I had no idea that 2G worked til just now. Damn. I had to reluctantly mothball my 3G phone some years ago, but maybe there was a way to keep using it on 2G until now.

Just when some people are getting interested in reviving old dumbphones

The dumbphones being released now should all work on modern networks. The connection being 4G / 5G doesn’t mean the phone must have an internet browser and an app store.

If I can’t use my Nokia N-Gage, what’s the point?

Yes, but they’re new phones, not old phones revival

I have a dumb phone that works on 4G and uses voiceover LTE for its calling, so you can still use a dumb phone.

Just because the underlying network is 4G or 5G doesn’t mean you have to have a web browser and all the smartphone stuff.

I have a dumb phone that works on 4G and uses voiceover LTE for its calling, so you can still use a dumb phone.

Of course you can, but buying new isn’t the same as reviving the old ones

Yeah, fair enough

So many automated services still rely on 2G

Like what

I think things like commercial and high end home automation. And security stuff. I might be mistaken tho.

And it might sound like that’s old and out of date. But it stuck around cuz it was reliable.

I’d think this is a good thing then for that, less interference

They’ve been phasing it out for years.

Yeah, for sure. But I think we both know how some technology manages to stick around surprisingly long.

Even so, this is different. Spectrum use is a different animal from fax machines, COBOL and Windows CE.

eCall, alarm systems, elevators and many types of sensors.

2G should die though. You can use the frequencies for 4G/5G to get better reception.

And if the thing depending on 2G has the space for it (like a car or an elevator) then the thing can be upgraded with hardware that supports 4G/5G.

…Unless the manufacturer is a dick and wants you to buy a whole new thing. I suspect that this will happen a lot.

Not any more!

Someone I know got screwed over when 3G shut down. Their business used an alarm system with a 3G modem (using a cheap data-only SIM card).

The “updated” version requires subscriptions, an app, and goes through manufacturer’s servers, so more expensive, and several more points of failure.

I have an older EV that used 3G for app access and maybe other stuff I haven’t noticed. It still runs but I can’t do things like tell it to preheat/cool the cabin from my phone. Its not an issue for me personally, the car has a timer function, and I can just set it to cool down at x time.

But its interesting seeing abandoned protocols.

You can get an updated modem from Nissan if you wanted. My boss did that, but I don’t remember the cost.

The Android Auto still works, but to be completely and embarassingly honest, I have had a car with bluetooth for ten years and I think I have only used it once. I’m just weird like that. I just put some tunes on a USB and its good enough.