New Year's Eve surprise?

Devices
#1

It’s a mixed feeling for me leaving 2020 and heading into 2021. While most of the world is glad to leave 2020 in the past, as a U.S.-based T-Mobile Sailfish user, I’m sad because in a month I won’t be able to use my phone anymore. My family are all Sailfish users. N9 users before this and for me, Nokia phones before that. I am sad to think that I may soon be relegated to the other options.
But today I was surprised to see emails from Sony Developer World Newsletter. In my phone’s email preview, I spied news I was looking forward to as a potential solution. But when I view the full email, that text wasn’t there.

Viewing the email’s HTML source, I see img alt=“Xperia 1 added to Sony’s Open Devices program”
Does this mean that Xperia 1 would be available soon for Sailfish? I realize that doesn’t really solve the VoLTE issue, but I am desperate for hopeful news of a potential solution in early 2021.

Either way, thanks to all working to make Sailfish a reality. Even if I am “thrown overboard” in 2021, as soon as there is an opportunity to get the new Jolla+Sony VoLTE solution, count us in.

Happy 2021 to all.

4 Likes
#2

As a US based T-mobile user myself, your post concerns me; but I can’t decipher what it means. What will happen in 2021 that won’t let use our phones??

#3

The Problem is, that there is no VoLTE support in Sailfish. T-Mobile US announced as far as I know, not to support “no VoLTE” devices anymore.
In fact this will mean that T-Mobile could “ban” you from the network (but i don’t think so, as the Baseband chip of your phone probably support VoLTE if it is a Sony) or you could experience a very fast degradation of the service quality, as you wont be able anymore to make and receive calls (and probably SMS, too) in more and more areas where LTE is available (but nothing else anymore).
So you can expect
a) no more network or
b) no more calls
“soon” with your Saiflish device.

#5

Is moving to Verizon possible? Or another network if that happens?

Looks like this is just 3G? My phone uses 4G

#6

I don’t know about the US operators plans.
This is a little unintuitive. While Sailfish can use 4G/LTE for Data traffic (a.k.a IP-Traffic, Internet Access, …) for Voice Calls calls it uses the so called CS-Fallback (Circuit Switched Fallback) mode. In fact this means: If a call is started/incomming, your phone uses 3G or 2G Network (that is also why it needs so long).
So if 2G/3G is switched off, or the Fallback Mode is not supported any more by the operator there is only LTE left. And in LTE the only way to make calls is VoLTE (in fact that is Voice Calls over the normal IP-Layer, not a separate switched circuit infrastructure). And VoLTE is not yet supported on the Sailfish devices.

3 Likes
#7

I checked Verizon and my phone will not work there as they use CDMA for 3G/2G and it is a GSM phone. AT&T might be the option until Feb 2022 and by then I’ll probably have a new Sailfish phone.

#8

CDMA or GSM isn’t the issue. Mobile operators are itching to drop CS-Fallback to be able to use those frequencies to deploy 4G-LTE and 5G, which use the existing spectrum much more efficiently and allow much more users (or bandwidth) on the current 2G/3G frequency bands.

I don’t know how it works on the US, but around Europe the end of 2G and 3G is connected to how much the access for legacy services (especially emergency services) is dependent on 2G/3G. I’ve read somewhere that as part of the 5G auctions and rollout, operators will pay for the retooling of the emergency services and then they’ll be able to get that money back by shutting off 2G/3G and repurposing the frequencies. But in Portugal we’re still on the 5G auction/beauty-contest phase, rollout will take another year to start at least, and final 5G coverage will take even more; only then will 2G/3G shutoff be possible.

Edit to add:
Anyway, it is coming, and if Jolla hasn’t started working on it or porting some upstream libraries to integrate them on Sailfish, we could get surprised by mobile phones using Sailfish that can’t make phone calls. How’s SIP support on Sailfish, for a start?

3 Likes
#9

I have used H2O Wireless for years and they use the AT&T towers. AT&T is supposed to stop 3G by February 2022.

I get unlimited data from H20 on my XA2 for $28 a month, but there are better plans from them.

1 Like
#10

CDMA or GSM is only relevant on be able to change phone companies. When the phone falls back to 2G/3G, CDMA is not compatible with my Xperia XA2 Plus which is a GSM phone. So I wouldn’t be able to use Verizon which 2G/3G runs on CDMA.

#11
#12

That’s good but doesn’t help OP or Jolla, since the XA2 is GSM and can’t move to Verizon (CDMA). Besides, Verizon also said that they’ll delay 3G shutdown, but will still stop activating voice over 3G for newly-registered terminals.

How’s the situation looking for VoLTE support in other Linux-based phones (PostmarketOS, PureOS, UBports)? Are they working on it? Will it be an upstream effort that Jolla can help or at least take advantage of? Is anyone doing a replacement for oFono, since it’s rapidly being made obsolete by network operators?

#13

Wow, there are two of us! :smiley:

#14

Not that I am affected yet, but out of curiosity: Are there still aby active CDMA/is95 networks? There used to be a wimax roll out as well in certain places. Are there still companies utilizing this technology?
At least for Europe CDMA 2G has never been a large success, and neither it’ successors…
At least for the Gemini PDA, all VoLTE-relevant BLOB-binaries seem to be in place. It’s rather a problem of implementation.

#15

Make that 3 of us. Here’s hoping something works out with Sailfish 4.

2 Likes
#16

Thank you for the recommend, just switched to H20 and will be saving some money!

#17

You are welcome. There has never been a problem in all the years I have been with them.

1 Like
#18

Four of us actually…

1 Like
#19

Did you have to adjust the MMS settings at all? I had to when I first got onto Metro PCS to make it work effectively and I’m seeing a little inconsistency in what downloads in my first couple days on H2O.

#20

Oh, there is more than four. I have four in my house and one additional friend who run Xperias (X, 10 and 10 Plus) as daily drivers. So that makes at least eight of us. :slight_smile:

I really like seeing 4.1.0.48’s improvements. I am weary of waking up each day and wondering if T-Mobile has turned off 3G support. I am encouraged by the bitter cold weather we are having because no one wants to be on cell towers in this weather. Maybe I should hope for an exceptionally inclement rest of the winter and spring to give Jolla+Sony time to get the VoLTE resolved for us? Well, I guess I won’t do that. With what is going on in Texas right now, my little woes about what phone I may have to use in the future are meaningless.

Nevertheless, it’s encouraging to know that there are other Sailors here in the U.S.

1 Like
#21

Just a thought… when North American and European carriers shut down 3G, if Jolla hasn’t enabled VoLTE, the phones should still be able to use the 4G/LTE connection for data. Is there a native or android VOIP type app that would allow you to register a virtual number and use the 4G/LTE data connection for voice calls and texts?