ATT 3G Service Planned Shutdown

[CapeOne]

No. Nobody bought a Tesla with the expectation that they would receive free premium connectivity forever, including any necessary hardware updates.

Nobody.

I'm sure some did which is likely a reason why Tesla added that "excluding retrofits or upgrades required for any features or services externally supplied to the vehicle – e.g. telecommunications network" text to the website sometime this year. It wasn't there before.

 

[ElectricIAC]

I'm sure some did which is likely a reason why Tesla added that "excluding retrofits or upgrades required for any features or services externally supplied to the vehicle – e.g. telecommunications network" text to the website sometime this year. It wasn't there before.

Both our cars came with FUPC and I fully expect 5G upgrade to be gratis.

 

[ucmndd]

Both our cars came with FUPC and I fully expect 5G upgrade to be gratis.

When were your cars purchased?

 

[reddy]

FWIW, I was notified by Tesla that my Powerwall 2 installation has 3G, and to be sure that it stays connected to WiFi. That was a bit of a shock, since these were only 3 1/2 years old.

I had a 2013 Model S, and I asked Tesla to upgrade to LTE when that became available. It was well worth it at the time. Using 3G today would seem absolutely glacial. Nobody should expect to get a free upgrade on a 9 year old car when other owners have been paying for the same upgrade for years.

 

[murphyS90D]

Lots of other connected car services have had similar transitions as a result of 2G and 3G network retirements. Can you cite one example of an automaker covering the upgrade for free?

Ford upgraded my 2013 Fusion Energi from 2G to 3G for free. I traded it in on a 2021 Mustang Mach-E so I don't know what they will do when 3G goes away.

 

[ElectricIAC]

When were your cars purchased?

It’s in my signature line, however I’ve confirmed our configurations are hard coded with FUPC.

 

[dannycamps]

Back in 2008 when analog cell service was decommissioned, GM offered an analog to digital conversion for OnStar customers who would otherwise lose OnStar access for a nominal fee (e.g. something like $15 or $20).

Now that the majority of OnStar users appear to be losing access as of Jan 1 2022, I haven't seen or heard any plans to offer the same kind of 3G -> LTE upgrade for those cars which is a shame.

Network technologies change over time. We will all be affected by this at some point because I am sure LTE will eventually go away to be replaced with 5G, 6G, 7H, whatever... Competition in the telecommunications industry drives a push for faster/newer technology which can only be sustained by repurposing existing bands.

That does not mean that Tesla has to foot the bill to enable their now 8-10 year old cars to be able to connect. They have provided an upgrade path in the form of MCU2 or LTE board (which already goes above and beyond what others do).

 

[catalin99]

You know what? I'll pay $200 to have faster internet speeds so my stuff loads faster with LTE speeds

 

[ucmndd]

You know what? I'll pay $200 to have faster internet speeds so my stuff loads faster with LTE speeds

Nothing is going to load faster on MCU1, 4G, 5G, or 11G.

 

[catalin99]

Nothing is going to load faster on MCU1, 4G, 5G, or 11G.

Yes it will load much faster. Maps zooming for example

 

[ucmndd]

Yes it will load much faster. Maps zooming for example

Be sure to let us know how that goes.

 

[dannycamps]

My first Model S was an 85D MCU1 w/LTE. At some point, Tesla service gave me a loaner (P85 MCU1 w/3G). I can most definitely confirm that maps will render faster with LTE than 3G speaking specifically about draw-in, satellite imagery, route calculations, etc..

Streaming services will also connect faster.

Nothing related to performance in the MCU (pinch/zoom, browser, etc....) will improve with the change from 3G to LTE.