex-Vibrant and my TMO Galaxy Tab 7 had between just sub-par and plain horrible (read: 4.5 Mbps ... 160kbps) performance. Same results both home and work (inner SW and inner NW respectively).
My SGS II gets about twice or three times as fast (8-10 MBPS, peaks at 14Mbps) at work (NW Houston) but still bad on SW.
Now, here is the kicker: Sometime last week when I got the SGSII I confirmed what I had suspected... The speed test servers we have here (comcast, other) either have very low bandwidth or are bogged down.
So, go and pick another server. I have tried a couple in KY, Lawrence KS and my favorite at Cincinnati OH (that one as given me up to 14Mbps at NW Houston), as well as some random others.
Some conclusions I have to come based on my experiences:
SGSII has a better radio than the SGS (the least they could do?)
Using your local/nearest speedtest.net server is not always optimal.
All Galaxyes (y?) I own are super sensitive when running a speed test. Its 3D orientation as well as where your hand* and even yourself are, make major differences. Try and see while running a test to see numbers change and find your perfect "position".
----------------
[*] Brings to memory -respectfully- Mr. Jobs' famous response: "You are holding it wrong."
I have had the T-Mo-SGS2 for a while using just Wi-Fi and VoIP. I just signed up for the 30$ a month plan. Here is what I am seeing @ my desk, indoors near Chicago. I was quite impressed, it was faster than what I was seeing with Verizon 4G on a MiFi I was borrowing in LA. Not sure about the upload, I have seen it as high as 4-5Mbps but it is pretty inconsistent. Down has been consistently 10-12Mbps +. Only had it for a little bit but I guess I am in a sweet spot.
23.23Mbps down & 2Mbps up was the fastest down speed after <10 speed tests
(was going to post a screenshot but I only have 6 posts after 8 years)
How easy or difficult has it been for you all to stay under the 5 gig cap? I have not yet exceeded it but I come within 100 megs almost every month by monitoring usage with 3g watchdog and just limiting myself. However, I do not feel like I am doing anything excessive. Its just web, youtube, music, and Pandora that is using most of the data. You know, the kinds of things one buys a $300 SGS II (with subsidy) for. I also tether to my Kindle to browse the web, for which I pay almost double my normal $20/month (I pay an extra $15/month just to have a built in feature re~enabled) without receiving any increase in my cap. All I'm doing is using the very features of my phone that tmobile advertises. Do you all have trouble staying under the cap? I feel like I have a ferrari that can do 200 mph (tmobiles 42 mbps network is fantastic in my area, delivering 10 to 30 mbps), but has a one gallon tank. Yes, I use wifi at home.
Finally, just how slow does the speed go if you do go over? Does the network connect to EDGE or stay on 4g and just slow down? How slow is it? I can't seem to get a straight answer. I know video and music wont work but can you still use the web like on EDGE or are we talking unusable GPRS like speed?
Thanks!
Unusable gprs speed. Even webpages time out.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
So after attempting to complete the Google Wallet fix for the galaxy s4 on T Mobile I ran into an issue where my 4G speeds and LTE speeds were much much lower than normal, somewhere in the range of 10 percent of normal. After attempting to remedy this every way possible short of flashing back to pure stock, including restoring modified rooted stock, I called customer care and was very surprised to find that the representative informed me that a mere 2mbit (2000kbps) classified as 4G LTE speeds to them.
Yeah you read that correctly; You will receive little to no support provided your connection is as fast as the average speed on Sprint's dilapidated and failing 3G network. I love T-Mobile for many reasons but this is just shocking. I did not spend 600 after taxes on a device capable of such insane speeds that it's faster than about 80 of American high speed Internet access, and 120 a month on a family plan with unlimited data, to be told that going backwards a decade in connection speed is "current generation".
I advise you call a rep today and confirm this, then email the ceo with me and let him know that this is not acceptable. Should he be serious about turning T-Mobile around, then he needs to cut the subscription to the typical carrier bs that helped me drive my friends away from sprint and att (crap service and speeds in our area) and into the welcoming service of T-Mobile.
Update: I had to ODIN pure stock to get my data speeds back.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
Cynagen said:
So after attempting to complete the Google Wallet fix for the galaxy s4 on T Mobile I ran into an issue where my 4G speeds and LTE speeds were much much lower than normal, somewhere in the range of 10 percent of normal. After attempting to remedy this every way possible short of flashing back to pure stock, including restoring modified rooted stock, I called customer care and was very surprised to find that the representative informed me that a mere 2mbit (2000kbps) classified as 4G LTE speeds to them.
Yeah you read that correctly; You will receive little to no support provided your connection is as fast as the average speed on Sprint's dilapidated and failing 3G network. I love T-Mobile for many reasons but this is just shocking. I did not spend 600 after taxes on a device capable of such insane speeds that it's faster than about 80 of American high speed Internet access, and 120 a month on a family plan with unlimited data, to be told that going backwards a decade in connection speed is "current generation".
I advise you call a rep today and confirm this, then email the ceo with me and let him know that this is not acceptable. Should he be serious about turning T-Mobile around, then he needs to cut the subscription to the typical carrier bs that helped me drive my friends away from sprint and att (crap service and speeds in our area) and into the welcoming service of T-Mobile.
Update: I had to ODIN pure stock to get my data speeds back.
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Were you able to get Google Wallet working again with Root after using Odin to get your speeds back to normal? I'm about to get a GS4 on Friday and ideally want to have Google Wallet, Root, Tethering and LTE working. Just wondering what might not work and will... Thanks!
It may just be my device or rom but I find that the connection justs seems to hangup for lack of a better word. I have a meter showing my data usage in kb/s and if I hit the go button for a webpage it seems to do nothing and not use any data.
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Daistaar said:
Were you able to get Google Wallet working again with Root after using Odin to get your speeds back to normal? I'm about to get a GS4 on Friday and ideally want to have Google Wallet, Root, Tethering and LTE working. Just wondering what might not work and will... Thanks!
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Take everything the rep says with a grain of salt, they often just say things because they aren't exactly sure. This, unfortunately causes confusion and people hearing different things. I get around 25-35 Mbps in my area and some people get even more.
Cynagen said:
So after attempting to complete the Google Wallet fix for the galaxy s4 on T Mobile I ran into an issue where my 4G speeds and LTE speeds were much much lower than normal, somewhere in the range of 10 percent of normal. After attempting to remedy this every way possible short of flashing back to pure stock, including restoring modified rooted stock, I called customer care and was very surprised to find that the representative informed me that a mere 2mbit (2000kbps) classified as 4G LTE speeds to them.
Yeah you read that correctly; You will receive little to no support provided your connection is as fast as the average speed on Sprint's dilapidated and failing 3G network. I love T-Mobile for many reasons but this is just shocking. I did not spend 600 after taxes on a device capable of such insane speeds that it's faster than about 80 of American high speed Internet access, and 120 a month on a family plan with unlimited data, to be told that going backwards a decade in connection speed is "current generation".
I advise you call a rep today and confirm this, then email the ceo with me and let him know that this is not acceptable. Should he be serious about turning T-Mobile around, then he needs to cut the subscription to the typical carrier bs that helped me drive my friends away from sprint and att (crap service and speeds in our area) and into the welcoming service of T-Mobile.
Update: I had to ODIN pure stock to get my data speeds back.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
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T-Mobile isn't responsible for any modifications you make to your own device. You made the mistake of implementing the fix, so deal with the consequences. It's really that simple. :good:
That's why they use the term "up to." Not every single person will receive 20+ mbps. It also depends on the amount of towers, the distance of those towers and how many people are connected to them.
Towle said:
That's why they use the term "up to." Not every single person will receive 20+ mbps. It also depends on the amount of towers, the distance of those towers and how many people are connected to them.
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I agree 100% with this.
Also wish to comment that T-Mobile is VERY helpful when it comes to getting me better speeds. I was getting approx 100 kB/s download at my house which gets 4G HSPA and i called and complained. And they said that for 4G those speeds are horrible and sent a technition out to see what the issue was. The following day THEY called me back and explained there was some technical issues with the tower in my area. I think it had to do with the routing of the packets. But anyhow, they were extremely helpful with everything and now my speeds are back to 250 kB/s average And when i am at school, i get LTE my speeds there are NEVER below 1 MB/sand on good days sky rocket to 2 MB/s (advertised speeds) and sometimes even faster. I have already hit 3 MB/s it really depends on what towle said. Users on the network, what they are doing what you are doing etc etc.
NYCHitman1 said:
T-Mobile isn't responsible for any modifications you make to your own device. You made the mistake of implementing the fix, so deal with the consequences. It's really that simple. :good:
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I understand that, but when I've gone back to a STOCK rom and it's still happening, something's not right.
Towle said:
That's why they use the term "up to." Not every single person will receive 20+ mbps. It also depends on the amount of towers, the distance of those towers and how many people are connected to them.
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I understand this entirely, however, I was less than a quarter mile from a tower sitting at home getting ~5000kbps, when normally I get 20000+. I also had slow speeds between 3 towers that I know carry T-Mo service and it never once got better until I ODIN flashed the stock ROM again.
elesbb said:
I agree 100% with this.
Also wish to comment that T-Mobile is VERY helpful when it comes to getting me better speeds. I was getting approx 100 kB/s download at my house which gets 4G HSPA and i called and complained. And they said that for 4G those speeds are horrible and sent a technition out to see what the issue was. The following day THEY called me back and explained there was some technical issues with the tower in my area. I think it had to do with the routing of the packets. But anyhow, they were extremely helpful with everything and now my speeds are back to 250 kB/s average And when i am at school, i get LTE my speeds there are NEVER below 1 MB/sand on good days sky rocket to 2 MB/s (advertised speeds) and sometimes even faster. I have already hit 3 MB/s it really depends on what towle said. Users on the network, what they are doing what you are doing etc etc.
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You're measuring in Bytes, I'm measuring in bits, there's 8 bits to every Byte, and when you get 250kB x 8 = 2000kbps or 2mbit, the speed the T-Mo rep quoted me as what they expect you to get. When you were getting 2MB/sec, you're getting 16000kbps, which is normal for HSPA+ and decent T-Mo LTE.
Either way, I got it fixed, however their low-end expectations are very disheartening. I just wanted to bring it to everyone's attention that if you're getting more than 2000kbps (250kB/sec), don't bother calling T-Mo, they won't help you in regards to speeds, even if you're parked right under a tower that practically nobody else is on.
For the record, I consider this "decent LTE"
I just got LTE in my area and in getting 10 Mbps, about a mile away I was getting 20 Mbps.
Not too bad for a city that didn't have LTE when the i9500 1st dropped. I ditched the int'l version for the M919 and have no regrets !
I am having data problems as well.
I was getting awesome LTE speeds after the roll out here in the Dallas area. Went on vacation to the US Virgin islands in late June and upon returning, my speeds plunged to as low as 200 Mkbps where I was getting awesome speeds as high as 15000 mbps (as per speedtest) before this.
I'm not one to go only by test numbers or what the graph says. But I am experiencing real world page lags, drops, pages hanging up, no service notices and regularly seeing the Edge symbol.
As the OP says, I am getting lots of help from Tmo, even exchanging the S4 for a new one. (had to fight to get a surprise 150. fee rescinded after they claimed my pristine unit had a broken screen, but that is a different post)
But the problem has persisted. They have reset my account several times and are in the process of resetting it now. Said wait 72 hours and it will be fixed. Said should be fixed by weds. I remain skeptical, they said that once already....so much so that I bought a Experia Z Sat. (jury is still out on that)
The girl at tech support suggested I wait on replacing it but I've simply had enough of this.
I am convinced that it is on Tmos end.
And I can definitely confirm the gist of this post. Everyone I have talked to, literally a dozen people, have had the balls to tell me that Tmo considers 2000 a good LTE speed. I call BS.
I reall like my S4 a lot and don't like that the Z has a nonremovable battery. My wish is to keep the S4.
I've not had a chance to do much with this X, so can't yet compare performance.
no complaints
Cynagen said:
So after attempting to complete the Google Wallet fix for the galaxy s4 on T Mobile I ran into an issue where my 4G speeds and LTE speeds were much much lower than normal, somewhere in the range of 10 percent of normal. After attempting to remedy this every way possible short of flashing back to pure stock, including restoring modified rooted stock, I called customer care and was very surprised to find that the representative informed me that a mere 2mbit (2000kbps) classified as 4G LTE speeds to them.
Yeah you read that correctly; You will receive little to no support provided your connection is as fast as the average speed on Sprint's dilapidated and failing 3G network. I love T-Mobile for many reasons but this is just shocking. I did not spend 600 after taxes on a device capable of such insane speeds that it's faster than about 80 of American high speed Internet access, and 120 a month on a family plan with unlimited data, to be told that going backwards a decade in connection speed is "current generation".
I advise you call a rep today and confirm this, then email the ceo with me and let him know that this is not acceptable. Should he be serious about turning T-Mobile around, then he needs to cut the subscription to the typical carrier bs that helped me drive my friends away from sprint and att (crap service and speeds in our area) and into the welcoming service of T-Mobile.
Update: I had to ODIN pure stock to get my data speeds back.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
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I have gotten speeds as high as 24.53 Mbps with google wallet installed. It blows my home internet away
You must be in love with Sprint to believe that 2 Mbps is sprints 3G. Sprints 4G Wimax barely...BARELY hits 3 Mbps. Sprint 3g is equal to T-Mobile 2G. I did a test in the Bay Area, California, and tmobile beat att and verizon, at 32 mbps and att was at 24 mbps while verizon only hit 8 mbps. All with 3 bars of lte.
I have been noticing that the internet speed has been dropping lately, and I believe its because of the purchasing of metro, along with them ALL wanting iPhone and lte. So people that have trouble paying their bills (ive seen the average customers, I know what they look like. Theres a few that are just like you and me, but most show off their lower class status with their huawei and zte phones.) So its Metros fault for selling out. I noticed that my internet on an att unlocked iphone 5 has been dropping and lagging the past few days, and switching to a gs4 shows that its the carrier, or my account. So, I doubt your phone is the problem.
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matistight said:
You must be in love with Sprint to believe that 2 Mbps is sprints 3G. Sprints 4G Wimax barely...BARELY hits 3 Mbps. Sprint 3g is equal to T-Mobile 2G. I did a test in the Bay Area, California, and tmobile beat att and verizon, at 32 mbps and att was at 24 mbps while verizon only hit 8 mbps. All with 3 bars of lte.
I have been noticing that the internet speed has been dropping lately, and I believe its because of the purchasing of metro, along with them ALL wanting iPhone and lte. So people that have trouble paying their bills (ive seen the average customers, I know what they look like. Theres a few that are just like you and me, but most show off their lower class status with their huawei and zte phones.) So its Metros fault for selling out. I noticed that my internet on an att unlocked iphone 5 has been dropping and lagging the past few days, and switching to a gs4 shows that its the carrier, or my account. So, I doubt your phone is the problem.
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I used to be one of those "lower class status" users, I had a stupid little Huawei Ascend on cricKet (MetroPCS partner), and while I rooted and modded it to hell, the service sucked. I migrated to AT&T and found they weren't much better, then moved back to my old carrier, T-Mo and have been happy overall. I know that after the purchase of MetroPCS, that cricKet would be the partner of T-Mo out here and all those phones (more people in the area that I -lived- in the same area as me (not out of town college kids in for the semester) have cricKet) would be bogging the network down, but it still performed well enough. In the thick of the cricKet area called Mesa, AZ, I still got over 20mbit on HSPA+ and LTE. I knew as soon as they announced all the high end phones prior to the purchase of MetroPCS for both they and cricKet that they wouldn't have the network to support it, then T-Mo purchase happened, I knew I would suffer in areas where everyone and their dog has these phones. I also know their model of pre-pay month to month was highly abused out here so I expect that bandwidth is gonna be extremely limited at times, but dropping from 24mbps normally to 2mbps is 1/12th, ridiculous. Anyways, it's back to normal, I just try to stay as far away from towers with large groups of idiots on them which is kind of hard to do around here.
EDIT: My dad has Sprint (I tried to steer him far far away from that BS but he wouldn't budge), he gets like 2-5mbps on his Note 2 which doesn't get WiMax AFAIK, only 3G, it's ready for the 4G/LTE but Sprint has lied for 4 years straight about LTE deployment out here, I'm just waiting for him to get fed up with unsent messages and dropped calls enough to give up and jump ship finally, however that won't be until he finishes his new 2-year contract like a fool.