T-Mobile Rolls Out 4x4 MIMO for Faster LTE Speeds

[MacRumors]

T-Mobile announced today it has recently implemented 4x4 MIMO in 319 cities across the United States, effectively doubling the number of data paths between the network's cell towers and compatible smartphones.

The carrier has also launched 256 QAM for downloads and 64 QAM for uploads across half of its network, with a nationwide rollout to be completed by the end of October. These new quadrature amplitude modulation technologies increase the number of bits delivered per transmission for even faster LTE speeds. Combined with 4x4 MIMO, 256 QAM delivers theoretical download speeds up to 400 Mbps.

Meanwhile, T-Mobile said it now covers nearly 312 million customers in the United States, bringing it to within 99.7% of Verizon's coverage.

Qualcomm's X12 modem, an appropriate candidate for iPhone 7, supports 4x4 MIMO, so it is possible that some models could benefit from the technology. However, Apple is expected to use Intel's XMM 7360 LTE modem for a portion of iPhone 7 models, including AT&T models, and 4x4 MIMO is not an advertised feature of that chipset. iPhone 6s and older models do not support 4x4 MIMO.

T-Mobile customers with Samsung's Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge will be covered by 4x4 MIMO following a software update later this month.

Article Link: T-Mobile Rolls Out 4x4 MIMO for Faster LTE Speeds

 

[BeyondtheTech]

No wonder T-Mobile was blowing out 6s and 6s Plus upgrades for $100. They'll never be able to make use of this new feature.

 

[locoboi187]

T-Mobile is covering 312million customers in the US but there are 324million people in the US??? Can someone explain this to me? How much are the other carriers covering then?

 

[SuperCachetes]

T-Mobile is covering 312million customers in the US but there are 324million people in the US??? Can someone explain this to me? How much are the other carriers covering then?

"Covered" means able to access T-Mobile's signal, not subscribing to their service.

 

[lampwins]

I hope T-Mobile isn't running their network on Ubiquity technology...

 

[Return Zero]

I had T-mobile service on my iPad for a while. I experienced great speed, bad coverage, and worse customer service. I hear their customer service has gotten better, but I can't consider switching back until they get better coverage, specifically in rural areas. I travel the hills a lot for work and it's either Verizon or AT&T most of the time out there.

 

[oneMadRssn]

400 Mbps seems like overkill for streaming 480p video...

 

[barkomatic]

I think T-Mobile is being liberal with the word "covered". There is full coverage indicated in the area where my mother lives, yet you can only get a very weak signal to make calls and send texts if you are outside. Data coverage is almost nonexistent.

 

[infiniteentropy]

Switched to T-Mobile 3 months ago. Am back on Verizon. While in town in the metro area, the coverage was good (though it often dropped to 3G inside buildings, but whatever I could deal with that). When I got out of town and into the suburbs and, God forbid, the rural areas, the coverage failed horrifically.

All this said, I hope they can get it together. They seem to be trying to do the right things. I just wish they could get their coverage area increased. And yeah their customer service was abysmal. I was told by the in-store reps that if I called with a "no-coverage report" that I'd get some kind of concern or something. Instead I got, "Oh that zip code shows as covered. You should be good." Wrong answer. At least with Verizon I can get on the network when I go visit my parents.

 

[SoundChaos]

I think T-Mobile is being liberal with the word "covered". There is full coverage indicated in the area where my mother lives, yet you can only get a very weak signal to make calls and send texts if you are outside. Data coverage is almost nonexistent.

This.

Sprint, T-Mobile, and all the other non-Verizon / ATT carriers in the US keep making these outrageous "within 1%" claims, but they do not let you know that the coverage is 1 bar of minimal cell service with no data in places where verizon will get you decent data speeds and perfect reception. T-Mobile is not an option for a much larger portion of people than they will have you believe.

 

[MrXiro]

Switched to T-Mobile 3 months ago. Am back on Verizon. While in town in the metro area, the coverage was good (though it often dropped to 3G inside buildings, but whatever I could deal with that). When I got out of town and into the suburbs and, God forbid, the rural areas, the coverage failed horrifically.

All this said, I hope they can get it together. They seem to be trying to do the right things. I just wish they could get their coverage area increased. And yeah their customer service was abysmal. I was told by the in-store reps that if I called with a "no-coverage report" that I'd get some kind of concern or something. Instead I got, "Oh that zip code shows as covered. You should be good." Wrong answer. At least with Verizon I can get on the network when I go visit my parents.

Or you can just stop visiting your parents like I have.

 

[macduke]

Verizon is just barely holding on to me as a customer at this point, mostly because of cost. They have great customer service, they hooked me up with 24GB of data for really cheap, and their coverage is great. But T-Mobile beats them on price by quite a bit. However, T-Mobile coverage still needs to improve. It doesn't matter if you're covering 99% or whatever of the population, when most of the people live in big cities. It's covering the places in-between that matters. This is especially true in the midwest. We're often visiting different family members within a one-state distance or going on trips to national/state parks, zoos, etc with the kids, and coverage out in the sticks is crucial. Sometimes you have to go a bit out of the way to make connections between different highways. Verizon is always solid.

 

[britboyj]

I have T-Mobile in Dallas, and switched after Verizon said "No, we won't let you buy an iPhone 6 because you're one week shy of some ********." I even did the T-Mobile test drive and periodically did tests with my Verizon iPhone 5S and the T-Mobile 5S.

Without exception, T-Mobile had a faster SpeedTest score and general "real life" perception of speed, EVEN IF it had less bars. Hell, T-Mobile's 4G was faster than Verizon's LTE a number of times I tested it. Their customer service has been exceptional, but I will caveat and say that their reception inside large buildings is... Less good. Good thing I rarely make any actual phone calls.

Not to mention T-Mobile let me use data while on a call... (Not sure if Verizon has joined the 21st Century yet)

 

[dominiongamma]

400 Mbps seems like overkill for streaming 480p video...

I have unlimited HD and grandfathered. This would be great for me

 

[freepomme]

I just love how John Legere keeps rubbing y'alls face, RIGHT IN IT!

His network is always ahead of the game!

Every chance he gets, he's telling you "I TOLD YOU SO"

And with this new announcement he's taking it and sitting it right in their lap!

Verizon, AT&T and Sprint are all talk, no action. T-Mobile, they don't have to go back and forth, they just take it and sit it RIGHT IN YOUR LAP.

 

[ethanwa79]

I have AT&T and have had it for probably 15 years now (when it was Cingular, and even before when it was AT&T Wireless). Although the price is high, you get what you pay for. I've had great speeds and coverage pretty much my entire 15 years (as expected as things have improved with time) in both western Washington State, where I used to live, and now central Florida. I also had great coverage almost the entire drive from WA to FL during our move across the middle of the country.

The reason I pay more is because I want good indoor and outdoor coverage everywhere, with fast data speeds. AT&T has given me that and I won't be switching any time soon just to save a few bucks and get frustrated more often.

 

[Terrinb]

This.

Sprint, T-Mobile, and all the other non-Verizon / ATT carriers in the US keep making these outrageous "within 1%" claims, but they do not let you know that the coverage is 1 bar of minimal cell service with no data in places where verizon will get you decent data speeds and perfect reception. T-Mobile is not an option for a much larger portion of people than they will have you believe.

Maybe you are right, but I've had T-Mobile for over ten years and travel a lot. In the few instances T-Mobile didn't have coverage (far into the country), I just rode on another network. No roaming cost, what's the big deal?

To each their own, but in Michigan where I live T-Mobile works great.

 

[technopimp]

I have been with T-Mobile (ahem, Harbor Mobile) for a year and a half. I love the speed and the price, and it works great WHERE it works. Where it doesn't is starting to be an issue (that is to say, basically inside any building larger than a McDonalds). Getting hard to deal with going inside a store/theater/mall/restaurant/etc and being able to get one bar on Edge if I'm lucky, or "no service" if I'm not.

 

[jblagden]

400 Mbps seems like overkill for streaming 480p video...

It’s probably just overprovisioning for extra users.

 

[RadioGaGa1984]

If you don't like T-Mobile don't use them. I moved from ATT 3 years ago after being with them through all the changes from about 1997. Couldn't be happier. Faster and better coverage for me at half the cost. And today lunch is on T-Mobile. Couldn't be happier.

 

[ipadoxca]

So iPhone 6s doesn't support this does it

T-Mobile announced today it has recently implemented 4x4 MIMO in 319 cities across the United States, effectively doubling the number of data paths between the network's cell towers and compatible smartphones.

The carrier has also launched 256 QAM for downloads and 64 QAM for uploads across half of its network, with a nationwide rollout to be completed by the end of October. These new quadrature amplitude modulation technologies increase the number of bits delivered per transmission for even faster LTE speeds. Combined with 4x4 MIMO, 256 QAM delivers theoretical download speeds up to 400 Mbps.

Meanwhile, T-Mobile said it now covers nearly 312 million customers in the United States, bringing it to within 99.7% of Verizon's coverage.

Qualcomm's X12 modem, an appropriate candidate for iPhone 7, supports 4x4 MIMO, so it is possible that some models could benefit from the technology. However, Apple is expected to use Intel's XMM 7360 LTE modem for a portion of iPhone 7 models, including AT&T models, and 4x4 MIMO is not an advertised feature of that chipset. iPhone 6s and older models do not support 4x4 MIMO.

T-Mobile customers with Samsung's Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge will be covered by 4x4 MIMO following a software update later this month.

Article Link: T-Mobile Rolls Out 4x4 MIMO for Faster LTE Speeds

 

[Dirtydutch]

Yea anybody talking T-Mobile into the ground most likely don't currently use them or see how well they've progressed. There speed we all know is possibly the fastest and to really have little to no coverage with them now is not nearly as frequent, if at all.

 

[cmwade77]

I hope T-Mobile isn't running their network on Ubiquity technology...

Why is that? Honestly, everything I have read says they are very good and we are looking at them as an option for our Wifi, so I would really like to know.
[doublepost=1473180790][/doublepost]Honestly, we just got back from a trip from So. Cal to Southern Utah and I have AT&T through work, my wife has T-Mobile and she had coverage more times than I did and most of the time more bars than I did.

 

[Zulithe]

I'm really happy with the LTE speed on my 6S+ on TMobile, so if the 7 doesn't have this new capability, it's not going to impact me one bit. I think today's LTE is already incredibly fast for all of my needs. More speed is good, but it is in no way a selling point for me right now. We need higher bandwidth caps, not higher speeds.

 

[Howyalikdemapls]

Fingers crossed the Apple uses the X12 or another modem that is capable of this.

I recently switched to T-Mobile and my coverage is terrible! It would be a welcome improvement if things load a little faster before I lose signal.

I don't think Apple typically discloses these things though, do they? Will we have to wait for a breakdown before we know what kind of modem it has?