I agree - what I would be thinking is as follows:

900: 2G/3G with a DC-HSDPA carrier (so 10MHz, not the 5MHz they are using currently)
1800: 4G
2100: 3G/4G (in time becoming 4G only, using the 900 for 3G)
2600: 4G

This clears out 800 for full power VoLTE use.

O2 would be much more difficult as they don't have any 2600; they just have 800, 900, 1800 and 2100. And I doubt that 5MHz of 1800 would work as their main layer. They'd have to roll out a nationwide 2100MHz 4G, and use their 900 for 2G and 3G.

Though No.1 priority is to actually get modern day technology to most places. Thrapston, Northamptonshire isn't that small - and it has EE/3 3G2100.
O2 2G900/1800
No Vodafone mast for Thrapston, but there is some 2G900

C'mon Vod/O2, catch up and get that O2 mast CTIL'ed for 2G900, 3G900, 3G2100, 4G800 and 4G1800! (Though, even 900/900/800 would be better than just 2G GPRS/EDGE on 900 and 1800.)

That might be troublesome, from memory Voda only have 5 + 4.6 + 7.5MHz of 900 and it's in 3 non concurrent chunks.

Also, could they afford to only allocate 7MHz to 2G at this stage? A lot of users are still kicked onto 2G fairly regularly.

Most O2 owners until recently probably never knew what 3G was, so O2 can surely make it all 4G with few complaints!

As long as they upgrade my unlimited data 3G deal to unlimited 4G for the same fiver a month.

Unlimited in speed? Or throttled?

Didn't know about the non concurrent chunks, which I assume makes it more difficult/impossible to get DC-HSPA on 3G?

If every mast that was getting upgraded, went 3G as well as 2G, then of course they could afford it. What would be used for 2G, would be used for 2G and 3G, and the vast majority of handsets today have some sort of 3G compatibility. Plus, 3G could be used for calls as well as 2G, whilst increasing the data flow for customers.

And when they get VoLTE working nicely, they can reduce 2G to just 5MHz, before finally (in the long term future) making an all 4G (and 5G, when it arrives) network.

They've got to sort out the large %age of customers who still don't own a smartphone, though (doesn't O2 only have about 55% smartphone penetration?).

Question? Is it possible to run 3G and 4G on the same block of frequency or would that be too easy if it was possible and would solve all networks capacity problems?

Question to all? Is it possible to run 3G and 4G on the same frequency block? For example 2150-2160mhz on 3G and 2150-2160 on 4G, or if that was possible would it be too easy and I assume it would solve everyone's spectrum and capacity problems overnight??

I don't really know too much about exactly how the frequencies work, but I'm sure that you'd have to have separate frequency blocks for each technology. If the 2150-2160 was being fully utilized for 4G, you couldn't use the exact same frequency block for 3G.

At least that's how I think it works, anyway...

Your more than likely right it would seem to easy if that was the case. Take 3 for example, they have regularly said they need more spectrum and want to be favoured if you like in the next round of spectrum.

how long does it take to switch 4G after cabinets installed and pole back on air? I saw on roadworks that Voda working 26-30th and passed today to check so yes they are working and have the new pole on air. A lot of people around the pole and cabinets working. About 25 guys

In my experience it's usually as soon as they finish these days (when they first started it seemed to take a day or two). I did notice that a fill-in mast around here was initially turned on at very low power, which was increased sometime in the following week or so. Maybe it takes a little time for the power levels to adjust when it's surrounded by other masts?

where was this please?

In Reading on Henley Road. It is on roadworks. 3 weeks ago cabinet appeared next to the pole. A big cabinet new and next to it is the small old cabinet. Why is that. Why did they not remove the old cabinet?

Oh yes around there is one mast and one pole. they are 2G/3G/4G so it might take longer than 26th

That mast will be live 4G by the end of the week.

The VF 4x4 MIMO site in London I posted about above pretty much has what you suggest with 4G on 800/1800/2100/2600 MHz as well as two 900MHz 3G carriers (and 900MHz 2G of course) so well done!

It has already gone 2G/3G/4G and very quick job. Done for 2 days but speeds are very slow-2mbs down. Is that because they have not completed something

Probably waiting on a backhaul upgrade, or not going through the new backhaul yet?

Should get faster as time progresses, and they get it on the correct backhaul.

Probably waiting on a backhaul upgrade, or not going through the new backhaul yet?

Should get faster as time progresses, and they get it on the correct backhaul.

yes as when i checked yesterday it was showing full 4G bars next to the pole but just 1mbit haha. Also i see that voda/o2 are upgrading all the sites around reading.Everywhere i work around Reading now i have indoors at least 2/3bars 4G . Massive progress

I noticed one thing. If voda are upgrading the sites why I still get GPRS signal from the same mast when it has EDGE. Yesterday mi iphone was showing in the basement one bar EDGE but after I called someone it changed to 4bars GPRS. How it happened. I have no idea

It must be connecting to a different mast.

There's a small mast near a shopping centre that may only be 2G as there are today two new concrete bases covered up, suggesting new cabinets and perhaps a major upgrade.

I get 4G there and pretty good speeds (30 odd megabits) and assumed I got it from this site, but now I'm not so sure.