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AT&T: Worst thing about not being able to turn LTE off

I was at the AT&T store playing with the One X yesterday. I had read the complaints about not being able to turn LTE off, mainly centered around battery concerns. Well, I think there is a much bigger concern.
AT&T's LTE network is obviously spotty in most places. It's supposedly pretty robust here in the DC area. Well, the phone I was playing with was constantly switching between LTE and HSPA. And guess what? Every time it switched, it lost its data connection for a good 30+ seconds. So since it was switching back and forth constantly, it would lose data connection for several minutes at a time before it would finally stabilize on either LTE or HSPA for a few minutes. Then it would start switching back and forth again, thereby losing data yet again.
It took me about 10 minutes just to download the SpeedTest app from the market. And then, I could not even get a single speedtest to complete running because it never stabilized on a connection for long enough to complete the test. Web pages wouldn't load. Youtube wouldn't load. Basically rendered the phone useless.
So yeah, battery concerns are there, but they are minor compared to this. If you are in an area with weak LTE, but you do not have the ability to turn LTE off, you might essentially find yourself with no data connection whatsoever as your phone bounces back and forth between LTE and HSPA. I imagine that would be a deal breaker for most people.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my house and my office both get either strong enough LTE signals to avoid this, or, alternatively, that they get no LTE signal at all so that it just stays on HSPA.
Battery concerns aside, this is why AT&T needs to give us the option to turn LTE off.

No LTE in my area for a while, which is strange because I live near two big cities and neither of them have LTE yet, for that matter no city in TN has LTE yet

I believe you can technically turn the lte off by selecting "hspa only" in mobile network settings.
P_

pakalrtb said:
I believe you can technically turn the lte off by selecting "hspa only" in mobile network settings.
P_
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From what I've read, you can do this on the Rogers version, but not on the AT&T one.

In the future I can almost guarantee that there will be an option to turn it off and on as you wish. Most likely will require root but, if you aren't going to root it what are you doing here anyways haha

Well for what its worth, A quick flash of a rogers ROM and we are good to go ;-). Not that we should have to, but we shouldn't be kept from doing as we wish with out device. I am sure I will be flashing within the first hour of a released ROM.

Nope they disable it on all their phones. They don't want the customer selecting their network. They can charge more for data on LTE as its faster and you'll use more quickly.
They also don't want us to be able to force EDGE. Totally ridiculous.
I'm referring to the settings under mobile networks
GSM Only
GSM/HSPA ONLY
GSM/HSPA auto
GSM/HSPA/LTE
HSPA only

MattMJB0188 said:
Nope they disable it on all their phones. They don't want the customer selecting their network. They can charge more for data on LTE as its faster and you'll use more quickly.
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Not for those of us on unlimited data! Their plan backfires.
MattMJB0188 said:
They also don't want us to be able to force EDGE. Totally ridiculous.
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I might be misremembering an old article, but from what I've read, they're actually starting to repurpose/shut down EDGE towers in cities with a lot of 3G/4G coverage. A good reason to keep us from selecting EDGE only.
I just want them to turn on LTE in Philly.

If the next iPhone (which will have LTE I believe) didn't have a feature where you can disable LTE, then people would go crazy. It's really a shame that the Rogers model allows you to do so but the AT&T model does not. It's not a big deal to me, but certainly I think the consumer should always have that option.

I am one of the lucky ones to still have unlimited on AT&T but there can't be that many of us left where it would affect things.
Pick up an AT&T iPhone 3GS or iPhone 4 and you have an option to turn off 3G. And yes people would go nuts if the next iPhone didn't have an option to turn off LTE.
I hope they don't do away with EDGE. First thing I'd say is, why at home do I get 3 bars of 3G and then if I can switch to EDGE I get a full signal? Call quality isn't broken up like it is on 3G. I'd also like the option to switch my device to EDGE while I'm at work all day to save battery life. EDGE serves a very good purpose for me still.
I think more people need to start calling AT&T technical support and complaining about this. I guess its possible the next update could have this feature.
What good is LTE when its draining my phone sitting in a desk drawer all day?

I remember reading that by "getting rid of EDGE" ATT is actually upgrading those towers to 3G. So, yeah, you lose EDGE, but it gets replaced by better 3G coverage.
Although I entirely agree that not being able to toggle LTE is rediculous.

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-12261_...-phones-will-be-thinner-more-efficient-scoop/
I'll just leave this here...
Just because Verizon rushed out LTE phones before the tech was ready which resulted in terrible battery life, doesn't mean AT&T did the same thing.

brandontrout said:
I remember reading that by "getting rid of EDGE" ATT is actually upgrading those towers to 3G. So, yeah, you lose EDGE, but it gets replaced by better 3G coverage.
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Is that even possible? I thought EDGE is still used for voice, and the reason that we can browse and use voice at the same time (like AT&T always advertises). I'm no expert by any means. But I don't think they can get rid of the EDGE towers, until they do something like move completely to 3G for voice, and LTE for all data (which obviously would not happen for a long time).
---------- Post added at 05:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:38 PM ----------
If spotty LTE coverage indeed proves to be a problem on the One X, you can try manually enter a new APN to force the phone to HSPA+. I read it worked on the Vivid.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=25340058&postcount=16

cant we turn off mobile network all together?
Sent from my MB860 using XDA

zonk7ate9 said:
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-12261_...-phones-will-be-thinner-more-efficient-scoop/
I'll just leave this here...
Just because Verizon rushed out LTE phones before the tech was ready which resulted in terrible battery life, doesn't mean AT&T did the same thing.
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Did you even read the original post? It really had nothing to do with battery life, which is a minor concern compared to what I described.

tian105 said:
cant we turn off mobile network all together?
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Only a solution if you have WiFi access. This would have no impact on the situation the OP is talking about: spotty LTE coverage causing data connection to be dropped.
Also defeats the purpose of having an LTE phone.

redpoint73 said:
Is that even possible? I thought EDGE is still used for voice, and the reason that we can browse and use voice at the same time (like AT&T always advertises). I'm no expert by any means. But I don't think they can get rid of the EDGE towers, until they do something like move completely to 3G for voice, and LTE for all data (which obviously would not happen for a long time).
---------- Post added at 05:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:38 PM ----------
If spotty LTE coverage indeed proves to be a problem on the One X, you can try manually enter a new APN to force the phone to HSPA+. I read it worked on the Vivid.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=25340058&postcount=16
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Click to collapse
Both GSM and UMTS support circuit switched voice calls. Only LTE does not, as there is not yet a standard defined for voice over LTE...so as long as there is a 2G or 3G network for circuit switched fallback, it will work.
Data is independent of voice in all GSM derived networks, unlike CDMA.

Your data connection does not reflect call quality.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

You know, the current iPhone doesn't give you an option to force EDGE
Sent from my Lumia 900 using XDA Windows Phone 7 App

mosesman86 said:
You know, the current iPhone doesn't give you an option to force EDGE
Sent from my Lumia 900 using XDA Windows Phone 7 App
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No, but why do the 3GS and 4 allow it?

Doesn't it bother you AT&T customers that...

You have no 32GB phone available, and it could be weeks or months before you guys see a 32GB version?
You guys can't TRULY talk & surf because AT&ampT throttles your speeds during calls? Pings also drastically increase. Test it out!
NO unlimited data plan option. Those who were lucky to keep the $30 unlimited plan are throttled at 5GB.
AT&T RAT locks their modems, making it near impossible to force EDGE or HSPA only to preserve battery life.
Pre-orders are ALWAYS a mess. Galaxy Note 2 had no white option available during pre-order.
All of this sure as hell bothers me, and makes me crave T-Mobile, except I don't want 2G.
So what's with all these AT&T threads? Why are there that many people on them if they are like this?

MattMJB0188 said:
You have no 32GB phone available, and it could be weeks or months before you guys see a 32GB version?
You guys can't TRULY talk & surf because AT&ampT throttles your speeds during calls? Pings also drastically increase. Test it out!
NO unlimited data plan option. Those who were lucky to keep the $30 unlimited plan are throttled at 5GB.
AT&T RAT locks their modems, making it near impossible to force EDGE or HSPA only to preserve battery life.
Pre-orders are ALWAYS a mess. Galaxy Note 2 had no white option available during pre-order.
All of this sure as hell bothers me, and makes me crave T-Mobile, except I don't want 2G.
So what's with all these AT&T threads? Why are there that many people on them if they are like this?
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not sure of your trolling or not? im on at&t because for me they have the best coverage. as far as having no 32gb models yes im upset but im over it now.

fix-this! said:
not sure of your trolling or not? im on at&t because for me they have the best coverage. as far as having no 32gb models yes im upset but im over it now.
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I'd like if T-Mobile was an option for me, but I like to have reception to make phone calls. Also - I don't think you're getting the 32 at T-mobile.

AT&T works best for me, GSM, Great coverage, fast data speeds, Great phone selections, Great company discount on monthly bill.
I am not sure if its AT&T or Samsung's Fault for not having a 32gb option available for pre order but I am sure it wont be long before the 32 model is available.

Also the fact that as an ATT customer, I can buy the international version and have a 3g working phone. Since there is no LTE from ATT in my area, I have no plans to get the quad core version that ATT offers.

cygnet17 said:
AT&T works best for me, GSM, Great coverage, fast data speeds, Great phone selections, Great company discount on monthly bill.
I am not sure if its AT&T or Samsung's Fault for not having a 32gb option available for pre order but I am sure it wont be long before the 32 model is available.
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Click to collapse
no carrier is getting the 32gb models now. i talked to samsung and they told me it won't be anytime soon.

+ best coverage for my area out of the big 4
+ good (best?) phone selection
- HORRIBLE customer service. 611 is junk. 10% chance of getting someone you can actually understand and speaks clear English. The AT&T policies change depending on who you talk to. No consistency.
- The AT&T reps at the corp stores are extremely rude and always expect that you have no idea what you are talking about.... for example, while I was looking at a Lumia 920, the rep said "this is the newest Android phone we have", which I politely stated that this is actually a Windows Phone 8. He laughed and said "does this look like a computer to you?" This is just one example of many.
- The HSPA+ coverage at my home is laggy and often times doesn't work at all. I have better luck with 3G/EDGE for some reason.
- Heaven help you if you have a Nexus phone. They have NO IDEA what it is, how you have it or why it works with their network. It's like some kind of alien device that breaks their understanding of how cell phones are supposed to work. For example, I'm standing in the store with my GSM Galaxy Nexus with "No Service" showing. No amount of rebooting or factory resetting is getting me back on the network, so I assume it's a problem with my account. The guy says "I don't see this phone in our system. You can't use a Verizon phone on AT&T"... I said "yes I agree, but this is a GSM phone and has ALWAYS worked on AT&T until today". He shrugged and said "You're gonna have to call 611 cuse you lost me". Turns out someone somewhere sometime had put me on an "iPhone data plan"...which is somehow DIFFERENT from a "every other phone data plan". I figured that out from looking at my account online.
Very sorry for the above rant. T-Mobile and Sprint coverage is non-exsistant and I'm not a huge fan of Verizon's phone selection.

Not trolling at all.
No one mentions the fact that they throttle speeds during calls to 1mbps or less with high pings??? Doesn't anyone want the option to turn LTE off and use HSPA only? This comes in handy if your phone sits in your desk drawer all day at at work?

MattMJB0188 said:
AT&T RAT locks their modems, making it near impossible to force EDGE or HSPA only to preserve battery life.
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I have to admit, this pisses me off something severe. Let me force edge and HSPA, you dirty bastards!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747

MattMJB0188 said:
Not trolling at all.
No one mentions the fact that they throttle speeds during calls to 1mbps or less with high pings??? Doesn't anyone want the option to turn LTE off and use HSPA only? This comes in handy if your phone sits in your desk drawer all day at at work?
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Never had trouble with throttling or pings while on a phone call, but I haven't been able to turn LTE off. Luckily with the S4, I won't want to since the battery is so big.

gzrecoil said:
Never had trouble with throttling or pings while on a phone call, but I haven't been able to turn LTE off. Luckily with the S4, I won't want to since the battery is so big.
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Test it out!!! Run a speedtest during a call. I bet you anything you won't get anything greater than 1mbps down and your ping will be high. Run the test off the call and you'll have better results.
Frustrates me to know end.
T-Mobile does not do this.

I'm on AT&T because in my area Anchorage, Alaska AT&T offers newest phones and when I travel to the lower 48 states I'm pretty much guaranteed coverage in the major cities I visit. Verizon is coming up here this summer so we'll see how they compare to AT&T.

Doesn't bother me at all. I don't need a 32gb phone. I have no idea why I need to surf and talk at the same time. And I don't need an unlimited plan as most places I go have wifi.
At most I use 500mb of my 2gb plan per month. At most. Even with tons of streaming of music.

MattMJB0188 said:
Test it out!!! Run a speedtest during a call. I bet you anything you won't get anything greater than 1mbps down and your ping will be high. Run the test off the call and you'll have better results.
Frustrates me to know end.
T-Mobile does not do this.
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I'm going to check on it when I get the GS4, that doesn't make sense since the call is not using LTE.
I'll probably write a few letters once I confirm and make some noise, that is just absurd.

gzrecoil said:
Never had trouble with throttling or pings while on a phone call, but I haven't been able to turn LTE off. Luckily with the S4, I won't want to since the battery is so big.
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gzrecoil said:
I'm going to check on it when I get the GS4, that doesn't make sense since the call is not using LTE.
I'll probably write a few letters once I confirm and make some noise, that is just absurd.
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Yes it is. Uploads are like 0.01mbps. Test it out!!! I have called many, many times. AT&T doesn't acknowledge this.
If you are pulling 5-7mbps on HSPA+ then you should pull that on a call. They are throttling everyone's speeds during calls and returning them to normal once the call ends.
Pings are significantly higher also. Talking and surfing is pretty much unusable. It wasn't always like this though. Can't wait to see what they do once calls are made over LTE. I bet they'll throttle with LTE too.
Test it out!
And the fact that AT&T wants me on the fastest network is absurd too. I should be able to force H+ or 2G when I WANT TO SAVE DATA USAGE!!! I don't always need LTE. WHY CAN'T WE FN TURN IT OFF???

To answer your question, yes, all those things bother me. But, Sprint and T-Mobile both have spotty coverage and a very limited selection of phones, and Verizon is the devil. (locked bootloaders, losing unlimited data when using an upgrade, etc.)
AT&T is truly the best option for me. Good coverage, huge selection of phones, more dev support since the phones are GSM.

U MAD BRO?
Seriously, what is the point of this thread? You want to force slower speeds, get an original Galaxy S, I don't know what the complaints are about, but it sounds like you work for another carrier and trying to hate on the big boys for no reason

KryptosXLayer2 said:
U MAD BRO?
Seriously, what is the point of this thread? You want to force slower speeds, get an original Galaxy S, I don't know what the complaints are about, but it sounds like you work for another carrier and trying to hate on the big boys for no reason
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I'm a consumer just like you. I am mad that a smaller carrier doesn't throttle speeds during calls during calls and gives customers the option to turn off 3G/4G.
You tell me how its beneficial if my device sits on LTE all day when I don't need it too? If it was on HSPA or EDGE I could still maintain a data connection and preserve battery life.
Not to mention, if I am close to my data limit, forcing HSPA or EDGE will help me by not going over my limit, because its slower.
GET IT NOW?

MattMJB0188 said:
I'm a consumer just like you. I am mad that a smaller carrier doesn't throttle speeds during calls during calls and gives customers the option to turn off 3G/4G.
You tell me how its beneficial if my device sits on LTE all day when I don't need it too? If it was on HSPA or EDGE I could still maintain a data connection and preserve battery life.
Not to mention, if I am close to my data limit, forcing HSPA or EDGE will help me by not going over my limit, because its slower.
GET IT NOW?
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You can set caps on your phone so you don't go over. Very easy to do. Forcing HSPA or EDGE doesn't prevent you from going over. It just goes slower but uses the same amount of data to accomplish the same goal. I have heard that LTE as part of SoC uses much less power. But haven't tested it myself. Considering I have wifi at work I just turn off data completely and use wifi.

MattMJB0188 said:
I'm a consumer just like you. I am mad that a smaller carrier doesn't throttle speeds during calls during calls and gives customers the option to turn off 3G/4G.
You tell me how its beneficial if my device sits on LTE all day when I don't need it too? If it was on HSPA or EDGE I could still maintain a data connection and preserve battery life.
Not to mention, if I am close to my data limit, forcing HSPA or EDGE will help me by not going over my limit, because its slower.
GET IT NOW?
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Just cause its slower doesn't mean it uses any less data...regardless of speed your still going to end up using the same amount of data...although I do agree you should have the option to turn off LTE, however you can always add a non LTE apn and just switch sons when ever you want to toggle LTE
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Tapatalk 2

[Q] Nexus 5 Simultaneous Voice/Data

Thought this may be of interest... I see other threads out there related to some older phones, but nothing related to the GNex5, so I thought I'd start one here.
I'm on Sprint, and apparently I can't do simultaneous voice and data with LTE or 3g during voice calls. Wifi seems to work just fine. Anyone else experiencing this with Sprint? What's the experience for those using T-Mobile/ATT? Stock or unlocked? I've also noticed that I'm unable to update my PRL or Profile (Network Error). I am unlocked and rooted at the moment. Did not notice this as I didn't tinker with it prior to unlocking.
Coming from Samsung GS3 and GN2 with Sprint where the LTE/3G radio is separated, I did not realize this was still a technological challenge... I went with this phone simply because it was inexpensive for the hardware and I don't have to renew my contract to avoid paying an arm and a leg. Have I just hit a "You get what you pay for" scenario, putting me (or anyone using CDMA) back 3 years in radio tech??

The phone has to support SVDO in order to do voice+data on Sprint. Very, very few phones do (the EVO 4G LTE did, the HTC One didn't, for example). It requires a special antenna configuration as well IIRC.

cadbomb said:
Thought this may be of interest... I see other threads out there related to some older phones, but nothing related to the GNex5, so I thought I'd start one here.
I'm on Sprint, and apparently I can't do simultaneous voice and data with LTE or 3g during voice calls. Wifi seems to work just fine. Anyone else experiencing this with Sprint? What's the experience for those using T-Mobile/ATT? Stock or unlocked? I've also noticed that I'm unable to update my PRL or Profile (Network Error). I am unlocked and rooted at the moment. Did not notice this as I didn't tinker with it prior to unlocking.
Coming from Samsung GS3 and GN2 with Sprint where the LTE/3G radio is separated, I did not realize this was still a technological challenge... I went with this phone simply because it was inexpensive for the hardware and I don't have to renew my contract to avoid paying an arm and a leg. Have I just hit a "You get what you pay for" scenario, putting me (or anyone using CDMA) back 3 years in radio tech??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately no, the nexus 5 does not support SVDO or SVLTE. This means it also will only connect to one airlink at a time - when you receive a call, it will switch to 1x, pausing your LTE, similar to older handsets.

justis s said:
Unfortunately no, the nexus 5 does not support SVDO or SVLTE. This means it also will only connect to one airlink at a time - when you receive a call, it will switch to 1x, pausing your LTE, similar to older handsets.
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Too bad... Found more on s4gru regarding this:
"That is what we have been told. Sprint tri band LTE devices will not support SVLTE. Whether that is due to band 26 LTE 800, band 41 TD-LTE 2600, or the combination of the two, we do not know. And the sample size is very small right now to project unconditionally into the future. But the standard expectation going forward should be no SVLTE on Sprint multi band LTE devices. Simultaneous voice and data will have to be accomplished by other means, such as third party VoIP apps and eventually VoLTE."
I are a sad sprint customer lol. Also why I went with a multi carrier phone off contract June 2014 can't come soon enough, cause I loves this phone!

This was my biggest complaints with this phone on sprint. I couldn't do it so I activated it using straight talk for att and couldn't be happier. It's unfortunate that spark phones on sprint won't do simultaneous voice and data, at least for now. But I'm not willing to compromise.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

laestrella said:
This was my biggest complaints with this phone on sprint. I couldn't do it so I activated it using straight talk for att and couldn't be happier. It's unfortunate that spark phones on sprint won't do simultaneous voice and data, at least for now. But I'm not willing to compromise.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
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I hear that. My biggest issue with switching providers is that I average 5-6gb of data usage/mo on my line and about 12gb combined with the other two phones on my family plan (Ting told me not to switch lol). It's hard to beat the bargain offered for services rendered from Sprint. Nickles and dimes I suppose. Oh well, maybe 2015 will be the year of the phone... (Oh wait, we'll probably have 5g by then and tri-band will evolve to octa-band with the same problems )

cadbomb said:
I hear that. My biggest issue with switching providers is that I average 5-6gb of data usage/mo on my line and about 12gb combined with the other two phones on my family plan (Ting told me not to switch lol). It's hard to beat the bargain offered for services rendered from Sprint. Nickles and dimes I suppose. Oh well, maybe 2015 will be the year of the phone... (Oh wait, we'll probably have 5g by then and tri-band will evolve to octa-band with the same problems )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I still have a family plan on sprint so if my data amount becomes an issue I'll go back but for now I'll sacrifice more data for fast and always available data, and at a rate of $45 I'll take it.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

laestrella said:
This was my biggest complaints with this phone on sprint. I couldn't do it so I activated it using straight talk for att and couldn't be happier. It's unfortunate that spark phones on sprint won't do simultaneous voice and data, at least for now. But I'm not willing to compromise.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have ST AT&T service. When I am on a call though, I lose LTE. It switches me to H (HPSA I think). Speed is not terrible, but would be nicer to have LTE while on a call. Do you have the same experience? If not, do you know how I can have LTE while on a call? Thanks.

p0k3y said:
I have ST AT&T service. When I am on a call though, I lose LTE. It switches me to H (HPSA I think). Speed is not terrible, but would be nicer to have LTE while on a call. Do you have the same experience? If not, do you know how I can have LTE while on a call? Thanks.
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Click to collapse
Nope, that's by design. It has to do with available radios. If LTE isn't on a separate radio it can't be used simultaneously. On the upside, having less radios means better battery life overall.

Hotspot doesn't work during calls

Why is it that the hotspot turns off during cellular calls?
This wasn't an issue with the Note 3 on Sprint.

mrnamster said:
Why is it that the hotspot turns off during cellular calls?
This wasn't an issue with the Note 3 on Sprint.
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Click to collapse
Because data/LTE does not work over calling, feature of tri-band. LTE/3G disconnect during calls because of switching system.

Thanks for the explanation. Tri-band is Sprint Spark right? Now I'm thinking of going back to my Note 3..

mrnamster said:
Thanks for the explanation. Tri-band is Sprint Spark right? Now I'm thinking of going back to my Note 3..
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Yes, sprint spark. All phones are going to this anyways for sprint, no workaround quite yet.

Definitely seems like a deal breaker for me idk i have terrible Spark/LTE service i have the bars etc but get 3-5mbps on every speed test.... I dont understand other then that im always on wifi tho

Yeah, it makes me want to go back to my N3. I wish I knew this before.
There's another thread regarding this issue http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2715529
Let's close this thread and continue the conversation over there.

RevelationOmega said:
Because data/LTE does not work over calling, feature of tri-band. LTE/3G disconnect during calls because of switching system.
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Click to collapse
that's really stupid because the s3 had it over 3g and 4g, and the s4 had it over 4g....and now the s5 not at all.....thanks sprint/samsung

Glitterloveglamour said:
that's really stupid because the s3 had it over 3g and 4g, and the s4 had it over 4g....and now the s5 not at all.....thanks sprint/samsung
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Currently working now on Wifi calling and UNrestricting Download Booster limits now that its working. Maybe well take a look into what we can do about it but it seems we may have no choice because ALL sprint phones will become tri-band and lose that feature, towers switch fallback circuit which restricts the phone, we may not be able to work around. As I said, have to look into it afterwards.

RevelationOmega said:
Currently working now on Wifi calling and UNrestricting Download Booster limits now that its working. Maybe well take a look into what we can do about it but it seems we may have no choice because ALL sprint phones will become tri-band and lose that feature, towers switch fallback circuit which restricts the phone, we may not be able to work around. As I said, have to look into it afterwards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
gosh hopefully!!

this should clear up once VoLTE is out. when that is, I have no clue
Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk

Mine is working fine, no issues - also tested w/ incoming calls.

Here is an article talking about Fallback Circuit tech and what is Sprint Spark/Triband Technology
http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/...-due-to-circuit-switched-fallback-technology/
explains some things as well as VoLTE not quite possible yet.

The decision for Tri-Band devices was not predicated around SVLTE. It was decided on other, more important factors.
*
1. The main reason was for single radios. SVLTE devices have to maintain two separate connections, and thus two separate powered radios. The Tri-band devices have a single radio for all mobile network pathways and thus can operate with less power, meaning lower power use and leading to longer battery life.
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2. Voice usage is dramatically lower now than it was even a few years ago, this means the need for most consumers to have both voice and data simultaneously is less. In addition, with the increasing use of Video Calling (which go over data only) that also reduces standard voice call usage.
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3. Many companies are going this route, thus meaning similar devices for multiple carriers, and thus reduced costs for phones due to the scale of production. Having a separately built device to be unique in this regard, means the phones cost more for Sprint to purchase, and thus cost more to the end-user as well. Just look at the new*CCA*stuff where the fact the same identical device can be used across all of these small carriers in turn mean lower costs to all of them. The Youtube*keynote*is more informative and has Masayoshi Son, but he is a bit difficult to understand at some points (not used to Japanese accent personally). Production scale has a lot to do with it though.
*
4. CDMA customers aren't used to SVLTE in general, and the average person probably doesn't know their phone is even capable of it in some circumstances on various carriers.
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5. SVLTE (Like SVDO on a couple devices) was never a designed feature of these phones, it was a side effect of the way the radios and transmit/receive pathways needed to be designed for the Sprint models of the phones. It was never an advertised ability.
This was copy paste from s4gru
But it's very true
Sent from my SM-G900P using Xparent BlueTapatalk 2

Can the LTE band unlocker utility unlock band 12 again?

I've seen this:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/cro...ad-progress-please-leave-im-updating-t2871269
And since we're all pretty sure due to FCC filings that the Moto hardware supports band 12, could anyone tell me itd be possible to open this great budget phone up to t mobiles expanding 700mhz coverage?

Even if you unlock the band, without VoLTE support you wouldn't be able to make calls or send/receive sms messages. This is why Motorola disabled it.

Is that really so important though? Data coverage is all I really need. If there's 2g or 3g fallback texts will still come in, and I think I've gotten texts on lte only mode on my galaxy s4 even on roms that don't support VoLTE or WiFi calling, so texts might still work. Calling can easily be done over Google hangouts as a data call anyway. The coverage is most important to power users, not making it compatible with calls
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I'll be driving to Seattle from Chicago next week and I could use all of the additional coverage I can get. I really don't care if I can't get traditional voice / text, hangouts etc are perfectly fine stop gaps. I'm going to buy a Moto G from Best Buy and try this but with no band 12 near me I can't know if it actually is working. If anyone who has coverage in their area wants to give it a shot, I think everyone would love to know if its possible.

ben7337 said:
Is that really so important though? Data coverage is all I really need. If there's 2g or 3g fallback texts will still come in, and I think I've gotten texts on lte only mode on my galaxy s4 even on roms that don't support VoLTE or WiFi calling, so texts might still work. Calling can easily be done over Google hangouts as a data call anyway. The coverage is most important to power users, not making it compatible with calls
Sent from my SGH-M919 using XDA Free mobile app
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If the radio supports band 12, then you can definitely unlock it. Give it a try.

ryude said:
If the radio supports band 12, then you can definitely unlock it. Give it a try.
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Click to collapse
I returned my phone, and that guide seems to be very device specific. Since no one has done it for the Moto G 3rd gen yet, I could easily brick my phone with the only fix as "flash the stock FTF file" which seems to be some special file for sony devices? I'd rather not get in over my head and ruin a brand new device.

Unlock instruction
I found this http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=55475431&postcount=1
But it's for 1st gen

Just so you know.. most of the twin cities area you'd be driving through has band 12 with t-mobile (multiple sources on Google as well as personal experience working at MSP). Band 12 probably wont be deployed anytime soon in rural areas because T-mobile is only using it in urban areas to penetrate buildings with lower frequencies with less line-of-sight areas. What you'd be wanting to look for is T-Mobile refarming their old 2G (EDGE) towers to LTE. Regardless, even with 2G coverage you can still get calls/text/Google Maps to work.
I travel all of North America for work and I'm in a different state every week. I carry a T-Mobile phone as my primary and a Cricket phone (through AT&T) as a backup. I know most people don't have that luxury of carrying two carriers with them, so I keep up to date on this stuff as best I can. People have been getting really mis-informed with this whole T-Mobile Band 12 thing lately.
Another trivial fact.. Minneapolis metro area is one of the best covered metro locations in North America for T-Mobile. Because they bought out VoiceStream, that was one of their top markets. I remember having them when I lived up there years ago!
Anyway, have a safe trip! I'm jealous you're heading to Seattle. Used to live out there as well and I woul do anything to move back! I just got married out there last December.

Hi everybody
Someone check the link shared by lockheed_man in a Moto G (3rd generation)?
Thanks in advance

Anyone with an unlocked band 12?

ben7337 said:
Is that really so important though? Data coverage is all I really need. If there's 2g or 3g fallback texts will still come in, and I think I've gotten texts on lte only mode on my galaxy s4 even on roms that don't support VoLTE or WiFi calling, so texts might still work. Calling can easily be done over Google hangouts as a data call anyway. The coverage is most important to power users, not making it compatible with calls
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Regular sms needs a voice signal. If you got a text with only data it was an mms.