Root [Virgin Mobile/Sprint] Disable 4G Throttle - Optimus F3

[bkttk2]

Not sure if this fully works as I do not approach the 2.5Gb limit. However, I came across this and thought I would post in case it is helpful as the latest update is rumored to contain an update to throttle data.

The below link is not my work and is only provided for guidance.

http://androidforums.com/galaxy-s2-...able-boost-data-throttle-confirmed-works.html

 

[Rukbat]

And I have a perpetual motion machine and a method of getting blood out of a stone.

If the tower is sending you data at 75kbps, you can't receive it faster than 75kbps (and that's what throttling is). I don't care if you sprinkle magic in every folder in the phone, the data is only coming to you at a thruput of 75kbps. (They can throttle you by sending the data slower, or sending the packets less often. The thruput - the time it takes to download a given amount of data - is the same in either case.)

It's like going from New York to Los Angeles at 60mph and doing it in 6 hours. You can't change the speed the tower is sending you data by doing something in the phone. And throttling is done at the other end of the backhaul - the tower isn't getting your data any faster than what you're throttled to.

I'm sure that anyone who's in the business and read that thread got a good chuckle.

 

[calitrippin]

And I have a perpetual motion machine and a method of getting blood out of a stone.

If the tower is sending you data at 75kbps, you can't receive it faster than 75kbps (and that's what throttling is). I don't care if you sprinkle magic in every folder in the phone, the data is only coming to you at a thruput of 75kbps. (They can throttle you by sending the data slower, or sending the packets less often. The thruput - the time it takes to download a given amount of data - is the same in either case.)

It's like going from New York to Los Angeles at 60mph and doing it in 6 hours. You can't change the speed the tower is sending you data by doing something in the phone. And throttling is done at the other end of the backhaul - the tower isn't getting your data any faster than what you're throttled to.

I'm sure that anyone who's in the business and read that thread got a good chuckle.

Interesting response but not quite what throttling is, because the tower actually can change the amount of bandwidth to use on your phone, or can only accept one type of connection, what you could do to throttle from the phone end would be to only allow one type of connection e.i. only allowing 3g connection and not connecting 4g, or only allowing 1x connection. But your assumption that throttling is not possible is wrong. Though there is some point where the slowest connection will be the phone hardware, where the processor can only handle up to a speed, however you can see a difference in the speed of connection between 3g and 4g

 

[kdude63]

Interesting response but not quite what throttling is, because the tower actually can change the amount of bandwidth to use on your phone, or can only accept one type of connection, what you could do to throttle from the phone end would be to only allow one type of connection e.i. only allowing 3g connection and not connecting 4g, or only allowing 1x connection. But your assumption that throttling is not possible is wrong. Though there is some point where the slowest connection will be the phone hardware, where the processor can only handle up to a speed, however you can see a difference in the speed of connection between 3g and 4g

You know he said nothing about throttling not being possible right?
Simply that the phone has absolutely nothing to do with it as it's all handled by the tower.

 

[Rob22445566]

Hello All,
Looking for a little help with this issue--

I've tried the method described above but it did not make any difference, it's still counting up data towards the cap.

Basically, I have two identical Optimus F3's. Both rooted. Both have updates blocked. Both have the original LG720ZV5 that came on the phone. Both have the same PRL 33030.

Yet one has no throttle on 4G and the other does.

My original phone remains UN-THROTTLED and has never had the above method implemented.

I don't want to get into an argument about where the throttling takes place.
All, I can say for certain is that one of my Optimus F3's has no 4G throttle.
I think it's because I permanently blocked the Update from happening but I can't be 100% certain.

Any thoughts on what else to try on the 2nd phone?
Thanks,
Rob

 

[xclusive36]

Have you done anything different between the two phones? Was one flashed via the un-brick method? Did you download any updates on one phone but not the other? It seams strange that one will throttle but the other will not.

 

[Rob22445566]

both phones rooted with Motochopper. Then as soon as update message appeared, it was blocked by Disable Service.

Only thing different between phones is, I only installed DSP MANAGER on one.
Didn't seem like that would be related to this issue but it's worth installing it on the other just to see.

Thanks for making me realize that.
Rob

 

[jabstep12]

both phones rooted with Motochopper. Then as soon as update message appeared, it was blocked by Disable Service.

Only thing different between phones is, I only installed DSP MANAGER on one.
Didn't seem like that would be related to this issue but it's worth installing it on the other just to see.

Thanks for making me realize that.
Rob

Rob22445566,

I was in the same situation that you just mentioned. Did you ever figure out why one phone was unthrottled and the other one was? If there is a specific setting I can do to break the "throttle point", that would be great.

Thanks

 

[masterchief3k]

I've had my F3 for about a week now, (figured I'd jump on the LTE train, I've been waiting, and they FINALLY switched on a TON of LTE nationwide) and I've had ALMOST no throttling over LTE, and even sometimes when it switches to 3G it goes well over 2 mbps. I had already exhuasted 2.8 GB of data before switching from the Evo V to the F3 last week, so I figured it would still be throttled. No. Only sometimes, which is weird, but when I don't touch the phone and don't move it, there's one spot I leave it on my desk and it gets FULL speed. I use it as home internet because satellite is just a joke. I have another F3 coming tomorrow in hopes of being able to fully replace the need for a satellite connection, assuming this one doesn't get throttled either. So far, none of the 60+ GB of data i've used on my current F3 has been counted towards my data on their website. It's been a great week, after being tortured by satellite for a year, and the slow 3G service on my Evo V. I have to say, I'm really surprised they haven't been effectively throttling me, and I can honestly say I hope it stays this way indefinitely. The best part is, it's consistent and more than good enough for gaming online and multitasking. Everything in the house is able to connect to my phone since It's rooted and has wifi tether for root users 3.3 beta.

Also, I did the updates it forced at first startup, so yeah, I'm running on V6 and i had to use saferoot to root. No problems.

 

[jmatherly411]

I've had my F3 for about a week now, (figured I'd jump on the LTE train, I've been waiting, and they FINALLY switched on a TON of LTE nationwide) and I've had ALMOST no throttling over LTE, and even sometimes when it switches to 3G it goes well over 2 mbps. I had already exhuasted 2.8 GB of data before switching from the Evo V to the F3 last week, so I figured it would still be throttled. No. Only sometimes, which is weird, but when I don't touch the phone and don't move it, there's one spot I leave it on my desk and it gets FULL speed. I use it as home internet because satellite is just a joke. I have another F3 coming tomorrow in hopes of being able to fully replace the need for a satellite connection, assuming this one doesn't get throttled either. So far, none of the 60+ GB of data i've used on my current F3 has been counted towards my data on their website. It's been a great week, after being tortured by satellite for a year, and the slow 3G service on my Evo V. I have to say, I'm really surprised they haven't been effectively throttling me, and I can honestly say I hope it stays this way indefinitely. The best part is, it's consistent and more than good enough for gaming online and multitasking. Everything in the house is able to connect to my phone since It's rooted and has wifi tether for root users 3.3 beta.

Also, I did the updates it forced at first startup, so yeah, I'm running on V6 and i had to use saferoot to root. No problems.

Enjoy while it lasts, because starting May 16th Boost and Virgin Mobile are implementing new QoS measures for data abusers. This means if you go beyond the threshold of 2.5GB of data during your month of service your speeds will be reduced to 128kbps. I am glad they are doing this to keep the Sprint network usable for post-paid and pre-paid customers.

4G LTE doesn't mean that Sprint's sites have unlimited bandwidth on their backhaul even though it is scale-able if a site does come overburdened, most of Sprint's sites post Network Vision have high-speed backhaul with speeds with at least 100Mbps. This must be shared among customers that are connected to a particular site, and everyone should have a positive experience while using Sprint's 4G LTE network.

 

[Rob22445566]

Hey jmatherly411,
Sounds like you WORK for Sprint, or one of the carriers, is that right?

First off, on Virgin Mobile it's ALREADY clamped down to 128kbps after the cap limit!! I've measured it.

2nd, I can understand the need to impose a cap but why such a drastic limit?
When going from my usual 10-15Mbps to 128k, that's like a tiny tiny dribble of data. Couldn't it be throttled in tiers (2.5-3.5, throttled to 5Mbps) and so on.

I'm sorry but the fact that the service is advertised everywhere as UNLIMITED DATA JUST GRINDS MY TEETH!! For all practical purposes it is NOT UNLIMITED and the LIMIT is 2.5Gb!

And then there's also the fact that now with 4G LTE I get to the cap much quicker then with the 3G I used to have. So great, I paid the extra money to upgrade my phone to 4G LTE only to find it has the same cap limit as 3G!
I mean hey, what the heck is the point of having 4G speed if I can hit the cap in a few DAYS of normal use if I'm not constantly on guard!

AAARRGHHH! What about it VM customers, anyone else as hacked off as I am and ready to jump ship?

 

[robaho]

Hey jmatherly411,
Sounds like you WORK for Sprint, or one of the carriers, is that right?

First off, on Virgin Mobile it's ALREADY clamped down to 128kbps after the cap limit!! I've measured it.

2nd, I can understand the need to impose a cap but why such a drastic limit?
When going from my usual 10-15Mbps to 128k, that's like a tiny tiny dribble of data. Couldn't it be throttled in tiers (2.5-3.5, throttled to 5Mbps) and so on.

I'm sorry but the fact that the service is advertised everywhere as UNLIMITED DATA JUST GRINDS MY TEETH!! For all practical purposes it is NOT UNLIMITED and the LIMIT is 2.5Gb!

And then there's also the fact that now with 4G LTE I get to the cap much quicker then with the 3G I used to have. So great, I paid the extra money to upgrade my phone to 4G LTE only to find it has the same cap limit as 3G!
I mean hey, what the heck is the point of having 4G speed if I can hit the cap in a few DAYS of normal use if I'm not constantly on guard!

AAARRGHHH! What about it VM customers, anyone else as hacked off as I am and ready to jump ship?

Yep. By going to 2g you are effectively capped at 2.5 gb. Even 3g would be acceptable. This is not. Ill be leaving soon.

 

[Deleted User]

Yep. By going to 2g you are effectively capped at 2.5 gb. Even 3g would be acceptable. This is not. Ill be leaving soon.

I'd be interested to know what carrier you will move to if you abandon VM. I haven't seen any deals around that match the $35 VM Beyond Talk option. Or the $45 option either for that matter.

 

[jmatherly411]

Hey jmatherly411,
Sounds like you WORK for Sprint, or one of the carriers, is that right?

First off, on Virgin Mobile it's ALREADY clamped down to 128kbps after the cap limit!! I've measured it.

2nd, I can understand the need to impose a cap but why such a drastic limit?
When going from my usual 10-15Mbps to 128k, that's like a tiny tiny dribble of data. Couldn't it be throttled in tiers (2.5-3.5, throttled to 5Mbps) and so on.

I'm sorry but the fact that the service is advertised everywhere as UNLIMITED DATA JUST GRINDS MY TEETH!! For all practical purposes it is NOT UNLIMITED and the LIMIT is 2.5Gb!

And then there's also the fact that now with 4G LTE I get to the cap much quicker then with the 3G I used to have. So great, I paid the extra money to upgrade my phone to 4G LTE only to find it has the same cap limit as 3G!
I mean hey, what the heck is the point of having 4G speed if I can hit the cap in a few DAYS of normal use if I'm not constantly on guard!

AAARRGHHH! What about it VM customers, anyone else as hacked off as I am and ready to jump ship?

To answer your first question, no I do not work for Sprint.

Also, Sprint's network doesn't use ANY type of 2G technology, even Sprint's 1x RTT voice network is a 3G standard its just not intended for data use, if you were to be capped on 2G you would not be able to achieve 128kbps throughput over a 2G network, try less than 56k or less if was 2G. Boost and Virgin Mobile shouldnt' have used the term "2G" when imposing a cap of 128kbps after using 2.5GB of high-speed data whether it be on 3G EVDO or 4G LTE.

Technically you are still getting "unlimited" data, how about they just shut your data off completely once you reach 2.5GB, then it wouldn't be unlimited. At least you are able to get a data connection even though it will be throttled to 128kbps. By doing this they can keep data congestion at a minimum so everyone's data experience is somewhat positive.

If you don't like there terms for data usage, then maybe you should find another provider, but most providers impose data caps...

 

[jmpiv4]

you seem to spout that in several posts and boards.. The fact of the matter I'm still paying the same amount for less service.

 

[xclusive36]

Enough you guys. We all got the point.

 

[stevo48632]

Just figured id say this but for some odd reason when i changed prl my 4g speeds werent throttled no more and i downloaded enough to say tower shoulda known by then.Also i am changing home server as well with few other known tweaks..

 

[stevo48632]

Just figured id say this but for some odd reason when i changed prl my 4g speeds werent throttled no more and i downloaded enough to say tower shoulda known by then.Also i am changing home server as well with few other known tweaks..

By the way my connection was indeed throttled before modification.Was only pushing 50 kbps but went back up too 15 mbps!

 

[jim1450]

I got my LG F7 in Dec & wasn't throttled until May, I figure it was something to do with the LTE getting turned on.
The new throttle speed is worse than before & about worthless, so their claim of "unlimited data" is inaccurate. With networks getting faster Boost throttles even slower now? I can live with being throttled bur really 128k?
So they can in the future throttle to 56K & still claim "unlimited"?
I think our legislators need to step in & make the carriers change their advertising claims.

 

[Kasenomateru]

Just to clear things up. You still get unlimited data even if you hit the 2.5gb mark it's just slowed down. You can still use data but at 2G speeds. You still get 3G but the speed is reduced and it's still unlimited. They never said unlimited speed just unlimited data

 

[robaho]

Just to clear things up. You still get unlimited data even if you hit the 2.5gb mark it's just slowed down. You can still use data but at 2G speeds. You still get 3G but the speed is reduced and it's still unlimited. They never said unlimited speed just unlimited data

Please... The FTC should be suing for false advertising...

 

[Kasenomateru]

Please... The FTC should be suing for false advertising...

I'd say more like misleading advertisement

 

[robaho]

I'd say more like misleading advertisement

It falls under the same conditions of "truth in advertising". Seems ripe for a class action suit. See http://www.ftc.gov/news-events/media-resources/truth-advertising

 

[daffyducknj]

It falls under the same conditions of "truth in advertising". Seems ripe for a class action suit. See Truth In Advertising | Federal Trade Commission

I see what you mean, but it's not likely with regard to VM. They mention in the fine print that throttling will occur after 2.5GB of high speed data on the Sprint network. If they didn't mention that anywhere, then yeah, it would be ripe as you say. As it is mentioned in the fine print, something I'm sure their legal reps told them, then there's no case here.

It's not VM's fault that people don't read the fine print or Terms of Service agreements. They're there for a few reasons (legal and otherwise). That is the responsibility of the customer.

As we sometimes say in the Open Source community, RTFM if you don't want to get screwed!

 

[daffyducknj]

To answer your first question, no I do not work for Sprint.

(see above)

If you don't like there terms for data usage, then maybe you should find another provider, but most providers impose data caps...

Woops, just checked Verizon's TOS... no limits, actually. Only if they detect unusually high amounts of traffic for a given level of service (like high server use that is more for Business class vs. Residential) will they penalize customers.