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"Admittedly, this isn't a problem that exists only for the iPhone 4 -- we've seen reports of the same behavior on previous generations (the 3G and 3GS), and there is a running thread about this problem with the Nexus One."
taken from http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/24/apple-responds-over-iphone-4-reception-issues-youre-holding-th/
So i decided to do a pathetic test on my Hero. I remebered from a YouTube vid on the Legend that the antenna was in the "chin" area.
Hero on desk: 4 bars of reception (full)
Wrapped hands around chin of Hero: 1 or 2 bar(s) of reception
Since noone has mentioned it b4, its probably a non-issue, but i do get quite a few dropped calls.
Just wondering if my dropped calls are connected to this? Or maybe T-Mo is just crap in my area.
Indeed the reception does drop considerably when holding the chin! .... I wish you hadn't told me now!!!
I'll have to see how it affects calls tomorrow. I'll report back.
my bars dont change =S
You have to really cover the chin with your hand. Just touching the chin with the lower side of the hand is not enough. Also you have to wait about 10 seconds.
Thething is though, that you have to want to do this on the Hero. On the iphone 4 it happens when you are simply touching the gap with naked skin... especially when damp. This just seems to me like bad engineering. And the stuff about the Legend or the iphone 2g having bad reception is just silly... also in the engadget article. That is a fact of physics which you have to deal with when you want a phone built like a tank. It a completely different story when saying this happened on a phone which has this design flaw on a component meant to strengthen the signal reception. This is just bad engineering.
Sent from my HTC Hero
Every phone will lose signal if you cover the area where the antenna is. I have never noticed any dropped calls etc on Orange UK and the signal is pretty crap around here
I have a Samsung Galaxy S on T-mobile in the UK and I find that the phone signal indicator jumps around all over the place depending on if it's being held or small movements in it's orientation.
In a worst case scenario I can have the phone showing 3-4 bars of signal with it on a desk and then if I pick it up and hold it a couple of inches higher than it was the signal can drop to 0 or 1 bar. It often then comes back after a few seconds.
Coverage here isn't the best and it seems that I can usually still make and receive calls and it doesn't actually go out of service but is anyone else noticing the same?
The same happens when it's forced onto 2g only but not quite as badly.
I also have an HTC Desire here too and that seems to be much more stable.
The GPS on the other hand which a lot of people are complaining about seems to pick me up with ease. Even sitting on my desk inside a building it quickly locates me to within a few metres.
I've owned and used an iPhone 3G, Nexus One, and now the Samsung Galaxy S.
In my location on vodafone the SGS and N1 are equally "poor" on 2G/3G - meaning I have to find a spots in my house in the countryside to find a strong signal. In practice it's not been a big deal and once out-and-about both the SGS and N1 are fine for me. The GF is now using the N1 with 3UK without any complaints.
The iPhone 3G however would show a much stronger signal than either Android handsets (note I've used the same vodafone SIM in all these phones and the iPhone 3G was a factory unlocked import from Italy) - however the truth about why that was is revealed in Apple's recent press release about iPhone4 antenna issues - that is, they were using a bum calculation and displaying too many bars, so it only appeared to be a stronger signal when in fact I suspect it was exactly the same in reality as the N1 and SGS.
See it for yourself, Apple's engineers got it very very wrong and it's now biting them on the ass:
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2010/07/02appleletter.html
"we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong. Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength."
That makes total sense to me, so I have no concerns about the Android phones appearing to show a weaker signal in my gaff. The fact Apple engineers can make such an accidental "mistake" says a lot to me about their quality control, whichever way you cut it.
Interesting read, thanks for that, I hadn't realised they'd made an announcement on the problem yet.
The more I use the phone the more I find it works as I'd expect it to in the T-mobile coverage that I'm in it's just that it's a little alarming when the phone signal indicator moves around so erratically when picked up or moved even only slightly.
I guess I'll continue to use the device and just see how it performs in the real world.
Ha. I remeber when I first got the iPhone 3g. They were using the honest signal meter then. I was only getting 2 bars almost everywhere. Then came the software update and I had 4 bars everywhere. Now I still drop calls even with 5 bars.
Ollie2 said:
I have a Samsung Galaxy S on T-mobile in the UK and I find that the phone signal indicator jumps around all over the place depending on if it's being held or small movements in it's orientation.
In a worst case scenario I can have the phone showing 3-4 bars of signal with it on a desk and then if I pick it up and hold it a couple of inches higher than it was the signal can drop to 0 or 1 bar. It often then comes back after a few seconds.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry to dig out a slightly old post but i'm experiencing the same thing. I'm also in the UK on T-mobile. The phone sits on my desk at work and randomly goes from 4 bars down to zero signal for no apparent reason.
I've had a G1 on T-mobile for the past 18 months and i've never had any reception issues at work so its definitely an SGS issue.
I could deal with the indicator going crazy but when it leaves me unable to send a text or make a call for a few minutes each time it zero's out its pretty annoying.
Is it just me or is anybody elses Antenna Strength all over the place. I almost feel like I purchased a new iPhone 4 with an antenna problem. I'm not sure if its my local tower or what. I can put the phone on the table and watch the strength max out then I can pick it up and watch it dance around from full to well nothing.
Take my fingers off the chrome outer ring and balance the phone on my palm and watch the strength climb.
It was delivered today, so I haven't really played with it a lot. I can tell you that my 3G signal is horrid, but was fine on my G1. Its almost like I gained an awesome screen and lost signal in the process.
I am inside, but never noticed that kind of activity at all with my G1.
Play around with it a little more and see if it has any effect on your calls. Don't judge purely on the signal bars.
The bad 3g reception you mention is concerning though.
kizer said:
Is it just me or is anybody elses Antenna Strength all over the place. I almost feel like I purchased a new iPhone 4 with an antenna problem. I'm not sure if its my local tower or what. I can put the phone on the table and watch the strength max out then I can pick it up and watch it dance around from full to well nothing.
Take my fingers off the chrome outer ring and balance the phone on my palm and watch the strength climb.
It was delivered today, so I haven't really played with it a lot. I can tell you that my 3G signal is horrid, but was fine on my G1. Its almost like I gained an awesome screen and lost signal in the process.
I am inside, but never noticed that kind of activity at all with my G1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The bars are -15dBm off to actual reception.
Yes, my signal strength seems to jump all over the place as well. Hope it can be fixed with a software update.
some thing here im about to get new one maybe tomorrow
of course were not 100% sure yet but we think the bars aren't reading correctly although covering the bottom of the phone were the antenna is there will naturally be signal loss does it on my tp2 as we'll...
i have the same problem its weird but manageable i tested my phone to the iphone 4 and my phone loads web pages faster streams videos from the internet faster and connects to youtube through the youtube app to play videos faster and seems to be faster all together only downside is the iphone 4 has the ffc and higher resolution but thats it i can deal without that
i always say forget the bars, can you make a call Lol
I have been making calls on mine while showing zero bars. No real reception issue. I just ignore the bars.
Yeah, don't go by the bars at all with this phone. Like above, I've had zero bars, and no issues here with calls or browsing the web.
I wouldn't ignore it completely...
I've had a few dropped calls now from the attenuation and frequently have my data freeze up on me when I hold the phone. The signal isn't terrible where I live, I never had dropped calls on my G1 or my Wizard in this location.
Unfortunately it isn't something that is fixable, it's just crummy placement of the antenna.
I held the phone in a death grip with my right hand until it displayed no bars, but it didn't seems affect my 3g. I did a speed test and I got 1.25mbps down and 0.3mbps up, which is pretty normal in my area. I did a second test holding it with my left hand and I got 0.99mbps down and 0.25mbps up. A third run while covering it up with both hands did have an affect, but who really does that? It showed 0.6mbps down and 0.15mbps up.
I haven't tried calling anyone under those same conditions, so I don't know if anything is going on there..
I noticed that I have much less reception on my new vibrant. I use to have full 3g in my house or outside my area with G1. Now I see zero bars to one bar and scattered throughout my area. I know this is a problem with other as well...
i guess my question is if there is any tips to increase the reception like the gps fix. Or if having wifi or gps on help with reception? Or just wait for a update.
Thanks
the vibrant shows less bars of reception than most other phones. However, this doesn't mean it is actually getting less reception. It's all how it displays the signal.
My vibrant is great at holding onto a signal in low coverage areas, much better than my last phone.
zumbahlenm said:
I noticed that I have much less reception on my new vibrant. I use to have full 3g in my house or outside my area with G1. Now I see zero bars to one bar and scattered throughout my area. I know this is a problem with other as well...
i guess my question is if there is any tips to increase the reception like the gps fix. Or if having wifi or gps on help with reception? Or just wait for a update.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i feel the same with my vibrant. i think this phone has the death grip syndrome like the iphone 4. maybe a hard case will help out.
b0ricuaguerrero said:
i feel the same with my vibrant. i think this phone has the death grip syndrome like the iphone 4. maybe a hard case will help out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No other phone has it's antenna made like the iPhone 4, use your brain. NO other phone with an internal antenna or otherwise COVERED antenna will have the same problem as the iPhone
Ok, but I'm with the guys that say their G1 had better reception. I had 2 bars 3g in my house with G1 and only get edge in my house on my Vibrant.
Sent from my Vibrant using the XDA app.
Shagman68 said:
Ok, but I'm with the guys that say their G1 had better reception. I had 2 bars 3g in my house with G1 and only get edge in my house on my Vibrant.
Sent from my Vibrant using the XDA app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The G1 doesn't have better reception, just better antenna placement. I'm sure if you moved your hand away from the antenna or put it in the same orientation as the G1 it would pick up 3G. The G1 has a medicre antenna, -101dBm at my house where there is no LOS with ANY cell tower. It would occasionally get worse. That's pathetic. My CLIQ got -91dBm even with my hand blocking the antenna. Not getting 3G doesn't mean the phone has poor reception, it's a number of things and most of them being a weak 3G signal to begin with. First thing to check would be the CID's for the 3G and 2G network around your house to see if they're coming from the same tower.
././. nevermind
well theres something screwy....
g1 def held better calls, i can barely have a phone call with the vibrant cutting out.
I guess i have to take my finger off the antenna?
I have created a new topic as I feel this one is important and don't want it to get lost in the ether.
I've noticed if you hold the phone in a normal way and it doesn't matter if its left or right hand the signal and WiFi will drop , when you change your grip signal goes back to normal .
IPhone problem on a HTC ?
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Just picked up my phone. Full WiFi signal. Full mobile signal.
I can make wifi drop to 1 bar by holding the top half of the phone. Base of thumb on the volume control, top of thumb covering the power button and palm touching the camera. Releasing it, the signal will jump straight up. But who smothers their phone anyway?
Trifidw said:
I can make wifi drop to 1 bar by holding the top half of the phone. Base of thumb on the volume control, top of thumb covering the power button and palm touching the camera. Releasing it, the signal will jump straight up. But who smothers their phone anyway?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 I can simulate this as well. At least its not at the bottom where your more likely to hold it in a call
mancuk29 said:
I have created a new topic as I feel this one is important and don't want it to get lost in the ether.
I've noticed if you hold the phone in a normal way and it doesn't matter if its left or right hand the signal and WiFi will drop , when you change your grip signal goes back to normal .
IPhone problem on a HTC ?
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not that simple. I'll bet there isn't a phone with an internal antenna that wouldn't drop a few bars anywhere when held in hand. Point is that the singal strenght in iphone 4 drops significantly more than in any other phone.
So does the DHD have the same antenna problem than iphone4? The only way to find out is to test in serval locations that will the DHD drop the signal when iphone 4 doesn't when the phones are held in hand. Comparing bars is pointless becouse it's calculated in so many different ways in various phones.
All phones suffer from this to some extent. The problem with the iPhone is that the metal part of the aerial is on the outside of the phone so that you are actually touching the aerial with your skin, which is why it's such as issue. At least HTC have a bit more design sense.
berek9999 said:
All phones suffer from this to some extent. The problem with the iPhone is that the metal part of the aerial is on the outside of the phone so that you are actually touching the aerial with your skin, which is why it's such as issue. At least HTC have a bit more design sense.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 The problem in iPhone 4 is due to the design of the phone - it uses the chassis as the aerial but the DHD is not designed to work in the same way.
I noticed that holding the TOP of the phone with your hand cupping the back causes WiFi signal to drop when in medium to low signal strength areas and also the Network signal to drop by up to 2 bars. Apple were keen to point out that many handsets have issues with signal degradation when holding the phone, however generally this is NOT while holding it at the bottom, the natural way of holding a phone.
So while the Desire HD will suffer a signal drop when held with your hand cupped around the top of the phone, it doesn't suffer the iPhone 'death grip' which imo is still a MAJOR issue with a handset that is perfect in many other ways. Put it simply, I've not dropped any calls with the DHD!!
Regards.
OMG I can't believe someone asking this question!
Next it will be someone reporting "Why can't I access the Apple app store on this device?!"
Your having a laugh aren't u ... hate Apple with all my might .. just concerned we would have same problems ! Hold my phone different so I don't
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
apprentice said:
OMG I can't believe someone asking this question!
Next it will be someone reporting "Why can't I access the Apple app store on this device?!"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a good question and one I was considering asking myself after noticing it while browsing in bed. I sleep at the opposite end of the house to my router and can easily cut the connection while holding the phone at the top.
I think with the current trend of slimmer phones the issue will be highlighted more frequently as it is now a necessity to make use of the phone casing in regards to signal transmission. It's a known fact that the DHD unibody is part of the functioning antenna, so it's not suprising that you can produce the effect when cupping the phone.
Thankfully HTC have placed the module in the top of the phone and not the bottom like our good friends in Cupertino!
Nothing here when I try the methods mentioned. The signal stays very strong. It's been flicking between H and 3G but that's nothing to do with the phone, pure T-Mobile thing.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
I have a desire z and just googled for this grip problem and found this thread.
I have quite a bit of trouble with my desire z, it drops two bars while calling. It even gets worse when you slide out the keyboard and start typing. The wifi and gsm/3g signal drops 2/3 bars!
This kind of sucks...
Has anyone had dropped calls due to this issue? If no, then there is no problem. Lowering the signal strength is normal, dropped calls aren't.
tkolev said:
Has anyone had dropped calls due to this issue? If no, then there is no problem. Lowering the signal strength is normal, dropped calls aren't.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my device there is a little signal drop, but no drop calls at all!
"Drop calls" are a trade mark of iPhone4. ;-)
No dropped calls yet but 3g/hsdpa switches to gprs when holding it.
GiGi. said:
No dropped calls yet but 3g/hsdpa switches to gprs when holding it.
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Click to collapse
Well that's still a connection I know that it's slower and that's something you can feel unlike switching a voice call from UMTS to GSM, but it's not a drop. The higher frequency of 3G is more prone to signal attenuation and nothing can change that.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Hi all from Russia.
I have the same problem.
When the phone is on the table, the signal level WiFi and GSM 100% (A router in the half meter away from me)
Whenever I put it on your hand or touch the side cover, the level of WiFi drops to zero and GSM is not as critical, but falls to 2-3 division
I'm not saying if I go into another room, where the signal disappears altogether.(WiFi)
Do you think that this might be?
Bad soldering?
Waaa said:
Hi all from Russia.
I have the same problem.
When the phone is on the table, the signal level WiFi and GSM 100% (A router in the half meter away from me)
Whenever I put it on your hand or touch the side cover, the level of WiFi drops to zero and GSM is not as critical, but falls to 2-3 division
I'm not saying if I go into another room, where the signal disappears altogether.(WiFi)
Do you think that this might be?
Bad soldering?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check if the battery cover is closed properly. In the room where my WiFi router is, the signal drops 1-2 bars but it's still strong. I've read some reviews on 802.11n routers that claim the signal is actualy worse if you are too close to the router (can't check this myself as I am with a 802.11g router).
Dude, I checked a hundred times that damn cover
in the next room the signal disappears altogether, although on a different device everything is fine!
I tried to switch the router in different modes, the effect is the same.