Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
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Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#2Newer phone networks are much more efficient than old ones. For a certain amount of 3G spectrum the carrier can serve more customers at higher data rates with 4G or 5G. From their viewpoint it is expensive to keep serving 3G customers.
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#3I worked very very briefly in the wireless service industry on UAPs and large scale cell antenna receivers. To me, this doesn't seem as much a conspiracy to obsolete old phones as a practical stance to not need to have two copies of antennas on every tower. The old antennas used in 3G don't go up to the frequencies needed by true 5G, so they need new ones. If they're developing new ones, they don't want to have to keep supporting old standards as well, so they don't code for it (and possibly don't even support it in the hardware). So now there are no more 3G receivers on any towers and therefore your 3G phone stops working. As a side effect, anyone still using a 3G device needs to buy a new one, but I don't think that is the main driver for the move.
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#4From the Hacker News Guidelines [1]:
> Otherwise please use the original title, unless it is misleading or linkbait; don't editorialize.
The title of the article is "Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service", which seems accurate. The current post's title is "5G obsoletes 3G? forced obsolesence [sic] for profit?"
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#5Newer phone networks are much more efficient than old ones. For a certain amount of 3G spectrum the carrier can serve more customers at higher data rates with 4G or 5G. From their viewpoint it is expensive to keep serving 3G customers.
Ironically 2g will still be around forever as a fallback and so much industrisl equipment relies on it
At least thats what uk operators told me
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#6[deleted]
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#7Is there any way to fix my old 3G phone to continue to work under 5G?
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#8Newer phone networks are much more efficient than old ones. For a certain amount of 3G spectrum the carrier can serve more customers at higher data rates with 4G or 5G. From their viewpoint it is expensive to keep serving 3G customers.
Ironically 2g will still be around forever as a fallback and so much industrisl equipment relies on it At least thats what uk operators told me
That's what happening in Finland too. All operators have announced that 3G will be switched off in 2023.
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#9I worked very very briefly in the wireless service industry on UAPs and large scale cell antenna receivers. To me, this doesn't seem as much a conspiracy to obsolete old phones as a practical stance to not need to have two copies of antennas on every tower. The old antennas used in 3G don't go up to the frequencies needed by true 5G, so they need new ones. If they're developing new ones, they don't want to have to ke…
I think it's also about:
- later recycling frequencies
- reducing maintenance burden (by not maintaining 3G)
- as far as I remember 3G as serious security vulnerabilities
Also most smart phones only a lifetime of 3-5 years at most, and even then people tend to replace them early due to braking them and for vanity.
So there are probably not too many smart phones around which do not support 4G and which are not a security liability. Through probably a bunch of fallback feature phones or other "less common" (then smartphones) kinds of phones.
Also it differs by country.
Re: Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service
#10Newer phone networks are much more efficient than old ones. For a certain amount of 3G spectrum the carrier can serve more customers at higher data rates with 4G or 5G. From their viewpoint it is expensive to keep serving 3G customers.
Ironically 2g will still be around forever as a fallback and so much industrisl equipment relies on it At least thats what uk operators told me
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