Am I getting 3G?

[toxik]

Hey guys, first post here but been browsing for a while. I just got my X1i and I openned an at&t account today. My question is that I'm not sure if I'm getting 3G or not. The network icon that pops up on top is usually either E (Edge obviously) or H which I'm guessing stands for HSDPA. Now I thought that whenever there's an H, that means I'm getting 3G... since my internet speeds are decent, but then I saw a 3G logo pop-up for a second and then dissapear again and I haven't seen it since.

So, my question is... am I getting a 3G connection or not?

P.S. Under my band settings I changed the GSM/UMTS band from Auto to GSM(1900+850)+UMTS(1900+850)....

[toxik]

Also, I'm in NYC so I know the X1i should work fine with at&t 3G here.

[Witness]

HSPA is a Protocol of 3G

High-Speed Downlink Packet Access - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[toxik]

Originally Posted by Witness

HSPA is a Protocol of 3G

High-Speed Downlink Packet Access - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

What is the difference between the H icon and the 3G icon on the Xperia?

[Witness]

Originally Posted by toxik

What is the difference between the H icon and the 3G icon on the Xperia?

It has a much higher bandwidth. Some carrier's that support 3G don't have the HSPA protocols though. Some carriers like Telstra call it NextG or 3.5G.

[bloob]

3G max speed is 384 kbps
HSPA max speed is 7.2mbps for downloads and 2.2mbps for uploads

These are max speeds and some carriers do state lower speeds due to their network.

[JKingGrim]

If you see 3G you most likely have hsdpa. ATT did not roll out 3g in any areas without hsdpa. The H means you have both HSDPA and HSUPA. If you have both you see "H". If you have neither (just plain UMTS) or only one of those you see "3G".

[toxik]

Thanks for clearing it up guys, I did run a mobile speed test and I got something like 800kb/sec download speed, which is pretty awesome.

[Pinguino1]

Originally Posted by JKingGrim

If you see 3G you most likely have hsdpa. ATT did not roll out 3g in any areas without hsdpa. The H means you have both HSDPA and HSUPA. If you have both you see "H". If you have neither (just plain UMTS) or only one of those you see "3G".

Hi JKing,

Thanks for the info. I always asumed what you said, but I reseached all over and I could never confirm it.

Do you have a source or a link you can share?

[JKingGrim]

No problem. I cant remember where I learned it but I googled and found a few links of people explaining the same thing. Look at post 10 here:
HowardForums: Your Mobile Phone Community & Resource - H icon instead of 3G
Some think "3G" means UMTS only and as soon you add HSDPA or HSUPA you get "H". This is incorrect. I dont know of any carrier that has UMTS rolled out alone without at least HSDPA anwhere but lots of people get "3G". When you have both HSDPA and HSUPA you can now just call it HSPA and thats when you get the H.