[Q] Best radio to use with Galaxy Nexus on T-Mobile USA

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uoY_redruM

Senior Member
May 1, 2010
3,469
1,941
Longwood, FL
You need to test radios see what works best for your area UGLC1 is the newest North America radio

Sent from my GNex {GSM} T-Mobile

Thank you.

Will try UGLC1 now.

---------- Post added at 12:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:12 AM ----------

Well, switched to UGLC1 and ran like 10 Speed Tests.

Results were a constant 6Mbps compared to prior 7-9Mbps on the default radio.

Not sure how accurate of a test that is, but doesn't seem good to me thus far.

Question: Does 4G display on T-Mobile network using the GNexus? (next to the bars...mine is only showing 3G and H)
 
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zephiK

Inactive Recognized Developer
Aug 23, 2009
21,655
37,705
New York, NY
Thank you.

Will try UGLC1 now.

---------- Post added at 12:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:12 AM ----------

Well, switched to UGLC1 and ran like 10 Speed Tests.

Results were a constant 6Mbps compared to prior 7-9Mbps on the default radio.

Not sure how accurate of a test that is, but doesn't seem good to me thus far.

Question: Does 4G display on T-Mobile network using the GNexus? (next to the bars...mine is only showing 3G and H)

H is marketed as T-Mobile 4G. This is normal.
H -> HSPA+

Alternatively... you can mod your ROM to make it display "4G" instead of "H"
 
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uoY_redruM

Senior Member
May 1, 2010
3,469
1,941
Longwood, FL
H is marketed as T-Mobile 4G. This is normal.
H -> HSPA+

Alternatively... you can mod your ROM to make it display "4G" instead of "H"

Thank you (sorry, out of "thanks" for the day).

I'm curious what type of speeds should be expected then with the GNexus, considering I'm in the "Very High 4G Coverage" area (zip 32730). I'm seeing people getting speeds of like 20Mbps, but the max I get is 9 (constant around 7) even though I'm in a "prime" 4G area.

I'm considering just going to T-Mobile and see if maybe I need a new SIM card or something. Under the dial code for the radio I run a ping test to get it to switch to H and it shows HSPAP:15 under my network type, so its switching to HSPA+.
 

martonikaj

Senior Member
Nov 20, 2010
7,867
1,670
Seattle, WA
Just got mine up and going today. Says the baseband is XXLA2.

That's the stock 4.0.4 yakju radio.
I'm curious what type of speeds should be expected then with the GNexus, considering I'm in the "Very High 4G Coverage" area (zip 32730). I'm seeing people getting speeds of like 20Mbps, but the max I get is 9 (constant around 7) even though I'm in a "prime" 4G area.

Well the Galaxy Nexus only has a 21mbps HSPA+ radio. That's a theoretical max speed, and assuming that the towers you're on are setup with 21mbps or 42mbps, the max real-world speeds you'll get are about 60% of your radio's max. So you should expect at best ~12mbps. Assuming you're right next to a tower with no other users. Normal usage getting 7-9mbps down sounds completely normal for T-Mo, and reflects what I usually see.

No one on T-Mobile is getting 20mbps in real-world use, even on a 42mbps network with a 42mbps device.

I'm considering just going to T-Mobile and see if maybe I need a new SIM card or something. Under the dial code for the radio I run a ping test to get it to switch to H and it shows HSPAP:15 under my network type, so its switching to HSPA+.

HSPAP:15 is HSPA+.

If your card is really old or damaged you could get a new one (they'll usually be happy to swap it out), but I doubt that's what's going on. These speeds you're experiencing are generally normal.
 
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nory82688

Senior Member
Jan 8, 2011
876
140
South Jersey
No one on T-Mobile is getting 20mbps in real-world use, even on a 42mbps network with a 42mbps device.
Are you being serious? That statement is completely false and misleading. I see my buddies with his HTC amaze and sgs2 hitting 20mbs and above a lot of the time (I live in Philadelphia, so we're pretty much covered with hspa+ coverage) . To say "no one on T-Mobile is getting 20mbs down with a 42mb device" is just wrong.[end rant]


sent from my Nexus Prime using XDA premium
 

msedek

Senior Member
Apr 3, 2012
2,066
634
Santiago de chile
Woah all you guys getting all those crazy speeds makes me jealous... My humble speeds are 3.5Mbps down and 1Mbps up :( thats the top speed i can get in my country and limited to 1.5 Gb /month at least its. Cheap.. Pay 15 bucks for it

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
 
Mar 11, 2012
35
0
I'm using the $30 plan and I get no where near the speeds you guys are getting.

I'm lucky to get 3Mbps down and 1.2Mbps up. Ping is usually in the 145ms range. This is when I tested at the top of the parking structure at work with full bars on H. I also pretty much only get edge when inside my building. Is that normal or is it possibly an issue with the radio?

Thanks
 

waylo

Senior Member
May 9, 2010
1,670
489
I just flashed takju and it comes with XXLA2. I am in Atlanta, GA and works great.

Got my GN USA version earlier this week (have had an imported one for a while) with XXLA2, and here in Oregon the ability to keep signal with XXLA2 is awful inside my apartment.

Take a look at all the RED mobile network signal bars in the attachment.

My other GN was on XXKK6 and certainly did not have this much trouble. Just flashed XXKK6 to the new phone to see if it improves.

That having been said, the older GN would sometimes lose signal and be unable to get it back without a reboot. This new one at least refinds the signal, but I think it's affecting the battery life significantly.
 

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tibere86

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2009
1,425
272
Rockville, MD
Are you being serious? That statement is completely false and misleading. I see my buddies with his HTC amaze and sgs2 hitting 20mbs and above a lot of the time (I live in Philadelphia, so we're pretty much covered with hspa+ coverage) . To say "no one on T-Mobile is getting 20mbs down with a 42mb device" is just wrong.[end rant]


sent from my Nexus Prime using XDA premium
The fastest speed I have seen with my Nexus in Philadelphia was at 30th Street Station, 9mbs.
 

thepawn

Senior Member
Feb 15, 2010
113
13
NYC Metro
This is in my apartment in NJ

Normally I use WiFi at home, turned it off when I ran the tests... I'm on "HSDPA:9" networks at my place, never saw the HSPAP:15 that the other poster mentioned yet.

uploadfromtaptalk1336092145895.jpg

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
 
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waylo

Senior Member
May 9, 2010
1,670
489
Got my GN USA version earlier this week (have had an imported one for a while) with XXLA2, and here in Oregon the ability to keep signal with XXLA2 is awful inside my apartment.

Take a look at all the RED mobile network signal bars in the attachment.

My other GN was on XXKK6 and certainly did not have this much trouble. Just flashed XXKK6 to the new phone to see if it improves.

That having been said, the older GN would sometimes lose signal and be unable to get it back without a reboot. This new one at least refinds the signal, but I think it's affecting the battery life significantly.

I was mistaken. The radio doesn't have much to do with my signal loss, as apparently I'm getting equivalent signal loss every MINUTE with the XXKK6 radio, according to a "no signal" logging app.

I upped my lowest CPU speed to 700mhz, and that's fixed it.

I'm on 4.0.3, but it seems like I'm having the signal issues that were seen with 4.0.4 first came out. Don't think my other GN had this issue.
 

andriodee

Senior Member
Jul 15, 2012
299
45
The thing with getting the GSM variant of the GNex and using it with T-Mobile is you don't get full access to T-Mobile's towers. It's because the phone isn't a "T-Mobile phone". You will still be able to get 4G, but in areas where T-Mobile phones get full speeds and bars, you'll be lacking. In my area, for instance, in Savannah, GA, T-Mobile offers great speeds all over for both LTE and 4G, but I'm only getting one or two bars (at most) when I'm home, or worse — Edge. It's a little saddening, especially when my friends that have T-Mobile come over with their phones and get five bars with blazing speeds. ???

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 4
 

Culex316

Senior Member
Apr 1, 2012
511
220
Miami, FL
Samsung Galaxy S20
The thing with getting the GSM variant of the GNex and using it with T-Mobile is you don't get full access to T-Mobile's towers. It's because the phone isn't a "T-Mobile phone". You will still be able to get 4G, but in areas where T-Mobile phones get full speeds and bars, you'll be lacking. In my area, for instance, in Savannah, GA, T-Mobile offers great speeds all over for both LTE and 4G, but I'm only getting one or two bars (at most) when I'm home, or worse — Edge. It's a little saddening, especially when my friends that have T-Mobile come over with their phones and get five bars with blazing speeds. ???

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 4

Huh? What are you talking about not getting "full access to T-Mobile's towers"? Are you talking about the Galaxy Nexus's lack of DC-HSPA+ that lets it reach 20-30mbps on HSPA+ networks? If so, then yes, it's because mainly T-Mobile phones feature this but it's due to a technical limitation.
 

andriodee

Senior Member
Jul 15, 2012
299
45
Huh? What are you talking about not getting "full access to T-Mobile's towers"? Are you talking about the Galaxy Nexus's lack of DC-HSPA+ that lets it reach 20-30mbps on HSPA+ networks? If so, then yes, it's because mainly T-Mobile phones feature this but it's due to a technical limitation.

Yes, that's what I'm referring to. Aside from not being able to attain full speeds, like T-Mobile-branded devices, we're not really getting the best signal strength either. Again, as I've stated earlier, I live in an area that generally has overwhelmingly great coverage for T-Mobile, yet I'm only getting 1-2 bars of service, if that. I'm usually on Edge. On the contrary, my friends come over and they have all their bars. It sucks because I pay $70/month for unlimited 4G that I'm just unable to make use of. ?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 4
 

Culex316

Senior Member
Apr 1, 2012
511
220
Miami, FL
Samsung Galaxy S20
Yes, that's what I'm referring to. Aside from not being able to attain full speeds, like T-Mobile-branded devices, we're not really getting the best signal strength either. Again, as I've stated earlier, I live in an area that generally has overwhelmingly great coverage for T-Mobile, yet I'm only getting 1-2 bars of service, if that. I'm usually on Edge. On the contrary, my friends come over and they have all their bars. It sucks because I pay $70/month for unlimited 4G that I'm just unable to make use of. ?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 4

If you can't get a good signal, try flashing another radio, there are a lot of radios available for flashing to your Galaxy Nexus.

If not, get another phone. :good:
 

andriodee

Senior Member
Jul 15, 2012
299
45
If you can't get a good signal, try flashing another radio, there are a lot of radios available for flashing to your Galaxy Nexus.

If not, get another phone. :good:

I've tried quite a few radios. I'm running 4.3.1, too. I will certainly be getting a new phone, though. I'm -- like millions of other Nexus fans -- anxiously awaiting the arrival of both KitKat and the Nexus 5. ? I'll probably use this phone to hone in on my developer skills. It'll be a great test phone.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 4
 

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  • 3
    For a quick list of all radios out so far, check my radio thread:

    http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1405345
    2
    T-mobile EDGE only - HSPA+ Broken - Radio to blame?

    Team XDA,

    Just got a GSM I9250 and tried nearly every baseband (radio) under the sun.

    Am VERY certain that the European bands don't work well on T-mobile, and after much trial and error was able to get HSPA+ working (on the UGLC1 version).

    For the full list of Radios/Basebands go here: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1405345

    Also--try clearing your fastboot cache (worked for me): http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=23305473&postcount=195

    Here is the output of my testing:

    XXKK6 (EDGE only)
    UGKK7 (Full connectivity w/ HSPA)
    UGKL1 (EDGE only)
    XXLA2 (EDGE only)
    UGLA4 (Full connectivity w/ HSPA)
    UGLC1 (Full connectivity w/ HSPA)

    Hope this helps folks get their Samsung Galaxy Nexus off EDGE and working properly on T-mobile HSPA networks!! =D
    1
    So the official GSM version of the Galaxy Nexus (http://code.google.com/android/nexus/images.html)
    is supposed to have xxkk6 radio (radio-maguro-i9250xxkk6.img)

    I read in another place that the Asian varian has a different radio, and the canadian varians also have different radios. So being that the GSM Galaxy Nexus is not officially in the US on ATT or T-Mobile I was wondering wich radio is best to use on the T-Mobile network?
    1
    So my area JUST got 4G on a partnered carrier that TMOUS shares. Im getting 4g on my Sensation but am thinking about getting the GSM Galaxy Nexus. We went from Edge to 4G. All i want to know is if i will be able to get 4g on the Galaxy Nexus for TMOUS?

    If you get it on the Sensation theres no reason why you wouldn't get it on the Nexus.
    1
    either way, the point here is that with this radio i get "H" at least 70% more often of the time than my last radio :)