.. _modem:

Modems
======

The dev kit will come equipped with either the `SIMCom 7100A <http://simcomm2m.com/En/module/detail.aspx?id=84>`_ or the `SIMCom 7100E <http://simcomm2m.com/En/module/detail.aspx?id=86>`_ - your choice.

**The SIMCom 7100A is recommended for all North American carriers and bands while the SIMCom 7100E is recommended for all other regions carriers and bands.**

However, here are some tools you can use to further investigate what bands are supported by your carrier.

Which bands are supported by each SIMCom modem
##############################################

+---------------+------------------+----------+----------+
| Standard      | Frequency        | SIM7100E | SIM7100A |
+===============+==================+==========+==========+
| GSM           | GSM 850MHz       |          |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | EGSM 900MHz      |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | DCS 1800MHz      |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | PCS 1900MHz      |          |          |
+---------------+------------------+----------+----------+
| CDMA2000/EVDO |                  |          |          |
+---------------+------------------+----------+----------+
| WCDMA         | BAND5            |          |    X     |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | BAND6            |          |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | BAND8            |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | BAND2            |          |    X     |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | BAND1            |    X     |          |
+---------------+------------------+----------+----------+      
| TD-SCDMA      | TD-SCDMA 1.9G    |          |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | TD-SCDMA 2G      |          |          |
+---------------+------------------+----------+----------+
| LTE-FDD       | LTE-FDD B1       |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B2       |          |    X     |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B3       |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B4       |          |    X     |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B5       |          |    X     |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B7       |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B8       |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B17      |          |    X     |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B18      |          |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B19      |          |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE-FDD B20      |    X     |          |
+---------------+------------------+----------+----------+
| LTE-TDD       | LTE TDD B38      |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE TDD B39      |          |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE TDD B40      |    X     |          |
|               +------------------+----------+----------+
|               | LTE TDD B41      |          |          |
+---------------+------------------+----------+----------+

What bands does my carrier use?
###############################

Using `frequencycheck.com <https://www.frequencycheck.com/countries>`_, you can find your carrier under your country to see which bands are supported by them. However, keep in mind that not all of these bands may be available in your area. 

To find out which LTE bands are available from cell towers in your area, you can look at `cellmapper.net <https://www.cellmapper.net/map>`_. Additionally, if you call your carrier they *may* tell you which LTE bands are available in your area but they also *may not* divulge this information.

.. note:: If you require an LTE band that is not supported by either the SIMCom 7100A or 7100E, then LTE will not be available to you.