Question Regarding AT&T iPhone and LTE

[kcmo]

Guys/Gals,

I am planning to preorder the iPhone 5 tomorrow like many of you, but am a bit confused regarding LTE.

I know LTE offers super duper speeds and all that, but I'm reading online that there are several versions of the iPhone 5 this time, unlike the 4S which was a world phone for all (regardless if the carrier is Verizon, Sprint, or AT&T, the 4S is the same version on all).

Soooo, is the iPhone 5 still a world phone that I can use abroad? I don't care if LTE doesn't work abroad as 3G or 4G would be fine....but I need to know the phone will work for calls and data....

Can someone shed some light....Thanks!

[seand442]

Yes and no. There are 3 different models. If you have AT&T, you should be able to have LTE here in the US and in Canada. This chart should help.

http://www.apple.com/iphone/LTE/

On the 3G side, it is still a world phone so you can pop in a different sim card and you will be good to go.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by seand442

Yes and no. There are 3 different models. If you have AT&T, you should be able to have LTE here in the US and in Canada. This chart should help.

http://www.apple.com/iphone/LTE/

On the 3G side, it is still a world phone so you can pop in a different sim card and you will be good to go.

OK thanks....will be in the carribbean later in the year and want to be sure the phone will still work. Don't care if there's no LTE there.

[77T]

Karis
There has always been multiple types of iPhones for the different carriers since they use different voice radio protocols. That was true for the 4s and will be still be true for the 5. The data side is what we denote with acronyms like 3G, 4G, LTE, etc.

So when you say you want the phone to "work" I'm guessing to make and receive phone calls. I would suggest you turn off cellular data when you're abroad since the surcharges are horrendous. Just find wifi at hotels, etc.

What we mean by "world phone" is that GSM is the voice protocol used. It works worldwide where GSM is prevalent. The AT&T version will be GSM - and the data side will be LTE which is also a global standard although it is implemented on different frequencies by some carriers.

What is being done differently on the iPhone 5 is putting all the different radio protocols onto one chip vs. two.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by 77T

Karis
There has always been multiple types of iPhones for the different carriers since they use different voice radio protocols. That was true for the 4s and will be still be true for the 5. The data side is what we denote with acronyms like 3G, 4G, LTE, etc.

So when you say you want the phone to "work" I'm guessing to make and receive phone calls. I would suggest you turn off cellular data when you're abroad since the surcharges are horrendous. Just find wifi at hotels, etc.

What we mean by "world phone" is that GSM is the voice protocol used. It works worldwide where GSM is prevalent. The AT&T version will be GSM - and the data side will be LTE which is also a global standard although it is implemented on different frequencies by some carriers.

What is being done differently on the iPhone 5 is putting all the different radio protocols onto one chip vs. two.

Thanks Paul Yes, I want to be sure I can make calls and receive emails. I will likely purchase an international data plan.