What is happening with 3G?
rjniles's profile

Scholar

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218 Messages

Saturday, October 9th, 2021 6:46 PM

Any updates on the demise of the 3G MicroCell.

My MC continues to chug along and we use it on a daily basis as I have no OTA signal at my home. Other than a February 2022 date is there any other info about discontinuing the MC and 3G in general? Will AT&T give us any advance warning or will the MC just drop dead one day?

ACE - Expert

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64.7K Messages

2 years ago

Consider yourself lucky it’s still working since support was discontinued long ago. No, I don’t think there will be any warning, it will just quit working and it could happen sooner than Feb 2022. That February date is when ATT will be complete with shutting down 3G. It has already been shut down in many areas. If you have WiFi calling capable phones, you should switch to WiFi calling.

Scholar

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218 Messages

2 years ago

AT&T WIFI calling is not an option with my BYOD phones. Actually. I am looking at changing carriers to Visible(Verizon). 

ACE - Expert

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23.9K Messages

2 years ago

@rjniles Haven't heard from you in a long time.

As you know, I've been asking AT&T for a very long time if they will give out any advance notice of when the MicroCell service will be discontinued in a given area. My suspicion is that they MIGHT. They have periodically been sending out texts notifying folks that AT&T hasn't detected any activity on the MicroCell and if they don't reactivate their MicroCell, it will be deactivated. I get those about once a year so I would just plug it in and use it for about a month, then disconnect and put it back on the shelf. If you are still using yours then you probably won't get the "inactivity" notice but you MAY get a shutdown notice. I wouldn't bet on it though so I'd start looking towards WiFi-C, a cellular booster, or possibly another carrier. 3G has been shutdown in certain areas already which would include the MicroCell but I haven't seen any postings or pm's asking what happened.

Community Support

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230.7K Messages

2 years ago

Hello @rjniles,  let's get you some answers!

 

AT&T will be shutting down its 3G network as part of an ongoing plan to improve its wireless network and continue to invest in 5G. The 3G shutdown should be completed by February of 2022.

 

If your device doesn’t support 4G wireless service and/or is not VoLTE capable, it will no longer work on the AT&T network after the 3G sunset. To avoid this problem, and stay connected, you will need to upgrade to a newer device. AT&T will be providing eligible wireless customers with multiple possible deals to make this process easier, including some that provide a free eligible phone. If a device on your account is impacted, you should be contacted with next steps.

 

Let us know if this answers your questions!

 

Thank you for visiting our Community Forums.

 

Carlton, AT&T Community Specialist 

Scholar

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218 Messages

2 years ago

Well I have finally made a decision. I signed up for Visible (Verizon MVNO) with my unlocked Moto G Power and have been testing it for a week. So far it seems fine and the WIFI calling has been flawless. In fact the WIFI-C gives better coverage than my MicroCell.  I did not port my ATT number yet but will after the end of my month long trial. If all goes well I will also move my wife's phone to Visible.

The plan is unlimited talk, text and data: the hook is a max data speed of 5 gig which is fine for our usage.

The first month cost is $5 with a friend referral code; after that it is $25 after you join a party pay group. Prices are inclusive of taxes and fees with auto pay. I was paying ATT $73+ (with a ATT retiree discount)  for 2 lines with UTT and 6 gig shared data.

ACE - Expert

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23.9K Messages

2 years ago

@rjniles I've been meaning to send you a private message but hadn't gotten around to it yet. My bad.

AT&T will be releasing a new MicroCell sometime early next year. Details are thin and not quite ready yet for a public announcement so if you're still in need of one, hang tight. It does sound like you've found a good alternative though.

Scholar

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218 Messages

2 years ago

Otto, I have heard rumblings of a new 4g MicroCell but I was ready for a change. I wanted to get unlimited data for when we travel and I wanted to cut my monthly cost. All of the ATT unlimited plans were too expense even with my retiree discount.

I have also heard the new 4g MC will allow any ATT account (pre or post paid) to access it without a registration by telephone number. If that is true I might switch  back to ATT prepaid in the future.

ACE - Expert

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23.9K Messages

2 years ago

@rjniles I can't comment on the pre/post paid requirement or non-AT&T phone numbers being allowed to access it. It might be worthwhile tho, especially if the second iteration allows for 5G, plus increased range, but until I get one in my hands and starting testing it I can't really say.

Scholar

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218 Messages

2 years ago

I ported my line to Visible after testing the service for a few days. The unintended consequence was my line was the identifier for my Microcell which went dead when the port completed. Now my wife's line has no access to the MC. I am ordering a Visible SIM for her so she will use Google Voice until I get that working.

Otto, you would think that AT&T would want MC users to know that there is a replacement planned  to avoid people jumping ship like I did.

(edited)

ACE - Expert

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23.9K Messages

2 years ago

@rjniles You know how AT&T works. I even talked to a manager in the Office of the President (on another matter and the MC came up) and even at that level details are sketchy. My guess is that once it is available it's going to have the same issues that the original one did, mostly with Support not having a clue.

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