ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – The clock is ticking for devices connected to 3G networks. 

All 3G devices will lose service by the end of the year. However, the shutdown doesn't just affect phones, it affects everything from medical alert devices to alarm systems and even vending machines. 

What You Need To Know

  • 3G service nationwide will soon shut down

  • The shutdown doesn’t just affect phones, it affects everything from medical alert devices to alarms systems

  • Anyone with an alarm system or any medical alert device should reach out to their provider and ask if they need an upgrade 

Verizon said it will finish shutting down its 3G network by December 31. T-Mobile aims to shut down its 3G by March 31, and AT&T was supposed to shut down last month, although it is still on in some parts of the country, including Central Florida.

While these are target dates, nothing is set in stone, which is causing some business owners to work overtime to upgrade their devices.

Marvin Smith, the owner of Orlando Emergency Signal, has been working hard to make sure all of his customers' alarms sound off. 

“These are exactly what our days are, these days,” said Smith, while inspecting a home alarm system.

It’s not a job he expected to have, but one felt called to.

“Fifteen years ago I was on vacation and my alarm system lost communication with a monitoring station. They called me, which was great, but they had not heard from my alarm in over a month. So they asked if they could schedule a service call three weeks later,” Smith explained.

Smith said that made him feel that his family and property weren't safe, so he started his own company, having worked with alarms in college. Now, he’s busy working seven days a week working to switch out 3G radios inside these alarms before cellular carriers turn 3G signals off for good this year.

“It is about life safety,” he said. “It means that if there is a fire or burglary in this home, it is the difference between a signal reaching our central station or not reaching it, and often times people are counting on that signal to go through so that we can dispatch the proper authorities."

He’s done it for hundreds of customers like Josh Wild. As a first-time homeowner, Wild can now sleep more soundly at night.

“When we are not home, our dogs are our kids, so it gives us a sense of security to know that they are ok but also the protection of our home,” Wild said.

Smith said that’s what it is all about. Despite working every day and bringing on two more employees to beat the shutdown dates, he happily heads off to the next home knowing that the work he is doing makes a difference.

“I live here, I work here, I play here so I feel good knowing when I go to sleep at night that I am helping secure my neighbors,” Smith expressed. 

However, the 3G network shutdown will have far-reaching effects, something he hopes people realize before it affects them.

“What that means for us is that any device that is still operating on the 3G networks is going to cease operations and we are no longer going to be able to hear from them or receive signals from that device. So it does not affect just the security industry, it is also services from cars as it's related to providing OnStar services or other services in the car that tracks the vehicle, breathalyzers and ATMs, vending machines, the list goes on and on”

They’re now in crunch time to beat the clock as some carriers like AT&T are turning off their networks now, but Smith still loves his job.

“The great part is I get to see and make new friends every day,” said Smith.

While the process involves some elbow grease and some tools, overall, it’s not a difficult one. The hardest part is knowing if your device uses the 3G network and getting it switched out in time.

“If you think about it from a cellphone perspective, how many phones have you had in the last five years?" Smithy asked. "So as technology improves and the speed increases, so must our equipment."

After the installation, all that is needed is some quick programming. It's something Smith wants to be done sooner rather than later before the clock runs out.

“At the end of the year, all major cellular networks will discontinue the 3G network. What we don’t know is what day that will happen, so it is not something you would take a chance with. Think about it from a family standpoint, your pets, your home, your business, it is life and property safety,” Smith explained.

One more house protected, but many more still to go.

Smith advises that anyone with an alarm system or any medical alert device should reach out to their provider and ask if they need an upgrade and schedule a time to have the cellular communicator switched out. He says the different radios look pretty much identical, so it would be hard to know if you need to switch just by looking at it.