3 ms·

> It was 4G that gave us the smartphone. Smartphones existed since the early 2000's, well before the first 4G deployment in 2009. From the Smartphone wikipedia

> It was 4G that gave us the smartphone. Smartphones existed since the early 2000's, well before the first 4G deployment in 2009. From the Smartphone wikipedia entry: "The first iPhone also faced criticism for not supporting the latest 3G wireless network standards, but was praised for its hardware and software design, and its June 2007 release was met with heavy demand"

DeonPenny 8y ago
The iPhone was late to 3G, 4G, texting multiple people, and a lot more. Apple has always taken a very wait and see approach.
- rhizome 8y ago
  And who can blame them, what with the whole "US 4G is 3.5G" issue. US cell advances always seem to have caveats and market-confusing details.
qlm 8y ago
I have had 4g disabled for years as I’ve found it somehow slower and significantly less reliable than 3G, across multiple devices. I can stream music and watch YouTube videos just fine. This is on O2 (UK). Maybe I need a new network.
- amaccuish 8y ago
  I'm on O2 too and it's garbage. I can't wait till my contract is up to switch. I often have full signal but nothing will load, whilst mates on Three or EE are fine. When it does work, it's so slow. And it's not a local thing either, it's everywhere I go.
  - marcusjt 8y ago
    Interesting, post above yours says O2 and Vodafone share network, and I'm on Vodafone but rarely if ever have issues.
- kiwijamo 8y ago
  Over time as they reduce the amount of spectrum allocated to 3G though reallocating spectrum to 4G, I suspect you'll find you're better off using 4G. Here in New Zealand the telcos have, for some time, been reducing their 3G capacity to the bare minimum and using freed up spectrum for 4G. Before: 10–60 MHz allocated to 3G (across 850/900/2100 bands) and 20 MHz allocated to 4G (1800 band only). Now: 5–10 MHz allocated to 3G (either one of 850 or 900 bands only) and 20–60+ MHz allocated to 4G (across any number of 700/900/1800/2100/2300/2600 bands). 4G has improved here not only due to capacity being refarmed from 2G/3G (e.g. 2degrees NZ dropped 2G to provide 4G capacity at 900MHz, and Vodafone NZ has swapped their 3G 2100 MHz out for 4G 2100 MHz) but also 4G supports a wider range of frequencies including 700MHz which has improved rural signal strength. I understand generally what is happening other countries is not too much different to what's happening here. I know UK and Australia have seen similar strategies being implemented. UK Note: O2 UK shares their network with Vodafone UK, so you might like to have a look at EE UK/Three UK who also operates a shared network. In the UK most sites are operated by either one or the other (sometimes both groups cooperate and all networks are served from the same site).
willidiots 8y ago
The original iPhone was 2G, not even 3G (I owned one, along with a Palm Treo). I built Wi-Fi networks at the time, and suddenly we were inundated with iPhone users who were frustrated with the 2G speeds. OP author doesn't seem to know their history...
swebs 8y ago
Yeah, I remember the iPhone was 2G only and didn't even support MMS.

DeonPenny 8y ago

The iPhone was late to 3G, 4G, texting multiple people, and a lot more. Apple has always taken a very wait and see approach.

rhizome 8y ago
And who can blame them, what with the whole "US 4G is 3.5G" issue. US cell advances always seem to have caveats and market-confusing details.

qlm 8y ago

I have had 4g disabled for years as I’ve found it somehow slower and significantly less reliable than 3G, across multiple devices. I can stream music and watch YouTube videos just fine. This is on O2 (UK). Maybe I need a new network.

amaccuish 8y ago
I'm on O2 too and it's garbage. I can't wait till my contract is up to switch. I often have full signal but nothing will load, whilst mates on Three or EE are fine. When it does work, it's so slow. And it's not a local thing either, it's everywhere I go.
- marcusjt 8y ago
  Interesting, post above yours says O2 and Vodafone share network, and I'm on Vodafone but rarely if ever have issues.
kiwijamo 8y ago
Over time as they reduce the amount of spectrum allocated to 3G though reallocating spectrum to 4G, I suspect you'll find you're better off using 4G. Here in New Zealand the telcos have, for some time, been reducing their 3G capacity to the bare minimum and using freed up spectrum for 4G. Before: 10–60 MHz allocated to 3G (across 850/900/2100 bands) and 20 MHz allocated to 4G (1800 band only). Now: 5–10 MHz allocated to 3G (either one of 850 or 900 bands only) and 20–60+ MHz allocated to 4G (across any number of 700/900/1800/2100/2300/2600 bands). 4G has improved here not only due to capacity being refarmed from 2G/3G (e.g. 2degrees NZ dropped 2G to provide 4G capacity at 900MHz, and Vodafone NZ has swapped their 3G 2100 MHz out for 4G 2100 MHz) but also 4G supports a wider range of frequencies including 700MHz which has improved rural signal strength. I understand generally what is happening other countries is not too much different to what's happening here. I know UK and Australia have seen similar strategies being implemented. UK Note: O2 UK shares their network with Vodafone UK, so you might like to have a look at EE UK/Three UK who also operates a shared network. In the UK most sites are operated by either one or the other (sometimes both groups cooperate and all networks are served from the same site).

willidiots 8y ago

The original iPhone was 2G, not even 3G (I owned one, along with a Palm Treo). I built Wi-Fi networks at the time, and suddenly we were inundated with iPhone users who were frustrated with the 2G speeds. OP author doesn't seem to know their history...

swebs 8y ago

Yeah, I remember the iPhone was 2G only and didn't even support MMS.