Ewon and AT&T 3G Sunset in the USA

• AT&T will begin 3G sunset, shutting down 3G cellular networks on February 22, 2022, in the US
• Some devices can be or will be impacted by the AT&T mobile network modification
• Upgrading firmware or device may be required to maintain connectivity and proper device function

As you may have heard, AT&T has planned on shutting down its 3G cellular network on February 22, 2022, in all its US territory. This 3G sunset means that end of February 2022, devices using 3G services to connect to the AT&T network will no longer work in the USA. Some Ewon devices can be or will be impacted by the AT&T mobile network modification.

Impacted Ewon Devices

• Ewon Cosy 131 3G: EC6133D
• Ewon Flexy 3G extension card: FLB 3202

Impact from AT&T 3G Sunset

These devices will be directly impacted as their only fallback capability is 2G network (if available in the area).

Recommendation to Overcome 3G Depreciation

Upgrade hardware to newer Ewon model:

• EC6133D (Ewon Cosy 131 3G) to EC6133H (Ewon Cosy 131 4G NA)
• FLB 3202 (Flexy extension card 3G Cellular) to FLB 3205 (Flexy extension card 4G NA)

Impacted Ewon Devices (continued)

• Ewon Cosy 131 4G (USA – North America): EC6133H
• Ewon Flexy 4G extension card (USA – North America): FLB 3205

Impact from 3G Sunset

A portion of 4G LTE capable modules and devices will be impacted when the 3G network sunsets (even if you are connected to 4G).

This is due to 2 phases:

1. How the Ewon device presents its service request (i.e.: 4G data centric) to the (AT&T) network when powered on (and trying to attach a cellular network to connect to)
2. How the mobile (AT&T) network will respond to Ewon device service request depending on the available services on the mobile (AT&T) network

Therefore, some actions are required to ensure best service continuity for all customers. You can choose one of the following recommendation.

Recommendation for Overcoming 3G Depreciation #1 – Ewon firmware update

Make sure the modem is configured in Data Centric mode. Depending on the modem firmware version, the modem is either set in “Voice Centric” or in “Data Centric” mode. Data Centric mode is required to avoid a possible interruption of the service.

The easiest way to make sure the modem is in Data Centric mode is to install firmware version 14.5s1 on the device, which will verify and set the modem into Data Centric mode if required. To perform the upgrade, the user can connect through eCatcher & use eBuddy to update the Ewon remotely.

Recommendation for Overcoming 3G Depreciation #2 – Ewon firmware update

Upgrade the modem firmware to latest available version. Depending on the production date of the Ewon device, the modem firmware may not be the latest available one. In this case we highly recommend upgrading the modem firmware version to 20.00.507

This modem firmware version improves global stability & ensures that service request to the network will be properly performed (in Data Centric mode).

The modem firmware 20.00.507 is already embedded in:

• FLB3205 extension cards with serial number reference 1191-2125-XXXX & after
• EC6133H / BC6133H with serial number reference 2127-XXXX-22 & after

Firmware version & upgrade process are available on the Ewon website.