3g getting slower and slower, yet we pay the same...

[MegaThrasher]

Its the iPhone guys. Before I was getting 800 kbps consistently at my house. Now download speeds are all over the place and I'm lucky to get 600. I don't even know why it effects me but I guess everyone in rural Kansas needs an iPhone now.

Sent from my Droid 2 Global running Fission 2.4.3

 

[WugFresh]

@Kodiak
If I'm not mistaken arent they able to install 4G technology on all their preexisting 3G towers? Or are the laws/rights not actually governed by physical tower infrastructure but rather "air space" of 4G frequencies... or some bs like that?

{{ WugFresh }}

 

[kodiak799]

If I'm not mistaken arent they able to install 4G technology on all their preexisting 3G towers? Or are the laws/rights not actually governed by physical tower infrastructure but rather "air space" of 4G frequencies... or some bs like that?

Probably, but there's still a finite number of towers they can get up in a given area. But even if LTE has 10X the capacity of 3G (just based on throughput, and probably more than that), you can see a problem with usage going from 2gigs to 30gigs (or 100).

Netflix and other video gets further compressed going to a smartphone. From that perspective, it would be really tough to burn thru 10 gigs (without torrents). But I don't want to HDMI out compressed video to a 50" plasma. And if I tether a computer or PS3 I would guess it doesn't d/l as compressed of video.

480p is fine for a phone, but it's gotta be 720 for tablets...and so, what, 3 movies and you're done, no more HD video for the month?

 

[kptphalkon]

If I'm not mistaken arent they able to install 4G technology on all their preexisting 3G towers? Or are the laws/rights not actually governed by physical tower infrastructure but rather "air space" of 4G frequencies... or some bs like that?

Probably, but there's still a finite number of towers they can get up in a given area. But even if LTE has 10X the capacity of 3G (just based on throughput, and probably more than that), you can see a problem with usage going from 2gigs to 30gigs (or 100).

Netflix and other video gets further compressed going to a smartphone. From that perspective, it would be really tough to burn thru 10 gigs (without torrents). But I don't want to HDMI out compressed video to a 50" plasma. And if I tether a computer or PS3 I would guess it doesn't d/l as compressed of video.

480p is fine for a phone, but it's gotta be 720 for tablets...and so, what, 3 movies and you're done, no more HD video for the month?

And that is what kills me. How expensive/hard is it to provide even half of LTEs bandwidth over an LTE network? Ive said this before, but back in 96/97 it cost a company literally 37 cents a month to maintain and handle a dial up connection, while charging 20/30 bucks.

 

[kodiak799]

And that is what kills me. How expensive/hard is it to provide even half of LTEs bandwidth over an LTE network? Ive said this before, but back in 96/97 it cost a company literally 37 cents a month to maintain and handle a dial up connection, while charging 20/30 bucks.

Hmmm....They connect their towers to hard wires, right? And the cable companies own those pipes, right (and VZW in a few cases)?

So who gets very upset if VZW offers unlimited LTE and I cancel my $50 home broadband?

 

[Riley]

I just pulled 3 tests in a row at 2000 mbps and higher with 700 mbps up. It early in the morning on a Sunday but that's better speeds than in the past. It was pulling it from a server 50 miles away in Syracuse, NY....not a small city and ppl all over around here have iPhones.

Sent from my Droid on Sourcery 2.2

 

[kodiak799]

Yeah, I ran 3 more tests....Pulled averages of 1000, 800 and 500 in off-peak....Around the 700kbps I've seen in the past.

First I've checked it in months. VZW's whining of capacity constraints looks real. But I'm on wifi so much between work and home that they won't squeeze much more $$$ out of me.

 

[hookbill]

I'm not a genius in this area at all but I thought that part of the issue was to supply more bandwith and in fact major cell carriers were getting a lot of new bandwith was coming from television switching to digital from analog and that carriers wold be using this space to broadcast with. Literally free airspace. Seems to me like if they were doing that it wouldn't have extra cost issues. And with all the analog space out there open (and can be used for digital broadcast) they wouldn't have any carrier network issues.

 

[wil318466]

It angers me how much we pay and the inconsistency in service we get. I thought I hated Comcast, but I'm slowly getting there with Verizon.

The tiered service plans that are coming make me want to punch a kitten. When does it stop? We get nickel and dimed for everything. Really, is my cell phone usage worth 100+ dollars a month? Do I really use that much to warrant that price? (this is WITH a 22% corporate discount!!)


Sigh.

 

[RETG]

1207/790
1165/785
1299/566
Small town in Utah. I would bet 90 percent of population (8000 people) is running Verizon, since AT&T is only EDGE and has no real service area; Sprint has decent speeds but very limited coverage area. I'm not complaining.

 

[WugFresh]

The tiered service plans that are coming make me want to punch a kitten.

Don't punch kittens..that's cruel. Lol!
Get this man some better service before an innocent animal gets caught in the crossfire.

{{ WugFresh }}