Would it be possible to enable AWS HSPA+ on an unlocked iPhone 5?

[shanmugam]

do not think apple will update baseband in all of the iPhones to support just t-mobile, is there any other providers using AWS? may be around the world and then it may be YES.

[Dwalls90]

Apple could issue a firmware/baseband update to unlock AWS, since the hardware itself isn't changing.

But they probably won't, because it's Apple.

[darricksailo]

Originally Posted by Dwalls90

Apple could issue a firmware/baseband update to unlock AWS, since the hardware itself isn't changing.

But they probably won't, because it's Apple.

It isn't possible to issue a baseband update to unlock the AWS or else they would've done that. The firmware is hard coded into the chip. It needs to be flashed at the manufacturing site to enable AWS which means they need to physically have the phone

If you follow jailbreaking, this is similar to the bootrom. Apple cannot issue a software to fix bootrom exploits because the firmware is hard coded into the chip. They need to have the phone in their hands to patch those bootrom exploits. That's why there's an older 3GS and a newer 3GS

[Applejuiced]

Originally Posted by darricksailo

It isn't possible to issue a baseband update to unlock the AWS or else they would've done that. The firmware is hard coded into the chip. It needs to be flashed at the manufacturing site to enable AWS which means they need to physically have the phone

If you follow jailbreaking, this is similar to the bootrom. Apple cannot issue a software to fix bootrom exploits because the firmware is hard coded into the chip. They need to have the phone in their hands to patch those bootrom exploits. That's why there's an older 3GS and a newer 3GS

I been trying to tell him that many times now but he assumes it can be done with just a software update.
I gave up after a while

[Dwalls90]

Originally Posted by darricksailo

It isn't possible to issue a baseband update to unlock the AWS or else they would've done that. The firmware is hard coded into the chip. It needs to be flashed at the manufacturing site to enable AWS which means they need to physically have the phone

If you follow jailbreaking, this is similar to the bootrom. Apple cannot issue a software to fix bootrom exploits because the firmware is hard coded into the chip. They need to have the phone in their hands to patch those bootrom exploits. That's why there's an older 3GS and a newer 3GS

Baseband updates happen regularly actually, so that's not true. Firmware is hard coded onto a chip, but if firmware is updated for Apple computers, why not iPhones?

Exploiting the bootrom vs firmware of a chip aren't the same.

I'm not saying it's possible or impossible, because we haven't been faced with this kind of situation before. I don't think anyone on these forums has enough expertise to know that and we won't know for sure until a tear down and the geeks get their hands on it.

[darricksailo]

Originally Posted by Dwalls90

Baseband updates happen regularly actually, so that's not true. Firmware is hard coded onto a chip, but if firmware is updated for Apple computers, why not iPhones?

Exploiting the bootrom vs firmware of a chip aren't the same.

I'm not saying it's possible or impossible, because we haven't been faced with this kind of situation before. I don't think anyone on these forums has enough expertise to know that and we won't know for sure until a tear down and the geeks get their hands on it.

The way I look at it is like with a windows computer.

It's equivalent to the BIOS. Windows OS updates in no way can update the BIOS version. Even if they were to remotely control your computer, they cannot go into the BIOS to update the version.

Yes, they can use a windows program to update the BIOS but the thing is that apple iDevices are very locked down. There is no way to run a program on iOS to update this firmware version. It has to be flashed onto the hardware not in iOS but with some other "booting program" equivalent to the BIOS

You have to physically have control of the computer to enter BIOS to update the BIOS version

And I doubt apple will release any method for us end users to update the hardware firmware to enable AWS HSPA+ because that would be something that could be considered as "root" access and would probably open a path for the hackers/jailbreakers to read and exploit the bootrom

I'm not very knowledgeable about all these but this is how I'm looking at why a software update won't enable AWS

[Dwalls90]

Originally Posted by darricksailo

The way I look at it is like with a windows computer.

It's equivalent to the BIOS. Windows OS updates in no way can update the BIOS version. Even if they were to remotely control your computer, they cannot go into the BIOS to update the version.

Yes, they can use a windows program to update the BIOS but the thing is that apple iDevices are very locked down. There is no way to run a program on iOS to update this firmware version. It has to be flashed onto the hardware not in iOS but with some other "booting program" equivalent to the BIOS

You have to physically have control of the computer to enter BIOS to update the BIOS version

And I doubt apple will release any method for us end users to update the hardware firmware to enable AWS HSPA+ because that would be something that could be considered as "root" access and would probably open a path for the hackers/jailbreakers to read and exploit the bootrom

I'm not very knowledgeable about all these but this is how I'm looking at why a software update won't enable AWS

The equivalent of BIOS for macs is EFI, which can be updated. And BIOS can be updated I've done it myself.

[darricksailo]

Originally Posted by Dwalls90

The equivalent of BIOS for macs is EFI, which can be updated. And BIOS can be updated I've done it myself.

yes, it can be updated but not through the OS itself (at least, through the recommended method in updating the BIOS version). I never said the BIOS cannot be updated, I was just saying that you would update the version through the BIOS and not through windows.

Did you read where I said apple will not give the end users the tool to update the firmware version because it will be considered "root access" and would most likely give jailbreakers a way to exploit the bootrom or other hardware that may give us an untethered jailbreak. Apple iDevices are well known for their lock downed system. Macs are much less restricted than iDevices, I would assume, because the competitor is windows which has majority of the market. And computers are viewed more for "heavy duty work"

[Dwalls90]

Originally Posted by darricksailo

yes, it can be updated but not through the OS itself (at least, through the recommended method in updating the BIOS version). I never said the BIOS cannot be updated, I was just saying that you would update the version through the BIOS and not through windows.

Did you read where I said apple will not give the end users the tool to update the firmware version because it will be considered "root access" and would most likely give jailbreakers a way to exploit the bootrom or other hardware that may give us an untethered jailbreak. Apple iDevices are well known for their lock downed system. Macs are much less restricted than iDevices, I would assume, because the competitor is windows which has majority of the market. And computers are viewed more for "heavy duty work"

You do raise a good point here. Again, I'm agreeing that Apple won't enable this functionality, but some hacker may get creative and find a way which might require a jailbreaker. It's possible to gain root access on an iPhone 5.

[ET iPhone Home]

Originally Posted by mossme89

I haven't heard much about this, but am curious. The AT&T and unlocked iphone models (A1428) support LTE on band 4 (LTE). Since LTE is backwards compatible with GSM and HSPA, it seems like Apple disabled this feature as the iPhone only gets EDGE on 1900 on T-Mobile. Would it be possible to enable AWS HSPA+ through a jailbreak tweak or a custom ipsw or something?

What improvement exactly does this feature AWS HSPA+ do?

[darricksailo]

Originally Posted by ET iPhone Home

What improvement exactly does this feature AWS HSPA+ do?

It's only beneficial to T-Mobile customers. It allows them to connect to T-Mobile's older 3G/4G (AWS bands) which is much more availiable than the newer 3G (1900 MHz) they're refarming

So instead of being on 2G all the time (comparable to dial up speeds), they can get 3G/4G speeds if they don't fall in an area that has the 1900 MHz 3G. This is assuming the area has the AWS 3G

[ET iPhone Home]

Originally Posted by darricksailo

It's only beneficial to T-Mobile customers. It allows them to connect to T-Mobile's older 3G/4G (AWS bands) which is much more availiable than the newer 3G (1900 MHz) they're refarming

So instead of being on 2G all the time (comparable to dial up speeds), they can get 3G/4G speeds if they don't fall in an area that has the 1900 MHz 3G. This is assuming the area has the AWS 3G

Thanks for taking the time to explain. Wasn't sure why a few people here were willing to wait just to have this feature. Do you think all unlocked iPhones purchased through the Apple Store on 4/12th will accommodate this feature or is it unique only to T-Mobile?

[bozzykid]

Originally Posted by ET iPhone Home

Thanks for taking the time to explain. Wasn't sure why a few people here were willing to wait just to have this feature. Do you think all unlocked iPhones purchased through the Apple Store on 4/12th will accommodate this feature or is it unique only to T-Mobile?

All unlocked phones will. Whether they sell these to customers initially to AT&T customers is not known. But once the current stock runs out, they will all be compatible.

[ET iPhone Home]

Originally Posted by bozzykid

All unlocked phones will. Whether they sell these to customers initially to AT&T customers is not known. But once the current stock runs out, they will all be compatible.

Thanks!

[shanmugam]

any one know if T-mobile will take iPhone 4S for trade in?

[mxguy729]

T-Mobile is taking trade-ins for the new iPhone 5. It's allowing customers to bring in any iPhone 4 or 4S and the customer will be able to buy the iPhone 5 16GB for $0 down payment and 24 monthly payments of $20 each, so basically you get $100 off. Depending upon the condition of your current iPhone, you may also receive up to $120 off which effectively lowers your monthly payments down to $15 a month for 24 months. If you choose to buy the iPhone 5 16GB outright, I assume T-Mobile will just give you $100 plus the $120 off the full purchase price, bringing the price down to $359.99.