Vodafone 4G in Wellington

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freitasm

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Topic # 126863 22-Jul-2013 15:32

I've received an invite to a Vodafone 4G launch event in Wellington, next Monday 29th July (which I will attend and the off to the airport).

I understand 4G has been up and down in Wellington at the moment for "testing". I am opening this thread for any of you wanting to discuss the Wellington 4G coverage, service, etc.

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Reply # 865485 25-Jul-2013 04:04

Regarding the deployment, is the LTE deployment more of a stop gap measure until 700Mhz comes online? I'm just wondering that with LTE being deployed at 1800Mhz are we going to be having the same issue as one has found with 3G at 2100Mhz particularly within the Hutt Valley? I'm not overly concerned whether I get LTE or not but rather whether the hopes are built up too high resulting in over promising but under delivery.

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Reply # 865501 25-Jul-2013 07:00

kawaii: Regarding the deployment, is the LTE deployment more of a stop gap measure until 700Mhz comes online? I'm just wondering that with LTE being deployed at 1800Mhz are we going to be having the same issue as one has found with 3G at 2100Mhz particularly within the Hutt Valley? I'm not overly concerned whether I get LTE or not but rather whether the hopes are built up too high resulting in over promising but under delivery.

LTE1800 is the most common frequency for LTE globally at present. One would presume all networks who win 700MHz spectrum will ultimately overlay current LTE networks they're building. Ultimately bonding bonding/aggregation will become a key feature of LTE so multiple bands is important.

You also need to remember there isn't a single commercially available device that supports the APAC 700Mhz LTE standard and with current roadmaps for many handset manufacturers I wouldn't expect to see a lot appear before late 2014. Usage on the 700MHz networks when built will be low because there simply isn't going to be large scale device availability.

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Reply # 865526 25-Jul-2013 07:37

What theoretical and speeds does LTE do, and what does the existing technology do? What practical benefits to an individual does LTE bring? Or is this mostly an upgrade for carriers to allow them to service more customers with the same cell tower?

Wikipedia says LTE does 300Mbps down and 75Mbps up, with 3G doing 56Mbps down and 22Mbps up (give or take, varying by carrier). Latency is meant to be lower, which would be a benefit - 5ms in LTE, not sure with 3G. Would there be many practical benefits, given mobile phones are pretty miserly with data? I guess the CPU of modern phones can handle those speeds fine, up from 7MBps to 35MBps.

One reason I ask is because I'm looking at a phone that comes in LTE and non-LTE versions. The non-LTE is cheaper by $80 or so, enough to be a useful saving, but not if it's going to handicap the phone.

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Reply # 865554 25-Jul-2013 08:36

Everything just loads instantly on 4G and sometimes it's faster than my current WIFI at home.

I do believe if you have the money for a 4G device and aren't planning to purchase any device soon over the year or so I would invest on 4G.

If you don't do much surfing then I guess its probably best to stick to a 3G device.
I get about 30mbps on 4G over at Penrose so it's quite fast.

If your finding a bit too expensive and plan to change your mobile in a year or so probably stick with a 3G and wait and see what 2Degrees has to offer next year on 4G plans.

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Reply # 865567 25-Jul-2013 08:57

I've seen up to 90Mbps downloads and if you want to future proof you should really get the LTE version.

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Reply # 865571 25-Jul-2013 09:07

I guess Vodafone having 4G also helps me decide which carrier to go with. I guess now I decide whether to go with the full S4 at $800 or the S4 mini at $670 - much prefer the smaller size but I think I like the idea of all the extra sensors, bigger battery, and more accessories available as it's so popular. No hurry though, my old Nokia dumb phone works fine, and I spend most of my life at a PC.

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kharris

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Reply # 867868 29-Jul-2013 14:41

Was reading that 4G is currently available in Wellington and Lower Hutt. Does anybody know if this also extends to Johnsonville/Newlands? This is where I work and was wondering if it was worth my while getting the 4G add-on for my IPhone 5. If I can't get it there then I am not sure if I will bother.

btw I have looked at the coverage maps and it seems to indicate that Johnsonville/Newlands is not included.

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Reply # 867871 29-Jul-2013 14:48

sbiddle:
You also need to remember there isn't a single commercially available device that supports the APAC 700Mhz LTE standard and with current roadmaps for many handset manufacturers I wouldn't expect to see a lot appear before late 2014. Usage on the 700MHz networks when built will be low because there simply isn't going to be large scale device availability.

Does the Galaxy S4 GT-I9505 not fully support this?

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Reply # 867887 29-Jul-2013 15:08

Inphinity:
sbiddle:
You also need to remember there isn't a single commercially available device that supports the APAC 700Mhz LTE standard and with current road maps for many handset manufacturers I wouldn't expect to see a lot appear before late 2014. Usage on the 700MHz networks when built will be low because there simply isn't going to be large scale device availability.

Does the Galaxy S4 GT-I9505 not fully support this?

As advised no device in the market today so this would include the Samsung S4 i9505

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Reply # 867907 29-Jul-2013 15:14

Inphinity:
sbiddle:
You also need to remember there isn't a single commercially available device that supports the APAC 700Mhz LTE standard and with current roadmaps for many handset manufacturers I wouldn't expect to see a lot appear before late 2014. Usage on the 700MHz networks when built will be low because there simply isn't going to be large scale device availability.

Does the Galaxy S4 GT-I9505 not fully support this?

Nope that's band 17. APAC is band 28.

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Reply # 867918 29-Jul-2013 15:27

sbiddle:
Inphinity:
Does the Galaxy S4 GT-I9505 not fully support this?

Nope that's band 17. APAC is band 28.

Ok, thanks. That's a bit disappointing. Ah well, it's still a way off, I'll probably get a new phone by then anyway :P

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Reply # 867930 29-Jul-2013 15:39

Any word on when there will be plans with enough data to warrant LTE?

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Reply # 867931 29-Jul-2013 15:43

sbiddle:
Inphinity:
sbiddle:
You also need to remember there isn't a single commercially available device that supports the APAC 700Mhz LTE standard and with current roadmaps for many handset manufacturers I wouldn't expect to see a lot appear before late 2014. Usage on the 700MHz networks when built will be low because there simply isn't going to be large scale device availability.

Does the Galaxy S4 GT-I9505 not fully support this?

Nope that's band 17. APAC is band 28.

I'm sure I recall when watching the S4 launch that they rambled on about it supporting ALL LTE bands worldwide. Not necessarily all on one phone, but I understood there were several variants covering all LTE bands. I could be wrong, maybe if someone has a link to the S4 launch it would be interesting to check.

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Reply # 867960 29-Jul-2013 16:26

Guy at work was showing me a speed test when he hit his data cap. Funny moment - will stick to my 3GB data plan thank you

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Reply # 868012 29-Jul-2013 18:20

I don't seem to get LTE in Central Lower Hutt. I have an iPhone 5 and have the 4G add-on as part of my plan but am still seeing the 3G symbol instead of LTE. In the settings I have enabled the LTE option and the mobile data APN is www.iphone-vodafone.net.nz.

Am I missing something?

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