The new iPhone SE is the first iPhone to drop this feature

While the third generation iPhone SE is a worthy upgrade from the second generation model two years earlier, there aren’t many things that stand out from Apple’s iPhone 13 lineup. Well, there’s one thing worth highlighting.

The new iPhone SE 3 is the first iPhone to completely remove CDMA EV-DO Rev. A since its introduction in the iPhone 4. So far, every iPhone release has had at least one model in North America that can use CDMA EV. -DO Rev. Protocol. But what does this mean and why is it important?

CDMA, which stands for Code Division Multiple Access, is a radio communication system that provides 3G cellular networks used primarily in the United States. Part of EV-DO, “Evolution-Data Optimized”, is a mobile broadband technology used by CDMA networks for wireless Internet access.

In the US, Verizon Wireless and Sprint are the only cellular carriers using CDMA EV-DO and will be “used”very soon. T-Mobile, which bought Sprint, plans to completely shut down its CDMA network on March 31, 2022. Verizon will then follow with a pledge to shut down 3G access on December 31, 2022.

Supported networks on iPhone SE in the US

Because LTE, 4G, and 5G are supported in the US, 3G is a legacy technology. For nearly 10 years, the 3G network has been used primarily as a back-up network in case a faster LTE or 4G service was not available in a particular location. Now Verizon and T-Mobile are focusing on maintaining their LTE and 4G networks, as well as expanding 5G across the country.

While it’s no surprise that Apple dropped CDMA support on the 2022 iPhone SE, this is the final nail in the coffin of one of the most useless wireless networks in the US today. I, for one, can’t wait to never have to say “CDMA”again.