{"id":6900,"date":"2019-12-03T07:48:33","date_gmt":"2019-12-03T13:48:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swappa.com\/blog\/?p=6900"},"modified":"2020-12-28T10:10:36","modified_gmt":"2020-12-28T16:10:36","slug":"t-mobile-network-technology-4g-lte-5g-and-beyond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swappa.com\/blog\/t-mobile-network-technology-4g-lte-5g-and-beyond\/","title":{"rendered":"T-Mobile network technology – 4G LTE, 5G and beyond"},"content":{"rendered":"

T-Mobile currently ranks third among the wireless carriers in the U.S. market. As a result of the April 1, 2020 merger with Sprint, T-Mobile has a reported 100 million subscribers. <\/span>For comparison, AT&T has <\/span>176 million<\/span><\/a> subscribers and Verizon has <\/span>120 million<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In this post, we\u2019ll cover a bit of T-Mobile history and then go right up to the present day with details on the current state of the carriers 4G LTE and 5G networks, and getting started with the carrier in terms of buying a device and plan availability.<\/span><\/p>\n

When was T-Mobile founded?<\/h2>\n

T-Mobile US, as a name, officially dates back to 2001. However, the T-Mobile US roots can be traced back to 1994 with the launch of VoiceStream Wireless. VoiceStream Wireless began as a subsidiary of Western Wireless Corporation and operated in that manner for roughly 5 years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

VoiceStream Wireless moved away from Western Wireless in 1999, and in 2000, the company expanded by acquiring two regional wireless carriers; Omnipoint Corporation and Aerial Communications Inc. Deutsche Telekom came into the picture in May 2001 and purchased VoiceStream Wireless and Powertell Inc., another regional wireless carrier.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Deutsche Telekom merged Powertell Inc. into Voicestream Wireless and the companies continued operating under the Voicestream Wireless brand. VoiceStream Wireless began transitioning to the T-Mobile US brand in September 2001 and was fully rebranded as T-Mobile US in July 2002.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some other notable events in T-Mobile US history include the 2007 acquisition of SunCom Wireless Holdings Inc., the aborted 2011 acquisition by AT&T, the 2012 merger with MetroPCS, and the beginning of the \u201cUn-carrier\u201d movement in 2013.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Sprint and T-Mobile merger talks originally began in 2013, though unlike what we are seeing today — the original plan was for Sprint and its parent company Softbank, to acquire T-Mobile. The current T-Mobile and Sprint merger received conditional FCC approval in November 2019. The merger is expected to fully complete in early 2020, however, at this time the companies still need to win the lawsuit from the State Attorney Generals and receive approval from the California PUC. Coming off of a favorable ruling in Federal Court in New York (from February 2020), T-Mobile and Sprint have announced they are now “taking final steps to complete their merger to create the New T-Mobile.”<\/span><\/p>\n

As of today, T-Mobile US is providing wireless voice, messaging, and data services across the United States, as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.<\/span><\/p>\n

Which network does T-Mobile use?<\/h2>\n

T-Mobile, similar to the other wireless carriers, has cycled through different versions of their network over the years. These different versions are referred to as generations, with the first generation offering the basics — voice calls. The second-generation (2G) T-Mobile network added data services and made use of GSM, GPRS, and EDGE on Band 2 (1900MHz). While the addition of data services was notable, it was not until 3G that users were able to use voice and data at the same time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

3G (UMTS, HSPA)<\/h3>\n

The 3G network brought faster speeds and the ability to use voice and data at the same time. This basically meant that users were able to use data while on an active voice call. The 3G T-Mobile network uses Band 4 (1700\/2100MHz).<\/span><\/p>\n

4G (HSPA+)<\/h3>\n

The 4G HSPA+ network saw faster speeds as compared to the 3G network, but it was somewhat of a stepping stone on the way to 4G LTE. T-Mobile touted the HSPA+ network as being able to offer \u201cincredibly fast download speeds\u201d that were \u201cnearly as fast as 4G LTE.\u201d The HSPA+ network makes use of Band 2 (1900MHz) and Band 4 (1700\/2100MHz). Similar to the 3G network, 4G (HSPA+) network users retained the ability to use voice and data at the same time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

4G LTE<\/h3>\n

The T-Mobile 4G LTE network added additional band support, as well as new features called VoLTE and Wideband LTE. Though, while there were new features added, there was a slight difference in voice and data with the 4G LTE network. Users needed to have VoLTE enabled on their device for simultaneous voice and data. Otherwise, LTE only provided data.<\/span><\/p>\n