Droid Life

Tag: 4G LTE

  • New DROID Charge Commercial is Massive.

    We’ve always been a fan of DROID campaigns, but this new set of ads for the Charge is shaping up to be one of the best yet.  This is a follow-up to the teaser we saw last Friday.   (more…)

  • Verizon 4G LTE Networks Down Nationwide (Updated)

    Verizon’s brand new 4G LTE network is and has been down across the nation for a number of hours now starting at some point late last night.  Yep, anyone with a Thunderbolt will be running on 1x until they fire this thing back up, even if you are in a non-LTE city.  And toggling your LTE on/off isn’t going to help you either.  Time to pull out the OG?

    Verizon has acknowledged the problem:

    Possible fix to get you back on “old” 3G while they work out issues: (spursrchamps2007)

    Dial ##778# and hit send

    * A pop-up window named EPST will show up giving you 2 choices: View Mode and Edit Mode. Pick: Edit Mode.
    * Enter the Password: 000000
    * Go down to Modem Settings and pick “Rev A“
    * You’ll want to choose enable and click OK, hit the menu button and then press “Commit Modifications.”
    * Restart your phone and you should see 3G is working

    To switch back to 3G/4G, follow same instructions but choose eHRPD.

    Update 7:51AM:  We’re hearing reports that Chicago may be fine as well as the Lehigh Valley, PA.

    Update 9:02AM:  Verizon with a minor update, although it doesn’t tell us much other than the network is still down for HTC Thunderbolts.

    Update 1:47PM:  Another update.  We’re still down in a lot of areas, but at least they have figured out the problem and are starting to bring people back up:

    Update 8:32PM:  We just heard from 3 separate sources that the DROID Charge has been delayed due to this network outage.  It looks like we all may be without 4G LTE for a little big longer.

    Update 7:36AM (4/28):  We’ve just received word from Verizon that 4G LTE is back up nationally.  Unfortunately eHRPD is not up though, and that means no soft hand-offs between 3G and 4G.

    Stay here as we’ll continue to keep you updated…

    Cheers Edward, Adam and everyone else!

  • DROID Charge Announced by Verizon, Available April 28 for $299 on Contract

    Well, we wish there was a surprised tucked into the DROID Charge press release, but we’ve pretty much shared with you all there is to know by now.  The phone as we said, will launch on April 28 for $299 on 2-year contract, and has all of the same specs we saw back at CES.  The device will sport a 4.3″ Super AMOLED Plus display, 1GHz single-core processor, 8MP rear camera, 1.3MP front camera, HDMI-out, will run Samsung’s TouchWiz, and fly on Verizon’s 4G LTE network.  A new landing page has been set up for the phone here.

    An interesting note from the press releases talks about signing up for a 4G LTE data plan that starts at $29.99 per month.  New plans being introduced soon?  Oh, and free mobile hotspot for a limited time.

    And as expected, a new scavenger hunt will start any minute.  Follow it at www.chargelanding.com.

    Full release after the break.     (more…)

  • Verizon’s “Mess” of New 4G LTE Cities are…

    Verizon tweeted yesterday that it would be flipping the switch on a “mess” of new 4G LTE cities come Thursday, which we were hoping meant anywhere from 20-50 cities, but boy were we off.  Well, so far.  Big Red dumped a slew of early press releases over the last 24 hours – one for each of the 6 cities that should be live by the end of the week.  And actually, we wouldn’t be surprised if many of you in the cities listed below already had 4G LTE coverage.  According to our Twitter feed yesterday, we had 4G service popping up all over the east coast.  Lucky, lucky.

    The early list:

    • Columbia, SC
    • Cleveland, TN
    • Clarksville, TN
    • Wilmington, NC
    • Hilton Head, SC
    • Lehigh Valley, PA

    Nothing on the west coast.  Here’s to hoping they aren’t stopping with these 6 and by the time Thursday gets here, we have another 14 or so to add on.

    Via:  Verizon

  • Speedtest.net Receives Android Overhaul, Appears to Handle Thunderbolt 4G LTE Tests Correctly

    We just  got a hold of the new Speedtest.net HD app before it hits the market and wanted to show you guys the nice job they’ve done with its UI and also the fact that it now appears to correctly calculate 4G LTE results on the HTC Thunderbolt.  To test it, we ran (drove) all the way out to Portland’s airport, since the rest of the city isn’t covered at this time and put it through a whole series of tests.  The results, as you may have expected, are awesome.  And with Verizon announcing today that Thursday would mark the launch of a “mess” of new 4G LTE cities, this has got to turn you on.   (more…)

  • Verizon About to Flip Switch on “Mess” of New 4G LTE Cities this Thursday

    HTC Thunderbolt owners, prepare for more 4G LTE coverage.  Verizon just announced via Twitter that they will activate their shiny new high speed network this Thursday in a “mess” of cities and towns, most of which should be from this list.  Just tell me that Portland will be one of them…please?

    And if you see that 4G icon pop up on your device for the first time, be sure to let us know in the comments here, but most definitely on Twitter.

    Via:  Twitter

  • Verizon Preparing to Sell a 16GB Motorola XOOM with 4G LTE?

    Less than a month ago, Motorola announced the XOOM Wi-Fi for $599 which we all assumed was their attempt at competing with Apple along with the ridiculous amounts of other cheap tablets that were poised to hit the market.  What if they weren’t stopping there though?  According to our friends at Verizon, a 16GB model could be in the works.  And just like the 32GB Motorola XOOM that’s available now, will be upgradeable to 4G LTE in the near future if the screenshot above holds any weight.

    No word on what pricing could end up at, but we’re seeing WiFi-only tablets with 16GB of storage fall in around the $400-$450 range.  Could a 4G 16GB XOOM land on Verizon at $699 or even cheaper?  And should we assume that a WiFi-only 16GB XOOM would follow as well?

    Cheers ___!

  • Want to Turn Off 4G LTE on the HTC Thunderbolt Easier? Try LTE OnOff

    Back on March 22, we provided you with a little reader tip that would let HTC Thunderbolt owners toggle their 4G LTE service on or off in hopes of improving battery life.  The process was simple, but required you to enter *#*#4636#*#* into your dialer, followed by a couple of menu presses to make the switch happen, leaving many of you to beg for a toggle switch.  Well folks, the crew at Team AndIRC has almost accomplished that with their LTE OnOff app.  It’s basically just a shortcut to that “Phone info” menu that will allow you to choose CDMA auto or CDMA+LTE and is not necessarily a perfect toggle like you would have on say a Power Control widget, but it gets the job done.

    Download Link (free)

    Cheers everyone!