Hey guys, i recently swapped my SIM to a USIM so that I could make use of my 4G on my Nexus 5.

After switching SIMs I waited for the recommended "24 hour" period and still don't have 4G.

I called Alfa several times and they said my case escalated to the tech team, they finally called me today and told me my software is missing a number frequency and it needs that specific number to acquire 4G...obviously to me that sounded like a sophisticated way of saying "we don't know."

I live in Hamra where I'm sure there is 4G coverage (my bro is Alfa and he has it, I live with him. )

So after no help from Alfa, I decided to swap my SIM with a friends Nexus 5 to see if its my phone, no luck, no 4G either. Earlier today I changed it with another nexus 5 and nothing. I'm starting to think they botched my SIM swap. The weird thing is my friend is MTC and he had a 4G chip...he put it in my.phone and it also didn't work. Could it be both the SIM and the phone?

Any ideas would be appreciated.

tl;dr: I can't get 4G on my Nexus 5.
Your Nexus 5 might be the North American variant, which doesn't include the band 3 frequency required to function in Lebanon (1800 MHz). Since Nexus phones are released only in Google Play stores in the US and Europe, it's easy for retailers to get a wrong variant and sell it to the unsuspecting customer. Download the Mobile Radio Frequency app to check which bands your Nexus 5 has. If it doesn't have the band 3, then it's the North American variant. Otherwise visit the Alfa company to help you with the issue.
Thanks for the helpful reply man. Please find attached a screenshot of the Mobile Radio Frequency after I clicked on 'LTE'. I dont know what these numbers mean, would appreciate it if you could explain them to me.

Thanks!

Hello! As you can see your phone operates lte between 1920 1980 and 2110 2170.
As in lebanon 4g is operated near 1800mhz.
Sorry.
Ok so, is there a solution? Are their apps that can change this bandwidth?

Another question I have is that when I swapped my SIM with my friends Nexus 5 (he is MTC), how come he didnt get 4G? (He has 4G on his MTC line) Is it because MTC operates on a different mhz?

Thanks

PS: My friend sent me his Mobile Radio Frequency and his matches mine. If 4G in lebanon runs at 1800mhz, then how come he has 4G on his phone?
Sorry, it seems this app only tells you about the different frequencies.

To really know what your bands are, you have to access the hidden menu. Go to your dialler and type *#*#4636#*#* and you will be immediately directed to the menu. Go to phone information, and select the menu and press "Select radio band". It should list all the frequencies your 2G, 3G, and 4G chip should be able to read. If you don't see '1800', then you have the North American variant and it will be impossible to browse 4G in Lebanon. Changing frequencies is not possible, the hardware is set from its production.
Alright guys I figured it out. The Nexus 5 has two models the D820 (north american) and D821 (European and rest of the world).

My phone is unfortunately the D820 model which does not support 1800mhz.

My friend (who has the nexus 5 and 4G) had the D821.

I'm going to go down to my store and try to figure out what I'm going to do. Thanks for all the guidance, wouldn't have figured it out without your help.