Wireless / Mobile > Sprint Mobile Broadband > Does Sprint 3G really cover Central Louisiana?

Does Sprint 3G really cover Central Louisiana?

Sprint's coverage map is mostly accurate from my experience but you can look at www.sprint.com/network and it shows the towers in the area and if any will be upgraded or have been. Longest range on a tower is about 3mi on any carrier and mostly less depending on the technology

Well, the nearest AT&T tower appears to be over 10 miles from me but I still get coverage.
I used that page and it didn't list any sprint towers in my area. There are some in and around a town that is an hour drive from where I live.

I wish I could do some testing first to find out if I can even get the 3g signal out here. I know Sprint claims I should have 3g coverage, but I'm skeptical.

You do have 14 days to return it without an etf or anything. I'm just saying from my experience having been to alot of different places that sprint's coverage map is pretty accurate. There's always variables that cause them all to be better or worse than the coverage map

Thanks, Bob. You haven't ever been to Guam have you?
I knew someone named Bob Johnson in Guam.

So, is it safe to assume that I will at least get some coverage in my area if the map says I will? Just perhaps not as strong a signal as the map might claim?

I forgot to specify that AT&T is my current cell phone carrier and even though there is a tower nearby, we don't get 3G coverage. But I'm hoping Sprint has better signal because I desperately want a new ISP. My Hughesnet satellite is getting exponentially worse and their customer service is a joke.

No. Never been to Guam lol. But yeah if they say they have coverage there they most likely do. If the map shows 3g coverage it most likely will be 3g. I look at the sprint direct connect map more than anything else (not the Nextel one). Unless you are on the very fringe of that map then you will most likely have evdo signal where you're at

Do you have a link to the direct connect map?

I know that I am close to the fringe and I'm in the middle of the woods.

Ok. The Direct Connect one is identical to the 3G Sprint coverage map except for the color.

What is Nextel btw? I saw that it shows a different pattern for Nextel 3G.

And would the Sprint "Voice" map give any indication of coverage?

When I click "Voice" I am in the "fair" coverage area.

(the pin indicates the nearest town, the A indicates my general location)

Sprint 3G coverage -> »26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lvjzp···_500.jpg

Nextel 3G coverage -> »27.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lvjzr···_500.jpg

Sprint Voice coverage -> »26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lvjzv···_500.jpg

The direct connect map being the same as the 3g map is a good thing. Nextel is the walkie-talkie service that sprint bought a few years back that has nothing to do with sprint or their service as far as what you're looking for. Your coverage showing fair means you will get signal but it wont be full signal (as in all signal bars) but in my opinion it should work fine.

Oh! Nextel with the annoying beeps in the commercials. Now I remember!

Hmm.. Is the voice coverage the same as the 3g coverage though?

I get "moderate" AT&T signal but can't load webpages out here on my brother's iPhone.

If my coverage is "fair" I will likely need something to boost my signal.

Thanks!

So long as my speeds are better than what I'm getting now-- which is around 100 to 200k down on a good day and over 1000ms latency-- and I don't lose signal every time a bee sneezes, I think it will work out for me.

I'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of my modem.

I forgot to ask: Once I have a modem, is it possible for me to check for the sprint signal to see how strong it is without actually connecting to it (just to find out what sort of signal I get) prior to signing up with a service?

Excellent. Thank you very much!

Update: Received the modem today. We set it in a north window on a USB extender and tested signal. We got 5 bars. That is more than I expected out here. I hope that the it means the signal is strong. Since we get that many bars just from a window I don't think we will even need antennas or anything, but I could be wrong.

Now we just have to order the router (we wanted to make sure we had signal before we ordered it). Then we will just need to get the all clear from Millenicom and we can tell Hughesnet to take a hike.