Carrier Tello - NVMO - iPhone 14 - 5G missing, only LTE ?

[4sallypat]

So I got an iPhone 14 on launch day and wanted to try out a new NVMO carrier: Tello.

I wanted to find out if it's worth the change of my current T Mobile service to a lower cost plan that supposedly uses the same towers.

Easy sign up, eSIM was easy to activate, new phone line and $10 month service which blows my TMO monthly by 70% cheaper.

I started to use it, set it up the same as my TMO iPhone 12 Pro.

Exact same locations throughout the areas I drove to - 12 Pro shows 5G, 14 shows LTE.

Why would this happen ?

Is it a Tello service limitation due to a contract with TMO ?

 

[fakestrawberryflavor]

So I’m having this same issue on T mobile. I can get 5G on if I go into settings > Cellular > turn on this line (and turn it off and back on). In this specific area only, when it turns back on 5G shows up.

I feel like this is an ios 16 or esim issue honestly

 

[4sallypat]

So I’m having this same issue on T mobile. I can get 5G on if I go into settings > Cellular > turn on this line (and turn it off and back on). In this specific area only, when it turns back on 5G shows up.

I feel like this is an ios 16 or esim issue honestly

Looking at my 12 Pro on TMO, it connects to the 5G UC (mid band) consistently.

The 14 on Tello is consistently on LTE (4G).

Will have to try your trick by turning off / on the line in Cellular settings...

 

[sideman7]

I'm having the same issue with T-Mobile. No 5G, and there appear to be other serious issues with the connection. Constant dropping calls, LTE only, and no data during a call. I can't add my cell plan back to my watch either, it tells me T-mobile doesn't support it lol... On the phone with support now...

 

[placebo3]

Exact same locations throughout the areas I drove to - 12 Pro shows 5G, 14 shows LTE.

Why would this happen ?

Tello doesn't support 5G on iPhones yet. The blog entries announcing 5G and full support for the iPhone are misleading. If you look at the comments to these posts, Tello reps admit the company is still working on bringing 5G support to the iPhone.

I just set up T-Mobile's network pass free trial as a secondary cellular service on my iPhone 14 Pro. When I select T-Mobile for cellular data, the phone indicates a 5G connection. However, if I select Tello, it shows LTE.

 

[TeruBozu]

I am one of the newly mislead.

Just spent hours getting the darned esim activation to take a proper enough scan on iPad Air 5 to get the esim activated on a new Tello account, but after following directions for the APN setting wholesale and hotspot setup, put it in airplane mode and then off airplane mode, esim connectected to Tello data service but showing only LTE and 3G options in the cellular settings. Argh

This setup can’t get 5G (midband was what I was looking for) even when I’m in 5G space with a 5G array compatible device like my iPad Air.

Wish I had come across this post before I signed up for Tello.

Hopefully, they can soon make it right or admit to a hasty rollout .

Would very much appreciate any success success stories. Thanks

 

[TeruBozu]

After going into their blogs, I find that only Android phones are able to get 5G at this time With Tello.

iOs devices, though able to be eSim activated, DO NOT have 5G made available.
Only 4Lte and 3G.

Got an email from CS saying that they’re trying for sometime towards the end of this year, although who knows if it even happens.

At Apples support page, Tello nor UsMobile is not listed under carriers list of Companies supporting their eSim,(maybe it doesn’t matter if the underlying carriers Tmobile (for Tello) and Verizon (in UsMobile’s 5G) are on that list) so my bad for not reading more carefully before I signed up mistakingly believing that iOs devices could get 5G eSim.

So Oops!

 

[4sallypat]

After going into their blogs, I find that only Android phones are able to get 5G at this time With Tello.

iOs devices, though able to be eSim activated, DO NOT have 5G made available.
Only 4Lte and 3G.

Got an email from CS saying that they’re trying for sometime towards the end of this year, although who knows if it even happens.

At Apples support page, Tello nor UsMobile is not listed under carriers list of Companies supporting their eSim,(maybe it doesn’t matter if the underlying carriers Tmobile (for Tello) and Verizon (in UsMobile’s 5G) are on that list) so my bad for not reading more carefully before I signed up mistakingly believing that iOs devices could get 5G eSim.

So Oops!

Yes, confirmed by Tello rep.

I guess I am abandoning Tello as a new MVNO.

Looking at Mint Mobile ?

 

[placebo3]

Got an email from CS saying that they’re trying for sometime towards the end of this year, although who knows if it even happens.

Two things to consider. (1) This is not a new issue. People were asking about 5G years on iPhones years ago. (2) Soon after the iPhone 14 was announced, I contacted Tello to ask about eSIM support. I was told it should be available in December, but it ended up being supported before the iPhone 14 was released. So I'm cautiously optimistic. Hopefully, 5G support will come soon, but I won't be surprised if it doesn't.

 

[herrharro]

Yeah same here. I signed up for Tello’s eSIM after getting the new iPhone 14 pro only to learn afterwards that 5G doesn’t work. I contacted them and they confirmed to me that 5G is currently only working on Android phones and that they plan to get 5G working on iPhones by the end of the year. So let’s see. If they don’t implement it by then I guess I will switch to Mint. Maybe a lot of iPhone 14 people moved to Tello now for their eSIM which would cause a bit of pressure. So let’s all contact them about it and let them know we are waiting for it

Edit: According to this Reddit they were saying to bring 5G to the iPhone already in June/July. So not sure how much we can trust the end of the year timeline…
https://www.reddit.com/r/Tello/comments/u2rpze

 

[4sallypat]

Yeah same here. I signed up for Tello’s eSIM after getting the new iPhone 14 pro only to learn afterwards that 5G doesn’t work. I contacted them and they confirmed to me that 5G is currently only working on Android phones and that they plan to get 5G working on iPhones by the end of the year. So let’s see. If they don’t implement it by then I guess I will switch to Mint. Maybe a lot of iPhone 14 people moved to Tello now for their eSIM which would cause a bit of pressure. So let’s all contact them about it and let them know we are waiting for it

Edit: According to this Reddit they were saying to bring 5G to the iPhone already in June/July. So not sure how much we can trust the end of the year timeline…
https://www.reddit.com/r/Tello/comments/u2rpze

Oh my, I was really hoping for end of this year.

Not June next year.

I was so jazzed at $10/month per line that I was ready to port over my family's phones....

So here I am still with TMO paying 3x the price!

 

[herrharro]

Oh my, I was really hoping for end of this year.

Not June next year.

I was so jazzed at $10/month per line that I was ready to port over my family's phones....

So here I am still with TMO paying 3x the price!

I think this post meant June 22…

 

[4sallypat]

I think this post meant June 22…

Email from Tello said early 2023...

 

[herrharro]

Email from Tello said early 2023...

Yeah same for me... Just saying that maybe they always tell customers that they are about to bring 5G to the iPhone in about 2-3 months, just to not lose customers immediately... The OP in the reddit post asked Tello about 5G in April 22 and they said they will bring it by June/July 22... Sounds very familiar

Digged into this a little deeper and found this interesting article. This suggests that Apple is actually the culprit here and unless Tello doesn't buy a ton of iPhones, regulators do something about it, or Apple changes it's policy, we won't get 5G on the iPhone with Tello. So let's see. I will wait until end of the year, will ask them again, and if the answer is again "in about 2-3 months", I will switch.

Tello Lacks 5G Support On iPhones, Signals Potentially Larger Problem Ignored By Regulators

Apple's behavior is anti-competitive and harmful to the market. It's time for a regulatory agency to step in and fix this problem.

bestmvno.com

 

[4sallypat]

Yeah same for me... Just saying that maybe they always tell customers that they are about to bring 5G to the iPhone in about 2-3 months, just to not lose customers immediately... The OP in the reddit post asked Tello about 5G in April 22 and they said they will bring it by June/July 22... Sounds very familiar

Digged into this a little deeper and found this interesting article. This suggests that Apple is actually the culprit here and unless Tello doesn't buy a ton of iPhones, regulators do something about it, or Apple changes it's policy, we won't get 5G on the iPhone with Tello. So let's see. I will wait until end of the year, will ask them again, and if the answer is again "in about 2-3 months", I will switch.

Tello Lacks 5G Support On iPhones, Signals Potentially Larger Problem Ignored By Regulators

Apple's behavior is anti-competitive and harmful to the market. It's time for a regulatory agency to step in and fix this problem.

bestmvno.com

Very interesting indeed - had no idea Apple was not allowing access to 5G !

 

[Fred Zed]

I don’t mind paying three times less than T-Mobile and not getting 5G, so much so that I switched to Tello today. I was already aware that 5G wasn’t supported on iPhones with Tello.
One important factor for me was long term international roaming , T-Mobile could cancel my line due to excessive overseas usage. Didn’t want that risk. Since Tello doesn’t even offer international roaming I can now use my local foreign eSim for data and Wi-Fi calling for my Tello line on my iPhone 14PM. Life’s good.

 

[Bob767]

I was also disappointed not to have 5g on my iPhone 13Pro with a Tello eSim. But, getting email and a few web searches over LTE were speedy. I’d rather have 5g but, I’m not seeing undo inconvenience using LTE and I’m delighted with Tello pricing and their customer service is responsive. Unsure when 5g will be available, hoping it appears soon, but not totally bummed if it takes awhile.

 

[Bob767]

I think Tello has free international calling. I know we called from USA (south Florida) to Japan a few times, no charge. But, what if we are in Japan calling a local restaurant in Tokyo, for example. Perhaps, as long as the local Tokyo call is over WiFi it’s free?

 

[Fred Zed]

I think Tello has free international calling. I know we called from USA (south Florida) to Japan a few times, no charge. But, what if we are in Japan calling a local restaurant in Tokyo, for example. Perhaps, as long as the local Tokyo call is over WiFi it’s free?

No, you’ll get charged or it won’t work. You can use Wi-Fi calling from Japan to call back to your home country USA however with no issues.

 

[herrharro]

Yeah same for me... Just saying that maybe they always tell customers that they are about to bring 5G to the iPhone in about 2-3 months, just to not lose customers immediately... The OP in the reddit post asked Tello about 5G in April 22 and they said they will bring it by June/July 22... Sounds very familiar

Digged into this a little deeper and found this interesting article. This suggests that Apple is actually the culprit here and unless Tello doesn't buy a ton of iPhones, regulators do something about it, or Apple changes it's policy, we won't get 5G on the iPhone with Tello. So let's see. I will wait until end of the year, will ask them again, and if the answer is again "in about 2-3 months", I will switch.

Tello Lacks 5G Support On iPhones, Signals Potentially Larger Problem Ignored By Regulators

Apple's behavior is anti-competitive and harmful to the market. It's time for a regulatory agency to step in and fix this problem.

bestmvno.com

Just to provide an update on this. I just asked Tello again when they think 5G will be available for iOS devices and they now refer to mid-2023. So it's what I thought, they will always say it comes in about 3 months... I guess it will never happen.

 

[4sallypat]

Just to provide an update on this. I just asked Tello again when they think 5G will be available for iOS devices and they now refer to mid-2023. So it's what I thought, they will always say it comes in about 3 months... I guess it will never happen.

Thanks for checking up.

Sounds like my Ford EV order from 10 months ago.

Keeps getting pushed back every month...

 

[Nihilvor]

Here's an interesting update, with people running tests on their phones (someone with a 14 Pro Max).

https://www.reddit.com/r/Tello/comments/114cn0p
I've been with Tello for a few months now, and it's been pretty amazing. I'm so glad to be off of Verizon, and I look forward to being able to keep Tello as I upgrade, especially with what looks like G5 service.

 

[herrharro]

Yes, seems like I was wrong! The iOS 16.4 update just brought 5G to my iPhone with Tello!! 😄🤩🥳 Seems like Apple finally changed it's stupid policy.

I had to go to the settings to turn it on. It was not on automatically.

 

[4sallypat]

Wow, that is great news!

Thank you!