AT&T limiting network speed on their Titan?

[pdagal]

My Titan is averaging 4.28Mbps down and 1.05Mbps up today (Bandwith Test app).

My iPhone 4S is averaging 4.16Mbps down and 1.1Mbps today (speedtest app).

Dallas metroplex.

 

[Reflexx]

My Titan is averaging 4.28Mbps down and 1.05Mbps up today (Bandwith Test app).

My iPhone 4S is averaging 4.16Mbps down and 1.1Mbps today (speedtest app).

Dallas metroplex.

You live in Dallas and have a Titan? Did you order it during the $0.01 sale?

If so, I don't know how they possibly could have shipped it all the way from Ft Worth this soon.

 

[pdagal]

You live in Dallas and have a Titan? Did you order it during the $0.01 sale?

If so, I don't know how they possibly could have shipped it all the way from Ft Worth this soon.

Reflexx, we have a review unit (I'm Editor in Chief at MobileTechReview).

But I did manage to pick up a phone for myself at an AT&T corporate store in Allen

 

[gtg465x]

Reflexx, we have a review unit (I'm Editor in Chief at MobileTechReview).

But I did manage to pick up a phone for myself at an AT&T corporate store in Allen

Was that test done with a review unit? I ask because review units sometimes have different software builds than retail units. That was the case with the Thrill 4G. Brad from Engadget and I discovered that his Thrill 4G review unit had different software than retail units back when we were investigating speed issues with that phone.

 

[kevm14]

What could at&t's excuse possibly be to wait x months to enable proper 4g? Do they wait until enough complaints come in then say "well I guess they noticed so we can't get away with it on this phone." its quite a conspiracy theory and likely not true but wtf?

Sent from my HTC TITAN using Board Express

 

[Cartman]

From work (next to an AT&T tower) I am still only getting a little over 4 Mbps with 5 bars on 4G using the Focus S.

We have about 80 iOS devices in the building so will try to test again once everyone goes home and report any change.

 

[pdagal]

No, it was done with my personal phone purchased at the store.

I used my own SIM card with has 4G HSPA+ enabled on my account. Before I had that feature turned on (there was no charge and I was able to keep my grandfathered unlimited data), I never got very good speeds with HSPA+ phones. Just mentioning that for folks who might still have old 3G data set up for their accounts.

Was that test done with a review unit? I ask because review units sometimes have different software builds than retail units. That was the case with the Thrill 4G. Brad from Engadget and I discovered that his Thrill 4G review unit had different software than retail units back when we were investigating speed issues with that phone.

 

[Rocket_Girl]

Can't even load a page. Bandwidth app showing server timeout. 4 bars on at&t "4G". Only the most heavily used (recently cached) pages, like this one, will load. Grrrr

 

[Billone]

No, it was done with my personal phone purchased at the store.

I used my own SIM card with has 4G HSPA+ enabled on my account. Before I had that feature turned on (there was no charge and I was able to keep my grandfathered unlimited data), I never got very good speeds with HSPA+ phones. Just mentioning that for folks who might still have old 3G data set up for their accounts.

Good point, anyone that contacts AT&T should have them verify that you have 4g enabled on your account. Ive had that verified twice, at my local AT&T store and on AT&Ts tech support line.

 

[Blacklac]

sounds like a perfect opportunity for them to try and tell you to move from a grandfathered plan to a "4G plan". :/

Im not saying you guys are wrong, but that is so messed up if we need to call to have 4G "enabled" on our 4G phones. But if someone does, please let us know if it truly effects speeds afterwards.

 

[Billone]

sounds like a perfect opportunity for them to try and tell you to move from a grandfathered plan to a "4G plan". :/

Im not saying you guys are wrong, but that is so messed up if we need to call to have 4G "enabled" on our 4G phones. But if someone does, please let us know if it truly effects speeds afterwards.

I was allegedly grandfathered with my unlimited data plan when moved to the 4g plan. Of course, if I keep getting the connection speeds that I have now, "unlimited" won't mean much.

 

[Blacklac]

I'm actually more concerned with the differences in bandwidth readings from one test to another and sometimes even during a single test. Even over my own Wifi my speed will vary greatly from one test to another. Yet, my tablet will consistently get 25-30Mbps down and 3Mbps up. I seem to get anywhere from 6-15Mbps down and 3Mbps up on on the Titan. At my Apt, I've seen anywhere from .8Mbps to 3Mbps over cell network. I know time can effect speed, peak times and stuff, but I can get those differences from one test to another within seconds.

I'm starting to wonder if this is just a driver issue in general and not so much an AT&T issue.

I have a question about bandwidth tests in general. Why do server locations effect speeds?

 

[pdagal]

In my experience with many phones, AT&T's speeds can vary greatly from 1 minute to the next. Tower load, the weather and QoS (quality of service) software/hardware at the tower/uplink can make a huge difference. AT&T is more variable than other carriers in my tests.

Server locations make a difference because the data has to travel a greater distance to far away data centers and go through more server hops (relays). Usually, closer servers deliver better speeds. But sometimes a far away data center delivers better speeds due to network congestion and server load.

 

[aptmx45]

In my experience with many phones, AT&T's speeds can vary greatly from 1 minute to the next. Tower load, the weather and QoS (quality of service) software/hardware at the tower/uplink can make a huge difference. AT&T is more variable than other carriers in my tests.

Server locations make a difference because the data has to travel a greater distance to far away data centers and go through more server hops (relays). Usually, closer servers deliver better speeds. But sometimes a far away data center delivers better speeds due to network congestion and server load.

I disagree with you. I just tested my Titan and got 1.9 Mbps down and 1.1 up. An iPhone next to it got nearly 6Mbps down. This is in a full "4G" area. The speeds should not vary that much. AT&T is limiting the speed somehow.

 

[Rocket_Girl]

I second that. I have been testing now since last week. On wi-fi at work, download speeds are blazing fast, with downloads consistently over 10.0 mpbs and as high as 18.0 mbps. In contrast, when I use cellular connection at home, download speeds are consistently below 2.0 mbps- and as often as not, less than 1.0 mbps. Last night, for most of the evening, I was getting errors "cannot load page, check your connection" with signal at 4G and 3-5 bars.


I am a new customer to at&t, with 4G, 4GB data and tethering. Since mine is a new account rather than grandfathered from 3G, I should have 4G activated on my account (I will check this). My reason for adding tethering was to have web access via computer at home, on cellular. As already mentioned by previous poster, 4GB data will be useless at these speeds. Tethering for the purposes I intended for random use at home, will be impossible given the further cut in speeds.

I use web, text, and email. I do not stream movies or music, and the only game I play is the rare game of Words by Post (not yet downloaded on my Titan). These speeds are untenable even for this most basic use.

It does seem like something has been done to limit data speeds on cellular connection. The device is capable of very high speeds on wi-fi. I have the BandWidth test history on my phone to show it.

I will be going to at&t to look into this. Device that is fully functional only on wi-fi is pretty much useless to me. It is the times when I am away from wi-fi when I need it to be *most* reliable.

 

[naplesbill]

sounds like a perfect opportunity for them to try and tell you to move from a grandfathered plan to a "4G plan". :/

Im not saying you guys are wrong, but that is so messed up if we need to call to have 4G "enabled" on our 4G phones. But if someone does, please let us know if it truly effects speeds afterwards.

It is true. The reason you need a 4G plan has to do with the differences in APN settings. If you have ever owned an AT&T 4G Android device you would likely have noticed these differences. On Android, 4G devices have two APNs and the data speeds are affected when not using a 4G plan and the 4G APNs.

On WP7, there is really no way to see this because the APN is basically hidden. I am not sure how the WP7 devices are setup with 4G and APN settings.

 

[DanSmithKY]

I had a Focus S before my Titan, and on the morning I purchased it, AT&T's systems were down, so everything had to be done the old fashioned way. When I was asked if I wanted to change my data plan (came from the original focus), I said no. I knew that there was no up charge for 4G, so I figured everything would be automatic. Everything worked fine in the store, but as many of you know, WiFi is on by default when setting up a new device. I went to work and soon realized that even with a great signal, I had zero data connection. Long story short (or maybe long), until I had my plan changed to a 4G plan, the Focus S would not pull any data whatsoever. So basically I don't think that anyone with a Titan in the US is still on 3G, or else they would have no data connection at all.

Sent from my HTC Titan using Board Express

 

[DanSmithKY]

Oh, and by old fashioned way, I meant all paper, even using the old carbon paper on my credit card. Therefore they couldn't go in and change my data plan at that time, as they had no access to my (or anyone's) account.

Sent from my HTC Titan using Board Express

 

[pdagal]

I didn't say I see a large variation between 2 different 4G phones on AT&T, I said that I often see a lot of variation using the same phone and testing 50x over a period of 10 to 30 minutes on AT&T HSPA+. I do that a few times for each phone that comes in for review. If I see a consistent difference between 2 phones on the same network with the same cell data radio side by side tested at the same time and in the same place, then that's something I would definitely note and consider a problem. In my case though, my Titan is performing the same as my iPhone 4S and a little slower than my Skyrocket on HSPA+ (Android phones are generally faster than my iPhones and Windows Phones for data transfer speeds). Perhaps it's a regional issue?

I disagree with you. I just tested my Titan and got 1.9 Mbps down and 1.1 up. An iPhone next to it got nearly 6Mbps down. This is in a full "4G" area. The speeds should not vary that much. AT&T is limiting the speed somehow.

 

[Blacklac]

It is true. The reason you need a 4G plan has to do with the differences in APN settings. If you have ever owned an AT&T 4G Android device you would likely have noticed these differences. On Android, 4G devices have two APNs and the data speeds are affected when not using a 4G plan and the 4G APNs.

On WP7, there is really no way to see this because the APN is basically hidden. I am not sure how the WP7 devices are setup with 4G and APN settings.

So what are your APN settings? (Settings - cellular) Mine are blank.