I am hoping someone has had success using a T-Mobile SIM card for the RS3. I’ve already been told by Emlid that Verizon isn’t possible yet (which is bonkers!) and the only alternative my work has is T-Mobile.
I’ve inserted the SIM into the unit and am using:
APN: fast.t-mobile.com
Authentication Type: Not provided
But when I try to enable “Use Mobile Data” it eventually stops trying and reverts back to the disabled position.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Hi @PointSetter
We haven’t seen that many cases like this, but lets try a few troubleshooting:
In most cases, issues with internet access via SIM card are often resolved by adjusting the configuration. However, if you still can’t enable mobile data, please generate a full system report of your Reach while the SIM is inserted, and send it to us via support@emlid.com.
As a workaround, you can insert the SIM card into a mobile phone, connect to your RS3 using Bluetooth, and use the NTRIP over Bluetooth option. This way, the receiver will use the internet from the mobile device to receive corrections.
I can not. If no value is placed in the APN field it will not let the user save the information for SIM operation.
It is enabled.
I’ll look into how to do this and send it through.
Well, for one using NTRIP over bluetooth is only something that could be done with a device using Android since iOS will not recognize the RS3 as a bluetooth GNSS reciever because it lacks the MFi hardware required.
But also - if I’m honest - its a bit of a pain in the ass to have to connect to the RS3, then have it connect to an available hotspot, and then switch it to our Esri system to start data collection.
To further my honesty here (and being aware this isn’t your fault): the fact that Emlid doesn’t have the RS3 ready to use either a Verizon or T-mobile SIM is a massive let down and I’ll be sharing my opinion that it’s not a fully baked solution with any and all colleagues until this is resolved. These are two major carriers in the US, how could this be overlooked?
Thanks for the update! Let’s walk through this together.
When working with NTRIP over Bluetooth, there’s no need for an MFi unit. That’s because Reach units use two types of Bluetooth connections: BLE and classical Bluetooth. BLE is used to connect the unit with the Emlid Flow app, and through this connection, you can use NTRIP over Bluetooth. With this, the phone uses its internet connection to receive the NTRIP corrections and sends them to the Reach unit via Bluetooth. On the other hand, Classical Bluetooth transmits real-time position data from the Reach receiver to third-party software or devices. From Reach’s side, there are no SIM card restrictions, so we often suggest this as a practical workaround. I would still like to look into this for you. I’ll need a few more details from you:
These are two major carriers in the US, how could this be overlooked?
We haven’t conducted local tests, but I agree with you that Verizon and T-Mobile network compatibility would benefit everyone. However, as far as I know, some of our users and dealers from the US have successfully worked with Google FI Wireless/EIOTCLUB/Twilio/SPECTRUM SIM cards.
We’re using Esri QuickCapture on iOS, making NTRIP over Bluetooth not possible with the RS3 since iOS will NOT recognize the RS3 as a GNSS device due lack of MFi. If it doesn’t recognize it as a GNSS device, then no NMEA codes are recognized from within the Esri app. When I have paired the RS3 with an Android device via Bluetooth for testing purposes, there was almost zero connectivity reliability and therefore I switched back to a network connection.
At the moment the only option is to use the iOS device as a hotspot for the RS3 to connect to the CORS network for position connections. It makes for a cumbersome and inconvenient connection workflow, which is why I have been trying to use a SIM directly in the RS3.
Thanks for the details, your setup makes more sense now!
You’re right, you’ll need an MFi receiver for position streaming with Esri QuickCapture on iOS. This means working with Esri QuickCapture on an Android device can be a good workaround.
Have you tried using the SIM card on the phone and using it as a hotspot for the receiver? This way, you can get NTRIP corrections as well and pair the receiver with the phone using classical Bluetooth and stream its position to Esri.
If the issue persists with this setup, can you generate a Full System Report immediately? You can email it to me at support@emlid.com, and I can double-check everything for you.
Unfortunately company policy is to issue iOS devices and not something I’m in control of.
Yes, and that is what we do but - if I’m honest - this is a very inconvenient method and can cause confusion among new trainees.
Again: iOS will not recognize the device as a bluetooth GNSS receiver. The only way we can stream the position to Esri QuickCapture is via TCP client.
I appreciate your replies, but I think we’ve moved quite far away from my reasoning for asking this question: it isn’t that we aren’t able to find “work arounds” to make your product work as we want, its that for some reason Emlid hasn’t yet configured their system to accept either Verizon nor T-Mobile SIM cards, which is (in my opinion) absurd.
We want to be able to turn the RS3 on and go, not fiddle with it in system settings to “make it work”.
@PointSetter
I completely understand your perspective. I offered some workarounds because I want you to continue using Reach while we figure out Verizon certification.
The registration process is quite complex and requires additional steps from our side, so it takes some time. I can’t give you any ETAs, but I have saved your contact information and will ensure that I keep you updated as soon as I have any news.
Totally understand and my venting isn’t directed at you, just to the open air that is the internet.
I do have workarounds and we’re managing, but I’m also trying to get a team up and trained and having a reliable Verizon connection would make my life easier.
@PointSetter Please, don’t worry 
It’s, however, really nice to hear that you have workarounds that are working for you.
What are you finding so inconvenient? I have been running off my iPhone hotspot for years and trained at least 20 people with zero issues.
Having to tell the RS3 to then connect to the hotspot adds another layer to the processes for failure and troubleshooting, I’m looking to remove any unnecessary variables where I can, and this is one of them.
Additionally, we’re using the Esri QuickCapture platform to collect our point feature data and when you use a mobile device as a hotspot you then have to add separate location providers in the QC interface for each Emlid system, whereas with a SIM card all (5) of our units can use the same location provider parameters which - again - reduces the chance for error and troubleshooting in the field.
and trained at least 20 people with zero issues.
That’s good, you’re a better teacher than me.
That is a really strange design choice but thanks for the detail. I set the hotspot once and never have to manually tell any of our receivers to connect again. Of course there’s an occasional glitch, it’s Wi-Fi, but I have not had that happen on the RS2+, RX or RS3 in a while. Maybe ours works because we have a standard company hotspot SSID and password.
