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Topic: Hardware

Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

Summary: Can you hear me now? If you've had Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE network for the last two days you've suffered through an outage that can leave mobile broadband junkies grumpy for the last day.

Larry Dignan

By for Between the Lines |

Can you hear me now? If you've had Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE network for the last two days you've suffered through an outage that can leave mobile broadband junkies grumpy for the last day.

We'll let Verizon Wireless' Twitter account tell the tale of woe:

As Matthew Miller noted, a speedy network does you no good if it's down. James Kendrick looked at how Verizon's various 4G devices performed during the outage.

Now there are two ways to look at this outage. First, you can just chalk it up to growing pains for a new network. Or you can wonder how Verizon Wireless---which talks non-stop about how great its network is---can go down for more than a day.

Today, most folks will cut Verizon Wireless some slack. Tomorrow that may not be the case.

And when you combine the LTE outage with the fact that only the HTC Thunderbolt is available as a 4G device, it's clear Verizon Wireless' supernetwork isn't mature just yet. Verizon Wireless was expected to launch the Samsung Charge today, but Engadget reports that debut has been put off. After all why would you launch a 4G device with spotty network?

Frankly, this LTE ramp has been a bit of a letdown and rockier than you'd expect out of Verizon. Verizon execs remain upbeat, but early adopters want their 4G---devices and rocksolid network---now. Verizon Wireless' growing pains are slowing down the migration---and its competitive edge.

Verizon CFO Fran Shammo said last week:

We expect demand for our 4G LTE products to strengthen as more smartphones, tablets and hotspots are added to our device portfolio. This includes the recent launch of the Novatel and Samsung mobile hotspots, as well as the addition of new 4G LTE smartphones in April, May and beyond.

That demand may not live up to expectations if there are questions about LTE's uptime.

Apple operating chief Tim Cook said on the company's most recent earnings call that there are still design compromises with LTE networks. Initially, it appeared that battery life was the big issue. I'm beginning to wonder if those compromises entail more.

Topics: Hardware, Mobility, Networking, Outage, Verizon, Wi-Fi

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12 comments
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  • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

    "Initially, it appeared that battery life was the big issue. I?m beginning to wonder if those compromises entail more."

    As far as I know, this was a reference to the initial generation of LTE radios and chipsets - not the network.

    Several supposed insiders have posted at various places that aside from the power demands, the heat generation is forcing a larger size (you'll note that not one of the upcoming LTE phones are under 4.3" screen). For Apple, who has been claiming no interest in creating a phone that big, it would be a serious design compromise.

    Once the technology is refined and better integrated into chipsets, the power demands and heat-generation should drop, meaning smaller screen sizes for those who find 4" and under screens to be easier to hold in their hands.
    DBEvans
    Reply Vote

  • Take me to your leader

    You humans are so pitiful. On my planet, software has no bugs and the machines never break.
    Robert Hahn
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

      @Robert Hahn, Gotcha!....;-) Unfortunately, on this planet, people expect 100% uptime and for brand new products to work flawlessly. They forget the problems 2G and 3G had when they were first rolling out. A couple of years from now, we will be complaining because 5G cannot deliver the 100 GB per second promised.
      tradergeorge
      Reply Vote

      • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

        @tradergeorge .... so true!
        ron.masters@...
        Reply Vote

      • Your results may vary ...

        @tradergeorge ... Nobody pays attention to those bogus EPA mileage estimates. For anyone to expect LTE (which is only available in a couple of dozen markets) to be fully mature, is well, NUTS.

        VZW is promising a full nation-wide roll-out by the end of 2013. A high level of reliability before that is a pipedream.
        M Wagner
        Reply Vote

    • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

      @Robert Hahn The "problem" is that for so many years the AT&T telephone network was rock-solid reliable. Your power may be out, but your phone still worked. That's the expectation with phones.
      bithits@...
      Reply Vote

      • YEP - but AT&T divestiture took place 25 years ago now!

        @bithits@... The trade-off was always going to be innovation and choice versus rock-solid reliability.

        Today, most people would agree that the wide availability of wireless communications and very-low per-unit price (steeply discounted devices and very cheap minutes) has more than offset the loss of public payphones and 24/7 landline service.
        M Wagner
        Reply Vote

      • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

        @bithits@...

        I've met a lot of people who had phone outages with AT&T as I've traveled the country. I was too young to ever have suffered an outage with the old monolithic AT&T. Frankly, I suspect that the old monolithic poorly regulated AT&T simply lied about the number, breadth, and duration of outages.
        tkejlboom
        Reply Vote

  • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

    $%#Y Happens!
    don't look at it being down for two days look at it as how many years it has worked well/...
    couryhouse@...
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

      @couryhouse@... Sounds like When a small country HSPA network, XT network in New Zealand went down, the phone company got a big hit below the belt when that happened ....
      bfrechette
      Reply Vote

  • RE: Verizon Wireless' LTE network back: Does outage deliver reputation hit?

    Well I have a Thunderbolt and the battery issues are about as good as my 1st edition Droid was this issue is overstated and over played. It is hands down the best smart phone I have ever owned. I plan on trading it for a bionic as I have an upgrade due me when they come out but only after serious reviews and some bug time. I haven't had any trouble with mine last couple of days if there was an outage I didn't even notice it but then again I was on wi-fi most of that time. In any case, anyone hanging on the edge about the Thunderbolt take the plunge.
    NCTrooper
    Reply Vote

  • Samsung LTE hotspot issues

    I have the Samsung SCH-LC11 hotspot in Houston, replacing a hopeless Sprint Sierra Wireless Hotspot that loses the 4G connection every hour of use and can't re-establish until I take out the battery, count to 30, and put it back in. Frustrating! Sprint wants $40 to replace the bad hotspot (they agree it's bad) even though it's under warranty. No thanks, I'll break the contract and try Verizon LTE.<br><br>I had the Verizon hotspot for two weeks now, including during the outage. When I called, they blamed it on the weather (tornados in the southeast). I'm not sure I buy that but I will say that when LTE is working, it's fantastic! Much faster than Sprint for $20/month less (although Sprint is unlimited 4G/5GB 3G while Verizon LTE adds $10/GB over 5GB which works out fine for my usage). There are two issues with the Verizon Samsung hotspot: 1) it doesn't work with PPTP VPN because it's a double-NAT network (a NAT in the hotspot connected to a 10. NAT network in Verizon); 2) when turned on in an area with a lot of wireless networks (or busy networks), the hotspot won't turn on it's wireless router and that's the only way to talk to the hotspot (the USB port is only for charging). Verizon/Samsung is working on a fix for (1), and the work around for (2) is to lock the device to a channel like 11, rather than letting it find an open wireless frequency.<br><br>So, it's not quite ready for prime time but manageable. For the Sprint hotspot to get a 4G signal, I had to position it "just so" in the window of an office building in Houston; the Sprint hotspot gets a full-strength LTE signal anywhere in the building! I've tested it at various places throughout Houston and it never failed to go "green". This may just be Sprint coverage vs. Verizon coverage, but I'm sold. Now if Samsung will just fix that VPN and wireless networking bug...
    uwe@...
    Reply Vote
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