Why is 4G a big deal?

Tethering is one use.

3G isn't always fast, depending on load.

It's new.

I completely agree, I think some people get caught up in the numbers game really. 4G on my iPad however when I'm away from wifi is pretty useful though.

That is all.

What annoys me is even when I'm connected to LTE on my iPad, I'm still prompted to connect to wifi to download updates to certain apps.

It is a big deal in a stepping stone sense, but I think it is overrated. Once 4G hits the iPhone people will start to realize the downside pretty quick. I'm not saying it's not a great and useful signal, because it is. But it is still kind of young. It will kill the battery quicker, and with the way the companies are treating data a lot of people will either be overcharged or throttled or just simply not achieve true 4G speeds.

As great of a feature as 4G is, it's not one I was really in a hurry to get. I consider 3G to be fast by mobile standards and I'm near wifi often enough when I'm not working.

because Sprint's 3g is woefully slow, rarely get over 1Mbps here in Kansas City. 4G/LTE will be a welcome boost in speed.

improvements in technology shouldn't be seen as a bad thing. I can't wait for the UK to embrace LTE

kfergiez said:

I don't know. i liken it to my gramma owning a 500 hp WRX rally car. It may be cool, but she lives in a tiny town, and the only time she drives is to go get her hair cut.

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Yeah, but it only takes her 4 seconds to get to her appointment.

4G is the next big thing and cell companies are pushing it as hard as they can in attempts to one up their competitors and, for the most part, has the public thinking it's something they drastically need. The downside being that it's coverage isn't anywhere near what it needs to be and most people demanding it won't even get it even if their phones are compatible.


Of course, the other side of it it is that, as a whole, we can never have enough speed (or storage space for that matter).

Your grandmother analogy is flawed because, in it, her town stays the same size (small). In the technology world, things are always quickly growing to compensate for any speed changes.

Don't worry about the speeds of LTE unless you watch video or upload ad download large files. The real benefit is latency and response time. It is MUCH lower than 3G and similar to WiFi. Do you notice a difference between 3G and WiFi? If so, you'll notice the benefits of LTE immediately. I've had it for a year and I would never go back.

Dmunjal said:

Don't worry about the speeds of LTE unless you watch video or upload ad download large files. The real benefit is latency and response time. It is MUCH lower than 3G and similar to WiFi. Do you notice a difference between 3G and WiFi? If so, you'll notice the benefits of LTE immediately. I've had it for a year and I would never go back.

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Agreed.

The latency on Verizon's 3G is garbage where I live. I can't wait to switch to a 4G iPhone.

kfergiez said:

uh-huh. You got that on cellular 4G service eh?

Even in you did get those speeds, why would you need it on a phone? I can understand wanting it in an iPad, or for tethering usage, but that's about it.

I don't know. i liken it to my gramma owning a 500 hp WRX rally car. It may be cool, but she lives in a tiny town, and the only time she drives is to go get her hair cut.

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It was kind of a joke. Nevertheless, more speed = quicker loading, downloading etc, which inevitably leads to a better experience.

4G is nothing but a waste (specifically battery) except for shortsighted tech nerds that like to have an orgasm over specs, those who think a microwave cooks things too slow, or those who tether

Big.Mac.Daddy said:

4G is nothing but a waste (specifically battery) except for shortsighted tech nerds that like to have an orgasm over specs, those who think a microwave cooks things too slow, or those who tether

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So, it's safe to assume that you're reading this site at home via dial-up then?

Big.Mac.Daddy said:

4G is nothing but a waste (specifically battery) except for shortsighted tech nerds that like to have an orgasm over specs, those who think a microwave cooks things too slow, or those who tether

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Yes, I mean I could open 4 websites with my Razr Maxx on LTE in the sane time it took my 4s on 3g to open one and I could have a high def video loaded and playing back before my 4s even loaded a quarter of it much less played it back. Who needs that crap!

Once you use LTE you understand. Until then, you're an analog clock in a digital world.

I think most Apple fans downplay things like LTE, screen size, memory expandability and the like, because the iPhone can't do these things and are therefore unneccessary.

Wirelessly posted

3G is fine, but I want ATT to strengthen the infrastructure. HSPA+ speeds in my area fluctuate, and I'd like to see some stability.

I think the highest theoretical speeds on ATT's 3G is 21mbps, but I think the 4S only supports up to 14mbps. The fastest I've gotten is around 6, but it straddles 3-4. I'd be happy with a consistent 6, just enough to stream rdio and download photos from emails.

0m3ga said:

Once you use LTE you understand. Until then, you're an analog clock in a digital world.

I think most Apple fans downplay things like LTE, screen size, memory expandability and the like, because the iPhone can't do these things and are therefore unneccessary.

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I notice that as well. I love my apple products but this is about technology. Every advance in technology is a good thing! Why downplay it? Some advances aren't so great but LTE is one of the really good ones. I don't even bother with public wifi hot spots anymore. I only use wifi at home and work. Otherwise, LTE is faster than any hotspot I've tried.

mbell1975 said:

Yes, I mean I could open 4 websites with my Razr Maxx on LTE in the sane time it took my 4s on 3g to open one and I could have a high def video loaded and playing back before my 4s even loaded a quarter of it much less played it back.

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As I said, tech nerds who like to orgasm over specs or those who think a microwave is too slow

Is this question seriously being asked??

That's like saying what's the point of dsl?? Dial up works just fine for my needs. Please... Technology is advancing! Get with the times people. Why wouldn't you want to welcome a superior network?

kfergiez said:

I guess I don't really understand 4G speed on a cell phone. I can stream all my music from Pandora without interruption on 3G, and even stream high quality movies from Netflix without interruption on 3G.

So in my mind, 4G is useful for mobile wi-fi hotspots, or for massive file downloads. Can someone explain to me why 4G is such a big deal for cell phones? Full webpages load just fine on AtomicWeb on my iPhone, I can't imagine that I would need that much more speed.

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That's because, in the United States, 3G networks really suck. In Europe, some telecom providers offer up to 28.8 Mbps over 3G networks (which results in something like 20 Mbps of real world speeds) which is really fast enough. In the US, coverage isn't always great: I have seen videos where 3G speeds in the United States are slower than EDGE speeds are here in Europe.

LTE will be great to use in the future but right now it is far from a necessity.

i have a 4S and a new ipad with 4G. Trust me the 4G is worth it.

LTE from a technical perspective is an amazing leap forward. From a carrier's point of view, moving to LTE helps them reduce costs while providing a better service.

Full overview of why LTE is cool: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LTE_(telecommunication)

Basics:

• Higher bandwidth (can transfer more data in the same frequency range)
• Lower latency
• Lower deployment cost as voice can be done over IP (so carriers don't need separate gear to do voice and data)

Also, the more users that the carriers can get on their LTE network, the carriers can they start ditching their old gear (2G and 3G) and using more of their frequency ranges for LTE (which uses the same spectrum space more efficiently).

HSPA plus is very fast. Assuming the network can handle the capacity than going to LTE is no big deal.

HSPA plus is significantly faster than CDMA.

Saying that. The key word here is capacity. LTE is a bigger pipe people can share wireless data. The true test of LTE networks will be when LTE iPhone launches.

Verizon promises LTE data speeds of around 5-12mpbs even in congested areas. Getting 30-50 mpbs is nice. But let's see how the network handles LTE iPhone traffic. That's the true test for LTE.

Right now. LTE networks are an open super highway. I get blazing LTE speeds on both AT&T (Nokia lumia 900) and Verizon (gnex and iPad) in orlando.

We have season passes to Disney in Orlando. I routinely hit 30 mpbs in middle of Disney with Verizon. Today first time I had trouble getting past 10mpbs. So more people are definitely using verizon LTE and that can slow the speeds.

AT&T 3G in Disney was slow. Less than 1mpbs today. HSPA plus cannot handle the capacity as LTE. But as you can tell. LTE speeds will slow with traffic congestion as well.