Operators are evolving their networks to better support new technologies, and as a result some phones are going down. Today, some T-Mobile documents reveal that the operator has plans to drop any phone that does not support VoLTE in just a few months.
T-Mobile has yet to make any formal announcements about its plans, but internal documents obtained by Android Police (pictured below) reveals what’s in store.
In just a few months, T-Mobile will shut down its 2G and 3G networks, and as a result, will leave many phones without voice call support and possibly the network as a whole. Apparently, the carrier has plans to require that all new phones on your network support VoLTE as of August 4, 2020. After that, all Devices using T-Mobile will be required to support VoLTE before January 31, 2021. That is regardless of whether the device is currently in use or not by a customer.
What does this mean for customers? Potentially, many will need to purchase a new smartphone. T-Mobile supports VoLTE on most unlocked smartphones, and most devices sold in the US have supported the technology for years. I would say that for the vast majority of customers this will not be a problem.
Still, customers who may have imported a smartphone not officially sold in the United States that still works on the T-Mobile network (think Oppo, Huawei, or Xiaomi) are likely to find that their device is no longer able to make calls and could cause data problems too.
Apparently, customers affected by this change will receive a text message in the near future to inform them of the change. T-Mobile’s documentation also confirms that Metro (formerly MetroPCS) will also be affected by this change. However, it is not clear whether other MVNOs using the T-Mobile network such as Google Fi, Mint Mobile, Consumer Cellular and others will be affected.
In particular, this occurs only a day after AT&T began informing (and misleading) customers of a similar change, but its court ended a year later.
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