3G & CDMA To Sunset In 2022
In 2022, cellular companies including T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T will sunset (retire) their CDMA and 3G technology. If you have a fire or burglar alarm being supported by an older cellular communicator running on CDMA and 3G signals, it is time to start planning to upgrade your alarm communication equipment.
Many fire alarms as well as burglar alarms use cellular communication devices to send trouble signals to a 24 hour central monitoring station. The central monitoring station is responsible for contacting your local emergency response team to send the proper help. If your cellular communication device is using CDMA and 3G signals to relay signals, and your cellular provider is no longer supporting those signals in your area, you and your alarm system could be in big trouble.
AT&T announced that 3G will sunset in February of 2022 and Verizon will sunset its CDMA technology in December of 2022 with T-Mobile to follow. Although they are not officially retiring CDMA & 3G technology until 2022, this does not guarantee that your old communication devices will continue to work up to those dates. In fact, as older equipment on cellular towers begins to fail, cellular providers will not repair the 3G and CDMA equipment, instead they will replace it with LTE equipment.
This means, we cannot guarantee that your CDMA and 3G cellular communication devices will remain effective up to their official sunset date in 2022.
The only fail-safe option to ensure that you and your property remain safe in an emergency situation is to replace your old cellular alarm communication device with one using that will continue to be supported by newer cellular technology.
Advanced Alarm and Fire, Inc. is recommending customers with 3G and CDMA cellular communicators to upgrade their equipment with the latest LTE equipment. Not only is it the newest on the market, but LTE technology was launched in 2018 and is estimated to be supported until 2030-2033.
Some benefits of newer LTE products and devices include:
- Faster communication
- Better frequencies to penetrate walls and buildings
- Longer lifespan
- Improved, real-time connectivity to apps used to control alarm systems
You may have heard about 5G being the latest and the greatest technology out there, and that is true, however industry professionals explain that 5G is designed for consumer cellular use, not fire/alarm use and therefore your upgraded LTE equipment will not need to be replaced for many years to come.
We at Advanced Alarm & Fire, Inc. pride ourselves in providing outstanding service, therefore, our team is prioritizing equipment upgrade installations for our customers who will be affected by the pending CDMA and 3G sunset. Upgrading your alarm communication device is quick, easy and affordable. To request exact pricing or set up your installation appointment, contact us today.
You can read more about the pending cellular sunsets and 5G at the following links. It is important to note that most of the content on the internet about the 3G and CDMA sunset focus on cell phones specifically, however alarm communicators with 3G technology are no different and will suffer the same fate as mobile phone devices.
Useful Links:
