[ash45]

Hi just got a iphone 6+ never really been an apple fan at all always had a android or WP or even blackberrys, but i thought id give it a go as there seams to of been a lot of change over the years of IOS, Found a couple of niggles here and there but they are all overcome in one way or another except one thing i cant seam to find the answer to after googleing,

On android ive always been able to disable 2G and only let the phone use 3G/4G the reason being o2 like to latch onto a usless EDGE signal even though in most places i go there is a perfectly usable 3G and even now in some places 4G signal and it drives me mad, Now ive been all in the settings and googled but cant seam to find out how to do this on ios8 only option is to disable 4G. dose any one know of any hidden menus or anything to do what i want or is it just going to be one of them really annoying things thats im stuck with and as a long term android user will get the monk on with lol

Thanks Ash

[Mystic Eddy]

It's a carrier setting that removes the 2G toggle, so you'd have to be with a network that allows you to switch off 2G.

[ash45]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mystic Eddy

It's a carrier setting that removes the 2G toggle, so you'd have to be with a network that allows you to switch off 2G.

so yea guess stuck with it then as its not there so obviously o2 dont allow it this is all i see ride to work is gunna be fun from now on lol, I seriously dont know why EDGE seams to get priority as while forced into 3g/4g only mode it never once losses signal on the way (take 1.5 hours to get there so plenty different places) yet when left to auto it spends over 75% on the time on EDGE and takes ages to switch back to 3G which means spotify/facebook and even general web browsing becomes very unusable

Ash

[Everything Goes]

Did a thread on this subject a few weeks ago that may be useful:

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2013908

Also see this thread that found O2 stuck to 2G 60% of the time:

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2017570

If you find that you don't like Apple's restrictions then an iPhone is not for you.

[jchamier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ash45

I seriously dont know why EDGE seams to get priority as while forced into 3g/4g only mode it never once losses signal on the way (take 1.5 hours to get there so plenty different places) yet when left to auto it spends over 75% on the time on EDGE and takes ages to switch back to 3G which means spotify/facebook and even general web browsing becomes very unusable

I believe the network program the SIM card to tell the phone which signal to prefer. O2 has always done this as they believed their 2G network was better than 3G. As you can see there is 3G coverage around but I suspect it doesn't have as much capacity - so the SIM's are still set to prefer 2G. I've seen similar on Vodafone.

[Gigabit]

I'm pretty sure it's not a carrier option. I'm pretty sure that since the iPhone 5, Apple has removed the option to disable 3G (i.e. force 2G); they put disable 4G in its place.

[jchamier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gigabit

I'm pretty sure it's not a carrier option. I'm pretty sure that since the iPhone 5, Apple has removed the option to disable 3G (i.e. force 2G); they put disable 4G in its place.

There is one switch, and the carrier is given control in the "carrier profile".

So put a Vodafone SIM in an iPhone 5 and you'll get a 3G on/off, and put the same SIM in a 5s and you get a 4G on/off - even if you don't have a 4G price plan. But stick an EE or Three SIM in that 5 and you will get 4G on/off.

Before vodafone launched 4G the 5s showed 3G on/off, and then after launch there was a carrier profile update and the option changed.

[Gigabit]

Ahh fair enough then. My mistake.

On Android you just download one app and done.

[ash45]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Everything Goes

Did a thread on this subject a few weeks ago that may be useful:

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2013908

Also see this thread that found O2 stuck to 2G 60% of the time:

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2017570

If you find that you don't like Apple's restrictions then an iPhone is not for you.

other than this im not finding it too bad yes its a lot different but not in a too bad way its just this one option thats very frustrating and seams a stupid option for such a popular range of phones not to have when even the most basic £50 WP/Droid have these options i guess ill live with it not a deal breaker but is quite fustrating when you cnat use a smart phone as a smart phone because the network picks a stupid priority for an older generation network and the phone cant over ride

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gigabit

Ahh fair enough then. My mistake.

On Android you just download one app and done.

This is what ive always done you see quick 1 meg download full control over network (or even using the *# menu directly) so i just thought maybe ios had a similar hidden menu to give a bit more freedom EG a developer type menu but from all the replys seams not

Ash

[wrexham103.4]

Sure this option is coming back with ios8.1

[andyukguy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wrexham103.4

Sure this option is coming back with ios8.1

I read about this, it still appears to be dependent on the carriers allowing it. You can read more about it here: https://ssl.reddit.com/r/apple/comme...hoose_between/

[ash45]

Oh thanks guys interesting link I'm hoping O2 do allow this as Literally the entire way there/back has perfectly usable 3G never loses service or anything while forced into 3g mode on my droid yet while being aloud it's mainly edge as I've said its the one thing Thats bothering me other than that in getting allong well

Ash

[IslandNiles]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ash45

Oh thanks guys interesting link I'm hoping O2 do allow this as Literally the entire way there/back has perfectly usable 3G never loses service or anything while forced into 3g mode on my droid yet while being aloud it's mainly edge as I've said its the one thing Thats bothering me other than that in getting allong well

Ash

Not sure if would help you even if it returned. As far as I remember, the toggle was just for 'Enable 3G', allowing you to switch 3G data on or off. I'm not sure you were ever able to disable 2G data and only use 3G. It was the other way round.

[ash45]

Quote:

Originally Posted by IslandNiles

Not sure if would help you even if it returned. As far as I remember, the toggle was just for 'Enable 3G', allowing you to switch 3G data on or off. I'm not sure you were ever able to disable 2G data and only use 3G. It was the other way round.

But according to the link andyukguy posted there is a print screen on there showing the ability to unselect 2g as an option

ash

[DevonBloke]

Correct. You have never been able to just disable 2G.
Before 4G the toggle was disable 3G.
After 4G it was disable 4G meaning you then couldn't turn off 3G either.
As has been said, the option is controlled by the carrier settings.
A network could easily remove the option altogether just by sending out a new carrier update.

[Gigabit]

I always thought it was silly that Apple allows carriers to control the network settings.

Why not just have a built-in toggle? Why do the carriers need to decide what you can or can't use?

[jchamier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gigabit

I always thought it was silly that Apple allows carriers to control the network settings. Why not just have a built-in toggle? Why do the carriers need to decide what you can or can't use?

This was part of the toolkit that Apple negotiated with AT&T back in 2007 before the iPhone launched, and that the 'approved networks' such as O2 in the UK agreed before they stocked the iPhone.

Networks such as Three love this feature, and the networks love the fact that the APN details can be hidden (in the UK only Vodafone's carrier settings leaves the APNs available for the end user) as this reduces support calls.

Three got rid of the Enable 3G switch on the iPhone 3G/3GS/4/4S as they didn't want the phone being set in a mode where it wouldn't use the 3G network if available. They had to pay O2 or Orange a lot of money to use the 2G backup. Now in most parts of the UK the 2G backup doesn't work even if you manually select - its disabled on the cell site.

Its a "new way" of managing phones, similar to the completely different way the iPhone handles network locking. Some might ask why Android and Windows Phone still adopt the ancient feature phone ways of configuring and locking ?

[jchamier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DevonBloke

A network could easily remove the option altogether just by sending out a new carrier update.

It looks possible Apple is going to allow for finer grained control in 8.1 from the reddit/video link posted above.

If you have VoLTE enabled on a 6 or 6+ (currently in the USA with Verizon or T-Mobile) the screenshots show a similar menu structure allowing you to turn 4G calling on and off in iOS 8.0 and 8.0.2.

I guess Apple are just extending this menu in iOS 8.1 to allow for consumers to override the network's decisions - which is a good move as Gigabit has posted, O2 is pretty awful at managing their inadequate locations :-/

[ash45]

Hmm updated today even mentioned the fetcher in the update info but it's not there for me to use in the place Apple says it should be 😟

Ash

[iGeek2014]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ash45

Hmm updated today even mentioned the fetcher in the update info but it's not there for me to use in the place Apple says it should be 😟

Ash

Am guessing we'll have to wait for carrier updates before this function is enabled.

[jchamier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by iGeek2014

Am guessing we'll have to wait for carrier updates before this function is enabled.

See the 8.1 thread - but that's the conclusion. We have to wait

[Stiggles]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jchamier

Some might ask why Android and Windows Phone still adopt the ancient feature phone ways of configuring and locking ?

You have lost me on this one...