Will TMobile get 4G or 4G LTE work on the S4 Mini?

[Sammuel1973]

I jumped the gun to buy one on Ebay today: Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini I9195 8GB Unlocked GSM 4G LTE. Thanks in advance.

 

[B. Diddy]

The i9195 doesn't support T-Mobile's LTE bands, which are Band 4 (AWS 1700/1900), Band 2 (1900), and in selected areas, Band 12 (700). See the specs: Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini - Full phone specifications. I don't believe you can change which bands the phone supports.

 

[Sammuel1973]

The i9195 doesn't support T-Mobile's LTE bands, which are Band 4 (AWS 1700/1900), Band 2 (1900), and in selected areas, Band 12 (700). See the specs: Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini - Full phone specifications. I don't believe you can change which bands the phone supports.

Thanks! I also just bought the S5 mini, and getting H+ or H on TMobile. If I can also get that with the S4 mini, I am ok despite no 4G or 4G LTE. Can you confirm if the same with the S4 mini? Thanks.

 

[B. Diddy]

I think it'll work for HSPA+, because the specs say it supports the 1900 MHz band for 3G (T-Mobile also uses the 1900 MHz and AWS 1700/2100 MHz bands for 3G). But I can't confirm it with absolute certainty.

 

[Sammuel1973]

I think it'll work for HSPA+, because the specs say it supports the 1900 MHz band for 3G (T-Mobile also uses the 1900 MHz and AWS 1700/2100 MHz bands for 3G). But I can't confirm it with absolute certainty.

Thanks again for your help. Does that mean HSPA+ is equivalent only to 3G on TMobile?

 

[Crashdamage]

HSPA+ is a kinda 3.5G. It's actually fairly fast, as fast or faster in some cases than LTE 4G. If you have good HSPA+ signals in your area HSPA+ is fast enough you won't really miss not having LTE.

This site:

http://www.willmyphonework.net/

...agrees with what B. Diddy said about the S4 Mini. 3G will work on 1900MHz but it does not support T-Mobile's 1700-2100MHz 3G and no LTE on T-Mobile.

 

[Sammuel1973]

HSPA+ is a kinda 3.5G. It's actually fairly fast, as fast or faster in some cases than LTE 4G. If you have good HSPA+ signals in your area HSPA+ is fast enough you won't really miss not having LTE.

This site:

http://www.willmyphonework.net/

...agrees with what B. Diddy said about the S4 Mini. 3G will work on 1900MHz but it does not support T-Mobile's 1700-2100MHz 3G and no LTE on T-Mobile.

Wow, what an easy to use website. I am a phone fanatic, will keep revisiting the site for future reference. I love to also explore international phones. Yes, on my new S5 mini, I only get H or H+, but it seems it's on par with 4G or 4G LTE TMobile, good thing but weird. I guess then it's safe for TMobile users to expect a similar speed for unlock GSM phones? So 4G or 4GLTE is just a label?

 

[Crashdamage]

With a decent signal HSPA+ is comparable to a lot of the LTE around the country.
And yes, it's labeling, marketing. Some say if it's not LTE it's not 4G. Others say if it's 4G fast, it's OK to call it 4G.
Whatever...

 

[B. Diddy]

HSPA+ is actually called "4G" by AT&T and T-Mobile, while their true LTE is called "4G LTE." Technically, as pointed out by Crashdamage, HSPA+ is still 3G, but the download speeds on HSPA+ (T-Mobile) are often around 10-12 Mbps where I live in the Silicon Valley, while LTE is more like 30-40 Mbps. AT&T speeds are probably comparable, but I don't have direct experience with them.