What is LTE Option?

[juniormarbles]

Newby question: Under what conditions do I tap to activate "LTE" on the gray start up screen? What does LTE do, and how does it relate to cell or mobile data service (I use ATT "Go Phone" prepaid)?

If I leave the LTE option off (which I have done so far) what exactly do I miss? 

Thanks,

JM

[CameronT]

@Marbles,

The Z3 compact is designed with LTE in mind, however if you are switching between 4G, 3G etc a lot then you may experience battery drain, as each time it switches it will consume a little battery.

I would recommend you leave it on as 4G coverage is often very good in urban and suburban areas, you usually will only experience issues on the outskirts of towns and in rural areas.

[juniormarbles]

Thanks. All my questions regarding LTE are answered.

JM

[CameronT]

@Marbles, no problem. Glad we could help

[lingmaaki]

4G simply stands for fourth generation, and it’s called that because it’s the fourth generation of mobile technology, following on from 2G and 3G. 4G is sometimes referred to as LTE (Long Term Evolution) and it’s similar in a lot of ways to 3G, as it allows you to use data to browse the net, play online games, download and stream, and more, but it does so a lot faster than 3G.

LTE stands for Long-term Evolution, and isn’t as much a technology as it is the path followed to achieve 4G speeds. As it stands, most of the time when your phone displays the “4G” symbol in the upper right corner, it doesn’t really mean it. When the ITU-R set the minimum speeds for 4G, they were a bit unreachable, despite the amount of money tech manufacturers put into achieving them. In response, the regulating body decided that LTE, the name given to the technology used in pursuit of those standards, could be labeled as 4G if it provided a substantial improvement over the 3G technology.