Will Model X have 4G?

One would assume it would but don't believe that has been released yet. Specs still not finalized.

There are 2 separate issues: hardware, and allocated bandwidth from the wireless carrier.

Even if Model X has an LTE baseband chip, it may not be able to use it the the fullest potential if the bandwidth is throttled on AT&T's end. Since Tesla is paying for the wireless service, they would know if there's a throttle on bandwidth to the Model S.

Model S appears to have approximately 5 Megabit downlink and 1 Megabit uplink, comparable with HSDPA speeds from an iPhone 3G.

anticitizen13.7 said:

Model S appears to have approximately 5 Megabit downlink and 1 Megabit uplink, comparable with HSDPA speeds from an iPhone 3G.

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I've never seen those numbers even when I have full bars. More like 1.5-2 Mbps down is the max for me.

I am certainly hopeful for this and would willing to pay a premium if it were optional. Being connected/integrated is a big part of the appeal of a Tesla.

Elon said and/or tweeted a long, long while back that an LTE upgrade on the Model S would be possible. Haven't heard a thing since, though.

It would be foolish to ship the X in 2015 without LTE onboard.

As anticitizen stated it could be both. It could have a 4G chip but be limited to 3G speeds. I'm stepping over into speculation as I am not a Telco expert but my guess is that AT&T has spare capacity on their 3G systems and so has sold that to Tesla for cheap. Perhaps in the future when Tesla can handle the billing and/or gets big enough for AT&T to care they could offer different plans and potentially enable 4G.

So my guess is that Day 1 Model X won't be 4G.

apacheguy said:

I've never seen those numbers even when I have full bars. More like 1.5-2 Mbps down is the max for me.

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5 Megabits/sec was the fastest I saw in one of the bandwidth test threads. I think it is dependent on network traffic in your geographic location. 1-3 Mbps was definitely more common.

strider said:

As anticitizen stated it could be both. It could have a 4G chip but be limited to 3G speeds. I'm stepping over into speculation as I am not a Telco expert but my guess is that AT&T has spare capacity on their 3G systems and so has sold that to Tesla for cheap. Perhaps in the future when Tesla can handle the billing and/or gets big enough for AT&T to care they could offer different plans and potentially enable 4G.

So my guess is that Day 1 Model X won't be 4G.

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AT&T definitely sells bulk coverage to virtual networks (MVNOs) like StraightTalk, but they often throttle the speed. My suspicion is that AT&T has a similar arrangement with Tesla: bulk sale of data at a limited speed. MVNOs like Cricket, which is an AT&T subsidiary, has an 8 Mbps throttle I believe.

Tesla needs just enough speed to make the updates and other features work. The question for me is how much will drivers pay for faster downloads?

I agree it is currently too slow but how fast a connection do people want when they use their phones for most things? For getting Nav 3G isn't horrible but surfing web is too slow.

dsm363 said:

I agree it is currently too slow but how fast a connection do people want when they use their phones for most things? For getting Nav 3G isn't horrible but surfing web is too slow.

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My kids are quite small at the moment but at some point I will welcome the in-car hotspot idea where the kids can surf on their WiFi tablets using the car's cellular uplink. At that point I will want more bandwidth.

strider said:

My kids are quite small at the moment but at some point I will welcome the in-car hotspot idea where the kids can surf on their WiFi tablets using the car's cellular uplink.

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Nah, you probably won't. ;-)

(Speaking as a father of older kids)

Now that you mention it...

When driving alone, my primary need for wifi hotspot could be mostly satisfied if supercharger locations were wifi hotspots. Hm, I should probably e-mail about that.

brianman said:

Now that you mention it...

When driving alone, my primary need for wifi hotspot could be mostly satisfied if supercharger locations were wifi hotspots. Hm, I should probably e-mail about that.

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That would be great and much easier and cheaper for Tesla to provide (and at faster speeds too).

lonemedic said:

Does anyone know if the Model X will have 4G connectivity?

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I believe they will, because GM will offer 4G LTE in all cars starting in 2015. Tesla would be crazy not to keep up with the times.

de704 said:

I believe they will, because GM will offer 4G LTE in all cars starting in 2015. Tesla would be crazy not to keep up with the times.

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For me, the question isn't so much whether or not they are going to offer it, but if they're going to charge for it. The GM 4G plan is NOT free.

I would rather have free 3G than. $30/month 4G or whatever they would charge.