3G shutdown UK - Initial experiences

[@James_Knott]

I live in Canada, near Toronto. The company I'm with has partially shut down 3G. It's now only on the 850 MHz band and the 1.9 GHz band has been switched to 4G. I don't remember the last time I saw a 3G signal, but it has been years. I normally get 5G or 5G+ (3.5 GHz C band) and occasionally get 4G or 4G+. I suspect the problems people are having with the 3G shutdown is the carriers are not replacing it with 4G or 5G on the same or lower frequency bands. In Canada, the lowest frequency used prior to 4G was 850 MHz, but now 600 & 700 MHz are used. These bands can provide even better coverage than 3G. Also, when possible, people should consider using WiFi calling in poor coverage areas.

[@jasonwhitehead9777]

Do you know why O2 and Tesco mobile calls are dropping out all the time and the signal is very poor

[@CommsbriefLimitedOfficial]

You will need to check that with them. O2 is yet to shut down their 3G network so the drop call etc could be due to general signal issues.

[@shaunigothictv1003]

Tesco mobile has bad internet connection on hspa but it may issues with O2s switch over. Im using a Samsung A55 and it keeps freezing on hspa but its fine on 4g and 5g.

[@CommsbriefLimitedOfficial]

@@shaunigothictv1003 Sorry to hear that. While HSPA is technically capable, the performance depends on how many people are being simultaneously served by the same channels that are serving you. So it all boils down to the utilisation of the available capacity (bandwidth). In real life deployments today, anything 3G is unlikely to give you a decent internet connection. But still better than 2G of course. 4G and 5G are in a different league compared to 3G. So with 3G, it’s not your phone, it’s the network that is slowing you down because the output of your phone is limited by the input it receives from the network.

[@shaunigothictv1003]

@@CommsbriefLimitedOfficial Ok thanks.

[@michaeltovey02607]

I miss 3G coverage a lot. I have changed ISP but suspect 4G will die as leaves appear on trees around me.

[@CommsbriefLimitedOfficial]

Yes, 3G was important because in some countries, 4G isn’t as wide spread as it should’ve been. Don’t worry about the leaves, 4G is leaf-proof:), but you’re right that any obstacle can reduce your signal strength.

[@stephenrobinson8244]

Why does 3g need to be shut down? Is it jot able to stay up, costs absorbed by 4g 5g network so to speak

[@CommsbriefLimitedOfficial]

You’re making a good point. In fact, 3G was providing a decent fallback option for 4G and 5G. But given the data speeds of 4G & 5G and the move to IP based voice, 3G isn’t adding a lot of unique value, just a back up. Same for 2G also, but 2G still provides IoT services like smart meters etc. The beauty of 5G networks is that they can work with all kinds of frequencies, low, mid and high so they can technically replace all earlier technologies when they are mature. So that’s why the gradual phasing out of earlier networks like 2G and 3G makes sense so that these resources can be used for the future 5G networks.