Skip to main content

Some Android phones on AT&T are being updated with ‘5G E’ icon in place of 4G LTE

5G is a huge buzzword going into 2019, and AT&T is pulling out the big guns as of late. In December, AT&T confirmed that it would be replacing the 4G LTE icon on its Android phones with a misleading 5G E icon, and this week, that’s exactly what is happening.

Noted by Android Police, both the LG V30 and the Samsung Galaxy S8 Active have seen updates this week which replace the LTE indicator icon with the carrier’s new 5G E icon. This change, of course, doesn’t actually mean these devices are using the carrier’s 5G network, but rather it’s reflecting the branded “enhanced” version of 4G LTE which is called “5G Evolution.”

For the Galaxy S8 Active, this change comes alongside December’s security patch in a minor ~123mb update. For the LG V30, though, this latest update is a roughly 1GB update. Oddly though, the changelog only notes the 5G E icon change. Both devices remain on Android 8.0 Oreo and the LG V30 is still on November’s security patch as well.

Finally, the LG V40 ThinQ on AT&T has also picked up the same update. There’s nothing added aside from the new icon, but this time in an update that’s roughly 290mb in total. November’s security patch is still at play.

All of these OTAs should be rolling out now, and inevitably we’re going to see this misleading 5G Evolution icon rolling out to many more devices on the network over the coming months.

More on AT&T:


Check out 9to5Google on YouTube for more news:

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

You’re reading 9to5Google — experts who break news about Google and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Google on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel