Why You Need to Take Action
On February 22, 2022, AT&T Wireless stopped supporting its 3G cellular network nationwide. This means that the cellular technology that runs SCRAM 3G Wireless Base Station (WBS) devices has either already stopped working, or will in the near future as AT&T continues its turndown efforts.
SCRAM Systems is first and foremost committed to public safety. Since AT&T has already begun decommissioning 3G cell towers, we cannot guarantee your SCRAM WBS 3G devices will continue to operate; so to ensure continuity of your monitoring program, SCRAM Systems advises that you replace your 3G WBS devices with new 4G LTE-compatible SCRAM Wireless Base Stations as soon as possible.
Once the AT&T 3G cellular towers are decommissioned in your area, your 3G WBS devices will no longer communicate, which will render the clients they are assigned to unmonitored. Replace your 3G SCRAM Wireless Base Stations with LTE-compatible SCRAM Wireless Base Stations immediately, to ensure there is no disruption to your monitoring program.
How to Distinguish a 3G WBS from a 4G LTE WBS
The front casing of a 4G LTE SCRAM Wireless Base Station includes the letters “LTE” just beneath the image of the wireless network (cellular) antenna, which is located just to the left of the display screen.
Additionally, the serial numbers for LTE devices begin with “WB3,” whereas the serial numbers for 3G WBS devices begin with “WBA” or “WB1.” Besides using the serial number, on the SCRAMNET Inventory page you can identify the type of WBS devices you have in your inventory by looking at their hardware and software versions.
The hardware version for LTE devices has “LTE” in its name and the hardware version for 3G devices has “04209” in its name. Similarly, the software version for LTE devices has “LTE” in the name; however, the software version for 3G devices has “WBS” in the name.
Next Steps
Contact your SCRAM Systems Account Representative to learn how to replace your 3G WBS inventory with 4G LTE-compatible SCRAM Wireless Base Stations, and read our SCRAM LTE Upgrade FAQ for more information about AT&T’s 3G to 4G-LTE network upgrade.