UK to Shut Down 2G and 3G Networks by 2033

[jlc1978]

Sadly it will render some older connected car's features inoperable as well. Not that many people keep a car for more than 10 years anymore these days. Well besides me .

You bring up a interesting issue. I have a 1985 car that is still quite usable. Some parts are hard to find, such as trim, but otherwise I can service it when needed. Enter new vehicles that are becoming more connected. Unless the electronics are designed for upgrading, you could well wind up with a car that is not repairable once it can no longer connect to the network. For example, some cars currently require you reset stored values after service, and currently use the OBDC connection. If manufacturers decide to use cloud based diagnostics and not add a diagnostic port or wifi/bluetooth car owners will be at the mercy of mobile operators.

 

[CoMoMacUser]

2033?? Who still has hardware they are using from that era?

Utility companies are one example. Lots of them are running CDMA in the 450 MHz band: http://450alliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/WhitePaper_450MHz_Band_Ecosystem.pdf Others are using GSM/GPRS: https://www.telit.com/press-release...pean-demand-for-gsm-gprs-compact-form-factors.

Some of those networks are public and others are private. Either way, they have too many IoT devices to shut down before the end of the decade. Plus, those elderly technologies have had decades to ride down the cost curve, so their modules are ideal for highly price-sensitive applications such as utility meter reading.

 

[jamesjingyi]

See this sounds great but currently in Leeds the advice from networks is to switch back to 3G (which you can’t do on 5G iPhones) because the 4 and 5G signal, coverage and speeds is so poor (due to bad placements of the masts). These need to be fixed before they turn off 3G.

 

[Runequester]

Meanwhile rural towns in the US are like "2G?? Thatd be a great upgrade!"

 

[DougieS]

4G is affected by wind and 3G is not? Unless it's somehow moving trees to block your signal that's not how it works. Also most 3G masts and the accompanying spectrum will be replaced with 4G/5G equipment.

It seems to be, at least in lower signal 4G areas. Maybe 3G is affected but less so, I at least can use the internet on 3G at those times.

What will happen is that the frequencies used for 2G/3G will be used for 4G/5G and so you should still have a signal. The issue of wind etc. is more likely associated with the actual frequency being used rather than the technology.

Yeah I was thinking it was down to the frequency, hopefully this does improve 4G/5G.

exactly, i think many people don't know that 3G can be faster than 4G and 4G can be faster than 5G (and many times actually is), that little symbol on your phone does not guarantee you any speed, it does however guarantee higher battery drain

not only that newer technologies are more energy demanding, poor reception comsumes more battery too

in some countries 3G was totally fast enough for everyday use, few months ago my carrier switched on 5G in my current city which on iphone automatically removes an option for you to choose 3G for the apple reason... and suddenly i was not able to get through the day with my at the time 12pro. 3G - 4/4 perfect reception, 4G - 2-3 bars indoors = poor battery life

Yup, I switch to 3G when in need to preserve battery. Also, wasn’t aware apple removed the 3G toggle where 5G is available as someone else mentioned.
That’s going to be annoying in short term future

 

[Chris298]

Little did they know that 5G speeds would be slower than 3G with all the network congested towers

 

[james2538]

RIP 3G. So many memories. I remember when 3G was a big thing and dominated the world.

Way ahead of its time. Anyone remembers this.

Oh back when I used to stand in line waiting for the release of the new iPhone, going back and forth between getting white or black.

3G was a game changer. The mobile internet actually became useful beyond just text based websites.

 

[justperry]

What about smart meters or don't they have smart (electricity) meters in the UK, they mostly work on 2/3G.



Seems like @ACDeag already provided answers.

There are 24 million smart energy meters using 2G/3G that have to be replaced before they can switch them off

 

[Wanted797]

You guys still have 2G??

Australia killed that years ago.

 

[Wanted797]

What about smart meters or don't they have smart (electricity) meters in the UK, they mostly work on 2/3G.



Seems like @ACDeag already provided answers.

They all get upgraded.

 

[Amazing Iceman]

In 12 years we would probably be in 9G or so, and nobody would care for 3G anymore.

 

[TiggrToo]

Sadly it will render some older connected car's features inoperable as well. Not that many people keep a car for more than 10 years anymore these days. Well besides me .

20 years for me. Sadly my OnStar was taken out when the Analog networks were taken offline a few years after purchase…

 

[ssmed]

why not now 4g and 5g is enough why wait over 10 years

In many places there is poor or no 4G coverage and 5G coverage is non-existent out of the large cities. It is pretty scandalous that are large numbers of rural communities without event broadband and pretty awful phone coverage in many places. In the UK carrier roaming is not common so you are bound to one provider and this means what might be suitable in one area is just awful elsewhere. They need to fix what they have before closing down anything.

 

[baryon]

2033?? Who still has hardware they are using from that era?

When it comes to consumer devices, probably no one. But a lot of non-consumer tech currently in use uses 3G and is designed to operate for another 10 or so years. Think public transport announcement and information systems, road-side infrastructures, stuff built into some modern cars, etc...

 

[CoMoMacUser]

In 12 years we would probably be in 9G or so, and nobody would care for 3G anymore.

More like 6G. High-level discussions about 6G capabilities are still in early stages. Like 5G, 6G will use new spectrum, including in the THz range. It will take time for regulators to earmark and license that. There are also some complicated use cases, such as LEO satellite interworking. It will take a few more years for 3GPP to get into the nitty gritty of turning that wish list into the initial 6G standard. So commercial 6G network launches probably won't be until late this decade. When that happens, the industry will start pondering what 7G should be like.

 

[baryon]

Not that many people keep a car for more than 10 years anymore these days.

Actually most people do. The average age of cars is Europe is 10.7 years. Remove the rich countries and you easily get 15 to 17 years. And average age doesn't mean "the average age at which people get rid of their car". It means "the average age that they are at currently". So a car people bought 10 years ago is very likely to still be (barely) rolling around in 10 years.

 

[Kar98]

why not now 4g and 5g is enough why wait over 10 years

Because there’s a ton of devices other than phones in peoples pockets that use that service.

 

[Jetscreamer]

Just who will hang on to their 2G/3G phone for 12 more years anyway? That’s like still using the ‘07 iPhone on today’s network. This is for legacy devices from enterprise users who are too cheap to upgrade.

 

[rizzo41999]

3G is a lot bigger than the phones in our pocket. Total infrastructure change.

 

[Kar98]

Even in Denver there are locations in the city with nothing but voice.

Denver is the only city in the world where I ever got "all circuits are busy!" when trying to dial a number on my cellphone.

 

[CoMoMacUser]

Just who will hang on to their 2G/3G phone for 12 more years anyway?

They'll make a comeback with hipsters and hypebeasts. That's when my Motorola Ultra Classic with the backscratcher antenna will come out of storage.

 

[jagolden]

Unfortunately, it leaves people who have home medical machines which communicate with the doctors SOL. Typically shortsighted.
The alternatives for those people are expensive machine upgrades or long physical options like sending flash cards through the mail. That drastically slows doctors receiving the needed information and mean adjustments can’t be done OTA.

 

[ASentientBot]

In Ontario, we will have 3G until 2025. Given that my iPhone 4S was made in 2014, this seems like a fair balance between forward progress and reducing ewaste. I'd like a few more years, but can't really complain about getting a decade of usability (and I suspect I'll want to upgrade by then anyways).

 

[glsillygili]

I wish they shut them off in the US in 2033 instead of 5 years ago

 

[MacBH928]

Shouldn't they keep 2G since it reaches the furthest away and would be very helpful for people in more rural areas to make calls in emergencies?

RIP 3G. So many memories. I remember when 3G was a big thing and dominated the world.

Way ahead of its time. Anyone remembers this.

the new iphone is half the price? those were the days!