Axon 7 Cell Service vs One Plus X - ZTE Axon 7 Questions & Answers

Hi all,
So I'm the market for a new phone, my two top conteders are the Axon 7 and the OP3/t. Im leaning more to the Axon 7 and I was ready to buy last night, however I went to do some last minute research on call/data quality and saw several negative posts on dropped calls and no LTE support. I've owned a OnePlus X for the last year or so and overall it has worked fairly well, not great but basically as long as I can be assured the Axon 7 shouldnt be worse I'll probably go ahead and pick one up. I'm not really confident on what im seeing as far as radio signals go, so Id appreciate any advice. I've been on straight talk under AT&T network the whole time with the OPX. I plan on using straight talk for the forseable future and I live in south east virginia.
Thanks for any input.

You won't have issues if signal in your area is relatively strong. The phone doesn't work as well with weaker signals as other phones. Likely due to the metal body affecting reception.

Signal is same or better then mxpe on AT&T in my area.

thanks for the replies i ordered it last night

Related

Signal

I know this has been talked about a little before but I don't see no real good answers.
I had an S3 a while ago and sold it because the signal was pretty bad in certain areas where other phones had no issues. My Mot Razr Maxx and LG G2 worked way better than the S3.
Now I am looking at the S5 to maybe buy but I am concerned about having that same issue where the phone is useless because you can't send text or make calls.
And I am not going to go through this flashing a new radio because someone thinks it works better. I did that too many times with the S3 and it really never did help at all.
So does this S5 still got the same old Samsung radio issues
It seems better than the S3 for me. The real test for me is going to the next city over and seeing if it loses all signal. It's literally 2 or 3 miles from my house and the reception just craps out.
I would like to hear what you report back...
I have an S5 and my wife has an S3, both on Verizon. IMHO, my S5 has far better reception than her S3.
Her S3 also has GPS issues even out in the open away from buildings, while my S5 will show my exact location even in a downtown environments.
JohnKuczek said:
I have an S5 and my wife has an S3, both on Verizon. IMHO, my S5 has far better reception than her S3.
Her S3 also has GPS issues even out in the open away from buildings, while my S5 will show my exact location even in a downtown environments.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reports. I just remembering the S3 loved the development and the phone, But getting good service on it was something else.
I am using my LG G2 right now and it works pretty good rooted and on a custom rom. I also still have my Mot Razr Maxx HD
I am thinking of going to the 10GB everything plan (Maybe) and getting the wife and I both S5's... The only thing holding me back is I am still on no contract and on the Unlimited Data Plan. Very Hard Choice to leave that.
I could do what I always been doing and just go buy an S5 new from ebay.
I have not signed new contract with Verizon in Years... Scary to me just thinking about it. I think the last time I did was when they came out with 4G and I got the HTC TBolt... LOL Showing my age now.
I used to have an S3 and now have the S5. At work in my office, I got zero reception on my S3 and had to plug it in or it would be dead by the end of the day because it was constantly searching for a signal. When I left for the day I would suddenly get voicemails and notifications because I finally got a signal again. With the S5, I actually get a weak signal in my office, so I receive notifications, texts, and can actually receive phone calls every once in a while. So I'd say from my experience the signal on the S5 is much improved over the S3.

Blown away by how great signal is on this device in low signal areas!.

Just got my N4 last night, I have been driving the same commute for years now and i know every deadspot along the way.
Last night on my way home I was streaming the Anthonycumia show audio feed via Chrome, and I was holding 3-4 bars of LTE
when I got zero service historically. Unreal! not 1 time did the stream cut out when I was constantly having issues with all my older devices,
Droid x
Galaxy nexus,
Note 3
LG G2
Those older devices would all drop signal to 0 up in the sticks, where the Note 4 holds 2-4 bars consistently.
In the house, I would get 1 (2 if lucky) bars of 3g and could barely every hold a phone conversation.
Now, again 2-3 bars LTE and I can even use download booster.
Impressed to say the least. Anyone else noticing amazing signal?
Samsung finally has a great radio!
I'm with you, signal has been great.
I concur...i work in a lot of dead spot areas where the rich live and since they dont need cell coverage because of wifi they dont allow towers around. Note 3 was dead inside the house im working...now its mostly on 4g most of the time except for a few random outages...big improvement overall, at least if i walk out i get excellent coverage now
Sent from my SM-N910V using XDA Free mobile app
you guys are lucky...
The cell coverage at my house has always been atrocious, but I'm actually consistently getting a decent signal at my house with the Note 4. I'm really happy about it.
mlee0921 said:
you guys are lucky...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
verizon just sucks in general, but there's hope. call and complain about your awful speeds numerous times.
my speeds, when LTE first came out, were like 10-15mbps. then as more people got phones, especially the dumbass iphone, the speeds were horrendous and for 2.5 years, i would get 0.5mbps. yeah, not even 1mbps. 3g was faster.
so once a week, i called to complain to verizon over and over, and basically every time had them put in a service ticket because their tower was obviously unable to handle the amount of phones around here.
months later, all of a sudden my speeds jump...and now i'm getting a constant 25-30mbps every day in the same exact area.
honestly, i'd say complain and have atech goto the tower itself.
jayochs said:
verizon just sucks in general, but there's hope. call and complain about your awful speeds numerous times.
my speeds, when LTE first came out, were like 10-15mbps. then as more people got phones, especially the dumbass iphone, the speeds were horrendous and for 2.5 years, i would get 0.5mbps. yeah, not even 1mbps. 3g was faster.
so once a week, i called to complain to verizon over and over, and basically every time had them put in a service ticket because their tower was obviously unable to handle the amount of phones around here.
months later, all of a sudden my speeds jump...and now i'm getting a constant 25-30mbps every day in the same exact area.
honestly, i'd say complain and have atech goto the tower itself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not to say your complains didn't work, but what probably happened was that they installed and enabled AWS (XLTE in marketing speak) in your area. Something that Verizon was going to do anyways.
oilfighter said:
Not to say your complains didn't work, but what probably happened was that they installed and enabled AWS (XLTE in marketing speak) in your area. Something that Verizon was going to do anyways.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
they claimed there's no XLTE over here. the only place in NJ that has it right now is atlantic city, and that's over an hour south of me.
i honestly think the tower was overloaded and maybe they worked on it. i'm in an area that was hit hard by Sandy 2 years ago, and since then, the LTE has sucked. apparently a lot of VZW fiber lines in the area were damaged bad during the storm, which is why we had little to no data service during the storm down here.
the voice quality during calls, sounds crystal clear. much nicer than the note 2!
I agree totally. Reception on this phone is unmatched by any Verizon phone ive had to date and ive had plenty. Its so good im hoping root comes in a hurry so i can freeze the update packages in titanium backup so the phone will not take an update and ruin the experience like KitKrap done to the note 3.
concur...at my desk right now, on my N3, I would barely get a signal. had to set my phone on the very edge of the desk near the window.
with this beautiful beast, I'm getting 4 of 5 bars.
I wasn't very hopeful after reading comments here but the signal strength for data has been WWWWAAAAYYYY better than my old GS3. I'd drop in and out going in and out of buildings and I go into a lot of concrete construction buildings and skyscrapers for work and usually I'd kick back to 3G. So far it hasn't dropped back and is chuggin' along.
Im coming from Motorolas and they have excellent signal strength. I dont see a difference in signal so it is a great improvement from the previous samsung phones ive had (S3 and Note3).
Both my wifes Note 4 and mine have had calls dropped and signal issues in our house. We just switched to Verizon for the first time. We came from US cellular and Straight talk and never had a single reception issue at our house. We live just north of Milwaukee in a town of 30k people. We called Verizon to complain and they started a ticket to have it checked out. The technician emailed me back a few days later and said everything is fine at the tower and in our area. He said there are several factors that can contribute to poor reception like building material of the house, tree/leaves foliage especially in summer months (ah its November and every leaf is on the ground now) and other RF in the area. Again, I never had a dropped call with any of my phones with US cellular in the 8 years I was with them. Needless to say, we were about to cancel our service with them and they offered to give us a free signal booster for our house. Hopefully this will fix our problems at our house, from what I have read, those signal boosters make a world of difference.
Whats weird is the signal strength is usually about -103dbm which is about the same when I checked with some of my old US cellular phones in our house. Because its happening with both my note 4 and my wifes, I don't think its the phone.
Sounds like the note 4 has good radio in it so hopefully my house is just in the cellular Bermuda triangle for Verizon and the booster will solve our issues at home.
This phone really impress me too with its signal power even in low signal areas it has really good signal.
Have to agree. I work at 2 locations and at the second spot there is horrible reception with my old Note 3 and iPhone 6 (when I had it). But when I came in with my Note 4 I was pleasantly surprised to see that my 4G icon was on with data. And my battery life is better because it's not working overtime for a signal.
No complaints here
Sent from my SM-N910V using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
my iPhone 5s (expectedly) got terrible signal at my school, so did my DROID Razr M. Now i'm rocking 2 bars of 4g. No complaints here.
Same here!
Noticed it while driving to work. My hour commute was hell with my note 2 if I didnt have music pre-downloaded to my phone. When I streamed music, I'd lose signal half of the trip (which is normal for any phone before the N4).
Last couple days I've noticed that I can stream music with little to no pause for streaming.
I live in bumfk... phone has a good radio regardless

Nexus 6 signal strength testing

Im still waiting on my nexus 6 but I would like if some people could do a signal strength comparison to other phones. I currently have a nexus 5 and would like to know those mostly. Could everyone post results?
jokersax11 said:
Im still waiting on my nexus 6 but I would like if some people could do a signal strength comparison to other phones. I currently have a nexus 5 and would like to know those mostly. Could everyone post results?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On Cricket Wireless (AT&T) I get 5-10 db higher signal on the N6 over the N5 in the exact same spot. I also get about 5 db better signal than my wife's G3. At work I cannot get an LTE signal with the N5, with the N6 I get an "ok" LTE signal.
^^ Nice!!
I can't give OP any numbers but I'm coming from a Nexus 5 also. Overall signal (data and voice) is stronger than the 5. The GPS locks on a lot quicker even when in the car, assuming you're in an area with LTE.
Im also about 5 to 10 db better woth my Nexus 6 compared to my OnePlus One.
WiFi at home has Nexus 6 at 60 Mbps and OnePlus One at 45 Mbps.
Call quality and overall reception is better and volume in ear is better on Nexus.
It's a Motorola.... it's gonna have probably the best overall performing radio around.
AT&T (ALL-Phones)
I have a 10-mile stretch where i cross into Illinois from Indiana going home from work
Nexus 5: Constantly Drops connection all the way to the house and doesn't keep data for more than a few seconds after that at the house will constantly drop connection (I think its trying to get onto the AT&T network in Indiana since its not roaming.
Note 3: Typically holds the data connection all the way till about the 9th mile marker but is completely useless all the way. At home it will stay on the OFF Network but rather useless signal.
Nexus 6: Holds data connection till the 8th mile point which completely usable data for browsing the web/facebook/sometimes youtube at 720p and at the 8th mile point promptly drops connection and connects to the Illinois OFF-Network Tower and holds a strong connection.
On a 300 mile trip from Chicago to Detroit I had LTE service at least 90%of the time.
Thinking about the N6, myself. I've heard Motorola holds patents on CDMA radios that make their reception better than others... Any truth to this?
Just like every other Moto device the reception is rock solid for me.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app
nathanotis said:
Thinking about the N6, myself. I've heard Motorola holds patents on CDMA radios that make their reception better than others... Any truth to this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure, but didn't Google buy Motorola just for their mobile patents? If so, they own it now, which means any OEM partner of Google would likely be able to utilize that. All speculation, so take it with a grain of salt.
Only phone I've compared the Nexus 6 to is my iPhone 6 on Verizon and T-Mobile. They seem, for all intents and purposes, to be completely equal. The 6 is known for good signal strength and measuring the db while in a few locations, they've been nearly identical. This is good news, though, I'm not sure a lot of people on XDA care about a comparison with the iPhone
As for tablets, my Nexus 6 is about 2-3 db higher in my house than my Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet on Verizon. Nothing major.
Cheers,
-Collin-
I have noticed in several places my N6 retains a LTE signal where my N5 would dump to HSPA or EDGE.
Several buildings on my college campus have under ground classrooms and labs, I have a LTE signal in some of those rooms now, where I never have before.
Another thing, the Nexus 6 swaps from HSPA to LTE after a call within two seconds... my N5 would sit and wait for about 20 seconds usually. It seems with Mtero PCS I am not able to make any VOTLE calls yet.... not sure when or how that will happen.
littlerm said:
On Cricket Wireless (AT&T) I get 5-10 db higher signal on the N6 over the N5 in the exact same spot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found the same improvement: 5 to 10dB. The signal in my house varies quite a bit, I just walked around with both in hand.
CollinFX45 said:
Not sure, but didn't Google buy Motorola just for their mobile patents? If so, they own it now, which means any OEM partner of Google would likely be able to utilize that. All speculation, so take it with a grain of salt.
Only phone I've compared the Nexus 6 to is my iPhone 6 on Verizon and T-Mobile. They seem, for all intents and purposes, to be completely equal. The 6 is known for good signal strength and measuring the db while in a few locations, they've been nearly identical. This is good news, though, I'm not sure a lot of people on XDA care about a comparison with the iPhone
As for tablets, my Nexus 6 is about 2-3 db higher in my house than my Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet on Verizon. Nothing major.
Cheers,
-Collin-
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google now has a license to use Motorola's patents, just as Lenovo does. They don't own them, Motorola does.
Mine is about the same as my G3 and wife's S5. The death star is terrible where I live, in my home j get -109dBm in average. The best I have seen is on campus I get -70dBm both are for LTE.
My N6 has great connectivity. My "old phone" HTC M8 GPE wouldn't be able to connect in a certain parts of my office building. No issues on the N6. I'm very happy about this!
-Jason
ryude said:
Google now has a license to use Motorola's patents, just as Lenovo does. They don't own them, Motorola does.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure this is true.
https://gigaom.com/2014/01/30/google-paid-4b-for-patents-why-the-motorola-deal-worked-out-just-fine/
From what I've read, Google now owns those patents, not just licensed. I'm sure they will let leveno use them as part of the purchase deal, but I'm not sure. They got the company for a steal vs what Google paid for it.
On the subject, I can't give hard numbers but I have noticeably better service on at&t with the most recent 98R modem running the latest Chroma ROM.
My connection was bad when I first got the phone but like any phone I own it was rooted and flashed within mins of getting home I highly recommend updating the modem/ radio asap I get great signal and data connection with the 95r radio on att try em and see what works best for u but for most ppl 95r or 98r greatly improve reception
Also running chroma like the dev says who makes chroma its very stock like with a few tweaks that google should have in lp alrdy but don't I used to be a cm fanboy but rather enjoy chroma so if u get a n6 u won't be disappointed
Sent from my Nexus 6
My nexus constantly switches between 3g,H,&LTE... It's never consistent.... Some days I get LTE at the bank some days I don't.... Today I went into the secret menu to force LTE only. I've had a good signal and haven't lost data at all today. That tells me LTE is everywhere where I live. Whats up with all the switching? I've noticed much better battery life today also.

Radios on Verizon

Any of you guys on Verizon any info on signal strength? Does the phone connect up to LTE and hold on to it in the tough spots?
wooddale said:
Any of you guys on Verizon any info on signal strength? Does the phone connect up to LTE and hold on to it in the tough spots?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, from my experience, the phone connects up to LTE and holds onto it in tough spots. It is pretty good at holding on to 3G as well.
Also, the Nexus 6P supports VoLTE on Verizon (as long as you have the "Advanced Calling" feature added to your account.
quitepossibly said:
Yes, from my experience, the phone connects up to LTE and holds onto it in tough spots. It is pretty good at holding on to 3G as well.
Also, the Nexus 6P supports VoLTE on Verizon (as long as you have the "Advanced Calling" feature added to your account.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks got a few more days before mine gets here the antisapation is killing me. I was a little Leary of the radios.
wooddale said:
Thanks got a few more days before mine gets here the antisapation is killing me. I was a little Leary of the radios.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Our house is a pretty bad spot for signal strength, data and call quality in general, GSM signal seems to be better than CDMA according to my informal surveys. We have Verizon (obviously) with contracts ending in December and have been thinking of switching to T-Mobile or Fi for call quality at home among other things (like money ).
Anyway, the 6P is holding onto LTE signal in the house, and I just called my wife from the house and the call quality was excellent. She on her HTC One M7 (soon to be a 6P, most likely) and me on my 6P. I'm very impressed.
TheloniousMunch said:
Our house is a pretty bad spot for signal strength, data and call quality in general, GSM signal seems to be better than CDMA according to my informal surveys. We have Verizon (obviously) with contracts ending in December and have been thinking of switching to T-Mobile or Fi for call quality at home among other things (like money ).
Anyway, the 6P is holding onto LTE signal in the house, and I just called my wife from the house and the call quality was excellent. She on her HTC One M7 (soon to be a 6P, most likely) and me on my 6P. I'm very impressed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks been on Verizon forever I'm north in Wi and TMobile gets voice here but no data.Verizon and USCell are the only 4G here and I have to be on a network extender here in the cabin to get calls. Once I get on the main roads I get an assortment of 1X 3G 4G and no signal. Verizon is the best by far though. I have went through a lot of phones because some just did not work. Although they have been getting better I have been sticking with Moto because of the good radios. I'm on a Nexus 6 now which is good but I couldn't control myself p6 came out had to get it. Got about another week to wait kicking myself in the butt for not ordering sooner its killing me lol. Thanks again
Better than the N6, which I had previously.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
hsj1906 said:
Better than the N6, which I had previously.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WOO now that's what I'm talking about I also have Nexus 6 second best phone I have had here for signal best was Note 4. Great signal but no development I ended up selling it for $800 couldn't pass that up.
I seem to be hold LTE at my house much better than my G3 or iPhone 6. Usually I drop down to 3G in most parts of my house, but LTE holds everywhere except the basement now.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

At&t reception, I still feel it's better than other phones?

Just spend the day at the lake yesterday, on a dock...Usually I'm lucky to get any reception at any place in that area, but I was able to walk up on the hill and get LTE where no other phone has ever gotten it, even just a few weeks ago and again 2 months ago.
I see a lot of people saying the reception isn't good, but I feel it's better than any other phone I've had to date? Regardless of what the signal bars show or the db shows, I can get signal where I never have before.
Just sayin'
[accidentally posted the reply, removing]
tele_jas said:
Just spend the day at the lake yesterday, on a dock...Usually I'm lucky to get any reception at any place in that area, but I was able to walk up on the hill and get LTE where no other phone has ever gotten it, even just a few weeks ago and again 2 months ago.
I see a lot of people saying the reception isn't good, but I feel it's better than any other phone I've had to date? Regardless of what the signal bars show or the db shows, I can get signal where I never have before.
Just sayin'
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the Wi-Fi and cellular reception problems are in the european model - I had great reception with B20 software and the B27 update made it even better
tabletalker7 said:
I think the Wi-Fi and cellular reception problems are in the european model - I had great reception with B20 software and the B27 update made it even better
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a good point. It might be helpful if people would include which specific region model they are using. My reception is definitely on par with my Note 3 on AT&T in the USA (USA model).
celticchrys said:
This is a good point. It might be helpful if people would include which specific region model they are using. My reception is definitely on par with my Note 3 on AT&T in the USA (USA model).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My Axon 7 blows away my Zenfone 2.
My axon 7 beat the pants off my Nexus 6p when I tried using speedtest.net. Both wifi and lte were significantly faster. Also using the US model. B27 seems to have improved things even further. No complains at all!
I'm using A2017U in europe, LTE band 3. My previous phone was Xperia Z and comparing Axon 7 to it, cell and wifi reception is better in any way of using (2.4 and 5ghz, 3G and LTE). So no problem with wifi and cell reception on mine A2017U. Very satisfied.
Ditto
celticchrys said:
This is a good point. It might be helpful if people would include which specific region model they are using. My reception is definitely on par with my Note 3 on AT&T in the USA (USA model).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ditto on both points. I also previously used the Note3 and I get a super signal with the Axon 7, even in places where the Note was hit/miss. Love the phone.
Troll thread. It's obvious that a sizeable minority of owner have reception problems and telling people that 'I'm alright Jack' is unhelpful at best and smug and weird at worst.
Idea for another thread:
Lots of smartphone owners complain of easily cracked screens. I threw mine under a bus and it's fine.
tele_jas said:
Just spend the day at the lake yesterday, on a dock...Usually I'm lucky to get any reception at any place in that area, but I was able to walk up on the hill and get LTE where no other phone has ever gotten it, even just a few weeks ago and again 2 months ago.
I see a lot of people saying the reception isn't good, but I feel it's better than any other phone I've had to date? Regardless of what the signal bars show or the db shows, I can get signal where I never have before.
Just sayin'
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't agree, not as good as my Moto X or my Idol 3 on band 17 LTE or HSPA 850mhz. It's the lower bands it has an issue with.
Sent from my ZTE A2017U using Tapatalk
I have good reception for LTE in most places. WiFi is very good. However, when it comes to radio signal for LTE this is the worst phone of all that I have ever owned. I do not get involved in all sorts of tests but according to the Signal strength mine is usually about -5 higher than all the others. It is acceptable in most places as I live in a large city with good reception on AT&T. However, as I related on the ZTE forum I was at an assembly the other day and I was the only person with an Axon 7 in the whole place. Every other person had either an iPhone (most popular) or some other Android like a Samsung Galaxy. In the outer hallway I had a good signal, but when I went into the main auditorium all I got was a flashing red notification light letting me know that I had ZERO signal, while my wife's Moto X Pure and my daughters shattered iPhone 6 both had very good reception. The Moto is on T-Mobile and the iPhone is on Verizon. I do not think the carrier had anything to do with this issue. Clearly there is a problem with the Axon 7 when it comes the LTE signal strength. I am beginning to think it may be hardware related somehow and unable to be repaired with a software update ...unless they boost the signal strength through software which will also take a toll on battery longevity. Maybe they have the antennas positioned poorly inside the phone?? So I am trying to patiently wait to see what ZTE accomplished with their next update. But if they cannot fix the LTE signal strength then I will have no choice but to move on to another phone. Even though most of the time I am using WiFi, having a phone that cannot communicate in low signal areas when every other phone can, is not acceptable.
On TMO I'm getting a 2x stronger signal than my S7 Edge. Quite impressed. The Wi-Fi signal is much stronger also. I can stream music in my shed from the Wi-Fi ap in the house. The S7E couldn't even detect the signal.

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