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It’s no secret AT&T’s wireless plans aren’t exactly the most “affordable” out there. Even if you opt for their new Aio pre-paid service — the one that recently went live around the country a few days ago — you’re still looking at $55 for 2GB of data.
Straight Talk now has 4G LTE
If that was still a little too rich for your blood, Straight Talk may have just become your next best option. The pre-paid MVNO silently upgraded their wireless service that (finally) allows customers to access AT&T’s blazing fast 4G LTE network where previously only HSPA+ was available. Unfortunately, it looks like only regular and micro SIMs are available (no nano SIMs as found on the Moto X just yet).
For those of you already on Straight Talk, you wont need to order a new SIM card. According to Straight Talk’s tech support, you’ll simply have to mess around with the APN settings on your 4G LTE enabled device to gain access to LTE. Apparently, not. According to some of our readers, you’ll more than likely need to spend several hours on the phone with tech support, being transferred until someone knows how to activate LTE on your specific account. Joy.
How does Straight Talk work?
For those unaware, Straight Talk sells pre-paid wireless service operating on a variety of networks. If you opt to bring your own device, you’ll get the option of choosing either an AT&T or T-Mobile SIM card (depending on your device, of course), for use on those networks. Traditionally, the downside to using Straight Talk was that it only had access to HSPA+ — not 4G LTE. Looks like that’s been thrown out the window.
For only $45 a month, you get unlimited talk, text, and data on either AT&T or T-Mobile’s network. Keep in mind Straight Talk has never revealed exactly how much data customers are allotted before being throttled (or worse, had their service cancelled) but overall, it’s not a bad deal for light Android use.
Is Straight Talk worth it?
Back when I had my Nexus 4, I was with Straight Talk for a good couple of months with no major complaints. Once I picked up the HTC One, I switched over to AT&T simply to gain access to LTE. Kinda regret making that decision now.
You can learn more about Straight Talk and order your own AT&T SIM (now with more LTEs!) via the link below.
You have to be careful with Straight Talk. Their T.O.S. states no streaming at all. If you listen to anything like Pandora or watch YouTube they’ll shut your service off.
I’ve been with them since November (Tmo sim) and have never had a problem aside from somewhat spotty reception when compared with actual T-Mobile customers.
Agreed I had no data for a month and a half becuase of that issue and then I left them and went back to Boost Mobile. Boost has great service but their coverage is a bit poor while on the other hand I had great coverage with my Samsuung Galaxy Proclaim that ran on verizon towers through straight talk but Service sucked badly. So I would never go back to them.
I hope T-Mobile gets on board with this so I can enjoy some LTE goodness on my nexus 4!
i thought nexus 4 did not have LTE. it was disabled….
You are correct, the Nexus 4 does not have LTE.
N5 will have it though…
Doesn’t change anything for non-Tmo N4’s though. No LTE hacked or otherwise. Stupid move on LG and Googles part they don’t need to repeat.
people use the nexus 4 on other networks?
the n4 has LTE on band 4 only. so, T-Mobile.
there’s a hack on xda to enable lte(tmo only)
not stock but i unlocked LTE on my nexus 4
All you have to do is flash a patched radio.. I have no clue why you morons are down voting me.
I just started service with straight talk with a at&t sim card two weeks ago and so far so good
I will be joining u soon!
For at&t straight talk users out there, is the service as good? Do you still have the same amount of bars? I’ve been considering switching since I think I’ll be a Nexus phone buyer from now on. My other option would be net10.
I have been using the At&t straight talk for a while now and everything is good, only bad part is if you use a lot of data they will throttle your data. I only use apps and very little youtube videos so I haven’t had any problems but I think it’s after 2GB’s or something. My signal is good with the At&t and I’m only using HSPA, with the tmobile I had a problem with getting a signal inside buildings.
Maybe I’ll try it. I’m extremely light on data.
I think straight talk and net10 are both part of TracFone, so fairly similar.
I was with at&t for 7 years and so far I see no different’s
Same exact coverage as AT&T
You can create a nano SIM from a micro.
Just entered the apn’s listed and ran a speed test same hspa+ speeds. On the phone with a rep now and he dont know anything of what im talking about he’s checking their website. This is going to be a long call. Haha
Your AT&T phone will actually display “4G LTE” when it’s enabled. I got off the phone was Straight Talk after almost an hour, got transferred almost 4 levels up into tech support and they still gave me the wrong APN -_-
No apn change is needed.
Name: straight talk
Apn: tfdata
is that the only field you change? Leave the rest as they were?
If they’re these settings then yes. You still have to call though.
http://www.straighttalkbyop.com/program.php
Is (855)-222-CELL (2355) the number to call?
That’s what I found on the BYOP page
Yes, it is.
Strike 2 talked to a supervisor and was told maybe lte is not available. I replied im talking to you from an att s3 and ran a speed test before i called you it was at 25.6mb dl so i can assure you I do have lte were i live. Now lets work on getting s/t lte do i need to change apn setting, new sim card?? ” Im sorry sir nothing more we can do”. WHAT and then rushes me off the phone
LOL! I’m telling you, worst customer service ever.
Shows how ignorant I am… I thought at&t sims were permanently gone from straight talk. When the hell did they get them back?
Don’t answer that… it’s too late for me.
>…<
They’ve been there the whole time. O_o
No, they weren’t. There was a time period that you could not get at&t sim cards from straight talk.
Call and talk to tech support. No apn change needed. They need to add the option to your account. Getting 20-25 down and 10-15 up
Proof!
If this is StraightTalk, then it appears to be performing better than Aio, which looks like it’s capped at 8Mbps with ping times in the 500ms range.
It’s net10. Same thing.
I’m geting 12+ Mbps with 200 pings on ST LTE.
Call tech support from another phone. They won’t change it if you’re not. They need to add the option to your account. Took 5 mins for two lines.
chatted with rep, he said the only way is to buy the new 4g LTE sim card.
Worst customer service ever -_-
Probably cause they’re “latinos” :rollseyes
Ha! xD
You dont need too. Just need someone who knows what they’re doing
Those APN settings don’t work for my HTC one btw
I have Net10 HPSA+ heard lot of people having issues with Straight Talk don’t know though but every pre paid customer service all suck because they are all latinos no offense.
you do realize that the author of this article is a Latino? how is that no offense? how about you keep your racist face out of here
Pretty sure their customer service is NOT “latino”. Lol
yeah Chris! , you are the reason prepaid services are horrible!
I’d rather go with a subsidized AT&T plan (15% off for students like myself) or Sprint’s Everything Plus plan than do something such as this. Unlimited on Straight Talk is super pseudo unlimited… Just take a look. Streaming a video or some music? You just broke the TOS.
6. STRAIGHT TALK UNLIMITED TALK, TEXT AND MOBILE WEB ACCESS PLAN INTENDED USE: Straight Talk Unlimited Talk, Text and Mobile Web Access Plans may ONLY be used with a Straight Talk handset for the following purposes: (i) Person to Person Voice Calls (ii) Text and Picture Messaging and (iii) Internet browsing and ordinary content Downloads. The Straight Talk Unlimited Plan MAY NOT be used for certain unauthorized uses that adversely impact our service. Examples of unauthorized uses include, without limitation, the following: (i) continuous uninterrupted mobile to mobile or mobile to landline voice calls; (ii) automated text or picture messaging to another mobile device or e-mail address; (iii) uploading, downloading or streaming of uninterrupted continuous video; (iv) server devices or host computer applications, including, but not limited to, Web camera posts or broadcasts, automatic data feeds, automated machine-to-machine connections or peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing; or (v) as a substitute or backup for private lines or dedicated data connections. A person engaged in unauthorized uses may have his/her service throttled and/or terminated. Customers will be provided notice and an opportunity to take corrective action with respect to unauthorized uses before their service is terminated.
That’s not true. I was on Straight Talk for a few months and streamed music/YouTube all the time. They said excessive, so if it’s 2GB of ALL YouTube, they MIGHT terminate your account. Usually, you’ll get hit with throttles (my gf goes over 2GB almost every month and has been with them for over a year).
It also says continuous uninterrupted video. I would think that youtube, etc isn’t continuously uninterrupted.
Not to disregard your experiences by any means Chris, but others haven’t been as fortunate… Straight Talk doesn’t give any warning or a sort of “soft cap” on data. It’s really just a duck and cover scenario. It’s awesome that it has worked for people like you and your girlfriend, I’m just not so sure everyone else will achieve the same result.
Don’t try to call ST. Handle everything through the forums. They are somewhat of a hassle to get started (minimum post count), but they can actually fix things like throttling. I had an issue about 6 months ago and was throttled for 3 days. Since then, I’ve been ~2-3GB monthly with no signs of throttling.
That sounds like a brilliant solution. Thanks for that, it could be pretty useful to someone.
software
Superuser
So what the final verdict? New SIM, APN change, or just activation? Or is it too early too tell?
Just need to call and have them add the option. I posted the correct apn a few posts down.
here is the problem for me, I just called and asked if I could get the lte plan or whatever you call it added and they said all they could do is give me the apn settings that I already have from the website with tfdata being the apn. I tried these new apn settings and my phone connected to the network but no data connected. What is the problem?
Did you call tech support? Tell them you need them to enable your account for LTE. You don’t need a new sim either.
I said to her (lady with BYOP service), “i have a new phone that is LTE capable and would like to have support for that added to my account”, after that all that she said she needed, me to give her another phone number to call me back on for some reason. I gave her that phone number and she said she was going to do something to change it and something about me not using my phone so she could do it. It’s been about a good half hour now and no call back. Surely there’s another way! I’m in an area to use lte right now and I’m dying to try it.
I’d call back then if its been that long. You have to have another phone because they have to go in and manually add the access in their system. Then, need to verify it works. If you’re on the phone it will disconnect and they can’t call yiu back.
called back on another phone, asked for lte to be added to my account, he worked on something for a good 3 mins or so and then came back to me and said that you need to change your apn settings after i read my old settings off to him. He told me to change them to exactly what I already have set in my phone. I don’t even know if he changed anything on his side. Anyway, after that, he said to restart my phone. I restarted my, phone, he asked if i could access the internet and if there was 4g indicated at the top and i said yes, but will I be able to use 4g lte after this? He said yes to that and then I said ok and then went and checked my about>status page and saw that hspa and sometimes hspa+ were indicated but never any sort of sign of 4g lte and then ran a speed test and still only got 5mbps down. IDK i guess it’s hopeless for me. BTW tried both att.mvno and tfdata and none of them work.
I promise it works. I’d keep trying. tfdata is correct. You don’t have LTE off do you?
No, there are no options to turn it off, options not available from factory, and I am not running a custom rom right now. I have the Galaxy S4 Active and it is a featured at&t lte phone. tfdata apn shows up no data immediately after enabling it.
problem is that you are dealing with strait talk the worst customer service company ever.
Called straight talk twice. One they said i need the sim card. Then second time on elevated to a supervisor who kept saying that if your phone is lte capable it would automatically connect. I’m using agalaxy s4 at&t locked version however. I already get 4g just not lte, and i don’t think there is lte coverage in springfield, va. Either way, customer service sucks really bad and would not simply add lte to my service. I did change my apn settings to the one Reed posted but i lost my 4g connection. This sucks!
I agree.
Ok. So, I called and setup 3 more phones. You need to call and talk to byod tech support. Then tell them to update your internet provisioning in their internal system. The rep I spoke to said that they should be able to do that and it work. Hope that helps. If you want pm me on the forums @ sk337sk337
Man Reed, i am getting nothing from them. I tried another call, and they said they don’t support even 4g. Funny thing is that I get 4g currently. I called 18552222355, then i go to technical support who transfer me to byop department. Then the representative tells me they don’t have it. I don’t know what else to do.
Yup, same with me. I hit a road block. They said there’s absolutely NOTHING they can do on their end, and that LTE would automatically connect if my One was capable of it. -_-
BTW, i have not bought the 4g LTE sim.
Neither have I. Mine is the same sim I’ve had for 3 months
Both their telephone support and chat support lied to me and hung up on
me. They sounded clueless too. See the chat screenshot below to see
how the stupid b**ch lies to my face when I’ve got the website up behind
the chat with the message that reads, “Keep 4G LTE speeds when bringing
a 4G LTE AT&T compatible device.” Well, offering up something to
get customers then denying it to them after they already paid is
screaming LAWSUIT. I hope someone starts a Class Action Lawsuit against
these lying f**kers.
Here is the screenshot of the chat support rep lying to me: http://i.imgur.com/VMnNIMG.jpg
And try number 3 with no success! THESE PEOPLE ARE ABSOLUTE SCUM!
http://i.imgur.com/TPaFzi7.jpg
Call. Don’t use the chat.
I did call. I called twice and got the same answer from both telephone reps. They stumbled with words like it was their first day on the phones and had no idea what they were talking about. How many times do I have to call and speak to idiots before I get someone who knows how to do their fkn job?
Strait Talk is a joke. I had them a while back for ATT network. They cancelled my account after a week cause i used a gig of their “unlimited” (really its just a gig) internet (no I didn’t tether) and they cancelled and took my money.
tinyurl.com/l3cselt
Another “Unlimited means limited” company, great.
I have a made a walk through for those who are still having issues.
http://androidforums.com/showthread.php?t=768940
Alright Reed ill give this another try! And it turns out there is lte coverage in my area since my friend has at&t and is getting lte. Thanks for tge help btw.
Thanks! Will talk there instead and I will keep trying.
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ST has no clue. The first rep. didn’t know what LTE was.
Bottom line: If you are using the BYOP (Bring your own phone program), you can’t use LTE…
My conversation with StraightTalk support today: Changed name of support person to protect identity.
Me: How do I enable the LTE network on my LTE capable phone. I currently only get the HSDPA+ speeds (6 Mbps) on my phone. I am an existing “Bring your own phone” customer of straight talk.
Support: Hi XXXXXX. Thank you for visiting Straight Talk Wireless.
Me: Hi YYYYYY, Thanks. I hope you can help me out :-)
Support: You are welcome.
Support: Please be informed that BYOP program does not support LTE technology phones from another company.
Support: Is xxx-xxx-xxxx your phone number?
Me: yes, that’s my number
Me: So do I have to use a phone sold by straight talk to use LTE?
Support: Okay.
Support: Yes, you have that as an option.
Me: OK. So if I stick with my phone, I can’t use LTE.
Me: Hmm, I wish the website made that clearer
Support: No. Our BYOP program does not support LTE technology phones.
Me: I see
Support: Yes.
Me: OK. Thanks for the clarification.
Support: You are welcome.
Support: Thank you for chatting with Straight Talk Wireless. If you have any further questions or concerns, please contact one of our customer care representatives at 1-877-430-2355. For your convenience, our representatives are available Monday-Sunday from 8:00 AM to 11:45 PM EST.
Support has exited the session.
Straight Talk has a clause in their terms and conditions that allows them to throttle you for almost any reason. Look it up, it’s ridiculous.
Straight Talk caps data after 2 gigs. Not worth it on LTE
I was gonna try straight talk until i found out that you cant stream, at all! this isnt 2008, streaming is kind of the point.
I just followed Reeds tutorial to the T and everything happened just as he explained and voila LTE symbol lit up and speeds are at 15mb dl and 13mb up. Speed test on hspa+ were 6 and 3 Before provisions. I have a att standard sim cut to a micro on a Att S3.
THANKS REED