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First T-Mobile LTE Speed Tests Pop Up
As Launches in Las Vegas, Kansas City Very Close
T-Mobile's shiny new LTE network is expected to go live in Las Vegas any day now, and some users over at the XDA Developers website have posted the first speed tests we've seen. The speedtests show about 10 Mbps downstream and 5 Mbps up via a Wichita, Kansas server in a 5x5MHz config. T-Mobile's LTE network is supposed to go live in Las Vegas any day now, with Kansas City expected to be the next market online after that. An insider familiar with T-Mobile's deployment plans states that a lot of sites are ready and a flood of launch markets should be arriving in quick succession as T-Mobile starts nipping at Sprint's heels.
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silbaco
Premium Member
join:2009-08-03
USA

silbaco

Premium Member

Slow....

That's slower than their existing network is it not? What's the point?
johnnn
join:2007-01-25
Ann Arbor, MI

johnnn

Member

Re: Slow....

In that market, that's all the spectrum they can spare right at launch. The point of launching it at all in those markets is to take strain off of HSPA+ on PCS 1900MHz when they start seeing traffic from iPhone 5 (not to mention way better latency numbers and higher upload speeds).

As people migrate to LTE, they will start turning down their HSPA+ deployment, transferring 5x5MHz spectrum blocks over to LTE operation (since with LTE Rel. 10 the channels don't have to be contiguous).

It's a nerd thing.
tired_runner
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25
CT

tired_runner

Premium Member

Re: Slow....

I think you meant HSPA 1700 MHz. T-Mobile operates GSM on 1900 MHz in the US.

Edit: never mind. They operate on both

Mobile country codes
ssavoy
Premium Member
join:2007-08-16
Dallas, PA

ssavoy

Premium Member

Re: Slow....

Have you been following the refarm at all? They're adding HSPA+ on 1900MHz.
tired_runner
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25
CT

tired_runner

Premium Member

Re: Slow....

I guess you mean replacing? I don't think you can operate GSM and HSPA on the same band, can you?

I'm not happy that they're refarming 1700 MHz UTMS to LTE. That will make my phone EDGE-only with the prepaid MVNO I'm using now.
ssavoy
Premium Member
join:2007-08-16
Dallas, PA

ssavoy

Premium Member

Re: Slow....

I believe they are giving less bandwidth to EDGE to make room for 1900MHz HSPA+. EDGE isn't going away completely in those areas. I didn't think all of their phones supported PCS 3G so I assumed they were just adding another band rather than replacing.
tired_runner
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25
CT
·Frontier FiberOp..

tired_runner

Premium Member

Re: Slow....

The HTC Sensation I'm using does PCS 3G on 900, 1700 and 2100, and EDGE on 850, 900, 1800 and 1900.

Looking at that wiki document again, it looks like you can operate GSM and UTMS on the same band. It seems they're doing it already in certain parts of the country.

I guess they're getting rid of GSM all together. Interesting.....

I need to read up more on how that works. I always thought the only way T-Mobile could offer simultaneous voice and data on a handset is by using GSM to place/receive calls and UTMS for data.
Cobra11M
join:2010-12-23
Mineral Wells, TX

Cobra11M

Member

Re: Slow....

sounds like to me, voice calls over data (VOIP).. something Metro PCS has already pretty much finished rolling out..

kinda weird but then again could be better for T-Mobile in the long haul... also I wish my iPhone 4s would pick up more than GPRS!!!! just gotta wait for the reframing to be finished.. prob gonna be after metro gets bought out here in town lol

CCNnorthcali
join:2004-03-07
San Francisco, CA

CCNnorthcali to tired_runner

Member

to tired_runner
T-Mobile are actually not getting rid of GSM, they're just reducing the amount of space allocated to it. The new Ericsson Air equipment they are using on the towers allow 1900 GSM+HSPA and 1700/2100 HSPA+LTE all from the same panel. This also allows the towers to do some serious load balancing between between the frequencies as well. Pretty amazing when you think about it and a much more integrated approach than AT&T or Verizon are taking.

So don't worry, all that AWS HSPA+ and PCS GSM coverage isn't going away anytime soon. The worst that is happening is in some markets they are reducing it from HSPA+42 (Dual Channel) to HSPA+21 (Single Channel) in order to fit LTE in the amount of spectrum available in those specific markets.

djdanska
Rudie32
Premium Member
join:2001-04-21
San Diego, CA

djdanska to tired_runner

Premium Member

to tired_runner
said by tired_runner:

The HTC Sensation I'm using does PCS 3G on 900, 1700 and 2100, and EDGE on 850, 900, 1800 and 1900.

Looking at that wiki document again, it looks like you can operate GSM and UTMS on the same band. It seems they're doing it already in certain parts of the country.

I guess they're getting rid of GSM all together. Interesting.....

I need to read up more on how that works. I always thought the only way T-Mobile could offer simultaneous voice and data on a handset is by using GSM to place/receive calls and UTMS for data.

umts/hspa has always had the ability for calling & data at the same time. No 2g network technically needed and T-Mobile does have some he hspa only areas.

bobjohnson
Premium Member
join:2007-02-03
Spartanburg, SC

bobjohnson to tired_runner

Premium Member

to tired_runner
We had this discussion in an old thread. They are gonna be running all the technologies until at least 2015.

»my phone now worthless?

djdanska
Rudie32
Premium Member
join:2001-04-21
San Diego, CA

djdanska to tired_runner

Premium Member

to tired_runner
said by tired_runner:

I guess you mean replacing? I don't think you can operate GSM and HSPA on the same band, can you?

I'm not happy that they're refarming 1700 MHz UTMS to LTE. That will make my phone EDGE-only with the prepaid MVNO I'm using now.

in a few years maybe. No loss of aws hspa coverage.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx to silbaco

Member

to silbaco
Was going to say the same thing...

My guess is that they will move to 10x10 LTE within a month or two of launch, so speeds will end up faster than their competitors, on average

For now though, the only plus of LTE is higher upload speeds and less spectrum usage...single channel HSPA+ is slower these days and DC-H+, while faster on the downlink, uses twice the spectrum.

I find it entertaining though that, for all their bluster, TMo LTE is slower than Sprint LTE in KC, for now.

nycnetwork
join:2000-11-12
Brooklyn, NY

nycnetwork

Member

Re: Slow....

They can't move to 2x10Mhz in Kansas since they own a total of 20Mhz of AWS spectrum. 10Mhz for now has to stay for HSPA+21 as some older T-Mo handsets don't have support for 1900Mhz WCDMA.
They'll have to run 5Mhz FDD-LTE for a while in Kansas.

I'd love to see what are they gonna do in Vegas since that's a 30Mhz AWS market. They could either run 2x5Mhz LTE and keep HSPA+42 in the AWS, or scale down to HSPA+21 and deploy 2x10Mhz LTE.

It'd be nice to see first reports from Vegas.
Cobra11M
join:2010-12-23
Mineral Wells, TX

Cobra11M

Member

Re: Slow....

id love to see what they do after the merger.. that would give them more spectrum in Cal, and Dallas area's

whfsdude
Premium Member
join:2003-04-05
Washington, DC

whfsdude to iansltx

Premium Member

to iansltx
said by iansltx:

For now though, the only plus of LTE is higher upload speeds and less spectrum usage...single channel HSPA+ is slower these days and DC-H+, while faster on the downlink, uses twice the spectrum.

Dual stack IPv4/IPv6 rather than a v6 only PDP context (which T-Mo is limited to on the UMTS side). Also fewer hacks on the network side of things (Eg. proxies).

michieru
Premium Member
join:2009-07-25
Denver, CO

michieru to silbaco

Premium Member

to silbaco
Spectral efficiency and coverage first. Speeds later.
decifal7
join:2007-03-10
Bon Aqua, TN

decifal7

Member

Re: Slow....

Yeah, for real, whats the point of 10mbps access if very few ever actually qualify for service availability... Its always faster faster faster, never coverage coverage coverage.. True coverage, not the partnership voice only deals that t mobile claims in their footprint..
Cobra11M
join:2010-12-23
Mineral Wells, TX

Cobra11M

Member

Re: Slow....

Coverage is one thing I don't think T-Mobile its self can get a hold of.. the certain spectrum like that of what Verizon just sold to AT&T would be extremely good for T-Mobile cause it covers almost all of the usa.. its had now days to get a spectrum license like that..

T-Mobile is in test drive mode.. They might be wanting to see how people will take up their iPhones and service offerings first.. then deutsche telecom may come right in with more money and fix coverage issues.. but as it stands they don't want to spend billions more until they know they can make their money back..

mech1164
I'll Be Back
join:2001-11-19
Lodi, NJ

mech1164

Member

Bam

When you consider that the Wichita setup was more than likely a test cell. You really can't say how fast Tmo's LTE will be. Now hearing that they have preloaded many sites with LTE before the announcement. Can only mean that Sprint will be in an even bigger world of hurt. When they do annonce and the speeds are faster all the carriers are going to have a conniption. Boy I can't wait to see that.
Cobra11M
join:2010-12-23
Mineral Wells, TX

Cobra11M

Member

Re: Bam

said by mech1164:

When you consider that the Wichita setup was more than likely a test cell. You really can't say how fast Tmo's LTE will be. Now hearing that they have preloaded many sites with LTE before the announcement. Can only mean that Sprint will be in an even bigger world of hurt. When they do annonce and the speeds are faster all the carriers are going to have a conniption. Boy I can't wait to see that.

Sprint will have some serious competition from T-Mobile most if not all will agree on this.. Problems will still plague T-Mobile thought.. such as coverage.. but their network is likely able to handle more than that of sprint's in some areas.. and lets not forget Sprint network is already bogged down like crazy.. last time I saw 3G on their network it looked like EDGE or GPRS speeds...

mech1164
I'll Be Back
join:2001-11-19
Lodi, NJ

mech1164

Member

Re: Bam

said by Cobra11M:

said by mech1164:

When you consider that the Wichita setup was more than likely a test cell. You really can't say how fast Tmo's LTE will be. Now hearing that they have preloaded many sites with LTE before the announcement. Can only mean that Sprint will be in an even bigger world of hurt. When they do annonce and the speeds are faster all the carriers are going to have a conniption. Boy I can't wait to see that.

Sprint will have some serious competition from T-Mobile most if not all will agree on this.. Problems will still plague T-Mobile thought.. such as coverage.. but their network is likely able to handle more than that of sprint's in some areas.. and lets not forget Sprint network is already bogged down like crazy.. last time I saw 3G on their network it looked like EDGE or GPRS speeds...

Agreed on Sprints 3G speed. I was with them until last May when I got the new EvoLTE. Lost good wimax and the signal did more back flips then a russian gymnast.

That's when I went back to Tmo and even though my Gnex is only HSPA21. It's still a darn sight faster than Sprint.
Cobra11M
join:2010-12-23
Mineral Wells, TX

Cobra11M

Member

Re: Bam

haha yeah, That's why I haven't went to sprint.. I just recently signed up with T-Mobile.. even though im using a unlocked 4s and only running gprs speeds im content at the moment.. surprisingly its not as slow as I figured.. somethings take for ever but hopefully the reframing will happen in my area soon then I wont have a prob

MovieLover76
join:2009-09-11
Cherry Hill, NJ

MovieLover76 to mech1164

Member

to mech1164
I agree, this is an initial test or something 5x5 should provide better speeds than this, Sprint's 5x5 deployments do.
They may still need to work on backhaul or something.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT

BiggA

Premium Member

Bad day on AT&T

Wow... That's a bad day on AT&T LTE. In some lower density areas, I get over 50mbps...

nycnetwork
join:2000-11-12
Brooklyn, NY

nycnetwork

Member

Re: Bad day on AT&T

Sure, but in AT&T's 5Mhz LTE markets like Chicago, LA, Miami, Oklahoma, Raleigh, etc, speeds are much slower than their HSPA+ network.

Point is you shouldn't be comparing 10Mhz AT&T markets to a 5Mhz T-Mobile test market.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT

BiggA

Premium Member

Re: Bad day on AT&T

We'll see. Not looking good for T-Mo.

jsemon
@optonline.net

jsemon

Anon

T-mobile LTE will be better than this...

T-mobile has always been big on speed. I'm sure that this isn't the speed that their LTE will be and 95% of the time, these reports are based off of a single user's experience...

I was in Chicago in December, where T-Mobile's HSPA 1900 is all over the place, and my iPhone 4s & my wife's 4s constantly got 12+ down. I used my 2GB of data in 2 days, tethering. Much faster than AT&T's HSPA 1900... Unfortunately, it's only in certain parts of the area I live in, but building out fairly rapidly.

I have seen the AT&T speeds of 50+ Mbps, but only at launch. I haven't seen them much recently. It has slowed down to ~20 (still not bad for mobile data). Hopefully T-mobile will show AT&T up!

ilikeme
Premium Member
join:2002-08-27
Stafford, TX

ilikeme

Premium Member

Re: T-mobile LTE will be better than this...

said by jsemon :

T-mobile has always been big on speed. I'm sure that this isn't the speed that their LTE will be and 95% of the time, these reports are based off of a single user's experience...

I was in Chicago in December, where T-Mobile's HSPA 1900 is all over the place, and my iPhone 4s & my wife's 4s constantly got 12+ down. I used my 2GB of data in 2 days, tethering. Much faster than AT&T's HSPA 1900... Unfortunately, it's only in certain parts of the area I live in, but building out fairly rapidly.

I have seen the AT&T speeds of 50+ Mbps, but only at launch. I haven't seen them much recently. It has slowed down to ~20 (still not bad for mobile data). Hopefully T-mobile will show AT&T up!

I see AT&T LTE speeds of 50+ on a pretty regular basis here in Dallas and in Houston. T-Mobile sucks here.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

On another, related topic...

T-Mobile HSPA+ in PCS works pretty darned well...where it's available. I swapped my data stick's SIM for a microSIM (with adapter) today so I could use T-Mobile with my (VZW LTE) iPad. Where T-Mobile has rolled out PCS HSPA+ here in Austin, speeds are solid (10+ Mbps down, 2-4 Mbps up). However there are areas where you can notice the fact that T-Mobile's H+ rollout in PCS isn't quite complete...and there are additional areas where my iPad would drop down to 70 kbps EDGE.

Ironically, one of those areas (the Chuy's at 183 and Duval) was the home of a very strong Sprint LTE signal, which of course eclipsed anything I can get on the iPad...on the download side anyway...from Verizon or T-Mobile these days (I've seen 35 Mbps on my iPad over VZW LTE before, but not recently).

Ipad tmo
@tmodns.net

Ipad tmo

Anon

Speeds

I have had my iPad on tmobile since September here in Seattle area. Just before the refarm began here, and every place I get 3G is exciting and I pretty much have it my whole commute which is 40 miles north of Seattle! My 3G speeds in Seattle are about 10mbps and when I leave heading north about Lynwood, Everett area I get anywhere from 12-20mbps depending on the time of day! So far better speeds than it was on att hspa+. Sadly lte for att is in my area and lte on att is defiantly fast if not faster than Verizon for sure. My speeds on 3G with tmobile are generally faster than lte on my Verizon android funny enough! So looking forward to tmo lte because it should be theoretically faster than att's. not to mention the northwest and tmobiles spectrum. Tmobile owns so much more spectrum in the northwest than they do in most other parts of the country so that will be a huge hand in lte up near Seattle!