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My understanding is that AT&T is pretty far along in its upgrade from HPSA (3G) network to HPSA+ (faster 3G). They're doing this to maximize their existing investment in their infrastructure, and they should be able to employ LTE a little faster than Verizon has been, since LTE is a more streamlined upgrade from HPSA+. They claim that this is best for customers long-term, because when LTE (4G) coverage gives out, users can fall back on widespread HPSA+ coverage with similar performance. Whereas with Verizon, when you move out of an area with 4G coverage, you notice a HUGE drop in speed going to their ancient EV-DO technology.
 
My understanding is that AT&T is pretty far along in its upgrade from HPSA (3G) network to HPSA+ (faster 3G). They're doing this to maximize their existing investment in their infrastructure, and they should be able to employ LTE a little faster than Verizon has been, since LTE is a more streamlined upgrade from HPSA+. They claim that this is best for customers long-term, because when LTE (4G) coverage gives out, users can fall back on widespread HPSA+ coverage with similar performance. Whereas with Verizon, when you move out of an area with 4G coverage, you notice a HUGE drop in speed going to their ancient EV-DO technology.

Unless AT&T finally starts to upgrade their 2G network to HSPA or HSPA+, you're wrong. And Verizon's EV-DO network is still pretty speedy. It may be somewhat slower than AT&T's HSPA, but not as bad as people describe it in this forum.

Also, there is no difference what so ever in AT&T's deployment of LTE and Verizon's. LTE may have come from the same group that developed past GSM tech, but it is an entirely new tech and still requires new switches for both AT&T and Verizon. So no, AT&T will not be able to get LTE up faster than Verizon (except for the fact that AT&T will only cover part of their network if they continue their current pattern.)

Oh, and how is EV-DO ancient exactly? The current version is only about 2 years older than AT&T's WCDMA network.

FYI, I was getting about 500Kbps earlier today on my iPhone 4 here in Dallas. Not exactly lightning fast. Best I've ever seen is 3.12 Mbps and that was in a single test and wouldn't run that high consistently.
 
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Forgive me if these two points have been mentioned as I didn't read the whole thread, but;

From what I'm hearing, the cell chip in the iPhone is capable of working on upgraded networks. Now, I don't know what that means as far as LTE goes because I haven't bothered to research it, but I do that it's based off of 3g (long term evolution). This may render the iPhone capable of using that network with no hardware specific changes. If anything, Apple may have to offer different firmwares per carrier.

The other point though, which is the most interesting to me in that it's so important and no one ever really mentions it, is that Verizon's network doesn't multitask. How ironic that the phone which was continuously bashed for not having multitasking in the OS was one of the only phones on the market that could multitask on the network. I'm gonna go out on a hunch here and say that Apple will NOT release an iPhone on a network that doesn't allow for calling and web browsing at the same time. Especially after they've worked so hard on getting application multitasking to work the way they wanted to. Apparently, the LTE network is supposed to take care of this, but we'll have to wait and see.

Lastly, Happy New Year everyone!
 
Forgive me if these two points have been mentioned as I didn't read the whole thread, but;

From what I'm hearing, the cell chip in the iPhone is capable of working on upgraded networks. Now, I don't know what that means as far as LTE goes because I haven't bothered to research it, but I do that it's based off of 3g (long term evolution). This may render the iPhone capable of using that network with no hardware specific changes. If anything, Apple may have to offer different firmwares per carrier.

No, the chip in the iPhone will not handle LTE. LTE, while being developed by the same group the developed HSPA, is NOT the same tech and requires all new hardware.

Also, the iPhone 4 is not capable of working on upgraded networks. It does not support anything higher than HSPA (does not support HSPA+)

The other point though, which is the most interesting to me in that it's so important and no one ever really mentions it, is that Verizon's network doesn't multitask. How ironic that the phone which was continuously bashed for not having multitasking in the OS was one of the only phones on the market that could multitask on the network. I'm gonna go out on a hunch here and say that Apple will NOT release an iPhone on a network that doesn't allow for calling and web browsing at the same time. Especially after they've worked so hard on getting application multitasking to work the way they wanted to. Apparently, the LTE network is supposed to take care of this, but we'll have to wait and see.

Lastly, Happy New Year everyone!

Verizon and Apple have at least 2 solutions they could implement to enable simultaneous voice and data on CDMA.
 
No, the chip in the iPhone will not handle LTE. LTE, while being developed by the same group the developed HSPA, is NOT the same tech and requires all new hardware.

Also, the iPhone 4 is not capable of working on upgraded networks. It does not support anything higher than HSPA (does not support HSPA+)

Not saying you're correct or incorrect, just saying that the information I had been dealt doesn't support your statement.

Verizon and Apple have at least 2 solutions they could implement to enable simultaneous voice and data on CDMA.

Well, once again, supposedly LTE will allow for simultaneous voice/data.

I for one will be staying with AT&T if and when Verizon gets the iPhone. I'll also be laughing while Verizon suffers the same fate that AT&T did as millions of users hit their network at once. I don't care how "strong" Verizon's network is, I don't think they're ready for the heavy hit they're going to take.
 
Not saying you're correct or incorrect, just saying that the information I had been dealt doesn't support your statement.
I'm fairly certain that question was settled after the first teardown.

Edit: Looked around and couldn't find a datasheet on the Triquint chips. Perhpas we never really had an answer on this. But I don't see LTE as a possibility and if HSPA+ is, why is it not enabled yet??



Well, once again, supposedly LTE will allow for simultaneous voice/data.

I for one will be staying with AT&T if and when Verizon gets the iPhone. I'll also be laughing while Verizon suffers the same fate that AT&T did as millions of users hit their network at once. I don't care how "strong" Verizon's network is, I don't think they're ready for the heavy hit they're going to take.

As of now, LTE only supports data. They are working for a voice solution in the future. So any LTE phones will be LTE for data and CDMA/WCDMA for voice.

And thinking that Verizon won't be prepared is just foolish. For starters, they have the luxury that AT&T didn't have...too look at another network and how the iPhone has performed on that network. It would be like watching a guy walk off a cliff and slam into the rocks below...then just walking off after him expecting a different result. Not to mention the fact that Verizon has handled bigger data hogs in the form of laptop users for longer than AT&T anyway.
 
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I for one will be staying with AT&T if and when Verizon gets the iPhone. I'll also be laughing while Verizon suffers the same fate that AT&T did as millions of users hit their network at once. I don't care how "strong" Verizon's network is, I don't think they're ready for the heavy hit they're going to take.

The situation is completely different for VZW than it was for ATT.

Firstly AT&T was the only network provider for the iPhone, this won't be the case for VZW. Secondly AT&T was at the very initial stages of 3G deployment with only a single channel deployed on 1900mhz compared to VZW using their entire spectrum for one network set. AT&T at the time was only using (and still is for the most part) a fraction of their spectrum for 3G.

Though this is Apple's first time messing with a CDMA radio, I wonder how bad they will screw it up? lol.
 
...And thinking that Verizon won't be prepared is just foolish. For starters, they have the luxury that AT&T didn't have...too look at another network and how the iPhone has performed on that network. It would be like watching a guy walk off a cliff and slam into the rocks below...then just walking off after him expecting a different result. Not to mention the fact that Verizon has handled bigger data hogs in the form of laptop users for longer than AT&T anyway.

Call it what you want, I just don't think Verizon will expect how many people will actually switch on or close to release day.
 
Call it what you want, I just don't think Verizon will expect how many people will actually switch on or close to release day.

Because they refuse to read analysts predictions or run statistics of their own? Yeah, not buying it.

FYI, there were already reports that Verizon is testing their network and preparing it for an onslaught of iPhone users.

Also, once again I need to point out that most of AT&Ts issues revolved around their own network deficiencies and a bad WCDMA migration. Verizon has neither of those 2 issues.
 
Because they refuse to read analysts predictions or run statistics of their own? Yeah, not buying it.

FYI, there were already reports that Verizon is testing their network and preparing it for an onslaught of iPhone users.

Also, once again I need to point out that most of AT&Ts issues revolved around their own network deficiencies and a bad WCDMA migration. Verizon has neither of those 2 issues.

I'm not denying anything you're saying, because it's factual. I'm just saying that, in my honest opinion, I don't see Verizon faring much better than AT&T at the start. They can do all the preparing and testing that they want, but the only way they're really going to be able to know if they can handle it is when it happens. Seeing is believing is all I'm saying. And just to reiterate, I don't think Verizon knows just how many people will switch on or near the day of launch. AT&T's probably going to be dishing out a LOT of early termination fees.

Also, I'm banking on a lot of people leaving AT&T and getting off of their back because AT&T still really hasn't fully recovered since the iPhone's launch back in '07.
 
I actually think the numbers will be smaller because even if people say they will leave now, when it comes time to actually do it....only a portion will actually follow through.

A couple of the issues were caused by some things Apple did incorrectly in the GSM radio. It'll be interesting to see if they do well w/ the CDMA portion.
 
I actually think the numbers will be smaller because even if people say they will leave now, when it comes time to actually do it....only a portion will actually follow through.

That's a good point. Leave it to people to actually do the things they say they're going to do... but that's a different topic for a whole different forum.
 
I don't see Verizon faring much better than AT&T at the start. They can do all the preparing and testing that they want, but the only way they're really going to be able to know if they can handle it is when it happens.

Yep. Theoreticals are one thing, but the real test is when it happens

. AT&T's probably going to be dishing out a LOT of early termination fees.

Or not. After all, it isn't like you can take your phone with you to Verizon. Many people aren't going to want to spend the money on an ETF because that's the money they would use for a new phone.

That said, after all these years there are probably enough folks already on Verizon that would jump for an iphone. Enough that it could get interesting in some areas. Just like it did with ATT who thought they could handle the load.
 
I love reading this, suddenly half of the forum is a network specialist and knows what Apple will and will not do. Of course you can't forget the Verizon's network will fail just because all you specialists say so. Oh and the LTE network is only available in limited areas...gotta start somewhere.

Read somewhere about Verizon being up Samsung, HTC, Motorolas ass... What are they supposed to do, those are the suppliers of there phones? Oh and the androids releasing every month, of course because there is MORE THAN ONE COMPANY MAKING THE PHONES. Its not an exclusive operating system like iOS so more than one company can indeed make a phone that runs it.

I currently have a Samsung Rogue(dumb phone) on Verizon. I have service nearly everywhere I have been. My phone drops calls in the wind(Samsungs fault) and has many problems(Also Samsung, NOT VERIZON), this is one thing I hate about the (dumb) phones. Samsung released this phone with problems but you know what, they dropped this phone 4-5 months later and replaced it with another similar phone...did they do any updates? Yes, 1 and it fixed absolutely no problems that are widespread like the email client makes noise even when the phone is set to Vibrate/Alarm/Silent.

This is not the case for the smart phone side of things, yes the companies release them month after month but it being run on a common OS and open source these problems are not as prevalent.

One thing that still blows my mind is the $30 a month data plan...doesn't include Mobile Hotspot either which is heavily advertised on the smart phones. Also capped at 5gb, im sure a smart phone can easily eat up 5gb in a month with apps like XM Radio and other streaming. I can get to 25mb in easily 2-3 days just using mobile internet. I was hoping with AT&Ts new $15 data plan that Verizon would follow, guess not.
 
I love reading this, suddenly half of the forum is a network specialist and knows what Apple will and will not do. Of course you can't forget the Verizon's network will fail just because all you specialists say so. Oh and the LTE network is only available in limited areas...gotta start somewhere...

I actually claimed to know little to nothing technical about LTE or cell networks. I was stating what I had been told and was making opinionated judgements based on my own logic.
 
Or not. After all, it isn't like you can take your phone with you to Verizon. Many people aren't going to want to spend the money on an ETF because that's the money they would use for a new phone.

That said, after all these years there are probably enough folks already on Verizon that would jump for an iphone. Enough that it could get interesting in some areas. Just like it did with ATT who thought they could handle the load.

That's the whole point, if you can't take your phone with you, you'll just sell it. Selling an iPhone 4 right now will easily pay for the ETF and the cost of a new Verizon iPhone (assuming pricing is similar.)
 
I currently have a Samsung Rogue(dumb phone) on Verizon. I have service nearly everywhere I have been. My phone drops calls in the wind(Samsungs fault) and has many problems(Also Samsung, NOT VERIZON), this is one thing I hate about the (dumb) phones. Samsung released this phone with problems but you know what, they dropped this phone 4-5 months later and replaced it with another similar phone...did they do any updates? Yes, 1 and it fixed absolutely no problems that are widespread like the email client makes noise even when the phone is set to Vibrate/Alarm/Silent.

LOL, oh how I am not surprised!! I had a friend that has a Samsung Impression on AT&T and it has a problem with getting stuck trying to send text messages to the point where you have to reboot it. This is a huge problem with Impressions....

What did Samsung do about it?? NOTHING!!!
 
And why does no iPhone on Jan 4th mean nothing for the rest of 2011??

Indeed. THe rumors were everything from Dec 27, 2010 to when pigs fly. It is not like Apple said they would tell us something by today.

That said, I don't see it happening. Frankly I don't see Apple building a CDMA phone series. Just makes things messy. Now when LTE is mature enough that 90+% folks never have to use a CDMA fallback and the rest rarely do, maybe. When someone comes up with a GSM/CDMA/LTE tri chip that doesn't cost a small fortune, eat up battery by lunch time etc, maybe. But I really think that in terms of 2011 all this CDMA jobs etc is about the ipad, not the iphone.
 
Lte

Interesting that the original post in this thread states that it is indeed an LTE Verizon iPhone. That seems to coincide with the video of the parts that were leaked on youtube a couple days ago, showing a sim card slot on the new phone. I think I read somewhere that LTE phones require a sim card, and also, LTE is capable of simultaneous voice/data. The stars seem to be aligning.
 
Interesting that the original post in this thread states that it is indeed an LTE Verizon iPhone. That seems to coincide with the video of the parts that were leaked on youtube a couple days ago, showing a sim card slot on the new phone. I think I read somewhere that LTE phones require a sim card, and also, LTE is capable of simultaneous voice/data. The stars seem to be aligning.

lets hope. I won't be upgrading to iPhone on my VZW line until something better than the iPhone4 I have on my att line is offered.
 
Interesting that the original post in this thread states that it is indeed an LTE Verizon iPhone. That seems to coincide with the video of the parts that were leaked on youtube a couple days ago, showing a sim card slot on the new phone. I think I read somewhere that LTE phones require a sim card, and also, LTE is capable of simultaneous voice/data. The stars seem to be aligning.

The sim slot doesn't prove LTE, if anything it proves international GSM/HSPA roaming.
 
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