The end of 3G begins as Vodafone Netherlands shuts down its 3G network

mood · Feb 4, 2020

The end of 3G begins as Vodafone Netherlands shuts down its 3G network
3G networks are being shut down globally
February 4, 2020
https://www.androidcentral.com/end-3g-begins-vodafone-netherlands-shuts-down-its-networks

Chances are if you've got a modern smartphone purchased around 2017 onwards, you're using 4G.
Sometimes, you fall back to 3G, but that's getting rarer than ever. Soon, depending on your network, you won't even have 3G to fall back on.

Vodafone Netherlands is kicking off the death of 3G in Europe by being one of the first carriers to kill off its 3G network entirely. The firm made this announcement back in December 2019.
Why is Vodafone shutting down 3G?

"When 3G is gone, [customers] will have more and improved coverage through 4G. In remote areas, you sometimes only have a 3G signal at present. In the new year, in many of such places mobile internet will become a fraction better. [...]"
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Vodafone Netherlands may be the first to officially dump 3G, but it's certainly not the last.
Over in the US, Verizon Wireless is killing off its 3G CDMA networks sometime in the near future (a 2019 shutdown date was pushed back). AT&T and T-Mobile are doing so as well in the early 20s.
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Vodafone: End of the 3G era

Freeing up frequencies for new power
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mood · Mar 12, 2020

Finnish communications supplier
Elisa: 3G network available to customers until the end of 2023
March 12, 2020
https://corporate.elisa.com/news-ro...ustomers-until-the-end-of-2023/44259115909144

Elisa is investing more and more in newer network technologies. 5G and 4G respond better to the user needs of today and the future. The use of 3G networks by Elisa customers is already very limited, and will further decrease. After 2023, the frequencies used by the 3G network will be freed up for use by the 4G network.
In the vast majority of cases, the change will not require a change of telephones or other devices.
Use of 3G technology already very minor, freed capacity to be used by newer network technologies
Elisa has decided to focus primarily on the development, expansion and increase in capacity of its 4G and 5G networks.

“We are world leaders in the use of mobile data, and data volumes are just continuing to grow. It is clear that we need to transfer capacity to modern networks to meet the needs of our customers. The importance of 5G will only increase through this change,” says Elisa Vice President of Network Services Sami Rajamäki.
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reasonablePrivacy · Mar 12, 2020

Does 2G still operate in these networks? Because there are older and/or cheaper devices that don't have 4G connectivity and widespread replacement of them may be very challenging. Many are built-in inside costly equipment.

Rasheed187 · Mar 14, 2020

I don't get it, I'm still using old skool mobile phones, I have always thought they made use of 3G. If I'm correct, not all phones support 4G, so I might end up having to replace those phones.

reasonablePrivacy · Mar 15, 2020

Rasheed187 said: ↑

I don't get it, I'm still using old skool mobile phones, I have always thought they made use of 3G. If I'm correct, not all phones support 4G, so I might end up having to replace those phones.
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A lot of dumb phones support 2G only. Some dumb phones support 2G and 3G. Very few support 4G.

mood · Jul 22, 2020

As mentioned in #1, AT&T will turn off its 3G network (early 2022).
Customers recently received a "notice" from AT&T. More in this thread.

mood · Jul 23, 2020

T-Mobile will soon require VoLTE on all phones, non-compatible devices will get kicked off in January
Metro by T-Mobile will also be affected, and possibly Sprint (Update: T-Mobile statement)
July 23, 2020
https://www.androidpolice.com/2020/...nes-incomopatible-devices-kicked-off-january/

According to internal T-Mobile documents, the carrier plans to rapidly fast track plans to shut down its 2G and 3G voice networks, and affected customers could be forced to upgrade handsets or leave the network in a matter months.
Most carriers have already shut down their legacy 2G networks, so the frequencies can be re-used for LTE and 5G, and 3G's expiration date is rapidly approaching. AT&T started warning customers yesterday that phones without 4G voice calling would no longer work starting in 2022.

An internal T-Mobile document obtained by Android Police pictured below states that starting August 4th of this year — mere weeks from now — T-Mobile will require all new devices on the network to support Voice over LTE (VoLTE). Existing customers with a non-compatible phone won't be immediately impacted, but starting in January 2021, all incompatible devices will no longer be able to use T-Mobile, possibly at all.
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UPDATE: 2020/07/23 2:28PM PDT BY DAVID RUDDOCK
T-Mobile provided the following statement, but declined to specifically address the document above or the timeline it offers in their initial reply.

We’re making great progress building a truly transformative nationwide 5G network. As part of that, we will be phasing out some older technologies over time to free up even more capacity for LTE and 5G. In preparation for that and to give customers the best experience, those activating new lines at T-Mobile will need a VoLTE capable device, which is all we've offered for years now and represents the overwhelming majority of devices on the network.
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mood · Dec 25, 2020

mood said: ↑

T-Mobile will soon require VoLTE on all phones, non-compatible devices will get kicked off in January July 23, 2020
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T-Mobile will kick devices that don’t support VoLTE off of its network in January
December 24, 2020
https://9to5google.com/2020/12/24/t-mobile-volte-requirement-2021/

Carriers are evolving their networks to better support new technologies, and as a result, some phones are being dropped off. Now, some T-Mobile documents reveal the carrier has plans to drop any phone that doesn’t support VoLTE in just a few months.

Internal documents obtained by Android Police (pictured below) reveal what’s in store for T-Mobile customers in January.
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T-Mobile will be shutting down its 2G and 3G networks, and as a result, leave many phones without support for voice calls and potentially the network as a whole. Apparently, the carrier has plans to require that all new phones on its network support VoLTE starting on August 4, 2020. After that, all devices using T-Mobile will be required to support VoLTE by January 31, 2021. That’s regardless of whether or not the device is currently in use by a customer.
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Update 12/24: In the time since this change was originally reported on, more details have come to light. The change will take effect on January 29, 2021 and includes the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, Galaxy S5 Duos, the HTC Desire 10 Lifestyle, Desire 650, and Nexus 9. Huawei’s Mate 8 and P9 are also included on the list, as are the OnePlus One, Sony Xperia Z3, Z3 Compact, and Z3 Orion. The ZTE ZMax, Soyea M02, Quanta Dragon IR7, Netgear’s Arlo Security Camera System, and the Mikrotikls SIA_R11e-LTE6.

For customers affected, Android Police reports that T-Mobile will be offering free replacement devices. The offer for those free devices starts today and includes the Samsung Galaxy A21, Galaxy A11, Alcatel GO FLIP 3, and T-Mobile REVVL 4.
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reasonablePrivacy · Dec 25, 2020

I live in other country in Europe and some 2G/3G frequencies are being freed (2100 Mhz), but not all. Rural areas have poor 4G coverage and 2G shutdown would mean no mobile telephone at all. That is why 2G&3G will be still available for many years on 900Mhz.

mood · Jan 5, 2021

Verizon is pausing its 3G shutdown indefinitely
Your old flip phone is safe for now
January 5, 2021
https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/5/22215453/verizon-3g-shutdown-paused-delay-network-old-phones

Verizon is indefinitely delaying the shutdown of its 3G network, pushing back the original plan for the network to shutter at the end of 2020 to an as-yet-undetermined point in the future.

The news comes from Verizon spokesperson Kevin King, who tells Light Reading, “Our 3G network is operational and we don’t have a plan to shut it down at this time. We’ll work with customers to move them to newer technology.”
According to Light Reading, Verizon previously announced that it planned to shutter the 3G network at the end of 2020, which was already a delay. (The company originally intended to close the network at the end of 2019.)

Now, it seems that Verizon is once again punting that decision down the road.
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The interesting part of this decision is that Verizon is making it solely for customers who are still using their existing 3G devices.
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mood · Jan 9, 2021

mood said: ↑

T-Mobile will kick devices that don’t support VoLTE off of its network in January
December 24, 2020
https://9to5google.com/2020/12/24/t-mobile-volte-requirement-2021/
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T-Mobile is shutting down service to these phones, but will offer free replacements
January 8, 2021
https://www.androidpolice.com/2021/...-will-stop-working-on-its-network-next-month/

Connected to the list is a longer text that explains the devices are being left behind due to their inability to receive an update required for continued functionality on T-Mobile's network, following a network change.

T-Mobile is required to maintain Sprint's 3G network for three years as a condition of the merger, and presumably, customers with these devices should still be able to connect to that network. The document still claims Sprint customers will be impacted, but a later section states only those on T-Mobile or Metro by T-Mobile will lose all network connectivity. Sprint subscribers with affected devices will only lose T-Mobile network roaming.
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After our story was initially published, T-Mobile reached out to confirm this change is not part of either its VoLTE requirement or any legacy network shutdown, even though the timing, the apparent requirements, and the list of devices imply a connection

In the meantime, T-Mobile subscribers using any of those 19 devices should reach out to see if they are eligible for the promotional offer. If you're worried about your phone, you can check and see if your device supports VoLTE with our guide.
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UPDATE: 2021/01/08 11:04AM PST BY CORBIN DAVENPORT
Official support documents
T-Mobile has now published public support documents about the device cutoff, and has started sending out texts to affected customers. There's no new information compared to the previous leaks, except there is now confirmation that T-Mobile Prepaid and Metro by T-Mobile (formerly MetroPCS) customers are also affected.
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The end of 3G begins as Vodafone Netherlands shuts down its 3G network

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