A leaked internal document from T-Mobile leaked that T-Mobile will soon require that all devices on its network support Voice over LTE or VoLTE. The document shared by Android Police establishes that from August 4, T-Mobile will stop activating devices that are not compatible with VoLTE.
In addition, T-Mobile will require all devices connecting to its network to support VoLTE starting in January 2021, according to the document.
Customers with a device in T-Mobile that is not compatible with VoLTE will not be affected by the change at this time, but will receive a text message from T-Mo in the near future to tell them that their phone will soon be incompatible with the net . It is unclear whether T-Mo will offer them a deal on a new device that is compatible, but the document states that "offers and prices for existing devices should be used to accommodate new and existing customers who wish to activate or currently use -VoLTE devices. "
These changes will also affect Metro by T-Mobile customers.
As for why it's making this change, T-Mobile says in this document that it is "critical to our broader plans to provide T-Mobile customers with the best network experience with more capacity and faster speeds." I contacted T-Mobile for a statement on this change, but have not yet received a response.
T-Mobile is working to increase its 4G LTE and 5G coverage, and to help you do that, it is retiring its 2G and 3G coverage and reusing that spectrum for 4G and 5G. This means that the devices must be able to make voice calls through 4G LTE.
T-Mo recently said that as of the first quarter of 2020, 91% of all voice calls on its network were VoLTE. That means the vast majority of T-Mo customers are already using VoLTE and will not be affected by this change. And as the leaked document says, all phones that T-Mobile currently sells support VoLTE, and devices from the HTC One M9, LG G3, and Samsung Galaxy Note 3 are compatible with VoLTE.
However, there are still some people who will be affected by this change, such as some imported international devices, which is one of the good things you can do on this network. With the limit to activate non-VoLTE devices in just a couple of weeks and the VoLTE compatibility requirement in just over four months, T-Mobile should make this change official soon to give affected customers as much time as possible. to move to a new device, especially with so many people still affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
TO UPDATE: T-Mobile has responded to this leak with a statement sent to TmoNews, confirming that customers activating new lines on T-Mobile will need a VoLTE compatible device:
“We are making great progress in building a truly transformative 5G network across the country. As part of that, we will gradually phase out some old technologies over time to free up even more capacity for LTE and 5G. In preparation for that and to offer customers the best experience, those who activate new lines on T-Mobile will need a VoLTE compatible device, which is all we have offered for years and represents the vast majority of devices on the network. "
UPDATE 2: When asked about the specific timeline in the leaked document above, T-Mobile only said that it has not shared a specific timeline for when it will phase out older technologies. T-Mo's second statement in its entirety:
“We have only sold VoLTE compatible devices for years, which is why the vast majority of devices on our network are already VoLTE compatible. But we are working to make everyone use VoLTE devices for the best network experience. We have not shared time for phasing out of older technologies. "
Source: Android Police
