Where in Virginia Beach are you getting LTE on AT&T? When did you first get it? I live in Virginia Beach but closer to Chesapeake and I have yet to see LTE in the area.
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LTE and Microcell
- Thread starter Stayfly2407
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Where in Virginia Beach are you getting LTE on AT&T? When did you first get it? I live in Virginia Beach but closer to Chesapeake and I have yet to see LTE in the area.
adam044
macrumors 65816
Ok maybe not yours but it did for me. I dont even use it anymore. Lasted about a week before I disconnected it
George Knighton
macrumors 65816
There are pages and pages of arguments about the 3G Microcell and battery life over on the AT&T Forums.
🙂
Nobody agrees about anything, but there is some anecdotal evidence that some 3G Microcells will consume more battery.
I have no issues with mine, except of course I'd love to be able to tether on LTE that's boosted by a Microcell signal.
einmusiker
macrumors 68040
I've thought about it too but in order for a microcell to work you need to have wifi, so no real point in tethering
George Knighton
macrumors 65816
You're absolutely right, unless you're trying to confuse people for some reason or another.
😀
This is not true. A microcel plugs into a router/switch to get a internet connection. No wifi needed. However, I guess you could plug your microcell into a wireless bridge which wirelessly connection to your router. My guess it would increase lag in your conversations.
scaredpoet
macrumors 604
THe microcell isn't going to help you with this. First and foremost, microcells don't transmit LTE signals. They aren't built for it.
Why? Becuase even if it did support LTE, the data speed would *still* be only as fast as your cable modem connection. Microcells use your home internet connection to place voice calls and move data around, so it's only as fast as the slowest link... in this case, your home internet connection.
Even worse: If you use data through the microcell connection (and not Wifi), it counts against your AT&T data plan... EVEN THOUGH you are using your home internet connection. This is definitely an issue if you're on a capped plan, and could still increase your chances of throttling on a grandfathered unlimited plan.
This is why, if you're not getting a good LTE signal inside, then you still might as well use Wifi while in your house.
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I just got their new 4.0 microcell which replaced my 2.0 microcell. They no longer call it a 3G microcell because it broadcasts LTE, 4G, and 3G signals. When you're on a VoIP call, it uses LTE. When you're on a normal call, it uses 3G. The ping is improved a lot from 200 to 30.
There is NO such thing as a new 4.0 MicroCell. AT&T is still using the same old one they've been using forever now.
not unless you want VoLTE and HD voice. Wi-fi is designed for data but there are voice benefits to a LTE microcell where there are poor coverage issues. A LTE microcell is hopefully coming.
DCIFRTHS
macrumors 68000
I get the same results as both of you - better battery life when connected to my Microcell.
Nhwhazup
macrumors 68040
I have the same experience as you with the microcell tower. If I don't use the microcell tower, I have 3 bars for phone and LTE showing for data. However, when on the microcell tower, I have 5 bars for service but only 4G showing for data. I wouldn't think the data would change but it does. I'm in the same boat with you for wifi not being great. I pay extra for high speed with my internet provider and 70% of the time it's fine but the rest of the time LTE is actually quicker.
George Knighton
macrumors 65816
Has there been any change to AT&T Microcell technology since these posts, or does it work exactly the same, just with a different physical design?
Perusing the AT&T pages, I am thinking that only the design of the housing has changed.
(PS: Isn't HD Voice great!)
Perusing the AT&T pages, I am thinking that only the design of the housing has changed.
(PS: Isn't HD Voice great!)
DCIFRTHS
macrumors 68000
I notice that the built in GPS antenna works better in my situation. I had to by an external one with the white microcell, but with the black microcell, the internal antenna picks up the signal without assistance.
One functional difference that is concrete: There's no way to hook up an external GPS antenna on the new black model - they removed the connector.
Newtons Apple
Suspended
I quite using my Microcell. Disconnected it the other day and have 2-3 bars. Never had that before as it was never over 1-2, mostly 1. Must be a new tower or improvements to the existing as our phone work as good if not better without. Sound quality on callers seems much improved off the Microcell.
That is absolutely true. I'm in a rural area and can't get a usable signal inside. Have been using an AT&T Microcell since aroud 2008. About, a month ago I thought the battery was dying on my phone because it was running down much faster than usual. Then I noticed it was connecting to a one-bar LTE network instead of the microcell as usual. Rebooted the microcell and the problem went away.
George Knighton
macrumors 65816
That is exactly what I did.
In my experience the Microcell is a disadvantage if you have a solid, speedy broadband signal. You should even consider going into Airplane Mode and turning on WiFi if you have AT&T WiFi Calling, in order to guarantee HD Voice!
Even if you have 5 bars of service with the Microcell, and only one or two bars without it, the WiFi is still the better way to go.
I turned off my Microcell when we got WiFi Calling, because the Microcell does not support HD Voice.
Call quality is much, much better with HD Voice on Wifi Calling. It's amazing. People call me when they're outside walking their dogs, and I'm on their speakerphone...and it sounds like a very nice, noiseless HD call.
It's great.
Of course, HD Voice only works between two compatible devices. In my case it's one AT&T iPhone to another AT&T iPhone.
I don't know why AT&T would really want to ever give us LTE on a Microcell. The only advantage that I could think of is that I could give 15 phone numbers access to HD Voice on an LTE Microcell, phone numbers to which I did not necessarily want to give access to my Wifi network.
🙂
I was just curious how things had progressed since I disconnected my Microcell, because I noticed one of the black Microcells the other day.
I just upgraded to a 6s+ and have been meaning to try wifi calling. Was still on iOS 7 on the old phone. I think wifi calling is still a pretty new feature for AT&T, isn't it? Assuming everything works OK with wifi, I will probably get rid of the microcell.
BTW, mine isn't a black box, it's a weird white, grey and orange tower sort of thing that looks like it could have been a prop in a Star Trek episode. 😉
BTW, mine isn't a black box, it's a weird white, grey and orange tower sort of thing that looks like it could have been a prop in a Star Trek episode. 😉
I assume it does. But my concern is that the phone will struggle to use to really weak LTE signal inside my house instead of switching to wifi. With the microcell it's seamless and the phone always switches due to the much stronger signal. @George Knighton suggested switching to airplane mode above, but that would be a pain to remember every time I go in or out of the house. 😉
They is a key point. The phone decides when the LTE signal is too weak and switches to WIFI calling. The question is, how often does it keep checking for a good LTE. With Microcell there is no check per se. As long as Microcell is in range it stays with Microcell.