How do I turn off 3G on the iPhone 4S?

Hey Dude, what are you talking about? Read my post properly!

Where is the fact that the new Hybrid CDMA chip cannot support a 3G toggle for GSM network? As far as I know, that it is most people's opinion that the Hybrid cannot support in both Hardware and software... Did Qualcomm or Apple came out to say that the Hybrid chip cannot support such a function?

Do let me know if you can find the facts yourself.. Don't bother about the earlier CDMA chips used for earlier iPhone models, CDMA doesn't have 2G and the iphone CDMA doesn't need such a toggle. Everyone who is requesting for the toggle here should be on GSM.

Lastly, I am on GSM, not CDMA. We only have GSM in my country... There is no CDMA providers here..

Ashley xavier, did you even read transmogrifications post? Whether you are on a CDMA or GSM network is irrelevant. There is only one model iPhone 4S and it used a hybrid chipset for GSM and CDMA. As such, it must deal with the limitations of BOTH types of networks. Since a CDMA device cannot revert to EDGE or 2G service, a device running a hybrid CDMA/GSM chipset also cannot revert to EDGE or 2G service.

I was told in an Apple store that while there is only one 4S model (with 3 memory and 2 color variations), it is both the chip AND the software that distinguishes an ATT iPhone from a Verizon model, for example. With the iPhone 4, the ATT (GSM model) and the Verizon (CDMA model) obviously had different software, because you could turn off 3G on the ATT model. It wasn't a well publicized fact that the ATT model could have double the battery life of the Verizon model, but it WAS right there in the specs.

If the iPhone 4S ATT (GSM) flavor can (AND DOES) switch automatically from 3G to 2G (EDGE) when there is no 3G signal, I don't see why the ATT version (GSM) software couldn't have a software switch to turn 3G off.

However I can think of 2 reasons why Apple doesn't allow it.

1. Siri apparently really needs 3G

2. Politics - ATT would have a field day advertising that their 4S has DOUBLE the battery life (possibility) over the competition.

diesel vdub wrote:

Ashley xavier, did you even read transmogrifications post? Whether you are on a CDMA or GSM network is irrelevant. There is only one model iPhone 4S and it used a hybrid chipset for GSM and CDMA. As such, it must deal with the limitations of BOTH types of networks. Since a CDMA device cannot revert to EDGE or 2G service, a device running a hybrid CDMA/GSM chipset also cannot revert to EDGE or 2G service.

Unless I've misread the post/misunderstood something, I have a 4S and live in the UK, I'm on the O2 network, and my 4S does go onto a EDGE connection if 3G is not available in that particular area.

sorry if you feel that it's a personal attack.. nothing personal. there is only 2 of you who is insisting that the Hybrid chip cannot support a toggle via either hardware or software whoout being able provide any proof.

I agree with you that the hardware might not be able to support like the previous CDMA chips but might be does not mean impossible.

There is always a software factor. If the phone can use the chip to differeriate out the GSM and CDMA network, it is still possible to provide a toggle switch on the 4s solely for the GSM network.. Not sure why is this so difficult for you to understand.

Either way, if you are reading my post correctly. I am not stating that it is possible or impossible, so it is still either way. Until either Apple or Qualcomm comes out to state that both hardware and software is not possible, there is no point in insisting that it is impossible.

vdub, it is relevant what network, since disabling 3G on Qualcomm's CDMA used in North Ametica is not really possible by a simple software toggle. A CDMA device can revert from 3G to 2G service. It auto selects, just like any other. 1xRTT is 2G and considered the 2G EDGE equivalent with CDMA networks.

I am not insisting anything. I am only suggesting that since this is a hybrid phone and that the operating system (iOS 5) is platform agnostic, that the problem isn't that simple and very well may be hardware related. Please read my previous posts on this here in this forum thread.

If this is a hardware related issue and a simple 3G - 2G software toggle cannot be achieved, then if this was such a big deal, I would downgrade to an iPhone 4 where there isn't a problem having that software toggle and wait it out instead of pitting the voice of reason against the lion's den of protests.

Thank you for understanding.

Also, remember that the iPhone 4S is designed to be used on CDMA2000 networks and GSM networks at the user's will. That the user could buy one phone and use it as the user decides. By design, the iPhone can activate and operate on either network technology. iOS 5 is also designed to handle either network technology, where with the iPhone 4 there were two separate iterations of iOS 4 depending on which iPhone 4 radio chipset you had. It's not as easy as swapping radios. There are technical limitations of the network technology to consider with the OS, such as the software toggles for "Call forwarding", "Call Waiting" and "Show my caller ID" that CDMA activated iPhones don't have.

You aren't a programmer are you?

No one is saying it is not possible for Qualcomm to produce a chip that has a user controllable software switch to allow manual switching on the GSM side, although not working for Qualcomm in their engineering department I don't know for sure. What we are saying is the current chip that Qualcomm has produced for Apple it does have multiple radio capability that can detect a signal and adapt to it. What is does not have is anything programmed in firmware that would allow an outside programmer to write a routine and call and control this function. So on the current model of the chip there is not access to the function without replacing the chip. And you cannot reflash the chip.

I don't think the battery life reason suggested is really plausible, I can't see AT&T advertising that if you abandon Siri and run at abysmally slow EDGE speeds you will get twice the battery. Even if Qualcomm produced a chip that had the function Apple would have to run two different versions of iOS for them which they just moved away from.

The problem that I have is that the 3G signal is very light where my office is and my 4s contiues to try to find it rather than just switching to Edge. When I had the option of turning off 3G I could use Edge all day long and was happy. Now I get maybe one or two random text messages during the day when a good wind blows the right way I guess. So forgetting battery life, forgetting that it should automatically switch, I basically have a tiny paperweight for 8-10 hours a day instead of a phone. Had I known that I could not turn off 3G I would not have upgraded my phone.

No for everyone being so mean and stinky about this get over it. It isn't about the chip can't handle it. There should have been either communciation that the functionality was going away or a serious boost in 3G coverage.

I didn't think I was mean about it, just pointed out why it is not available. The ability to do that was the exception not the rule. I see your problem, perhaps if you talk to your sell provider they could buy back your 4s and sell you an iPhone 4.

Care to share who those rude people are? Please

Keep personal attacks out of the forum posts.

Statements such as "That was directed at those who were being rude for no reason" and "Just 2 members cannot understand what the rest are deriving at. xD" are personal attacks and are not a contribution to understanding the issue of the forum topic.

deggie,

Does the iPhone 4 with iOS 5.x.x still have the 3G on/off switch or did they they remove it in the new iOS?

Not that I would go back to the 4, you know a guy has to have the latest gadget but I did keep my 4 in case of some natural disaster overtaking my 4S.

@sears, What about one of those at&t booster things for your office. "Booster thing" is not the correct name but I can't remember what they call them at the moment - but I am sure someone will chime in and compensate for my early onset dementia.

I in Delhi, India faced similar issue of 4S latching onto to a weak 3G signal resulting in crackling & dropped calls, frozen internet connections, poor battery and constant switching between 2G and 3G networks. My daughter's iphone 4 with its 3G switched off performed brilliantly on 2G network. This was happening in the prime location of Delhi on Vodafone. As Apple in India does not allow returns, I had no options but to get the carrier to de-activate the 3G network for my SIM. Now my 4S stays on 2G and works comfortably. Even SIRI works, accent issues not withstanding.

My experience showed that iPhone can switch automatically to a 2G network when the 3G signal become very, very low. It is quite possible that this threshold of change-over for GSM is determined by iOS and not by Qualcomm. If it is true then it should be possible for Apple to provide, for GSM networks, a software switch to increase this threshold to a 3G signal level of 100% - thus ensuring that phone doesn't go into 3G mode. To save battery, Apple could also modify the phone's preference/pinging for 3G network when this switch is turned on. Thus even if Apple cannot turn the UMTS baseband off due to this single GSM-CDMA chip design issues, the phone would stay in 2G network.

I agree with Ashley that nobody but Apple can confirm or deny this option though it does appear they would not do it untill this issue snowballs to another antenna-gate. It would be a major embarrasement for Apple as it would not only mean that they are admitting to a major design mistake but also that the phone may stay compromised due to sub-optimal battery performance (UMTS baseband staying on issues).

It could also mean that they are staring down a major recall - people not affected would also like to get their 3/4 months old phone replaced with a new one.

Finally, I just remember reading in a forum that a guy in UK who had bought his phone from US recently was told by Apple, calif. that he should return the phone and repurchase after 2/3 months, from a new lot of iPhones. Hope someone can verify this

I have to agree on all your points Mike Snp.

I'm in Ireland and on the Meteor network. I have the same issues where my 3G coverage is dire. One bar at most and even then the phone says there is no Data or Mobile Internet.

Yet I have full bars of EDGE.

My battery drains fast because of all this signal switching and most of the time if it loses the 3G connection it just says Searching... or No Service.

It's getting extremely annoying that I'm getting texts and emails sometimes hours after they were sent.

I even had a friend constantly say they couldnt call me, yet I had 1 bar 3G, they even stood next to me with their iPhone 4 with full EGDE and still couldnt connect a call to me.

At the moment I can't use the phone as a phone much, let alone a smartphone.