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HSPA+ Vs LTE, Does it Really matter?

OcalaFlGuy

OcalaFlGuy

Android Expert
Trying to noodle this out.

I think I have changed my mind that LTE isn't any big deal anymore in day to day use. So far as not having it on a new GSM phone goes anyway. I have shunned say the L9 for not having LTE but I'm wondering now if that really matters in real use.

Only some of the HSPA+ areas have LTE right? BUT HSPA+ for most everyone is at least in the double digit data speeds, correct?

Would there be a scenario where HSPA+ would have say single digit speeds but the LTE in the area be MUCH faster? I'm not sure we have seen Any instances of that with reported speed tests.

In summation, won't simple HSPA+ get you into the double digit data speeds in the widest coverage area for the network possible?

Bruce in Ocala, Fl
 
The difference between lte and hspa+ is noticeable in speed. But i would not say hspa + is slow by any means. T- Mobile HSPA+ is much faster than Metro LTE.
 
As long as things load and you can do what you want when you want to does it really matter? I can load YouTube and watch a YouTube video on Lte with speeds of about 1.5mbps without stutter.
 
The biggest difference you'll see with LTE is lower latency and faster upload speeds. Download speeds for both will be more than sufficient for everyday usage, but having less lag will make a huge difference depending on what you're doing with your connection.
 
In orlando i get great speeds on either or..but like jhawk said i get 30s in lte on hspa i get around 70-80..you dont notice the difference honestly while using mobile
 
I was playing with a friend's phone, I can't recall if it's the L9 but it's like a larger F3.

Despite the fact that it's an HSPA only phone (no LTE), it still says 4G on the status bar.

I ran Sensorly, which (correctly) identified it as 3G. I ran a few speedtests and got 0.25 down, 1.75 up.

Metro needs to stop calling it 4G. Reminds me of how they'd often refer to 1x as 3G.
 
MyUsernameRox said:
I was playing with a friend's phone, I can't recall if it's the L9 but it's like a larger F3.

Despite the fact that it's an HSPA only phone (no LTE), it still says 4G on the status bar.

I ran Sensorly, which (correctly) identified it as 3G. I ran a few speedtests and got 0.25 down, 1.75 up.

Metro needs to stop calling it 4G. Reminds me of how they'd often refer to 1x as 3G.
Click to expand...
F3 is LTE capable. Always check about phone if curious
 
MyUsernameRox said:
I was playing with a friend's phone, I can't recall if it's the L9 but it's like a larger F3.

Despite the fact that it's an HSPA only phone (no LTE), it still says 4G on the status bar.

I ran Sensorly, which (correctly) identified it as 3G. I ran a few speedtests and got 0.25 down, 1.75 up.

Metro needs to stop calling it 4G. Reminds me of how they'd often refer to 1x as 3G.
Click to expand...

It's not metro that calls it 4G. Every company calls HSPA 4G; T-Mobile, AT&T, and so on. Most times the speeds are a lot better than what you got, so they feel justified in calling it 4G. Also, I remember reading once, that the FCC declared that if you are getting those speeds you can call it 4G.
 
The ITU which sets the standards of whats 2G, 3G, 4G... 5G etc later changed to include HSPA, WiMAX along with LTE as 4G when they initially were not covered by the 4G standard
 
They most certainly need to stop with the 4G hype. Recently my 4G speeds have been +/- 2 Mbps, on two of my $55/mo CDMA phones. I just enabled my kid's iPhone 4 on the GSM $40 monthly plan, and he gets 5-6 Mbps on 3G with his phone lol...

May as well switch to cheap HSPA phones and save 30 a month while getting better speed and coverage, I'm getting hosed with Metro towers :D
 
There is a few forms of HSPA+, HSPA+42 is teh more common these days as its teh one tmobile uses. verizon has LTE that scores mid 30's pretty easily, att averages faster speeds on their LTE and falls back to HSPA+14 4G. sprint jumped to wimax which peaked at 14mbps but was around 5-7mbps, now they have LTE which pulls me around 28-32mbps, tmobile has nice and speedy on both networks. metro was using crappy lte that was comparable to sprints wimax or hspa+14.

the big deal between the two is soon enough HD youtube is going to become the norm, what used to be ok at 240p now looks like crap and we want better, well it uses more bandwidth and hspa+ has reached its max for what tmobile is willing to do. LTE will drain more battery as it is another radio, but it should be teh factor considering getting hspa vs lte device, seeing as you can just disable lte and fall back to hspa+. the big draw IMo is it will be setting a standard, once all teh carriers move to it we will hopefully be closer to being able to just swap devices on any network without a hassle.

some LTE networks also run at lower freq's than the HSPA+/3g tech so building penetration is better thus allowing for better signal inside.
 
Spec2nirvash said:
They most certainly need to stop with the 4G hype. Recently my 4G speeds have been +/- 2 Mbps, on two of my $55/mo CDMA phones. I just enabled my kid's iPhone 4 on the GSM $40 monthly plan, and he gets 5-6 Mbps on 3G with his phone lol...

May as well switch to cheap HSPA phones and save 30 a month while getting better speed and coverage, I'm getting hosed with Metro towers :D
Click to expand...

-That only works if you use less than 2.5 G a month of data.
-I'll agree 2 Mps is pretty slow but what are you NOT able to do with that that you Need to do?


I'm getting 3-6 here. I'm not paying $5 more @ month anytime soon to fix something that's not broke.

Bruce in Ocala, Fl
 
I was saying I should move to the same $40 plan since TMOs 3G is faster than my MPCS 4G service. Were using a iPhone 4 (3G only). Does metro also limit the $40 plan 3G speeds even if you don't have a 4G/HSPA+ compatible device?

From what I understand, the $40 T, T,W unlimited plan comes with 250 mb of 4G data whether you have a device capable of using HSPA+/LTE or not...?
 
Hey how are you guys, just wanted to let you guys know that gsm 3g data is unlimited and especially since you are using the Iphone the 40 dollar plan will provide unlimited data without throttling. And I know my brother uses the byod Iphone 40 dollar plan. So its like a perk to have a 3g only phone, if you have a hspa+ or 4g phone like the nexus 4 you are screwed.
 
I see huge differences between hspa+ and lte on T-mobile. On some recent speeds tests I was getting 10mbps on hspa+ and on lte over 30 mbps or faster no problem
 
Shabbypenguin said:
There is a few forms of HSPA+, HSPA+42 is teh more common these days as its teh one tmobile uses. verizon has LTE that scores mid 30's pretty easily, att averages faster speeds on their LTE and falls back to HSPA+14 4G. sprint jumped to wimax which peaked at 14mbps but was around 5-7mbps, now they have LTE which pulls me around 28-32mbps, tmobile has nice and speedy on both networks. metro was using crappy lte that was comparable to sprints wimax or hspa+14.

the big deal between the two is soon enough HD youtube is going to become the norm, what used to be ok at 240p now looks like crap and we want better, well it uses more bandwidth and hspa+ has reached its max for what tmobile is willing to do. LTE will drain more battery as it is another radio, but it should be teh factor considering getting hspa vs lte device, seeing as you can just disable lte and fall back to hspa+. the big draw IMo is it will be setting a standard, once all teh carriers move to it we will hopefully be closer to being able to just swap devices on any network without a hassle.

some LTE networks also run at lower freq's than the HSPA+/3g tech so building penetration is better thus allowing for better signal inside.
Click to expand...



Speaking of building penetration ,my hspa+ has been working at my work In places I didn't get signal at all, even on my motion didn't work there, My hspa+ works really well, my lte only works when its outside and battery life can't complain.
 
Also LTE hasn't even been transmitting at full power from the sites and also there aren't antennas on all the towers that have HSPA just yet
 
DirtyDee said:
Really why is that?
Click to expand...

Still trying to figure out tower spacing all while they go back and start filling in and getting the MOCN and air interface ready to do both Tmobile and Metro LTE using the same spectrum
A lot of factors in play while they're rolling out lte so it's broadcast at lower power for less interference and more control
 
Gman9831 said:
Still trying to figure out tower spacing all while they go back and start filling in and getting the MOCN and air interface ready to do both Tmobile and Metro LTE using the same spectrum
A lot of factors in play while they're rolling out lte so it's broadcast at lower power for less interference and more control
Click to expand...
So baically all those attack ads on t-metro are unfounded because we they are playing safe and smart, by giving us the tip so to speak
 
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