Nexus S & Sprint's LTE Announcement

**FitChicago** · 10-07-2011, 12:23 PM

I'm sure you folks have read the announcement that Sprint is transitioning from Clearwire's WiMax 4G to LTE.

I just reviewed the live blog of the event and have an important, yet unanswered question: How long will Sprint support WiMax devices like the Nexus S? Sprint's agreement with Clearwire ends Dec 31, 2012; will the end of that agreement mean that devices who get 4G via WiMax will essentially become 3G devices?

With my last Premiere Gold upgrade weeks away, I had been planning on upgrading to the Nexus S because it is a phenomenal device but after today's news do you folks think I should hold off on upgrading until Sprint devices that support LTE are available?

Personally this announcement, while great in the long-term, is frustrating due to the termination of Sprint Premiere; as a 10+ year Sprint user the yearly upgrade was a great benefit given because of my loyalty to Sprint and, if Premiere Gold was not terminated this announcement wouldn't impact my (and thousands of other folks) decision because another yearly upgrade would occur prior to then end of the Clearwire/WiMax agreement.

Look forward to your thoughts and potentially transitioning from the Optimus S to the Nexus S in a couple weeks.

**Paul627g** · 10-07-2011, 12:45 PM

Its definately a tough choice... Either hold off with your current device and wait until next year to see what is in store or jump on the wagon now and face having to upgrade again next year...

Either way... Everyone at some point in the next 12-24 months is going to be almost forced into upgrading their devices. Plus if history teaches us anything the first batch out of the door of LTE or anything new in hardware will probably have some issues and be quickly replaced by newer and improved devices...

Bottom line Sprint opened the door to more sales..

1. They hope to impress their current customers with the idea of getting LTE which should pan out to be much better. I know my neighbor is on Verizon and she can stand there all day long on 4g when I have to drive almost a mile to catch it on Sprint and even then its spotty... Not to mention I'm in the Chicago suburbs which is HEAVILY populated by Sprint and all other major carriers and still 4g is a hit and miss in many areas.... LTE on the other hand its like its been here all along and you don't even think about NOT getting a signal...

2. Old and new customers will have something to consider now that Sprint should be on par with Verizon and others especially once LTE is really up and established on Sprint.

3. A whole new product line will have to be rolled out, even if it just means rebranding existing "hot sellers" at that point in time with a new LTE radio repackaged...

I believe its an overall win win situation for Sprint. Sure your going to have your crowd that says "thats it, I've had enough of Sprint changing their minds... I'm walking" but overall I think you will please many of the customers that have held on waiting for Sprint to improve its network capabilities and going LTE is a step in the right direction.

How this all plays out for the Prime, SGSII and others.. Well thats what 6-8+ months from now.. Plenty of time for Sprint and Sammy, HTC, etc. to come up with new designs and ideas for line of updated devices or new ones based on LTE. Wouldn't surprise me if there is already test units active and floating around Sprint testing out LTE in limited (private) use/areas now...

**FitChicago** · 10-07-2011, 01:10 PM

Originally Posted by Paul627g

Either way... Everyone at some point in the next 12-24 months is going to be almost forced into upgrading their devices.

Exactly; and because of the elimination of Premiere the upgrade will be at a retail price which is mind-boggling to me. The fact that all current/upcoming devices are WiMax and noting that Sprint failed to address what happens to WiMax users on 1/1/13 when the question came up at the event is very unsettling to me.

Bottom line Sprint opened the door to more sales..

POTENTIALLY more sales at a higher rate to long-term customers due to the fact that a device they sold you is no longer supports the 4G WiMax they not only made a selling point but charge you an extra $10/month for...

I believe its an overall win win situation for Sprint. Sure your going to have your crowd that says "thats it, I've had enough of Sprint changing their minds... I'm walking" but overall I think you will please many of the customers that have held on waiting for Sprint to improve its network capabilities and going LTE is a step in the right direction.

I agree it is an overall win in the long term; the LTE versus WiMax thing reminds me of the BluRay versus HD DVD or VHS versus Beta

I've been with Sprint way too long to have this drive me away. Their customer service has dramatically improved from the early 00's when it was a nightmare. However the elimination of Premiere was the first red flag to me about how they feel about long-term customers and today's announcement makes the loss of Premiere Gold huge.

Would you suggest following through with the plan to get the Nexus S and hope Sprint will give us upgrade eligibility once WiMax goes away?

**Paul627g** · 10-07-2011, 01:36 PM

Hard to say what to do....

I would think the retail pricing is going to have to be addressed somehow... I mean how could expect people to pay hundreds of dollars for a device they would of gotten a year earlier for the normal $199/$150/$99 ?? I had to pay the full price minus $75 for the early 1 yr upgrade on my wife's Epic because she was 3 months before her 2 yr upgrade date.. That sucked... Spent $199 for my Epic 4g then had to pay $425 for her Epic... I couldn't imagine having to go down that road again...

I think Sprint is going to have to come up with some options... I've been with Sprint for easily 7 or 8 years now and these changes are getting disturbing... Then again your almost in the same boat wherever you go now, as it seems all the carriers are looking for ways to get away from these $199 release prices and make more money off each device sold as if they aren't making enough already... ?

In all reality my 1 yr upgrade is November 1st, 2011 from our Epic 4g's... I ended up on the NS4G due to their 3 bad refurbs and optional device swap option.

My 2 yr upgrade wouldn't come up until October 2012 last I spoke with Sprint a month or so ago... Who knows if that option is even there anymore with these changes..

Another thing that bothers me is what is this commitment to WiMax until what end of 2012? Basically what we have now for 4g/WiMax coverage is probably the best it gets then because why would they spend more money on upgrading and improving towers to support a service they are going to flip the off switch on in roughly 14 months? So this basically spotty 4g service is the best it gets until they start flipping the switch on LTE service and you jump on a new LTE supporting device.

Troubling very troubling and I believe Sprint has a lot of explaining of between the lines to do....

**Jessicalt1** · 10-07-2011, 02:20 PM

Well, I switched from the Optimus to the Nexus last weekend and I really like it. The Optimus was a great little device, but the Nexus is phenomenal. Additionally, 4g hasn't been available to me, so that really wasn't a selling point for myself, or my husband when he got his Evo. I think they'd have to address it at some point, but I agree, they are trying to go "mainstream" with abolishing the Premier Program and coming more in line with big Red and ATT.

**ZiggSeVO** · 10-08-2011, 10:31 PM

You should be able to use your premeir upgrade until Dec 31 2012

**Cat Eyez Honey** · 10-09-2011, 12:55 PM

I upgraded to the Nexus on Oct. 1st. I was a Gold Premier customer and my next upgrade will be Oct. 2012.

I don't have 4g in my area, so not a concern for me at the moment. Also, the $10 is considered a smartphone fee not at 4g fee.

**ijip** · 10-09-2011, 01:06 PM

I would get the new iPhone.it had a new antenna that gives much better through put on 3g devices or switch carriers.I saw a link for the galaxy s2 for 100 or get the new prime/nexus.
Wimax data us really not impressive at all.

The best sprint will be able to offer Wimax users is an early upgrade.the worst being just cutting off the service.

This will depend I guess on how well they do with the new iPhone...

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using Tapatalk

**Trun** · 10-10-2011, 12:15 AM

Originally Posted by Cat Eyez Honey

Also, the $10 is considered a smartphone fee not at 4g fee.

It's only a "Smartphone fee" because they got tired of people complaining about service they were paying for but not receiving.

**BlackHawkA4** · 10-10-2011, 12:20 AM

Originally Posted by Trun

It's only a "Smartphone fee" because they got tired of people complaining about service they were paying for but not receiving.

If $10 and no yearly upgrades is what it takes to build a lte network that's a small fee to pay next to the other guys

**wpbfjr** · 10-10-2011, 02:31 AM

i'm a bit torn on this topic.

when att dropped the system that supported the 'old att', there was plenty of warning, plus they sent a "free" basic phone to ensure system compatibility. plus 2,000 bonus minutes.

BUT my 7pm-7am nights/weekend went away.

all that to say i doubt sprint will leave y'all holding the bag, tho you might have to hold out to the last minute to get the best incentives.

I'll come back to sprint if i don't have to drive around looking for the high end service i'm paying for.

nexus s on the road

**wmurch3** · 10-12-2011, 10:05 AM

I would first see if service will even be put in your area. If it is then I would definitely wait. I don't foresee 4g coming to where I live for a long time so it doesn't effect me at all.

**wmurch3** · 10-12-2011, 10:12 AM

Originally Posted by ijip

I would get the new iPhone.it had a new antenna that gives much better through put on 3g devices

I'd wait to see reviews before you bank on that.

**6tr6tr** · 10-12-2011, 10:24 AM

I almost never use 4G on the Nexus S as it's so spotty and unavailable in most areas.

**johnnyappleseed** · 10-12-2011, 03:44 PM

Buy a used or new-in-box Nexus S off of eBay or Craigslist and keep your current contract and upgrade date, that's what I just did. I never used the keybord on my Epic 4G, so I decided to buy a Nexus S off of eBay. If I ever get around to listing the Epic, the whole thing should cost me maybe $50 at most.

Activated the Nexus on my account, and now when my contract is up (signed a new 2-yr on Epic launch date 8/31/10) I can either upgrade then if LTE is available or go month-to-month while waiting. I pull down 11-12Mbps on WiMax while sitting in my living room, so I'm happy to stick with WiMax until I'm either forced to switch to LTE, or there's a killer device that I MUST have at the time.

**FitChicago** · 10-12-2011, 07:55 PM

Thank you guys for your thoughtful and insightful feedback; I really appreciate it!

At the moment I am confident I'll be jumping to the Nexus S in a few weeks for a few reasons (one that you folks will definitely be interested in):

* The WiMax to LTE switch / potential 1/1/13 nightmare scenario for Sprint WiMax users: Earlier this week I had a delightful, in-depth discussion with a supervisor in retentions who couldn't have been nicer and more open about a plethora of topics; one of which was the nightmare scenario and its impact; in no uncertain terms I learned that Sprint would have to allow those impacted by the loss of WiMax would have to be eligible for immediate upgrade.

* It seems that almost every other 4G Sprint device is dealing with a notable issue(s) causing the users major headaches/frustrations (Epic 2, Photon, 3D); whereas I gather Nexus S users' issues are minor in comparison.

* Pure Android and more stable updates.

Or I could always drop Android and get a Blackberry; they seem to be doing terrific...

**vnv01** · 10-12-2011, 10:12 PM

That seems to be consistent with everything that has been presented so far about the transition.. Wimax is not shutting off on 1/1/13, and by the time WiMax has been offloaded, the people signing 2 year contracts as we type will be eligible for LTE phones...

Nexus S 4G is the new Optimus S, and I mean that in a good way!

**FitChicago** · 10-13-2011, 12:16 AM

Originally Posted by vnv01

That seems to be consistent with everything that has been presented so far about the transition.. Wimax is not shutting off on 1/1/13, and by the time WiMax has been offloaded, the people signing 2 year contracts as we type will be eligible for LTE phones...

Actually there definitely is the potential for WiMax to be no more come 1/1/13; currently there is nothing established that would allow it to continue on Sprint and there is a possibility that Clearwire will go out of business.

Sent from my Android device

**Zerocool84** · 10-13-2011, 02:07 AM

Originally Posted by vnv01

That seems to be consistent with everything that has been presented so far about the transition.. Wimax is not shutting off on 1/1/13, and by the time WiMax has been offloaded, the people signing 2 year contracts as we type will be eligible for LTE phones...

Nexus S 4G is the new Optimus S, and I mean that in a good way!

Sprint's contract for WiMax ends at the end of 2012 and there is no way they are renewing it.

**FitChicago** · 10-13-2011, 08:21 AM

Originally Posted by Zerocool84

Sprint's contract for WiMax ends at the end of 2012 and there is no way they are renewing it.

Exactly right Zerocool84. Correct me if I'm wrong but during Sprint's LTE announcement wasn't there a slide which showed the new towers supporting LTE, WiMax, etc?

**bselle** · 10-13-2011, 08:27 AM

Originally Posted by johnnyappleseed

Buy a used or new-in-box Nexus S off of eBay or Craigslist and keep your current contract and upgrade date, that's what I just did. I never used the keybord on my Epic 4G, so I decided to buy a Nexus S off of eBay. If I ever get around to listing the Epic, the whole thing should cost me maybe $50 at most.

Activated the Nexus on my account, and now when my contract is up (signed a new 2-yr on Epic launch date 8/31/10) I can either upgrade then if LTE is available or go month-to-month while waiting. I pull down 11-12Mbps on WiMax while sitting in my living room, so I'm happy to stick with WiMax until I'm either forced to switch to LTE, or there's a killer device that I MUST have at the time.

I was having enough problems with my Epic 4G that Sprint agreed to swap it for a Nexus S as I told them I would prefer not to continue enduring Epic failures. No contract renewal, just a return.

**FitChicago** · 10-13-2011, 09:15 AM

Originally Posted by bselle

I was having enough problems with my Epic 4G that Sprint agreed to swap it for a Nexus S as I told them I would prefer not to continue enduring Epic failures. No contract renewal, just a return.

So bselle, you'd recommend the Nexus over the Epic Touch 4G or the original Evo 4G?

**bselle** · 10-13-2011, 09:27 AM

Definitely! I had the Epic 4G. Never used the Evo 4G. I had force closes, terrible inconsistency with by Bluetooth/Ford Sync connection, and my battery drained every day within 5 hours with light usage. I was swapping batteries or charging by lunch each day. Just too many problems to want to deal with.

**FitChicago** · 10-13-2011, 10:01 AM

Originally Posted by bselle

Definitely! I had the Epic 4G. Never used the Evo 4G. I had force closes, terrible inconsistency with by Bluetooth/Ford Sync connection, and my battery drained every day within 5 hours with light usage. I was swapping batteries or charging by lunch each day. Just too many problems to want to deal with.

WOW! That sounds like a nightmare. In reading the Epic Touch 4G boards I've noticed a plethora of issues (not just minor issues) with the device. I wonder how many Epic owners are or will just have to deal with a quirky device now that Sprint no longer offers the 30 day return policy...

So no issues with the Nexus bselle?

**dchawk81** · 10-13-2011, 10:47 AM

I'm off contract now so upgrade schedule isn't an issue for me, but I'm going to plug away with my current device and wait patiently to see how LTE pans out. We don't have WiMax here so I'm not anxious about losing it.

Nobody will get a free or subsidized LTE phone because they're still 3G capable. Killing WiMax doesn't kill the device.