Message-ID: <20220820214002.GA130985@telecomdigest.us>
Date: Sat, 20 Aug 2022 21:40:02 +0000
From: Bill Horne <malassimQRMilation@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Verizon wants to give me a free phone, or maybe not
On Sat, Aug 20, 2022 at 12:04:42PM -0400, Fred Goldstein wrote:
> On 8/19/2022 2:15 PM, Bill Horne wrote:
>> A few weeks ago, Someone commented that some phones are
>> labelled "4G" but only have "4G" data capabilities, and only
>> "3G" voice capabilities. My wife's phone, IIRC, is an LG
>> 930 AT - what Verizon calls an "LG Spectrum 2" in the lists
>> of devices I own that are going to stop working at the end
>> of this year, right after the elections in the U.S.
>
> The LG VS930 came out about ten years ago, and runs Android 4, which
> in smartphone terms is somewhere like using Windows 98 (Android
> releases come faster than Windows). Its LTE support is limited to Band
> 13. That is Verizon's widest-coverage band and by an FCC rule specific
> to Band 13 (the only nationwide mobile license) they are supposed to
> allow "any" compatible device on that network. But they may not have
> had VoLTE finished by 2012, so the phone's voice support is probably
> only CDMA. Plus Verizon's 4G network nowadays makes extensive use of
> bands 5 (800 MHz cellular), 2 (1900 MHz PCS), and 66 (1700/2100 MHz
> AWS, superset of Band 4).
Here are the details on my wife's phone (From the phone's settings
menu, "Phone info" page):
Phone Model number is "VS930 4G"
Warranty Date Code 04/04/2013 18:36
I hope someone has access to databases that can provide an author-
itative yes/no answer about whether this phone is "3G" or "4G." More
to the point, I hope someone can tell me how to keep it in use after
the end of the year.
I either have to throw out the phone and the Network Extender I
bought, or convince Verizon that they've made a mistake. I suspect
that the Network Extender is going to stop working no matter what: I
bought it from Verizon when I found out that their covereage was not
as good as the other ham operators in town said it was, but Verizon
doesn't seem interested in offering the increased reliability and
covrage that these devices offer to users in the hills of Western
North Carolina - many of the businesses in town make them available to
their customers - and I suspect that their PR crew can't stand the
thought of having to admit that even Verizon is subject to the laws of
physics.
Time will tell: rather than endure sub-par service and being able to
make calls only from certain rooms of my home, or when standing on my
porch, I'll just use my VoIP phone: it works reliably, so I'll be able
to get calls even while I'm inside my home. My wife still helps out
with meals-on-wheels once a week, and I'll give her my Ting mobile 5G
phone to use. I pay $25 a month for it, and it seems to work OK in the
car.
Bill
Message-ID: <c9cb0deb-82e0-321c-e7f6-727fdde310e9@interisle.net>
Date: Sat, 20 Aug 2022 12:04:42 -0400
From: Fred Goldstein <invalid@see-sig.invalid>
Subject: Re: Verizon wants to give me a free phone, or maybe not
On 8/19/2022 2:15 PM, Bill Horne wrote:
> I have, for the last few months, been talking about Verizon's "3G"
> network being retired, and how my wife's "4G LTE" phone isn't
> acceptable to Verizon's vision of the future, and how Verizon keeps
> telling me I have to spend a whole lot of money to earn the privilege
> of continuing to pay them for cellular service.
>
> …
>
> A few weeks ago, Someone commented that some phones are labelled "4G"
> but only have "4G" data capabilities, and only "3G" voice capabil-
> ities. My wife's phone, IIRC, is an LG 930 AT - what Verizon calls an
> "LG Spectrum 2" in the lists of devices I own that are going to stop
> working at the end of this year, right after the elections in the U.S.
The LG VS930 came out about ten years ago, and runs Android 4, which in
smartphone terms is somewhere like using Windows 98 (Android releases
come faster than Windows). Its LTE support is limited to Band 13. That
is Verizon's widest-coverage band and by an FCC rule specific to Band 13
(the only nationwide mobile license) they are supposed to allow "any"
compatible device on that network. But they may not have had VoLTE
finished by 2012, so the phone's voice support is probably only CDMA.
Plus Verizon's 4G network nowadays makes extensive use of bands 5 (800
MHz cellular), 2 (1900 MHz PCS), and 66 (1700/2100 MHz AWS, superset of
Band 4).
VZW's web site lists a number of "free" phones, free if you sign up with
a 36-month contract with certain plans, but that's for new lines only,
and you may not like that kind of lock-in anyway. Still, it's a fact of
life that cell phones are designed for a lifespan of about 3 years, and
the networks take that into account. You can get still-supported used
phones off of eBay if you don't want to shell out for new, though decent
if basic Motos are under $200.
--
Fred R. Goldstein k1io fred "at" interisle.net
Interisle Consulting Group +1 617 795 2701
Message-ID: <20220821134540.GA135570@telecomdigest.us>
Date: Sun, 21 Aug 2022 13:45:40 +0000
From: Bill Horne <malQRMassimilation@gmail.com>
Subject: Verizon has ‘few palatable options,’ analyst says in
downgrade
By Emily Bary
The phone company paid a 'stupendous sum' for 5G spectrum but has yet
to realize extensive new revenue streams, according to
MoffettNathanson.
Verizon Communications Inc. is in a "particularly difficult position"
given current wireless-industry trends, and that dynamic has one
analyst taking a more downbeat view on the shares.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/verizon-has-few-palatable-options-analyst-says-in-downgrade-11660845612
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