Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
12 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
3G is being phased out so your phone will no longer work. 
What you need to know about the 3G shutdown and VoLTE
Richard Howard • March 5, 2020
You’ve almost certainly heard of the new 5G mobile technology and its promise of lightning-fast mobile data. While that will certainly be the case in the future, right now you can expect modest improvements while the technology matures. However, that’s a story for another time. What we’ll be talking about today is how this move to 5G will affect older 2G and 3G technology. The nationwide mobile providers will be shutting down their 2G and 3G networks. And although you likely haven’t heard a peep about it, the 2G/3G shutdown process has already begun. If you’re using a phone that utilizes older technology, you could begin to have a very poor mobile experience if you don’t act soon!
What is the 2G/3G shutdown
We won’t do a deep dive into how cellular networks operate because, to be honest, it’d probably bore you to tears. For our purposes, all we need to know is that there are a limited number of frequencies available for cell phones and other devices that use mobile data to operate on. That means that existing 2G and 3G infrastructure is taking up valuable frequency bands that could be used for modern LTE service, which is both more in demand and more cost-effective. This in itself would have resulted in an eventual 3G network shutdown. With the advent of 5G, however, the need for additional frequency bands has greatly increased and as a result, networks around the world have begun the 2G and 3G “sunset” process (many have already shut down their 2G infrastructure).
When will 3G be shut down?
Exact 3G shutdown dates vary between the “Big Four” U.S. wireless service providers. And while their final shutdown dates range between the end of this year and 2022, they’ve already started decommissioning their towers and other infrastructure. If you’re currently experiencing issues like missed calls, and texts, slow connections or malfunctioning voicemail, you could be using a susceptible device in an affected area. As for 2G, that technology has gone the way of the dodo on all networks except T-Mobile, which will be shutting it off at the end of 2020. That’s why we’ll mostly focus on 3G.
More: https://ting.com/blog/3g-shutdown-and-volte-2/
Richard Howard • March 5, 2020
You’ve almost certainly heard of the new 5G mobile technology and its promise of lightning-fast mobile data. While that will certainly be the case in the future, right now you can expect modest improvements while the technology matures. However, that’s a story for another time. What we’ll be talking about today is how this move to 5G will affect older 2G and 3G technology. The nationwide mobile providers will be shutting down their 2G and 3G networks. And although you likely haven’t heard a peep about it, the 2G/3G shutdown process has already begun. If you’re using a phone that utilizes older technology, you could begin to have a very poor mobile experience if you don’t act soon!
What is the 2G/3G shutdown
We won’t do a deep dive into how cellular networks operate because, to be honest, it’d probably bore you to tears. For our purposes, all we need to know is that there are a limited number of frequencies available for cell phones and other devices that use mobile data to operate on. That means that existing 2G and 3G infrastructure is taking up valuable frequency bands that could be used for modern LTE service, which is both more in demand and more cost-effective. This in itself would have resulted in an eventual 3G network shutdown. With the advent of 5G, however, the need for additional frequency bands has greatly increased and as a result, networks around the world have begun the 2G and 3G “sunset” process (many have already shut down their 2G infrastructure).
When will 3G be shut down?
Exact 3G shutdown dates vary between the “Big Four” U.S. wireless service providers. And while their final shutdown dates range between the end of this year and 2022, they’ve already started decommissioning their towers and other infrastructure. If you’re currently experiencing issues like missed calls, and texts, slow connections or malfunctioning voicemail, you could be using a susceptible device in an affected area. As for 2G, that technology has gone the way of the dodo on all networks except T-Mobile, which will be shutting it off at the end of 2020. That’s why we’ll mostly focus on 3G.
More: https://ting.com/blog/3g-shutdown-and-volte-2/
