dslreports logo
 story category
Exclusive: Verizon Home LTE Beta Test Photos
Company working on home service in conjunction with DirecTV?

Users in our Verizon forum have posted some very interesting pictures of a Verizon beta test being conducted in Pennsylvania. While initially it appeared that this was simply a beta test for Verizon's upcoming LTE services (to be launched in 30 markets by year's end), upon closer inspection this may be something else entirely. The beta participant has been given a Thomson TG789vn (see pic 1, 2), usually used for VDSL2 services. Outside the home is installed this antenna. From a friend of the participant:

quote:
Click for full size
From what my friend told me I guess Directv and Verizon teamed up for this new service. A directv installer actually came out and installed everything.
The user also posted some speedtests from the strange service, showing downstream speeds of 27 Mbps and upstream speeds of 5 Mbps, well in excess of Verizon's expected LTE launch speeds of 5-10 Mbps, but certainly in range of what LTE is capable of. Says the user:
quote:
Speeds are insane, only problem is the ping times are a little high but what do you expect from wireless I guess. Also, for some reason even though were located on the east coast it seemed like I was getting better pings and way faster speeds from tests off the west coast. The internet was so fast I had to fired up SABnzbd to download a file off astrawebs server, because couldn't find a server to max it.
We've dropped a line to Verizon. We do know Verizon has huge ambitions for LTE, including using it as a rural replacement for all of those aging DSL networks they've been selling off. We also know DirecTV has played with the idea of returning to broadband delivery, despite their historically rocky road with offering broadband. A joint DirecTV/Verizon residential LTE effort aimed at HughesNet/Dish Network and the rural telcos Verizon just overloaded with debt makes strategic sense.

Still, it's not clear how a Thomson VDSL2 gateway would be integrated with LTE. DirecTV's involvement could also simply be superficial if Verizon used a local satellite contractor to install the equipment. If you've got any insight into what this could be, please share your thoughts in the comment section below or drop us a line.

Update: Verizon did get back to us, but would only say "no comment."
view:
topics flat nest 

RiseAbove
Premium Member
join:2004-01-30

RiseAbove

Premium Member

LTE can hit those speeds

If Verizon uncapped their network to do full on testing. Since we don't know what is going on in the background we really have no idea.

It wouldn't surprise me if that modem was altered to include some LTE chips. When I was at the VZ LTE event a few months ago they had a modem test unit that looked roughly like that and were discussing that it "will shrink to smaller chipsets for data cards in the coming months."

I just want them to get LTE out and start deployment ASAP I know to many people in the sticks using VZ's lackluster CDMA network and putting up with poor speeds. Time to let the speed out of the bag and push it hard to all consumers.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

Re: LTE can hit those speeds

Verizon 3G isn't all that bad when compared with the alternatives (dialup, satellite). Though it looks like LTE is a good bit faster (and yes, I too think that we're talking about LTE here).

RiseAbove
Premium Member
join:2004-01-30

RiseAbove

Premium Member

Re: LTE can hit those speeds

said by iansltx:

Verizon 3G isn't all that bad when compared with the alternatives (dialup, satellite). Though it looks like LTE is a good bit faster (and yes, I too think that we're talking about LTE here).
Oh I agree it is way better than dialup or Sat that is why I helped them setup those CDMA systems instead.

tiger72
SexaT duorP
Premium Member
join:2001-03-28
Saint Louis, MO

tiger72 to RiseAbove

Premium Member

to RiseAbove
10mhz-wide LTE deployment on 700mhz isn't going to provide users with a ton of speed. In fact, that 27mbps down sounds about right for a single user within that kind of spectrum. Of course, get 20-30 active users per sector (which on 700mhz is extremely easy to do at full power) and you'll find that those LTE speeds suddenly get a lot slower.

»gigaom.com/2010/03/05/wh ··· -speeds/

So really, if this is LTE testing, then 27mbps won't be evidence of real world speeds.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

Until Verizon offers internet with REASONABLE caps and REASONABLE overage fees( or none at all ) then this means NOTHING.
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

elray

Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

said by 88615298:

Until Verizon offers internet with REASONABLE caps and REASONABLE overage fees( or none at all ) then this means NOTHING.
Those caps and fees ARE reasonable for VZW's 3G internet. No one makes you pay them.

If there is a more price-competitive technology to deploy, then another vendor will step up and offer it, undercutting VZW.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

said by elray:

said by 88615298:

Until Verizon offers internet with REASONABLE caps and REASONABLE overage fees( or none at all ) then this means NOTHING.
Those caps and fees ARE reasonable for VZW's 3G internet. No one makes you pay them.

If there is a more price-competitive technology to deploy, then another vendor will step up and offer it, undercutting VZW.
Sigh... another "big company should be able to fuck you over" apologist.

tiger72
SexaT duorP
Premium Member
join:2001-03-28
Saint Louis, MO

tiger72

Premium Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

has nothing to do with apologism. Has everything to do with physics, supply and demand, and profit maximization while retaining customer loyalty.

Verizon's fees suck, but that's the price of having the largest network. It costs money to maintain and update.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

said by tiger72:

has nothing to do with apologism. Has everything to do with physics, supply and demand, and profit maximization while retaining customer loyalty.

Verizon's fees suck, but that's the price of having the largest network. It costs money to maintain and update.
Yes it does. LTE was SUPPOSED to help with congestion. Veriozn got a TON of bandwidth when they got all those former TV frequencies are even asking for even MORE. So ZERO excuse. If they are that incompetent get out of the mobile busines and let someone who can actually run a network do so.

Nuff said. Any point you make won't make me change my mind. So post a reply and be ignored. Waste as much of your vaulable time as you wish.
myokitis
join:2004-06-19
Alexandria, VA

myokitis

Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

said by 88615298:

said by tiger72:

If they are that incompetent get out of the mobile busines and let someone who can actually run a network do so.

Nuff said. Any point you make won't make me change my mind. So post a reply and be ignored. Waste as much of your vaulable time as you wish.
Uh, right. VZ Wireless is incompetent. You sound like such a fool. VZW is the 2nd-largest wireless company in the US and has the lowest churn in the industry and (I believe) one of the highest margins. Sounds like most customers like them, and are willing to pay for the service. One thing they CAN do is manage a wireless network competently.

It appears logic has has no impact on your viewpoint.
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

1 edit

hottboiinnc4

Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

customers don't keep them because they're happy with them. It's the fact that so many people have family plans and it's a bitch to move; plus people sign up with the carriers where their family and friends are at for M2M. That's the whole issue with M2M and why Sprint killed it.

And actually VZW is the largest wireless provider in the country in terms of customers. They went past T when they took Alltel. And highest margins? Yah thats because they're over priced. Oh and ya, people are just stupid for paying what VZ charges when they can get it cheaper from other carriers like Sprint (who has their CSRs and Tech Support and BILLING in the United States) or TMO who has their support based in the USA as well.

old_dawg
"I Know Noting..."
join:2001-09-22
Westminster, MD

old_dawg

Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

said by hottboiinnc4:

carriers like Sprint (who has their CSRs and Tech Support and BILLING in the United States)
But let their network get managed in INDIA !
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4

Member

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

lol how do you figure? Ericsson is a Japense company now thanks to Sony. As far as anything of Sprint's being in India; where have you been? It's all moved back to the States. And has been for some time now.

ohrly
@uno.net.uk

ohrly

Anon

Re: enjoy the 5 GB cap and $50 per GB overage fees

said by hottboiinnc4:

lol how do you figure? Ericsson is a Japense company now thanks to Sony.
Sony Ericsson is a joint venture of two companies (guess who). It manufactures handsets and a couple of data cards. It doesn't do network management, nor does it manufacture network hardware.

Of the parent companies, one of them is Japanese, one of them is still Swedish. Both are publicly traded.

tiger72
SexaT duorP
Premium Member
join:2001-03-28
Saint Louis, MO

tiger72 to 88615298

Premium Member

to 88615298
said by 88615298:
said by tiger72:

has nothing to do with apologism. Has everything to do with physics, supply and demand, and profit maximization while retaining customer loyalty.

Verizon's fees suck, but that's the price of having the largest network. It costs money to maintain and update.
Yes it does. LTE was SUPPOSED to help with congestion. Veriozn got a TON of bandwidth when they got all those former TV frequencies are even asking for even MORE. So ZERO excuse. If they are that incompetent get out of the mobile busines and let someone who can actually run a network do so.

Nuff said. Any point you make won't make me change my mind. So post a reply and be ignored. Waste as much of your vaulable time as you wish.
Yawn.
The fact that you don't understand a single thing about the wireless industry is obvious. Otherwise you'd understand why Clear can do things that Verizon, T-Mobile, and ATT won't ever be able to do. At least not with their current amount of spectrum.

If you think that Verizon can offer limitless bandwidth over the air on a 10mhz piece of spectrum (or even 20mhz or 30mhz), then you either need to go back to science class, or you deserve a nobel prize for actually defying physics.

I'm amazed that I'm even defending Verizon here. My disdain for that company is quite extensive in my post history, and I have Sprint and TMO instead for a reason.

But this has nothing to do with Verizon's ineptitude and opportunism. It has everything to do with physics. Sorry, but LTE can only transmit so many megabits per sector. Everyone lauds Verizon for their awesome 700mhz spectrum. Well guess what: that building penetration comes at a price for many users. Larger cell sizes. And larger cell sizes means more users per tower. And if they're only rolling out 10mhz deployments of standard LTE, then that means each sector of the tower is only able to transmit at about 20mbps. Divide that among a lot more users than the AWS, PCS, or IMT bands can reach, and you'll quickly find that speeds will plummet for the average user unless you have caps to limit usage.

What you're advocating - out of absolute ignorance of how cellular networks work - is akin to going back to the Pre-DOCSIS days of cable modem networks, where everyone was fighting for every bit of bandwidth the headend could provide. High latency. More dropped packets. Even slower speeds.

And guess what, if people get crappy data service, they'll switch to another provider. So ironically, if Verizon wants to keep their customers, they're probably going to want caps to manage their network. Unlike wireline, spectrum is a big issue. You can have all the backhaul in the world, but you only have so much spectrum over the air to play with. That's the reason why T-Mobile took so long to get 3g deployed (they ran out of PCS spectrum). That's the reason why ATT's service has been so sucky in the past (they ran out of PCS spectrum). That's the reason why Clear is testing LTE-FDD, LTE-TDD, and WiMax all in the same city (Phoenix) at the exact same time (they have a ton of 2.6ghz spectrum).
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4 to tiger72

Member

to tiger72
largest network? LMAO! yah good one! they're network is like Sprint's and every other carrier. zoom in on that map and see how many of their "Covered" areas are roaming on Sprint or Alltel. Check to see how much actually belonged to Alltel (the part they took). VZ is just an over priced company and it shows they're operated/owned by telco that's bleeding money off their landline business due to the high prices.

And their fees suck because of that network being large? LMAO! yah like i said; they gotta be able to support that dying copper network.
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

elray to 88615298

Member

to 88615298
said by 88615298:

said by elray:

said by 88615298:

Until Verizon offers internet with REASONABLE caps and REASONABLE overage fees( or none at all ) then this means NOTHING.
Those caps and fees ARE reasonable for VZW's 3G internet. No one makes you pay them.

If there is a more price-competitive technology to deploy, then another vendor will step up and offer it, undercutting VZW.
Sigh... another "big company should be able to fuck you over" apologist.
Not an apologist. I assail them at every appropriate opportunity.

But I understand fundamental economic and market principles. VZ, et al, are not going to invest in the brazillion-dollar infrastructure necessary to provide 3G internet, if they don't at least believe in the myth of profit potential.

The original two cellular franchises were profitable enough that we saw Sprint and eventually Nextel capitalize and enter the frey; today, we have "disruptive" and pre-pay companies doing the same. They are all in the market for one reason: profit.

People are willing to pay Verizon's premium prices for 3G and other perceived-high-quality services. So long as people are so willing, if there is a way of providing a similar service at a substantial discount, then a competitor WILL do so.

VZW isn't f*ing you over. They're providing a service that you want. If you aren't willing to pay their price, that's your choice. If *I* were you, and I felt that VZW was somehow making "unfair" returns, I'd buy a ton of their stock, and use the dividends to pay my 3G bill.

tiger72
SexaT duorP
Premium Member
join:2001-03-28
Saint Louis, MO

tiger72 to 88615298

Premium Member

to 88615298
Verizon can't afford to offer LTE home internet services except for in the most rural areas. They simply don't have the spectrum to support that many heavy users.

DataRiker
Premium Member
join:2002-05-19
00000

DataRiker

Premium Member

I don't get it?

I don't get it?

Does this antenna connect to a tower or to a pole mounted antenna for internet?

In other words is this VDSL over air?
patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY

patcat88

Member

Re: I don't get it?

said by DataRiker:

I don't get it?

Does this antenna connect to a tower or to a pole mounted antenna for internet?

In other words is this VDSL over air?
Not happening. VDSL over the air would result in fighter jets and white vans visiting you. VDSL runs from 20khz-30MHZ.

From the pics, the "antenna" outputs an ethernet port. That ethernet cable is plugged into the WAN port on the gateway. The VDSL isn't used in the picture.

Now my issue is, if this is meant to integrate with Directv, I don't think VDSL will do it. You need HPNA or MOCA to reach the STBs without running Cat5.

DataRiker
Premium Member
join:2002-05-19
00000

DataRiker

Premium Member

Re: I don't get it?

I see, I wonder why wifi was not just integrated into the device?
patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY

patcat88

Member

Re: I don't get it?

said by DataRiker:

I see, I wonder why wifi was not just integrated into the device?
It has N. Read yourself »www.thomsonbroadbandpart ··· ?id=6932
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4

Member

DirecTV

DirecTV is now going to be paying taxes just like all other TV Providers. Good way to bring in more money and more ways for their customer's bills to go up.
vlad1000
join:2005-05-19
Brooklyn, NY

vlad1000

Member

i hope their cap will be at least 50GB

i read somewhere it will be possible to share the verizon lte internet across several devices? meaning more than 1 person could access the same lte account at the same time to share the alloted cap?
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4

Member

Re: i hope their cap will be at least 50GB

nothing was ever official about that. VZ won't say shit about LTE never mind even their caps. but you'll be lucky if its 10gig.
decifal7
join:2007-03-10
Bon Aqua, TN

decifal7

Member

Re: i hope their cap will be at least 50GB

If they cap the service really low like that, then its done. All hope is done for broadband to those without options.. They might as well not bother deploying the service as far as i'm concerned.
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4

Member

Re: i hope their cap will be at least 50GB

but why? VZW will still be king of all and customers will sign up without a problem. But they'll just bitch when it's done with. VZ will NEVER give their customers unlimited usage or cap high enough to make it worth the customer's while.
alfnoid
MVM
join:2002-02-18

alfnoid

MVM

Speeds are insane

"Speeds are insane" says the beta tester...umm you are the only one using it...of course they are.

Well for wireless anyway. Otherwise it is slower than my comcast connection.

Still this is interesting to see in light of what CLEAR is doing with wimax with their capping people at 256kbps after unknown data consumption points.
Competition is good!

OSUGoose
join:2007-12-27
Columbus, OH

1 recommendation

OSUGoose

Member

um

i sorta have a hard time buying this since any and all "scenery" was photoshopped out.
chgo_man99
join:2010-01-01
Sunnyvale, CA

chgo_man99

Member

Re: um

Me too.

Any speed test? Hostname of the trial gateway (i.e format hsd1.il.comcast.net)

jslik
That just happened
Premium Member
join:2006-03-17

jslik to OSUGoose

Premium Member

to OSUGoose
said by OSUGoose:

i sorta have a hard time buying this since any and all "scenery" was photoshopped out.
I bet that since this is a beta tester, he/she signed a non-disclosure agreement and was trying to make sure anything that might identify them was taken out of the picture...

•••••••

joepubpc
@sbcglobal.net

joepubpc

Anon

will Directv VOD data be cap free?

will Directv VOD data be cap free?

GNH
I know my limitations.
Premium Member
join:1999-12-20
Canyon Lake, TX

GNH

Premium Member

198.226... VZPIX.COM

Interesting antenna. Looks like a rain gauge.

---

Registrant:
Verizon Trademark Services LLC
Verizon Trademark Services LLC
1320 North Court House Road
Arlington VA 22201
US
+1.7033513164 Fax: +1.7033513669

Domain Name: vzpix.com

Registrar Name: Markmonitor.com
Registrar Whois: whois.markmonitor.com
Registrar Homepage: »www.markmonitor.com

Administrative Contact:
Domain Administrator
Verizon Trademark Services LLC
1320 North Court House Road
Arlington VA 22201
US
+1.7033513164 Fax: +1.7033513669
Technical Contact, Zone Contact:
Domain Technician
Verizon
1320 North Court House Road
Arlington VA 22201
US
+1.7033513164 Fax: +1.7033513669

Created on..............: 2003-02-05.
Expires on..............: 2011-02-05.
Record last updated on..: 2010-09-01.

Domain servers in listed order:

ns-scrm.verizonwireless.com
ns-dbln.verizonwireless.com
ns-orbg.verizonwireless.com
ns-twbg.verizonwireless.com

Bill Neilson
Premium Member
join:2009-07-08
Alexandria, VA

Bill Neilson

Premium Member

Whether the speeds are high now is irrelevant

whether they stay high with the country using it is what is relevant
mdrejhon
join:2004-02-02
Hamilton, ON

mdrejhon

Member

Whitespace

Whitespace. This might be a whitespace trial. Could it be?