Nexus 4 Update Removes Unofficial 4G LTE Support

By Jane McEntegart
published

Bye bye, 4G.

When Google announced the Nexus 4, many were surprised that the phone didn't come with support for 4G LTE. Fast forward to the launch and early teardowns indicated that the phone did have a 4G chip, it just wasn't in use. However, back in November, one Canadian early adopter figured out a way to get that 4G chip up and running despite the fact that the Nexus 4 lacks a signal amplifier and filter. Xda-developers user a1jatt was able to force the phone to run on Telus 1700MHz and 2100MHz from the phone’s debugging menu.

Unfortunately, it seems Google is shutting the party down. AnandTech reports that Google has killed off the band 4 support in Android 4.2.2. This means Canadians, and anyone else who managed to get the 4G working on their Nexus 4, will be out of luck once they update. Selecting LTE Only in settings is futile, as the phone reverts back to 'WCDMA Preferred' and won't latch onto the LTE network the way it used to.

Google never intended for the Nexus 4 to be a 4G device, so it's not really surprising that the company has removed users' ability to force the phone to utilize that 4G chip. Still, users will no doubt be disappointed to lose their 4G connectivity after just a couple of months.

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Jane McEntegart
9 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Azn Cracker
    no! starting to sound like apple
    Reply
  • Silent Ricochet
    I really don't understand why Google wouldn't want their device to be 4G capable. If they had intended this all along, why even include a chip? Either way, for the people that enabled 4G on their Nexus 4s using that trick stated above, the solution is simple. Don't update. Chances are, if you have the ability / know how or even the urge to enable it in the first place, you're probably running a ROM different from stock and the update won't affect you anyways.
    Reply
  • hewettbr
    there's rules and regulations involved, but there's a workaround anyhow, you just have to use an older modem version.
    Reply
  • the1kingbob
    Silent RicochetIIf they had intended this all along, why even include a chip?
    They probably included because it would have cost more money to have it not included, since this hardware is used in other phones. In the end, this good of hardware without a 4g chip doesn't exist.

    As for why they disabled it, that really does not make sense to me. I am sure rooting gets around this, but to remove the ability to let the end user decide if they want to use an official feature should be left up to the end user. If Google has a valid reason for doing this I hope they explain why, otherwise this is no different from Apple's behavior.
    Reply
  • hewettbr
    santeanaWell, Google didn't clear it for LTE with the FCC. So I think they're just covering their assets. But it's ok, once you get the 4.2.2 update, a simple flash of the old .33 radio returns LTE to normal

    this is the reason and the solution
    Reply
  • ojas
    Didn't this news piece appear on tom's a few days ago? i notice a lot of news seems to get recycled...by mistake, i hope...
    Reply
  • lathe26
    For a good discussion for why the Nexus 4 doesn't include full LTE, go here
    http://mobile.theverge.com/2012/10/29/3569688/why-nexus-4-does-not-have-4g-lte
    Reply
  • razor512
    why don't they add official support for it in a new update, then tell users which components they can purchase to amplify and filter, then simply recommend the proper soldering iron tips and reflow practices that will work with the phone for users who want to upgrade the phone them self (reflowing solder pads for BGA's is still entirely possible for home users (as long as PoP BGA's are not being used for the components to be installed)

    Reply
  • blazorthon
    razor512why don't they add official support for it in a new update, then tell users which components they can purchase to amplify and filter, then simply recommend the proper soldering iron tips and reflow practices that will work with the phone for users who want to upgrade the phone them self (reflowing solder pads for BGA's is still entirely possible for home users (as long as PoP BGA's are not being used for the components to be installed)
    Suggesting that users do anything like that usually raises red flags.
    Reply