[Q] Mobile Devices that support 850mhz UMTS and 1800mhz LTE? - General Questions and Answers

Hi,
I am a telstra customer from Australia. Telstra is rolling out its first handset on their new LTE network next week, the HTC Velocity (aka HTC Holiday or Vivid, i think).
The Telstra LTE network currently only runs on the 1800mhz frequency. Telstras 3G network runs on 850mhz australia wide and 2100 i think in built-up areas.
Short of ending my contract early or buying a Velocity outright (which you cant for another few months, according to telstra), I began a search for a mobile device that supports both 3G 850mhz UMTS and 4G 1800mhz LTE. This is a very hard combo to find.
Has anyone else had any luck finding a decent/flagship android phone from HTC or Samsung that supports both these frequencies? I do not care about 2G quadband compatability.
So far all I have come up with is the Samsung Galaxy S 2 LTE, but i cannot confirm this in fact has 850mhz UMTS.

Related

3G Frequencies

Is there a way to change the 3G Frequencies on the G1 to support AT&T 3G network?
Nope, thats a hardware issue.
I thought it was possibly a software issue. If not, is there a way to change out the chip or the incompatable part to make it compatible?
card13 said:
I thought it was possibly a software issue. If not, is there a way to change out the chip or the incompatable part to make it compatible?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope...not going to work for many reasons.
been answered plenty plenty of times.
From what I can figure a hardware change may not be required with the correct radio but we dont know the right radio without the right hardware. lol I know that makes no sense but it makes as much sense as anyone can make of it thus far. When its possible I assure you I will be among the first to do it. Although Im not ready to try installing a new radio without first acquiring a backup phone but if I do Im gonna give it a try and maybe have better luck than the last guy to try.
What about a mini-usb attachment that can receive atnt signals?
I am sure with that and the right software manipulation it could work.
sjbayer3 said:
What about a mini-usb attachment that can receive atnt signals?
I am sure with that and the right software manipulation it could work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While it sounds great in theory I doubt anyone would put forth the resources for such a limited market.
You would be best off getting android to work on existing AT&T hardware.
in order to do it we would need hardware which would plug in the bottom and software to tell the phone to use the signal from the attachment.
while there wouldnt be millions in the market i guarantee there are hundreds.
if anyone wants to think about it i dont mind making 50 of em and selling for cost. i have some hook ups in the engineering field i work in
ok, my question is... Europe 3g is diff than tmob usa 3g, but is tmob europe the same 3g setup as US? and if europe 3g is same as tmob europe 3g, is att US 3g same as europe 3g. so if tmob europe is same as europe 3g then a europe g1 should work on att US 3g. am i coming thru clear or am i jumping all over?
Shaggy
Shagman68 said:
ok, my question is... Europe 3g is diff than tmob usa 3g, but is tmob europe the same 3g setup as US? and if europe 3g is same as tmob europe 3g, is att US 3g same as europe 3g. so if tmob europe is same as europe 3g then a europe g1 should work on att US 3g. am i coming thru clear or am i jumping all over?
Shaggy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The American G1 has 3G support for HSDPA 1700 MHz & 2100 MHz, both bands I believe are used by T-Mobile. In Europe I believe they use only 2100 MHz band for 3G.
AT&T on the other hand uses 850 and 1900 MHz HSDPA
The phone has the capability for 2G at 850 and 1900 MHz, so technically it can be used on their network, just not at 3G speeds.
Although technically it's possible to design a Phase-Locked Loop to operate at a variable frequency and to be tuned with jumpers or something, it's probably cheaper for them or they might be subsidized to make phones so that they are exclusive for one network in the US.
To me the ideal is more about standardizing the protocols and the frequencies used for all companies, and having all bands available for traffic. But at least in the short-term that's not really good for business and so probably won't happen for a while.
This is all based entirely on a limited amount of research and my opinion, take it for what it's worth.
Europe uses 1900/2100 in a pair (1900 is the uplink, 2100 is the downlink). (source)
Most phones produced these days are tri or quad band and can work (almost) anywhere.. I'm surprised the G1 isn't.
Shagman68 said:
ok, my question is... Europe 3g is diff than tmob usa 3g, but is tmob europe the same 3g setup as US? and if europe 3g is same as tmob europe 3g, is att US 3g same as europe 3g. so if tmob europe is same as europe 3g then a europe g1 should work on att US 3g. am i coming thru clear or am i jumping all over?
Shaggy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TonyHoyle said:
Europe uses 1900/2100 in a pair (1900 is the uplink, 2100 is the downlink). (source)
Most phones produced these days are tri or quad band and can work (almost) anywhere.. I'm surprised the G1 isn't.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
*sigh*.
Folks, you need to learn about UMTS bands before complaining about that the G1 or any other phone can't do this or that when it certainly can.
The G1 is a 3g worldphone. It works on the US 1700 AWS network (UMTS Band IV) and works on the world's 2100 network (UMTS Band I). ATT uses the 1900 Band (UMTS Band II).
Apparently the common names for these networks is being confused with the actual operating frequencies because they don't upload and download on the same frequencies. The 1900 band is not the same as the 2100 band, even though the 2100 band (UMTS Band I) uploads in the 1900mhz frequency and downloads at the 2100mhz frequency range. The 1900 Band (UMTS Band II) uploads on the upper half of the 1800mhz and downloads on the 1900mhz frequency range. UMTS Band II uploads on the frequencies that UMTS Band I downloads.
These bands separate.
TMO 3g band is different from ATT 3g band which is also different from EU 3g band.
The 1700 band (UMTS band IV) is actually made up of 2 frequency ranges like the other bands I and II are: 1700mhz and 2100mhz. In fact, the 2100mhz download range for UMTS Band IV is within the same frequencies used for the Band I download range, theoretically making it cheaper/easier for manufacturers who make Band I phones to "support" UMTS Band IV phone production.
Most phones produced today are NOT "tri or quad-band" 3g phones. In fact, I have yet to find a quad-band 3g phone. If quad-band 3g phones were made, they would be very likely to support the T-Mobile 3g network, because it's the 4th largest UMTS band type (behind Band I, II, and V). I would be very shocked to find a phone which was 2100/1900/900/850 instead of 2100/1900/1700/850.
And the G1 is a worldphone. It works just fine on UMTS in Europe. It is a band I and band IV device.
read these 2 links:
http://www.htc.com/www/product/g1/specification.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMTS_frequency_bands#UMTS-FDD
So to clarify, when you see a list of support bands, this is what you should interpret from those advertised bands:
2100 Band = UMTS Band I (The entire world outside of North America)
1900 Band = UMTS Band II (The Americas, ATT)
1700 Band = UMTS Band IV (The Americas, TMO)
900 Band = UMTS Band VIII (Australia)
850 Band = UMTS Band V (The Americas, ATT)
Outside of North America, the 2100 band is almost universally deployed, even where the 850,900,1700 or 1900 band is deployed.

[Q] Importing phones

Hey guys I just wanted to get some info on what phone will be possible for importing.
I live in Australia and am contemplating to a smartphone from US and A (why do they get the best phones the earliest?). But the issue is that I am still in my contract (Optus/Virgin). I have little idea about the different GSM radios, but still unsure.
(I was planning on importing the EPIC 4G but, like the rest of the world, we don't use CDMA). Now I am contemplating to import the Motorola Atrix 4G (I am pretty certain this wont be made available here).
Would AT&T's services work in Optus (with voice and data/voice only/no support)?
How could I unlock the device if I were to purchase it? (carrier only/manufacturer only?)
I hope this thread can be useful for other members.
AT&T devices work in 850 frequencies for 3G networks, check with your local provider, as for unlock you can find them all around the WWW from 8 to 30USD depending device.
Thanks orb.
Here's the situation, I'm in metro-area on Optus connection.
1. Telstra (this company is equivalent to AT&T in USA)
3G UMTS850 (Australia wide 3G network, aka NextG)
3G UMTS2100 (3GIS Network shared with 3)
2G GSM900
2G GSM1800
2. Optus (this company is equivalent to Verizon in USA)
3G UMTS2100
3G UMTS900 (rural network)
2G GSM900
2G GSM1800
3. Vodafone Hutchison Australia (This company is equivalent to T-mobile in USA)
3G UMTS2100
3G UMTS900 (rural network)
3G UMTS850 (limited metro network)
2G GSM900
2G GSM1800
Would the Motorola Atrix 4G be compatible with my plan?
If not, what would it be compatible on?
You may chack the device bands, from what I found:
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 3G Network HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
Reference
If you ask me what would I choose my answer is an HTC branded device, just check what model you want and get the band specs.
This is a great data base site.
Let us know what you got!
Here is a bit of a reference for you. It has phones for your frequencies, 4 inch screen or bigger, Android and a 5MP or more camera.
You can look at any phone with the "Phone Finder" button.
Ian

GSM bands and the "g"s

I'm looking to upgrade from my HTC Fuze (AT&T) to the Desire Z, but my main question is, even though it is a quad band phone, will it be able to utilize 3G technology?
With all these changes to frequency bands and technology, I'm at the point where I am not sure what the numbers and letters mean. The specs for the A7272 say it supports GSM: 850/900/1800/1900 and HSDPA 900/2100.
other variants of the Desire Z (A7275) says, GSM: 850/900/1800/1700 and UMTS: Band IV 1700/2100
I'm confused as to whether I will be able to use the phone as a 3G phone for both the US (specifically AT&T) and Thailand.
You can get the Bell (Canada) Desire Z, that includes support for at&t 3G
Sounds interesting. My main worry is using it in Thailand as well, but since I go back to Thailand once a year, I can live with edge i guess.

[Q] HTC Sensation 4G in Germany with UMTS/HSPA *solved*

Hey guys,
I currently own a HTC HD2 in the EU version, without branding.
On my recent holiday in the U.S. I've used the AT & T provider. So unfortunately I had to use only the GSM frequency band as used in the U.S. for UMTS / HSPA other frequencies. UMTS supports my phone with the 900/2100MHz frequencies.
I want to buy me now the HTC Sensation. On the german website of HTC is the following:
HSPA / WCDMA:
Europe / Asia-Pacific RegionT-Mobile U.S.: 900/AWS/2100 MHz
Quad-band GSM / GPRS / EDGE:
850/900/1800/1900 MHz
As in Germany for UMTS / HSPA is the frequency band is used to 2100MHz, which therefore nothing to prevent. Furthermore, although there is "T-Mobile U.S.". Does that mean that I can use with this device in the U.S. with T-Mobile as the provider UMTS / HSPA? Finally, use the AWS frequency band, so a combination of 1700 and 2100 MHz.
That would be great if I could use it in Germany and the U.S. UMTS / HSPA.
Furthermore, there is also the HTC 4G Sensation, but apparently only from T-Mobile U.S.. The internet is not exactly find them if this would also work with UMTS / HSPA in Germany.
GSM Arena writes for the HTC Sensation following:
http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_sensation-3875.php
3G Network: HSDPA 900 / 2100
When HTC Sensation 4G:
http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_sensation_4g-3922.php
3G Network: HSDPA 900/1700/2100
HSDPA 850/1900 - For Bell (Canada)
Here it looks as if the Sensation (without 4G) only work in Germany or the EU. The Sensation 4G whereas in Germany and the USA (with T-Mobile U.S.), because they use the 1700MHz.
In this forum someone writes from Greece, that the HTC 4G Sensation in his work with 3G (UMTS / HSPA). Greece belongs to the EU and uses the 2100MHz frequency band.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=14253980&postcount=13
As you can see, it is declared not entirely clear and I would now like to cover before buying, to avoid a bad buy.
Best regards
@@RON
Sorry for may incorrect sentence constrcution. For some I used the google translator
Nobody any suggestions?
I am quite interested in this question,too~
There are some news
I asked HTC (Germany), but they could not answer directly. They let my question escalate. This means, that they want to test it. So I had to wait for some weeks ...
Some days ago, I recieved an answer
They wrote the following:
We have heard back from escalation team and was confirmed to us that all the frequencies have been given are supported by the device. So you should be fine.
This was not an complete answer, but the person with who I had written could just say this, what they tell him.
But I´m not sure, if that means, that the:
- HTC Sensation works fine with UMTS in Germany (of course) AND T-Mobile US (in USA)
or that the:
- HTC Sensation 4G works fine in Germany
Does anyone has meanwhile more information?
I examine the tech specs of the HTC Sensation XE and found out, that it does not support T-Mobile US (seen at the network section). I mean, it not written down, but it supports the "AWS" frequency band, which is support by T-Mobile US.
Its soo confusing
Didnt bother about that really, but i am using a Sensation 4G in Germany and it definately has HSPA, the website speed is very fast.
On the other hand it is a US Tmobile Sensation 4G, so i think it will use the 4G in the US as well.
Iceananas said:
Didnt bother about that really, but i am using a Sensation 4G in Germany and it definately has HSPA, the website speed is very fast.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sounds great !
Are you sure, that it is HSPA? there must be a "H" at the notification bar. To be sure, you can see it in:
settings -> phone info -> network
There must be shown at "mobile network type" "HS(D)PA"
Could you confirm this and which provider do you use in Germany? (and in the USA?)
Yes, i confirm its HS(D)PA, i made two screenshots for you (see attachments).
I am only using it in Germany, my provider is T-Mobile.
Originally it was a Sensation 4G which was sold in the US with a T-Mobile US SIM card.
Sorry for late reply
Hey guys,
sorry for waiting so long, but there are great news
As I found out, there are two versions of the HTC Sensation
- z710e (e for European), named "HTC Sensation"
- z710a (a for America, or Australia?), namend "HTC Sensation 4G"
The European version (z710e) uses for 3G the network frequencies 900/AWS/2100 MHz. This means, that it would work in the USA, but only on 3G with T-Mobile US. With other carriers only on Edge.
The z710a is seemingly splitted into two versions again:
- version 1: supports 3G frequencies 850/1900 MHz
- version 2: supports 3G frequencies 850/1900/2100 MHz
Maybe both versions are the same and are only mistakes by the trader.
Important:
The HTC Sensation 4G (z710a) is available with the frequencies (3G):
- 850/1900/2100 MHz (available e.g. at Bell, NextG, Telstra)
- 1700/1900/2100 MHz T-Mobile US edition (Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDDcgweV0B0 at 0:30)
Both are named Sensation 4G (model: z710a), but work on different network frequencies. All carriers Germany uses 2100 MHz for their 3G networks. So all Sensations (with no or with 4G suffix) will work in Germany, because they support 2100 MHz for 3G.
At least a summary:
- there are two versions of the HTC Sensation (z710e and z710a)
- the version z710a is called Sensation 4G (z710e without 4G suffix)
- whyever 4G, because it does not support 4G/LTE ...
- there are two versions of z710a again:
- version 1: supports 3G on 850/1900/2100 MHz (available e.g. at Bell, NextG, Telstra)
- version 2: supports 3G on 1700/1900/2100 MHz (T-Mobile US edition)
- all carriers in Germany uses 2100 MHz for their 3G networks
- so all models will work in Germany on 3G speeds
- not all models will work in USA e.g. at AT&T with 3G speeds
Finally I decided myself to buy a HTC Sensation 4G z710a and it works very fine
It´s from Bell (Canada), but it has no logo or branding. However it has a ROM with preinstalled apps from Bell and has only four system languages. So I cant choose the German language, but so I can improve my English skills
I hope, I could help you with my information
Best regards
@@RON

[Q] [Noob question] Frequency bands

I work for Tmous retail sales and we have never really been taught anything about bands. Ive been pretty curious myself since some customers come into the store with AT&t phones asking about tmo service. I have been instructed (by a fellow retail associate) to tell them that no At&t phone will ever have 3G on tmo ( I assume thats just the safe answer though).
real question!
in terms of 3G/4G (hspa+) what bands does tmous use?
same question for AT&t.
To tie that together. ex: If a phone from At&t hypothetically has capabilities to use the same bands as tmous and is unlocked, can it get 3G/4G service on tmous?
i did search around and didnt find a very clear answer so i figured i'd start a thread, im sure other noobs have the same question.
T-Mobile uses 1700 2100 MHz bands for 3G/"4G"
AT&T uses 850 and 1900 MHz bands for 3G/"4G"
Yes if a phone has all those bands for 3G, and it's SIM unlocked you can get 3G on other cell company.
The T-Mobile Vibrant actually has those AT&T bands too, if you SIM unlock the Vibrant, you can get 3G on AT&T.
http://www.androidguys.com/2010/08/22/samsung-galaxy-unlockable-tmobile-vibrant-supports-att-3g/
It's very rare to see a phone that supports both T-Mobile and AT&T 3G bands.
nxt said:
T-Mobile uses 1700 2100 MHz bands for 3G/"4G"
AT&T uses 850 and 1900 MHz bands for 3G/"4G"
Yes if a phone has all those bands for 3G, and it's SIM unlocked you can get 3G on other cell company.
It's very rare to see a phone that supports both T-Mobile and AT&T 3G bands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the clarification. In hopes that im not being a further nuisance, I was wondering, what about a phone that has 1 of the matching bands?
T-Mobile USA is using the 1700/2100 Mhz bands for 3G (UMTS)
T-Mobile Germany uses 1900/2100 Mhz for 3G (UMTS)
If you couldnt tell, im considering buying an iPhone (to develop on for fun). Will a phone that uses 2100 Mhz only be usable on USA towers (for 3G service)?
DrewMullen said:
Will a phone that uses 2100 Mhz only be usable on USA towers (for 3G service)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it will not get 3G

Categories

Resources