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600mhz RF band going away?


Todd Weaver

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here is more:

" With regard to wireless mics, the commission released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that will serve as a framework for their usage and protections in the reduced TV band. The NPRM also suggests opening up additional spectrum bands for wireless mics.


Wireless mics have operated for decades as unlicensed devices in unused TV frequencies. The 2010 order opening those unused frequencies, or “white spaces,” to new types of unlicensed devices triggered a two-channel set-aside for wireless mics. Those channels were to be in the UHF spectrum, which is the incentive auction target area. Since the passage of the incentive auction bill in early 2012, wireless mic manufacturers have been hamstrung by not knowing what frequencies ultimately will be available to users.

“It’s forced all of us to take a step back,” David Marsh of Audio-Technica told
TV Technology correspondent Steve Harvey in March. “The last thing we want to do is introduce an analog, or even a digital, product in the 600 or 500 MHz UHF range.”

Engineering consultants say that while most broadcasters have licensed their low-power wireless gear, some may have not. Retuning may be possible in some cases, but “since the UHF band is huge, most wireless devices like that are ‘band-specific.’ Manufacturers carve up the UHF band into segments – so you have some wireless mics that work on Chs. 24-30, some that work on Chs. 30-36, etc. So many low- power devices may not be capable of being retuned.”

The NPRM is docket No. 14-266. Comment deadlines were not available at press time -
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http://www.tmonews.com/2014/10/fcc-commissioner-discusses-progressive-plans-wants-to-look-at-lowerhigher-frequencies/

 

Talking about looking at higher bands up to 60 gHz (want to warm up your coffee with your phone? - now you can!) seems like a good thing... BUT they are also suggesting looking LOW, like down to the 400 mHz spectrum!  :blink:  :blink:  :blink:  :blink:  :blink:

 

Its getting to be the Wild Wild West out there - If all the wireless is outlawed, soon only the outlaws will have wireless!

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Just an update for Greece. Today the Government have sold the 800 MHz and 2600 MHz bands to Vodafone, Wind and Cosmote. From 1st January 2015 the 800 MHz band will not available here.

 

Here the announcement from HTPC (Hellenic Telecommunications & Post Commission)

http://www.eett.gr/opencms/opencms/EETT_EN/Electronic_Communications/Telecoms/Licensing/RoU800_2600results10.html

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  • 2 weeks later...

There are places in the USA where blocks 28 and 29 have things happening, and are active currently. 

 

These images are from Canada, but the plan is the same divisions here in the USA. As with TV services, adjacent geographical areas cannot use adjacent wireless blocks, so if location "A" is using block "A" paired... Then nearby will most likely be using the C block paired. This leaves the B block in that area open as a "guard" band...

 

700MHz-annexe2-1-eng.jpg

 

700ConsultationFigure5.2-e.jpg

 

Our tiny little transmissions in that guard space wouldn't be able to be detected unless someone happened to wander directly onto our set, and even then, they would need to know that interference had even happened and why. The beauty of these cellphone transmissions: They are self-healing! Digital signalling is affected by trees, weather, walls, etc. Lots of things cause your phone to automatically adjust its own radios, transparently to the user. 

What happens when the interference gets so bad that a call drops? 99.9% of us just look at the phone, say "aww crap" and redial. Data use (everything else) just slows down while the device adjusts. At no point does a device alert you that there is any kind of interference, and people are unlikely to complain to their provider unless the interference is consistent in a given location.

 

As such... I still say our best plan is the one that has always worked for us: Arrive at a location, scan for free air, and tune to that. The phone signals will self-heal around us, and because they are the larger power... WE have to be reactive to THEM, not the other way around.

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It will be very interesting to see what happens with the 4th round auctions! We're getting close: they are supposed to close on Jan 13th (this Friday). If anyone is interested in following the auctions, here's a link: https://auctiondata.fcc.gov/public/projects/1000

And if you want a quick tutorial about how the auctions work: http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/1001/resources/reverse_auction_new_stage_tutorial/presentation.html

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Apparently, T-Mobile has now fired up their 5G in the 600 MHz spectrum in several cities. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this has now rendered 600 MHz transmitters "illegal". That's a full year before the announced date in 2020.

 

https://www.lifewire.com/t-mobile-5g-4178962

 

Seems to be a bit sketchy in terms of the practical functionality for now (spotty coverage, can't penetrate walls...?) and it's not actually *true 5G* yet:

 

https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/t-mobile-nyc-5g-speed-test-galaxy-s10/

 

- also people complained that the iPhone X was too expensive - the only (?) phone that works with in this band is this Samsung phone that sets you back $1300 buckaroos... and looks in the video above like it overheats a little too easily :-||

 

 

 

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10 hours ago, Johnny Karlsson said:

Apparently, T-Mobile has now fired up their 5G in the 600 MHz spectrum in several cities. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this has now rendered 600 MHz transmitters "illegal". That's a full year before the announced date in 2020.

 

https://www.lifewire.com/t-mobile-5g-4178962

 

Seems to be a bit sketchy in terms of the practical functionality for now (spotty coverage, can't penetrate walls...?) and it's not actually *true 5G* yet:

 

https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/t-mobile-nyc-5g-speed-test-galaxy-s10/

 

- also people complained that the iPhone X was too expensive - the only (?) phone that works with in this band is this Samsung phone that sets you back $1300 buckaroos... and looks in the video above like it overheats a little too easily :-||

 

 

 

They launched their mmWave spectrum, not 600 MHz, which is still wide open and legal here in NYC.

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2 hours ago, Patrick Farrell said:

They launched their mmWave spectrum, not 600 MHz, which is still wide open and legal here in NYC.

 

Ok, but reading some of the above, it looks like the 600 MHz band is also already in use, even on LTE networks that can eventually be switched over to 5G...

 

"In early January, 2019, T-Mobile, Intel, and Ericsson successfully completed the world's first 5G video call and data call on the 600 MHz spectrum. During the tests, it was confirmed that from just one tower, the 5G signal could reach more than a thousand square miles."

 

"As of February 2019, T-Mobile has built out 600 MHz service in over 2,000 cities covering 42 states. The service currently works with LTE devices only, but the towers can be switched over to 5G when 5G devices are available. The company also has 21,000 small cells deployed and plans to erect 20,000 more going into 2020."

 

Also from this site: https://venturebeat.com/2019/02/07/t-mobile-has-5g-towers-in-most-top-u-s-markets-handsets-arriving-in-2019/

"Because of recent buildouts, 2,700 cities and towns across 42 states already have 600MHz service for LTE handsets, with the ability to switch those towers over to 5G when the handsets are available."

 

Now that Samsung phone is available.

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