I switched over from Verizon and I have had my EVO since the 4th of June. I like the phone, however I get very poor reception. At my house inside, I get 1 bar, sometimes it will be no bars or 2 bars. I used to get excellent reception in my house with Verizon (usually full bars). My wife is on T-Mobile and even she gets 3-4 bars (out of 5 bars) and never has dropped calls. I always get dropped calls.
I used to be able to ride in the elevator in my office and talk on the phone. Quality would drop and i would lose bars (down to 1 or 2) but I would almost never actually drop a call (this is on Verizon). Today, in two elevator rides on the phone, they both dropped.
Now my question is.... is this Sprint or is it the phone?
If it's the phone are there certain ROMs I should try that improve the reception?
Thanks!
You should try to do the little hack to get on verizon towers without being classified as roaming. Check it out, if its sprint then you will see once you try it.
wildcard said:
I switched over from Verizon and I have had my EVO since the 4th of June. I like the phone, however I get very poor reception. At my house inside, I get 1 bar, sometimes it will be no bars or 2 bars. I used to get excellent reception in my house with Verizon (usually full bars). My wife is on T-Mobile and even she gets 3-4 bars (out of 5 bars) and never has dropped calls. I always get dropped calls.
I used to be able to ride in the elevator in my office and talk on the phone. Quality would drop and i would lose bars (down to 1 or 2) but I would almost never actually drop a call (this is on Verizon). Today, in two elevator rides on the phone, they both dropped.
Now my question is.... is this Sprint or is it the phone?
If it's the phone are there certain ROMs I should try that improve the reception?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Different radios might work. For the last 4 years I've been an AT&T customer. I understand that CDMA apparently isn't as good at signal building penetration compared to GSM, so that might be a limitation.
However, both Verizon and Sprint utilize CDMA, so I find it odd that someone with Verizon could have a better signal than Sprint, since I'm also told that (assuming your phone has the "roaming towers" option or whatever it's called enabled, and it is by default, at least on my phone) they use the same towers, so why on earth would there be a disparity?
I'm guessing it's the EVO, or something to do with its casing, because some places I get excellent reception indoors, and others, like Sam's Club, is a complete dead zone except for the front third of the store closest to the exit.
That being said, my wifi reception (or at least indicator) totally blows. I hope a firmware update address that and the 30 fps cap, as well as reception (if it's the phone).
Try the *techknowfile's* - Hack the HTC EVO - 3G w/o Sprint EVDO coverage!
It worked for me. From having no bars went to full at home because of Sprint coverage. And the EVO does not have the option of roaming, just the automatic roaming and never worked for me.
About Verizon and Sprint they are both CDMA but they have their own towers. Is not the phone. And at Walmart almost every phone loose signal. I have friends w all carriers and they all get poor signal.
gatorran said:
Try the *techknowfile's* - Hack the HTC EVO - 3G w/o Sprint EVDO coverage!
It worked for me. From having no bars went to full at home because of Sprint coverage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
can you please explain what exactly you did? I'm having similar no signal problem and my MotoQ worked perfectly fine.
kvictar said:
can you please explain what exactly you did? I'm having similar no signal problem and my MotoQ worked perfectly fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Obtain your MSL (aka Master Subsidy Lock / Password. SIX DIGIT NUMBER)
Dial ##775#, a password prompt should appear. Enter your MSL into this box->hit OK->tap on the "Update PRL" button. Make sure "All Folders" and "Type: prl files" are selected. You should see the downloaded PRL (00001.prl) on the list; Select the PRL->Press Menu->Commit.
Search the forum for Hack the HTC EVO - 3G w/o Sprint EVDO coverage! under "EVO 4G Android Development"
the tutorial is on the first post by Techknowfile.
try a different radio, or maybe its just the area u are in? on ATT, my friend has an iphone, and i had the fuze, and he always got signals where i didnt, so it could be the phone...
You can't go by bars on CDMA... You can have ZERO bars and still be able to make crystal clear calls and send and receive data on CDMA whereas on GSM you hit 3 bars and your calls start cutting out.
Anyway, I've noticed that the EVO is really crappy with data speeds - but voice quality it is bar none the highest quality cell phone I have ever used.
Well, if the Evo simply has poor reception the Verizon hack shouldn't make a difference.
I like you have poor service in my home, always have. I got an Airave to solve that problem, it works well so long as I also am connected to Wifi otherwise it tends to hop between 1 bar of 3G and full bars of 1xRTT.
I tried the Verizon PRL hack. The signal was a little stronger, inline with what my roommates on Verizon got, but it wouldn't connect to the Airave at all. Did seem to have a hard time maintaining a 3G connection. I wasn't losing the signal, it just seemed to drop the data connection, but I still had a voice connection. Because of that and the airave issue I switched back.
The funny thing is, the EVO has better signal reception than my TP2... it just has crappy data speeds.
really? i get amazing data speeds on 3g, also i found out today that wifi speeds and signals are being fixed via software update from HTC, just got an e-mail from there. something like 700 down and 700 or so up.
eck0728 said:
really? i get amazing data speeds on 3g, also i found out today that wifi speeds and signals are being fixed via software update from HTC, just got an e-mail from there. something like 700 down and 700 or so up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is what I get on speed.
wildcard said:
I switched over from Verizon and I have had my EVO since the 4th of June. I like the phone, however I get very poor reception. At my house inside, I get 1 bar, sometimes it will be no bars or 2 bars. I used to get excellent reception in my house with Verizon (usually full bars). My wife is on T-Mobile and even she gets 3-4 bars (out of 5 bars) and never has dropped calls. I always get dropped calls.
I used to be able to ride in the elevator in my office and talk on the phone. Quality would drop and i would lose bars (down to 1 or 2) but I would almost never actually drop a call (this is on Verizon). Today, in two elevator rides on the phone, they both dropped.
Now my question is.... is this Sprint or is it the phone?
If it's the phone are there certain ROMs I should try that improve the reception?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it helps, everybody in NYC knows that Verizon is the best in signal. You can get signal with them where ATT and Sprint can't. ATT has the worst signal in the city of the 3 of them. So it might be the carrier. I don't know if this is true somewhere else.
gatorran said:
This is what I get on speed.
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Click to collapse
Absolutely horrible. I don't know how you live with that
Albaholic said:
Absolutely horrible. I don't know how you live with that
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Click to collapse
It's Horrible!!!! hehe I've been having nightmares because of that. It was really slow on the sprint network, and the airave was getting my phone crazy changing between connections.
wildcard said:
I switched over from Verizon and I have had my EVO since the 4th of June. I like the phone, however I get very poor reception. At my house inside, I get 1 bar, sometimes it will be no bars or 2 bars. I used to get excellent reception in my house with Verizon (usually full bars). My wife is on T-Mobile and even she gets 3-4 bars (out of 5 bars) and never has dropped calls. I always get dropped calls.
I used to be able to ride in the elevator in my office and talk on the phone. Quality would drop and i would lose bars (down to 1 or 2) but I would almost never actually drop a call (this is on Verizon). Today, in two elevator rides on the phone, they both dropped.
Now my question is.... is this Sprint or is it the phone?
If it's the phone are there certain ROMs I should try that improve the reception?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a simular issue, so I called sprint today and the tech found that the tower nearest me (about 1 mile away) was "out" so that was my problem so he generated a ticket to fix the tower. The funny thing is that he indicated that in general thier system can not tell them when a tower is out, customers generally call and indicate a service issue then they can remotely check the towers in question for issues . Man that is not the best way to check towers . Oh well the tower I need should be fixed in about 24 hours based on the tech I talked to.......he also said good thing I called Man they have a nutty system
Verizon's method of checking towers isn't much better if all they have is one guy walking around asking "can you hear me now?"
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Sent via this here phone thingy on the interweb.
i've found it to be the opposite in my city. verizon is terrible and sprint is awesome. maybe in your area, sprint just isn't as good as verizon? don't think it's the evo.
This is easy to check.
Go to a different area and see if the signal gets better.
My own evo is better than my old TP2, much better reception (I don't roam at work, on the basement floor, whereas TP2 used to constantly) and 2-2.2 down / 0.6 up Mbps.
acrh2 said:
This is easy to check.
Go to a different area and see if the signal gets better.
My own evo is better than my old TP2, much better reception (I don't roam at work, on the basement floor, whereas TP2 used to constantly) and 2-2.2 down / 0.6 up Mbps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just switched from a TP2 to the Evo and I found things to be quite the opposite. Constantly 1 - 2 bars less of service with the evo dropping to 'no service' where the TP2 at least had 1 or 2 bars. After many years with HTC products, Fuze, Tilt2 on ATT and the TP2 and EVO with Sprint I have found that its really hit or miss with their products. Some phones of even the same make and model are just better then others. The first Fuze I got had horrible horrible service. Went to the ATT store and they agreed, warranty replacement phone worked beautiful. Now with that said the EVO does seem to have consistently faster data speeds then the TP2 did. Between 600 - 900 with the TP2 and up wards of 1480 on a test I did yesterday with the evo. Still no where near the 2000 - 2500 the ATT network provided but they ticked me off with their two week tower outage in this area... what good is speed if the phone doesn't work?
Related
How is T-Mobile for you?
1. Excellent, I get coverage everywhere i go, HSDPA+, 3G
2. Great, I get coverage most of the time, 3G and EDGE
3. Good, I get coverage, but calls are dropped.
4. Fair, I drop calls, and switch from 3G to EDGE frequently, mostly get coverage
5. Poor, Dropped calls, 1-2 bars, 3G and EDGE switching constantly, not good.
6. Horrible, It's basically the worst network
Wish I could say 1... but its a solid 2 where I live... though if I switched back to the G1, it would probably be 1.
mattyboy247 said:
Wish I could say 1... but its a solid 2 where I live... though if I switched back to the G1, it would probably be 1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
devices matter? why do you think that is?
My N1 just doesn't hold 3g as well as my g1 did. Thats the only issue I have. Otherwise 3g in my area has been great. I really don't know who to blame for the 3g being bad on the Nexus... so I just blame it on all parties involved...
I have H to 3g mostly H in austin texas since the last radio I have not seen any edge.
You should run this as a poll. I pick answer #2. My understanding is that HSPA+ won't rollout to the Midwest until later, so I hope I can say #1 very soon.
I would like to say 1 too, but since T mobile just turned on their 3g service here, i have to go with 2. There is also some dead spot on my school campus, but i can't really complaint, since i'm like all the way in the middle of a huge building.
1 in San Diego.
Somewhere between 2 and 3 in Gainesville, FL. Never drop calls, but there are areas of no service, though not many. I get 3G and sometimes H in many parts, but frequently switch back to E (like inside my apartment >_<). My understanding is that the city makes it quite hard for providers to set up new towers, because they want to keep as many trees in the city as possible, which limit & block cell towers. Bah.
Also, even when I get 3G/H, I've never got xfer speeds above ~ 600Kbps (using Speedtest.net's test). Gah.
What are the forum's opinions on Verizon's network? Especially those of you who changed to Verizon from another network for the Incredible.
I'll be honest. The network has not been bad, I have service most places and 3g is decently reliable and fast. Not really digging that antenna indicator that makes up the bars on it's own, but performance was pretty good.
However, I didn't expect 'ok.' I expected 'The Network.' I expected moving from tmobile, the smallest carrier, and the n1, a phone with horrible antenna problems for alot of people, to get reception anywhere other people had reception. But in my area [suburb of Dallas TX] ATT seems to actually have more reliable coverage. In my house Tmo gets no reception [my house is a dead zone apparently.] ATT gets full reception. So in changing to verizon I checked their coverage map.... full 3g everywhere in my area. 1 bar in my house. 3g in my garage. Better than Tmo but ATT is 5 bars 3g!
And as far cities or major areas... never had a probl with Tmo there, always good HSPA. But leave a city and roll the dice.
Overall I rate Verizons network a 4 for North Texas Area. Tmo 3 Sprint 2 Att 5.
For Boston, my TMobile phones had much better call quality/clarity. I have not dropped any Verizon calls yet, but it is sometimes hard to understand what the other person is saying on the far side of the line.
On the other hand, the 3g speed and coverage has seemed good.
I have noticed the greater 3G coverage. I came from AT&T and this weekend I traveled across the country and spent some time in 6 different states, CA, IL, TX, NY, NJ, PA. Some were just driving through, others were airports. Never once did I notice a lack of 3G coverage. However most of the time I was at 1 or 2 bars, although that didn't seem to effect my experience.
It even worked in the plane at 30k feet, but only when I was above a major city. Gave me enough time to download an app. (yeah I know they don't want you to do that, I'm bad)
Coming from AT&T I do miss one thing, Data+Voice at the same time. More than a few times I was on a call with the hotel or car rental and they asked me for information I did not have handy. It was in my emails, but I couldn't access data to get them while on the phone. So I was put in a position where I had to anticipate what information I needed before a call and pull it up first. Another time I was talking to a friend about where we were going to meet, and I couldnt access Google Maps. It's kinda annoying.
I switched from T-mobile and while I'm gonna be missing my nexus once that 2.2 update comes out, my coverage is amazingly better, and my service overall wasn't that bad to begin with. Verizon has far surpassed my expectations.
Verizon user here who left Big Red, went to Big Orange, and then back to Verizon.
In my experience (here in central and western Pennsylvania), AT&T is hands down faster. This is simply the case with GSM as opposed to CDMA. However, 3G coverage with AT&T is spotty, whereas Verizon is awesome.
I have also noticed a misconception that # of bars is best indicator of performance. A better measuring tool is to check the following:
Menu > Settings > About Phone > Network
Take note of the Signal Strength. Somewhere around 50 dBm is almost excellent coverage while the closer you get to 100 dBm is borderline questionable coverage.
I am back with Verizon after less than a year with Sprint, and I am glad to be back. I had left VZW because of their crippled phones (reduced memory - disabled features - etc.), and not because of their service, which was fine.
I was quickly reminded that no matter how good a phone is, it's not worth a damn when paired with lousy service. Obviously YMMV, but where I live, near the edge of town but supposedly in a perfectly normal coverage area, Sprint is seriously lacking.
Average signal at my desk with Sprint was -95db or worse, and maybe as good as -92 if I went upstairs. Calls would drop fairly often, but even worse were the ones that *didn't* drop completely, and instead just went all flaky with audio cut-outs (with both phones I had on Sprint, the Touch Pro & the Hero). I was always running upstairs anytime an important call came in, just for the few db less signal loss, in the hopes that Sprint wouldn't ruin the call and make an ass out of me again (I can do that just fine on my own, thanks). Data throughput was also pretty inconsistent on Sprint. Sometimes it would work great while I was at some other location such as onsite with a client, but that just wasn't good enough. I need my phone to work where I live.
Anyways, back with Verizon things seem pretty steady for me. I get an average of -90db or better at my desk, sometimes as good as -85db, and if I go upstairs I have seen signals as good as -78db hold for a while. I have only had a single dropped call, and I saw no sign that it was a signal issue at the time. All of my calls have been clear, with no detected or reported audio cut-outs. Real-world data throughput is also much better for me than it was with Sprint. Web pages load consistently where they used to be sporadic, downloads don't stall anymore, and videos buffer just fine that I couldn't even touch on Sprint. No complaints about service here.
I wish Sprint all the best, but they won't be getting any more $$$ from me anytime soon. As for Verizon...well...what can I say except "Hey baby, thanks for taking me back! I missed you."
trevorwhopkins said:
Overall I rate Verizons network a 4 for North Texas Area. Tmo 3 Sprint 2 Att 5.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Att 5, lmao
Try this get speedtest from the market, have your friend get speedtest from the app store, whenever you have the chance post run the test 3 times simultaneously and see how bad att network is. att network is like a ford fiesta, nobody wants it, but some are forced to endure it.
my conclusion on vzw is i am ususlayy getting 1.5-1.75 Mbps down and 600-1000Kbps up all the time at different locations. My friends iphone has never hit more than 1.2 , usually its 400-800Kbps down and up 200-500Kbps
i know different areas have different speeds, but in my area and most areas i have been to, mostly west coast, these results seem to be the norm
VZW coverage has always been great for me. Everywhere I go I ubersexual great reception in voice and 3g. I work in the Nevada desert sometimes and had data coverage where I wouldn't have expected it. And voice coverage was nearly always there. Can't wait for LTE.
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Sent from HTC Incredible via XDA Tapatalk App
Once I exchanged my phone for another because of something unrelated to signal I have noticed a difference. Before my phone would stick on 1x but now sitting in the exactly the same spot I only get as low as Rev-A. So there was an obvious problem with the radio on my last Incredible.
I've seen a few places where ATT could get out and VZW can't. Usually on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. Having said that VZW is always crystal clear where ATT is garbled. I drop a VZW call about every 6 months.
I don't know what the Incredible's deal is with bars for the signal indicator, hut its not accurate. With the MOTO Droid sitting side by side, the DI always have less bars but is you watch the actual dbm, its the same or slightly better. I given on using bars at all. I just check that I have signal. I've done a lot of travelling and I have not lost service yet. some of my travel is in rural Mississippi.
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Sent via the XDA Tapatalk App
I had to go with a 4. VZW service is the best I've ever had, but coming from T-Mo, I got spoiled by the voice+data simultaneously. If that somehow became possible on CDMA networks, VZW would be perfect in my eyes.
I live 20 miles out in the suburbs in SC and I get 2 bars and 3G all day long. VZW has the coverage.
I came from AT&T to Verizon last month in NJ. It's one of the states where it's just blanketed in every cell service. Verizon is the best network I have ever seen. AT&T's network was unusable at times. Their data network was complete and utter garbage. I browse faster with Verizon on one bar than I ever did with AT&T with full bars. I'll never, ever go back.
I to am in NJ (NY Metro Area) Signal strength at home is a constant -71dbm, and at work a phenomenal -64dbm, had Sprint(my work),ATT(wifes work),TMobile (Son's current) all were "ok" but data by far is much faster with VZ, and I don't recall any dropped calls.
Super fast 3G outside...Tmobile's was MUCH slower. But seems like T-mobile signal in Atlanta could penetrate any building and the second I walk indoors with Verizon I am jumping around on 1x all the time. Cant get a 3G signal at work and spend 9 hours of my day there. T-mobile full bars of 3G goodness. 1 dropped call so far in 3 weeks so thats really good.
Verizon network is good here in Washington D.C. Metro area and surrounding areas. Ive only seen one dead zone while riding VRE train, its between stafford and quantico. Ive never had dropped calls or bad call quality. Only complaint i have is 3g speeds seem to be a lot slower in the city dunno if its maintenance or just too many people on the towers or w/e. Not even able to stream internet radio sometimes while in the city. speedtest.net app shows between 80kbps and 200kbps while in city. I get up to 4000kbps at my house outside the city in Fredericksburg.
Cycling from 3G to 1X
Data service will not lock into 3g but every few minutes jumps between 1X and 3g with attendant decrease and increase in data rates: 1x - 60 to 90 kbps down, 40 to 80 kbps up, 3g - 240 to 400 kbps down, 180 to 320 kbps up, all are average and sometimes much better on 3G during non peak periods. VZ reports no data problems at location and said to contact HTC.
Not a signal strength or reception problem and does not happen on two other phones sitting side by side with INC. INC: -87 to -89 db, Samsung Omnia II: -86 to -88 db, BB 8330: -87 to -89 db. All other phones have solid 3g signal and data rates all the time.
I really hesitate to exchange this phone because everything else appears to be working fine after doing the EVRC-B change to improve voice quality and I don't want to get another one with some other problem. Guess I'll wait as long as possible in the 30 day trial in hopes that either a fix is put out or a later batch of phones won't have the problem.
Re: Cycling from 3G to 1X
Replying to my own message: I now know why I am seeing this behavior. I got a free app "Real Signal" from the Market which displays the CDMA and EVDO signals in db separately. If this app is accurate my INC has a 10 to 20 db difference between the two with the CDMA -87 to -89 and the EVDO -95 to -118. So it looks like my INC has an antenna problem or a radio front end problem for the 1900 MHz band.
Also it seems that the change from EVRC to EVRC-B has not improved my voice quality as much as I thought as all day yesterday I had several calls that were muffled and dropping syllables. I do wish that HTC would get its act together as this is a great device otherwise.
I had iPhone 3G on AT&T in northern VA now with Incredible on Verizon I see huge upgrade in terms of speed and covarage. Its great!! also incredible is far better phone than iPhone.
I have had my G2 purchased off contract for 3 days now and other than the hinge issue and the 4g internal issue I find that my device just does not want to hold a signal other than E or G. What little time it spends on H is a small percentage of operation time. In the exact same location and time my Vibrant will hold 3 G at two bars and My Nexus One also at 1 or 2 bars the G2 stays on E at 3 or 4 bars or less and when I attempt to dl something it either hangs and goes to G or stays on E and I get the "trouble connecting with server try again and downland unsuccessful. This is the worst reception I have ever had on a phone in this same exact location. I think the G2 is a wonderful phone having the potential to be a super phone. I am hoping that this is just a defect with this unit and I have arranged to have a replacement. Anyone else having this issue?
may be a defect.. I get the same amount of 3G bars that I got on my Blackberry 9700 which is usually around full the areas I frequent.
To the OP I get the same exact problem. Unable to connect to Market even on Edge.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
I spoke with a TMO rep who stated it's a known issue with their network, only effecting 10% of users. I don't believe them.
Data Issue Thread
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=800322
ddgarcia05 said:
I spoke with a TMO rep who stated it's a known issue with their network, only effecting 10% of users. I don't believe them.
Data Issue Thread
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=800322
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got off of the phone with a Rep from T Mobile and they claimed they had to change my web plan to suit the G2. They claimed different connections.They did give it to me at the same price as before but they also claimed it would completely change what has been happening to the device and my other phones(Vibrant and Nexus One) would see an improvement as well. So far after about 5 hours no change whatsoever except for slightly poorer reception. I am beginning to wonder if this G2 is star crossed and was not ready for prime time. I am starting to doubt anything TMobile says at this point.
i get poor reception unless im completely out in the open. i get no reception at all in house vs my iphone 2g, which got solid reception.
I get little to no reception in my basement, whereas with my BB 8900 the reception was poorer but still workable. At least the data works over Wifi.
getting the same problem with both of the G2`s i purchased data service drops and then comes back but thats been happening for about a month even on my touch pro 2
Happened to me also
My first G2 would randomly go from full bars to absolutely no service at all and I would have to turn it off and on to get service again. Since my vibrant wasn't having and problems like that I went and exchanged it for another G2. I haven't dropped signal but I frequently go from full bars 3g to edge or g and back and my data connection seems to hang every once and a while
I have great reception. Just a good as any other device I have had.
I got a replacement G2 yesterday afternoon and it is worse than the first one. The reception or I should say lack of reception is ludicrous. This is after T Mobile supposedly put me on a different connection type (whatever that is ) they could not explain it but did not increase my bill. The radio reception is much worse. The hinges are much looser than the first one and overall I am not a happy camper with this device. I go from 3 bars of H immediately to G than to 2 bars E and then no signal. It just fluctuates. Connecting to market is about a ten or 20 minute affair if it actually finally does connect. Downloading is sporadic at best. Phone has great potential IMO but it is flawed as released.
I get full bars of (H) a majority of the places I am. I'm out in jersey.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
I'm having the opposite issue as most; my cell connection is solid, but as soon as I hold the phone in landscape mode (or press my palm along the 'top' in portrait mode) I lose wifi connectivity instantly. Wifi Analyzer shows between a 20 and 30 dBa drop with either a G or N AP... apparently enough to go from four bars to zero, when I'm standing ten feet from my AP, and even more if I'm in the next room. I've tried the same thing with my G1, and I get at most a 5 dBa drop no matter which way I hold it.
Anyone else having this issue? TMo said that I was the first to call in with it, and to try returning/exchanging the phone under the 'buyer's remorse' period.
...I'll have to find another store though; the PFY manager at my local couldn't seem to understand why I would want to use wifi when I get solid HSPA+ signal, and insisted on redirecting me to the TMo Support phone number. He also seemed to be under the impression that wifi was slower than HSPA. Which might be true, if I didn't pay for a 28mbit connection at home. Or hadn't already hit the TMo 10GB/mo throttle cap.. which drops the data connection speed to 50kbps maximum. With no alternate 'truly unlimited' plan or way to buy even another 10GB.
I have had nothing but "H" yes i am in Boston, yes, yes.
Going to Maine this weekend, will let you know what it does.
H for Hysterically Hyperspeed
Add me to the list because I'm experiencing the same problems where I will be 3 or 4 bars into H and it'll drop down to to G and then back up to E, just sitting there on the desk. I'm on my 3rd G2 and they've all been like this. I was starting to think it's the network then I remembered my N900 was 100% solid 3-3.5G in my house although it did fluctuate quite a bit in between the two.
Fresno, CA G2 very poor data connections though hspa+
Very bad speeds in Fresno, CA that is HSPA+. Usually less than 1Mb down. Often see less than 500k. At a TMobile store with "a cell tower across the street pointing right at us" my G2 and the stores G2 demo phone only got a 3mb down.
I also see a weird pattern of less than 300k down with above 1.2M up often. There is a YouTube video showed some similar Speedtest.net hi/lo combo results called:
T-mobile G1 vs G2 "the face off"
same issue
i am having the same issue and i am bout 20 miles north of charlotte nc there has to be a problem with the antenna or something but who knows.
Atlant, Signal much better with G2 than with Vibrant. Thats about all I can say about it.
Mines is great if im not @ home. Dl are fast and full 4 bars. But we moved to another house which the signal sucks bad. I normaly get 1bar and edge but hell the g1 did the samething. So I dont see a probelm with the phone just tmobile network
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
Du22ty said:
Add me to the list because I'm experiencing the same problems where I will be 3 or 4 bars into H and it'll drop down to to G and then back up to E, just sitting there on the desk. I'm on my 3rd G2 and they've all been like this. I was starting to think it's the network then I remembered my N900 was 100% solid 3-3.5G in my house although it did fluctuate quite a bit in between the two.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. About to take this bad boy back
I do not know why but i get extremely poor signal with my new vibrant and T-mobile at my house. Outside the house and inside it is averaging - 110 db. My work is 1.5 miles away and I get 4-5 bars and excellent signal and 3G. T-mobile store is 1 mile away and i get excellent service there... Even 4G is offered in my area.
I called tech support, first they told me i had an old sim card, so today I changed the sim, but that did not help. I called them again, all they did is take me off the system and add me back on, did a test call, i received the call and that was it. Am I stuck with poor service or it is the the vibrant that is too sensitive.
I am looking at the signal strength at work now, and again, I work 1.5 miles away from my house, literary straight down the road.. I am getting -65 to -75 db with full 5 bars. When I hold it with my left hand supposedly blocking the antenna, I get a drop of -5 db, but it still stray very strong..
So I guess, it is not a phone issue. It is definitely Tmobile and their crappy signal!
azsamsancho said:
I do not know why but i get extremely poor signal with my new vibrant and T-mobile at my house. Outside the house and inside it is averaging - 110 db. My work is 1.5 miles away and I get 4-5 bars and excellent signal and 3G. T-mobile store is 1 mile away and i get excellent service there... Even 4G is offered in my area.
I called tech support, first they told me i had an old sim card, so today I changed the sim, but that did not help. I called them again, all they did is take me off the system and add me back on, did a test call, i received the call and that was it. Am I stuck with poor service or it is the the vibrant that is too sensitive.
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azsamsancho said:
I am looking at the signal strength at work now, and again, I work 1.5 miles away from my house, literary straight down the road.. I am getting -65 to -75 db with full 5 bars. When I hold it with my left hand supposedly blocking the antenna, I get a drop of -5 db, but it still stray very strong..
So I guess, it is not a phone issue. It is definitely Tmobile and their crappy signal!
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Do you want XDA crew come and hug you?
Which baseband are you running? JFD, JI2 or JI6?
azsamsancho said:
I am looking at the signal strength at work now, and again, I work 1.5 miles away from my house, literary straight down the road.. I am getting -65 to -75 db with full 5 bars. When I hold it with my left hand supposedly blocking the antenna, I get a drop of -5 db, but it still stray very strong..
So I guess, it is not a phone issue. It is definitely Tmobile and their crappy signal!
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Click to collapse
what rom are you running? What you're describing seems to be similar to what happened with the original vibrant radio.
Group hug aside
The above comments are excellent. Check what radio you are running. Then, check your tower locations
I am on an Island and there are places that every carrier has problems covering here. Not sure why it is that way but, that is the way it is. T mobile is pretty good on a whole compared to ATT and the others.
lqaddict said:
Which baseband are you running? JFD, JI2 or JI6?
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I was running stock at first, and then I upgraded to JI6 as it supposedly improves the signal.. i seem to have had some improvement but still extremely poor service at or around my house. last night as a test, I called my work and left a voicemail. When I got to work, I saw a missed call, but no voicemail!
The scary part is reliability, not being able to rely on important calls/voicemails to my phone. I tried to use google voice at least the voicemails to be covered, but I found out that google voice is not reliable either, a couple of times already it tells 'Cannot leave a voicemail servers are busy" something like that.. It is insane, and I have 4G in my area!
Have you tried another phone?
lqaddict said:
Have you tried another phone?
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I have not because I do not have another T-mobile phone. I used to be with AT&T for years and I never ever had a an issue with reception.
azsamsancho said:
I have not because I do not have another T-mobile phone. I used to be with AT&T for years and I never ever had a an issue with reception.
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it could be that your place is under a sub-optimal coverage for TMO.
Without a second phone to try there is little you can do to confirm or deny it.
azsamsancho said:
I have not because I do not have another T-mobile phone. I used to be with AT&T for years and I never ever had a an issue with reception.
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lol isn't obvious to you yet that AT&T network has wider coverage than T-Mobile? T-Mobile is still building out their 3G network, they still don't have the type of coverage AT&T have. I suggest you unlock you Vibrant and go back to AT&T if your not on a contract. Otherwise you will just have hope T-Mobile cares about coverage than SPEED.
I love T-Mobile but their coverage have me on the edge at times.
ram130 said:
lol isn't obvious to you yet that AT&T network has wider coverage than T-Mobile? T-Mobile is still building out their 3G network, they still don't have the type of coverage AT&T have. I suggest you unlock you Vibrant and go back to AT&T if your not on a contract. Otherwise you will just have hope T-Mobile cares about coverage than SPEED.
I love T-Mobile but their coverage have me on the edge at times.
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I unlocked the phone, but I can't go back to AT&T right, I will have to cancel the 2-year Tmobile contract and return the phone as well..
azsamsancho said:
I unlocked the phone, but I can't go back to AT&T right, I will have to cancel the 2-year Tmobile contract and return the phone as well..
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Well I guess you have some bad luck. Looks like your stuck until T-Mobile does something, which can take upto two years either way...I wish you luck.
Have tried switching to EDGE?
I had the same signal quality problems and switched to att as a result. Problems resolved and I still have my beloved Vibrant.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
ram130 said:
lol isn't obvious to you yet that AT&T network has wider coverage than T-Mobile? T-Mobile is still building out their 3G network, they still don't have the type of coverage AT&T have. I suggest you unlock you Vibrant and go back to AT&T if your not on a contract. Otherwise you will just have hope T-Mobile cares about coverage than SPEED.
I love T-Mobile but their coverage have me on the edge at times.
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I'm sorry, but that's the stupidest generalization i've seen here in a long time.
While T-Mobile is building out coverage, there are many areas that they serve and ATT doesn't (cheyenne, wyoming), and where TMO brought 3g first (peoria, IL; manhattan, ks).
If you don't like their coverage, then switch. But don't make silly generalizations based upon talking points from 5 years ago. Coverage is ALWAYS subjective.
I usually sit around -105dBm and I'm in Sacramento where supposedly HSPA+ was just rolled out (I know I can't get HSPA+, but I thought it was supposed to improve the network here )
So I feel your pain...
reuthermonkey said:
I'm sorry, but that's the stupidest generalization i've seen here in a long time.
While T-Mobile is building out coverage, there are many areas that they serve and ATT doesn't (cheyenne, wyoming), and where TMO brought 3g first (peoria, IL; manhattan, ks).
If you don't like their coverage, then switch. But don't make silly generalizations based upon talking points from 5 years ago. Coverage is ALWAYS subjective.
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Hey it's the facts..t-mobile network is still "spotty"...stop making them seem like god, they cover 96% while AT&T has 97%,,We don't even want to mention Verizon..but hey, nothing is perfect, it's just what's best in your area.
ram130 said:
Have tried switching to EDGE?
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Yes, I did experiment with EDGE (GSM only) setting. It seems to be a bit better -100 dB (compared to the -110 dB I get on 3G).
I know Tmobile has less than perfect coverage, but I think it is extremely unfortunate that a mile from my house networks are blazing fast. My 3G is super fast and internet pages load very, very quickly. I do not live in a mountain area either..
I guess I will have to live with it. Use hands free to talk when I am at home so antenna is not blocked.. and use google voice for voicemail so important calls are not lost. if gogole voice fails, at least ppl won't be able to leave voicemail, and thus forcing them to call me back..
azsamsancho said:
Yes, I did experiment with EDGE (GSM only) setting. It seems to be a bit better -100 dB (compared to the -110 dB I get on 3G).
I know Tmobile has less than perfect coverage, but I think it is extremely unfortunate that a mile from my house networks are blazing fast. My 3G is super fast and internet pages load very, very quickly. I do not live in a mountain area either..
I guess I will have to live with it. Use hands free to talk when I am at home so antenna is not blocked.. and use google voice for voicemail so important calls are not lost. if gogole voice fails, at least ppl won't be able to leave voicemail, and thus forcing them to call me back..
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Funny, I use Google Voice for all my voicemails and never got the error you had..oh well..i wish you luck
You may try returning it for a G2. TMo is supposed to release Wifi calling for it soon. It's probably coming to the Vibrant too, but I doubt before 2.2 is released.
Kubernetes said:
You may try returning it for a G2. TMo is supposed to release Wifi calling for it soon. It's probably coming to the Vibrant too, but I doubt before 2.2 is released.
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I am still within my 14-days (until tomorrow), but the problem is I did not buy directly from Tmobile. I bought from online retailer so I cannot just go and swap phones I think. I think if I can back out of the contract and keep the phone and go to AT&T might be a good option (not sure how good the 2 GB data limit is)..
I've noticed that the S4 seems to have very poor if not disappointing Signal Strength. This is Firmware independent as I have had the same results on 100% stock firmware, rooted stock firmware, and CM10.1.
At home I get HSPA+ service only via AT&T. On my iPhone 3G, 4, and 4S I used to get 3 or 4 bars, occasionally 2 bars of service in my room on a nightstand where I leave my phone at night. In fact I'd get pretty much 3 or 4 bars in the entire house. With the S4 I'm going between 0 bars, no service, and 1 bar. Occasionally I will manage to get 2 bars.
Likewise, in another area over the weekend I was going from no service to 1 bar of EDGE (2G service!) and occasionally 1 bar of HSPA+ where friends who also had AT&T with iPhone4's were getting 2 bars of HSPA+ 3G. Another friend with iphone5 and AT&T actually was getting 2-3 bars of LTE.
Anyone experiencing similar woes and disappointing service? If so, any way to improve it?
WoodburyMan said:
I've noticed that the S4 seems to have very poor if not disappointing Signal Strength. This is Firmware independent as I have had the same results on 100% stock firmware, rooted stock firmware, and CM10.1.
At home I get HSPA+ service only via AT&T. On my iPhone 3G, 4, and 4S I used to get 3 or 4 bars, occasionally 2 bars of service in my room on a nightstand where I leave my phone at night. In fact I'd get pretty much 3 or 4 bars in the entire house. With the S4 I'm going between 0 bars, no service, and 1 bar. Occasionally I will manage to get 2 bars.
Likewise, in another area over the weekend I was going from no service to 1 bar of EDGE (2G service!) and occasionally 1 bar of HSPA+ where friends who also had AT&T with iPhone4's were getting 2 bars of HSPA+ 3G. Another friend with iphone5 and AT&T actually was getting 2-3 bars of LTE.
Anyone experiencing similar woes and disappointing service? If so, any way to improve it?
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Click to collapse
I have noticed the same disappointing service from AT&T. I moved from Verizon to AT&T due to a work contract change. I went from 4G LTE to full bars of EDGE. This is pretty much unacceptable but there is nothing I can do about it. During the days I can manage to get 4G HSPA+ but its still not even close to what LTE was. Driving down some major highways I still drop calls on AT&T. Also up north at my cottage I can get no bars and with verizon (droid razr maxx) I could get 3 out of 5 bars and 3G coverage. AT&T does not even come near to what Verizon has been doing. They really need to step up their game...
WoodburyMan said:
I've noticed that the S4 seems to have very poor if not disappointing Signal Strength. This is Firmware independent as I have had the same results on 100% stock firmware, rooted stock firmware, and CM10.1.
At home I get HSPA+ service only via AT&T. On my iPhone 3G, 4, and 4S I used to get 3 or 4 bars, occasionally 2 bars of service in my room on a nightstand where I leave my phone at night. In fact I'd get pretty much 3 or 4 bars in the entire house. With the S4 I'm going between 0 bars, no service, and 1 bar. Occasionally I will manage to get 2 bars.
Likewise, in another area over the weekend I was going from no service to 1 bar of EDGE (2G service!) and occasionally 1 bar of HSPA+ where friends who also had AT&T with iPhone4's were getting 2 bars of HSPA+ 3G. Another friend with iphone5 and AT&T actually was getting 2-3 bars of LTE.
Anyone experiencing similar woes and disappointing service? If so, any way to improve it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
fosser2 said:
I have noticed the same disappointing service from AT&T. I moved from Verizon to AT&T due to a work contract change. I went from 4G LTE to full bars of EDGE. This is pretty much unacceptable but there is nothing I can do about it. During the days I can manage to get 4G HSPA+ but its still not even close to what LTE was. Driving down some major highways I still drop calls on AT&T. Also up north at my cottage I can get no bars and with verizon (droid razr maxx) I could get 3 out of 5 bars and 3G coverage. AT&T does not even come near to what Verizon has been doing. They really need to step up their game...
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Guys, you are talking about two different issues.
The OP complains that his SGS4 gets fewer bars than his iPhone (I assume on same provider). I would not judge signal strength this way. 4 bars on iPhone could be equal to 1 bar on SGS4 in terms of pure measured signal strength. Go to system menus on both phones to check the signal strength value. Do not just compare the number of bars.
Fosser2 - you are in general complaining about AT&T. Yes AT&T sucks an has sucked for years. Nothing new there. Although there are areas where AT&T beats other providers.
kreoXDA said:
Guys, you are talking about two different issues.
The OP complains that his SGS4 gets fewer bars than his iPhone (I assume on same provider). I would not judge signal strength this way. 4 bars on iPhone could be equal to 1 bar on SGS4 in terms of pure measured signal strength. Go to system menus on both phones to check the signal strength value. Do not just compare the number of bars.
Fosser2 - you are in general complaining about AT&T. Yes AT&T sucks an has sucked for years. Nothing new there. Although there are areas where AT&T beats other providers.
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Yea. I can see the DB stength in setting on the S4, the only thing is on iOS raw signal data is not available. At least unjailbroken. I did have my 4S jailbroken on OS 6.1.2. However I already reflashed it back to stock with 6.1.3 in preparations for selling it so I cannot rejailbreak it currently, nor even get onto it since there is no SIM. They may have different metering for signal stength. I actually had a patch installed on my old iPhone 3G at one point because original metering on it was completely off and would display 3 bars then drop to 1 when youd go to make a call. However I am for certain getting more "No Signal" messages on the S4 than the iPhone. And standing next to two iPhone users on the same network with 1-3 bars each while I have "no signal" shows something about the S4.
Exactly. I was on AT&T before and I am still on AT&T. Same locations as well, and comparing it to other AT&T users with other phones in same location. Throwing a Carrier Change and different location into the mix along with a new phone makes it impossible to compare. Fosser you're bound to have different dealings with providers in different areas' Around here where I am AT&T is king for signal and Verizon is very sketchy.(AT&T has two towers in town, Verizon only has one) So its hard to tell if its the phone in your case or just location or carrier that has the issue.
kreoXDA said:
Guys, you are talking about two different issues.
...
Yes AT&T sucks an has sucked for years. Nothing new there. Although there are areas where AT&T beats other providers.
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I lol'd at this - because it's really true. In many (most?) areas in my state, AT&T is the absolute worst. In my county, it's the absolute best, especially in terms of data speeds.
But since my S4, I have noticed rare (once every several days? maybe once a week?) cases where I will have 1 bar and seemingly no data coverage at work for a period of probably 5 minutes, where I normally easily get 4-5 bars. It's probably just a tower thing - perhaps the nearest tower is going offline and it's using one from across town for a brief period or something.
Otherwise, I've had about the same coverage on my S4 as my S2, if not better. I would recommend calling AT&T repeatedly. At work, I deal with our cell phones all the time, all 110 of them on AT&T. We get duds, it seems. The best way I've found to correct the situation is:
Call AT&T, explaining that we've done a factory reset on the device. They will "reset something on their end" (afaik, they are simply clearing a cache of your device on the network, letting it re-associate itself) and have you reboot the phone again.
9/10 times, this temporarily fixes the intermittant problems we have with the device, because, it is in-fact intermittent. :/
Call again the next time you have coverage issue. They might do the same thing again for a couple calls. For enterprise accounts, they seem to be willing to move forward on the 2nd call.
After calling a few times about the issue, ask if you can get a replacement device under warranty. Now that they have you documented that you have a recurring problem, they are usually more than happy to replace the device under warranty.
If you have a local AT&T corporate store, perform the last step in the store to get the warranty replacement. No need to wait for shipping, plus the risk of them sending you a crappy refurbished phone.