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Disappointed in Sprints speeds in your area?

I live in Colorado Springs,Colorado.
Ever since I moved here from Houston,Tx.
I haven't had 4g lte like in Houston.Just slow 3g.But I was close to the interstate(northeast side of town) earlier today and low and behold 4g popped up on my phone(Boost Mobile,Sprint).
But sadly no 4g at the house yet,Or anywhere here on the southeast side.
On there map it shows that it runs up and down the interstate only,And I'm about 4 miles from the interstate.
Wish Sprint would come on with this.
 
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I live in Colorado Springs,Colorado.
Ever since I moved here from Houston,Tx.
I haven't had 4g lte like in Houston.Just slow 3g.But I was close to the interstate(northeast side of town) earlier today and low and behold 4g popped up on my phone(Boost Mobile,Sprint).
But sadly no 4g at the house yet,Or anywhere here on the southeast side.
On there map it shows that it runs up and down the interstate only,And I'm about 4 miles from the interstate.
Wish Sprint would come on with this.

Moved your thread here for better resolve ;)
 
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Please excuse this post, it's a big rant, for the past 2 years Sprint has been giving me crappy service and now last night I didn't even have the 3G icon, I tried reactivating it 4 times (##scrtn#) and this morning I reactivated it for a 5th time and just now I have 3G Service. I am so mad!!! As soon as I can afford a new phone I am switching to Straight Talk, I can deal with this any more!!!
 
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I reactivated it for a 5th time and just now I have 3G Service. I am so mad!!! As soon as I can afford a new phone I am switching to Straight Talk, I can deal with this any more!!!

FYI, Straight Talk uses Sprint and Verizon towers to provide its customers with service, as do many of the other pre-pay carriers. You might think you are getting away from Sprint with some of these pre-pay routes, however many of them use Sprint's service to bolster their coverage maps across most markets. :eek:
 
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Lots of luck if you live in the Springs. My friend has trouble with Sprint - she drops calls going up or down hills in the car. My boss switched to Sprint from Verizon as he lives in the foothills rather high up. He dropped ATT for the same reason. couldn't voice call. If anyone went to a rural area, you lost everything.

The Springs is listed as one of the worst areas for ANY cell. The terrain in the county runs from high foothills to prairie with everything else in between.

I've got TMO, mostly use my wifi and have data for looking up information online, getting mail, and sending mms. I've hit the gamut of bars and service on a 20 mile stretch of road. I actually live higher than the closest tower.

I don't happen to like CDMA phones and service, TMO mostly leaves me alone, and they are less expensive. So I'm happy. TMO also is pretty good about allowing your own device. My Nexus came from Google, not TMO. Our old Nokia, still in use was bought used long ago. I've had European unlocked phones - could only use Edge, but that didn't bother me. No fuss from TMO.
 
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Lots of luck if you live in the Springs. My friend has trouble with Sprint - she drops calls going up or down hills in the car. My boss switched to Sprint from Verizon as he lives in the foothills rather high up. He dropped ATT for the same reason. couldn't voice call. If anyone went to a rural area, you lost everything.


Sprint's 800Mhz 1x for voice will help with the dropped calls after Network Vision is complete. 800 travels further distance great for rural areas as well as dense metro areas.
 
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It will help with calls, but the data speeds for 800Mhz are not as fast as 1900Mhz.

As I've stated in my thread (Network Vision Q&A) 800Mhz provides for better in-building service (dense metro areas) and in rural locations. 1900Mhz has the required bandwidth to provide LTE but doesn't carry a signal as far as 800Mhz and is very unreliable in dense metro areas. 800Mhz being lower in frequency doesn't carry as much bandwidth as 1900 PCS. 800Mhz LTE/EVDO is way down the road, know one knows when Sprint will start to utilizing it. It makes more sense to use 800Mhz in these situations when in a metro area, then offload bandwidth off on to the 2500Mhz Clearwire spectrum once WiMax has been decommissioned.

Yeah, but she has trouble right now! Also has trouble texting. It's a PITA. Sprint is updating towers, probably just for LTE.

I'll stay with TMO.

Depending on the Network Vision vendor in your area all the equipment is in place for 3G/1x 800/4G LTE, Ericsson and Samsung has been doing a phenomenal job installing all equipment (RUU's, antennas, basestations) required for 1x 800. Before the site can broadcast 800, 3G, 1900 PCS LTE Sprint must accept the site and sign off on it. If the site can't be signed off 3G will only broadcast and 1x voice on 1900 PCS. 800 is different as the spectrum has to be cleared off in a market before it can be turned on.
 
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Sprint's 800Mhz 1x for voice will help with the dropped calls after Network Vision is complete. 800 travels further distance great for rural areas as well as dense metro areas.

that is like telling me... my car that is unsafe... and a gas guzler.. was not up to what the manufacture promised and advertised.. but the newer model will be better.


what a bunch of BS... marketing crap!!! fix it!!! give me what you promised!!!! sprint u suck!!!
 
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I wasn't sure whether to post this here, or over in the 4G board. I decided on here, because it isn't actually about 4G itself.

It seems like Sprint has dropped all pretense of improving the 3G network as part of the NV stuff. Maybe it is just my are (Wichita, KS, which is admittedly not a huge market). We never got WiMax, and I was almost SHOCKED when we got LTE. One of my biggest complaints has been the 3G speeds though. My 4G speeds are pretty darn good. Coverage isn't all that great, but I have it in most places that I actually go in Wichita. Initially, I was willing to give it time for them to shake out the new system. If nothing else, I thought that as more people moved to the LTE stuff, that the 3G would be less congested, giving me better speeds when I was relegated to that service. Nothing has changed though. I still get at most around 0.1Mbps on 3G, and have ping times over 1000ms.

If Sprint is truly going to make 4G LTE more ubiquitous in my area, I suppose I am OK with it, since it truly is much faster at all times, but until then, if I drop to 3G, I essentially have no data. Even just getting email is a slow and painful process over 3G.

Wichita is not a huge population. Somewhere around 300k people, and I would imagine only a very small percentage of them use Sprint directly. The only other thing I could think of is, maybe Sprint is sharing out their towers to too many other companies around here. When I go back to Maine to visit family, I get between 1 and 3Mbps on 3G. Obviously, in an area THAT small, it is probably close to impossible to saturate the available bandwidth. If it IS saturation here in Wichita though, I would think they should be adding more. I truly had hoped that the NV rollout would improve this situation, but it has made no noticeable improvement to 3G at all, in coverage OR speed.

In any case, I enjoy the 4G when I can get it, and when I am at my house, I am on Wifi anyway. It is just annoying to know that I essentially don't have internet if I am not in a 4G area, even though I have to pay for it. Granted, I'm not paying extra really, since I already have an unlimited plan, but still. I don't even expect good speeds on 3G, just something that is at least somewhat usable.
 
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I wasn't sure whether to post this here, or over in the 4G board. I decided on here, because it isn't actually about 4G itself.

It seems like Sprint has dropped all pretense of improving the 3G network as part of the NV stuff. Maybe it is just my are (Wichita, KS, which is admittedly not a huge market). We never got WiMax, and I was almost SHOCKED when we got LTE. One of my biggest complaints has been the 3G speeds though. My 4G speeds are pretty darn good. Coverage isn't all that great, but I have it in most places that I actually go in Wichita. Initially, I was willing to give it time for them to shake out the new system. If nothing else, I thought that as more people moved to the LTE stuff, that the 3G would be less congested, giving me better speeds when I was relegated to that service. Nothing has changed though. I still get at most around 0.1Mbps on 3G, and have ping times over 1000ms.

If Sprint is truly going to make 4G LTE more ubiquitous in my area, I suppose I am OK with it, since it truly is much faster at all times, but until then, if I drop to 3G, I essentially have no data. Even just getting email is a slow and painful process over 3G.


The reason why Sprint's 3G speeds are mediocre is because Sprint is using bundled T1 connections for their backhaul, this was ok before the smartphone explosion. Wichita which is in Sprint's "Kansas" market is in the process of receiving Network Vision upgrades by the Ericsson OEM. Most of the towers have received 4G LTE 1900Mhz PCS upgrades in Wichita. Ericsson 99% of the time upgrades the whole tower for 3G/4G LTE/800 Voice but only certain frequencies can be accepted/broadcast until 1. Enough of the 800Mhz spectrum has been cleared off to utilize 800 1x voice 2. Sprint's signs off on OEM's upgrades to a tower, if 4G can't be accepted 3G will broadcast along with 1x 1900Mhz voice. 3. Some towers can take weeks to up to 12 months to be accepted due to the lack of the backhaul not being upgraded, this is usually done by a subcontractor not Ericsson. Backhaul now is supplied by fiber or a microwave fiber bridge connection. You will see some towers with the new NV equipment installed along with the legacy panels still in place, if you see this this means backhaul hasn't been completed. Network Vision is one of the biggest network overhauls in history. A lot of people think that it can be done in a few months and get impatient/switch carriers/or take the ETF fee. Hang in there you will be very pleased with Sprint's new network once all the upgrades are complete. :proud:
 
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Hang in there you will be very pleased with Sprint's new network once all the upgrades are complete.
proud.gif
I just hope you're right about this.
 
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The reason why Sprint's 3G speeds are mediocre is because Sprint is using bundled T1 connections for their backhaul, this was ok before the smartphone explosion. Wichita which is in Sprint's "Kansas" market is in the process of receiving Network Vision upgrades by the Ericsson OEM. Most of the towers have received 4G LTE 1900Mhz PCS upgrades in Wichita. Ericsson 99% of the time upgrades the whole tower for 3G/4G LTE/800 Voice but only certain frequencies can be accepted/broadcast until 1. Enough of the 800Mhz spectrum has been cleared off to utilize 800 1x voice 2. Sprint's signs off on OEM's upgrades to a tower, if 4G can't be accepted 3G will broadcast along with 1x 1900Mhz voice. 3. Some towers can take weeks to up to 12 months to be accepted due to the lack of the backhaul not being upgraded, this is usually done by a subcontractor not Ericsson. Backhaul now is supplied by fiber or a microwave fiber bridge connection. You will see some towers with the new NV equipment installed along with the legacy panels still in place, if you see this this means backhaul hasn't been completed. Network Vision is one of the biggest network overhauls in history. A lot of people think that it can be done in a few months and get impatient/switch carriers/or take the ETF fee. Hang in there you will be very pleased with Sprint's new network once all the upgrades are complete. :proud:


That is the most in depth answer I have gotten on this particular item. I don't plan on jumping ship anytime soon. I've been with sprint for close to 15 years. No point switching right now. :) I have seen a bunch of upgrades to numerous towers here, but never see any improvements to 3G. Pretty sure they started the NV stuff in Wichita more than a year ago, but maybe it just FEELS like that long. :)

Like I said, I have LTE most places around town, or have wifi so it isn't as bad for me as for some people. Mostly just one of those things that popped into my head and thought I would see what others had to say. Thanks for the good explanation.
 
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The reason why Sprint's 3G speeds are mediocre is because Sprint is using bundled T1 connections for their backhaul, this was ok before the smartphone explosion. Wichita which is in Sprint's "Kansas" market is in the process of receiving Network Vision upgrades by the Ericsson OEM. Most of the towers have received 4G LTE 1900Mhz PCS upgrades in Wichita. Ericsson 99% of the time upgrades the whole tower for 3G/4G LTE/800 Voice but only certain frequencies can be accepted/broadcast until 1. Enough of the 800Mhz spectrum has been cleared off to utilize 800 1x voice 2. Sprint's signs off on OEM's upgrades to a tower, if 4G can't be accepted 3G will broadcast along with 1x 1900Mhz voice. 3. Some towers can take weeks to up to 12 months to be accepted due to the lack of the backhaul not being upgraded, this is usually done by a subcontractor not Ericsson. Backhaul now is supplied by fiber or a microwave fiber bridge connection. You will see some towers with the new NV equipment installed along with the legacy panels still in place, if you see this this means backhaul hasn't been completed. Network Vision is one of the biggest network overhauls in history. A lot of people think that it can be done in a few months and get impatient/switch carriers/or take the ETF fee. Hang in there you will be very pleased with Sprint's new network once all the upgrades are complete. :proud:

thanks for the info.. i sure hope it is true.

i dont know you.. and i am NOTcalling you out.

based on the past 2 yrs of experience with sprint..
marketing... promises.. EXCUSES..
frankly.. i dont care what the "reason" is for the last 2 yrs ..
and current crap service.
They have to fix it NOW.. not in a "few" months.
because.. they are bleeding customers.. soon it will be too late.
 
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thanks for the info.. i sure hope it is true.

i dont know you.. and i am NOTcalling you out.

based on the past 2 yrs of experience with sprint..
marketing... promises.. EXCUSES..
frankly.. i dont care what the "reason" is for the last 2 yrs ..
and current crap service.
They have to fix it NOW.. not in a "few" months.
because.. they are bleeding customers.. soon it will be too late.

We are only talking about 40,000 towers across the United States, not to mention new cell sites Sprint's putting up along with Network Vision, and backhaul out of 40,000 Sprint cell sites only 9 sites will not receive fiber backhaul...so 39,991 cell sites that have to be upgraded with fiber I don't think it can happen "now." Network Vision didn't start until the end of 2012-Jan. 2013 when actual physical work began. Customers can leave it's not going to hurt them, they are betting on the long haul (2016+) if you can't give the OEM's time to do the upgrades and that dissatisfied in your service, find a new wireless carrier, then come back once upgrades are 100% complete.

I just hope you're right about this.

Trust me.
 
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That is the most in depth answer I have gotten on this particular item. I don't plan on jumping ship anytime soon. I've been with sprint for close to 15 years. No point switching right now. :) I have seen a bunch of upgrades to numerous towers here, but never see any improvements to 3G. Pretty sure they started the NV stuff in Wichita more than a year ago, but maybe it just FEELS like that long. :)


What you have seen is Ericsson doing panels, RRUs, and basestation equipment upgrades. 90% of the towers in Wichita are broadcasting LTE, if you have an LTE capable phone I'd be using LTE not EVDO 3G. Even the 3G will be faster on a 4G LTE phone, if you have seen eHRPD: 13 (evolved high rate packet data) as your network type your phone is connecting though an LTE core and not being dumped off on to a EVDO Rev. A switch. eHRPD is a software upgrade to each tower to make the hand off to 3G to 4G easier and without dropping your data connection. Ericsson is doing mostly LTE upgrades right now to get Sprint's LTE footprint out once LTE has been deployed you'll see 800Mhz 1x voice and higher capacity 3G deployed.
 
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Reading the numbers of postings on this and other forum topics concerning Sprint's Network Vision woes, it is a little surprising that the brass at Sprint does not try some PR to give customers (current and prospective) realistic hints (not the "its coming") that there is 'light at the end of the tunnel'. I also have been a loyal Sprint customer with multiple lines of service (and got them others as well). It is frustrating when Sprint coverage maps show strong voice and 4G data, but two phones next to each other - one shows 3G and the other 4G and both moderate voice strength. I stopped at a company repair facility with the two phones, and was told that "they are working on towers".

An estimate as to when Sprint with begin to have reasonable service that THEIR coverage maps says exists now might help stem the outflow of paying customers. The financial analysts are watching, and I suspect they also would react positively to a positive, concrete approach.:thinking:
 
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We are only talking about 40,000 towers across the United States, not to mention new cell sites Sprint's putting up along with Network Vision, and backhaul out of 40,000 Sprint cell sites only 9 sites will not receive fiber backhaul...so 39,991 cell sites that have to be upgraded with fiber I don't think it can happen "now." Network Vision didn't start until the end of 2012-Jan. 2013 when actual physical work began. Customers can leave it's not going to hurt them, they are betting on the long haul (2016+) if you can't give the OEM's time to do the upgrades and that dissatisfied in your service, find a new wireless carrier, then come back once upgrades are 100% complete.



Trust me.


so.. other carriers can upgrade thier networks ..and see great performance right away.

Sprint on the other hand.. starts the upgrade/overhaul.. 2 years..
and kills thier own network.. while marketing BS.. spins and bends the truth so that customers think they will get great speeds.

currently they come up with other excuses to make us wait.
BS!!!

2016 they will be ready to really compete with the other big boys?
yeah.. great strategy!!!
take a look at Blackberry and WebOS and Windows.
.... a lesson in.. wait too long and you aint no longer in the game!

T-Mobil is doing it right for the 4th largest carrier... headed to over take sprint.
 
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I have to agree dan330, Sprint is really dragging their feet here in central Wisconsin. I have a Verizon data card and Sprint phones, last year Verizon came through with 4g and seamed to only take 2 or 3 months to do all the towers for a 100 miles. Sprint on the other hand upgraded 2 towers 40 miles apart several months ago and hasn't done anything else in months. Last summer when they upgraded the one tower, just outside my reach, my speed dropped on my tower to 1X. Now with winter on the way it will probably be next summer before they get back to doing a few more towers. Sad it's starting to look like the WIMAX farce all over again.
 
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I have to agree dan330, Sprint is really dragging their feet here in central Wisconsin. I have a Verizon data card and Sprint phones, last year Verizon came through with 4g and seamed to only take 2 or 3 months to do all the towers for a 100 miles. Sprint on the other hand upgraded 2 towers 40 miles apart several months ago and hasn't done anything else in months. Last summer when they upgraded the one tower, just outside my reach, my speed dropped on my tower to 1X. Now with winter on the way it will probably be next summer before they get back to doing a few more towers. Sad it's starting to look like the WIMAX farce all over again.

Verizon more than likely had the backhaul upgrades complete before they came in and installed the 4G panels, this is why it didn't take long. Not to mention Verizon is still deploying LTE in markets since 2010 so 3 years. Just because you think they only did 2 towers 40 miles apart doesn't mean the other towers in between haven't received NV upgrades. Backhaul may not be complete, Sprint may be waiting to announce the launch market, Sprint didn't sign off on the work that has been done to the towers, bad weather, etc etc etc all these are factors. Just because winter is coming doesn't mean Samsung (OEM doing NV in central Wisconsin) will stop doing upgrades. What Samsung could be doing is upgrading the whole market before turning on the new equipment. Once all the towers are complete you could see all the towers accepted/broadcasting all at once (Samsung has been known to do this in the Northern/Central California markets as well).
 
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could be this.. might be that...hope it will be...
blah blah blah

end of day... it aint working to what is expected...
for the price we pay...
and it is taking way too F-ing long!


yeah.. i know.. i know.. i can leave!
but i cant!!! i am stuck... family plan on a sprint employee discount..
 
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There isn't much to be said in your situation. The answer isn't acceptable to you, but you don't have the option to switch. For me, it isn't terrible since I have 4G in most places I go, and where I don't, I generally have wifi. It isn't a huge deal for me to stick around and hope the 3G service moves to acceptable speeds in the future. For you though, the only option you have left is to complain and fume. You are stuck, and there isn't anything we can do to help. That isn't to say that your feelings aren't valid. In many ways I agree that compensation should be made in some way, especially for people in situations like yours. The truth is, it is really unlikely to happen.

For your home use, you would probably be able to get a free air rave. Doesn't help when you are out and about, but it is something. You can occasionally get a discount if you complain every month about your service. If you go that route, keep in mind that the reps can't always do anything for you, and of course stay professional. Getting angry with a rep is pretty much a guarantee that you won't get anything. I have been given a 15 dollar credit twice in 3 years because I complained about the terrible 3G service.

In the meantime though, if you cant/won't switch carriers, you are going to have to live with it. Regardless, it isn't a bad idea to make a complaint each month about the service so it is noted on your account. If you never tell Sprint how much you are inconvenienced, it just seems like someone who wants freebies. If you can show a history of issues, they are more likely to make allowances. Most of the reps I have dealt with at sprint over the years have been very friendly and have tried to do what they can for me. Sometimes it has been discounts on my plan, or free accessories, other times it has just been information or sympathy. I have had few occasions that I had something negative to say about the reps themselves. Probably the biggest reason I have stuck by them. Customer service is a big deal to me, and I'm more willing to support a company that at least tries.
 
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