[Q] HTC Desire Z - Serious Call Issue - G2 and Desire Z Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hi Guys,
First off, I am using the Desire Z unlocked on Telus. I do not have my phone rooted, nor unbranded. It is completely stock (Bell Branded) only modification was the unlock via unlock code. The phone is running 1.34.666.5 software, and kernel 2.6.32.21 if that helps anyone. I purchased via a friend, who gave me the original purchase receipt (for warranty purposes). However he has since left for Kingston now that the holidays are over.
The problem I am experiencing is via my calls. About 75% of my calls experience random mutes, where the other person can hear me, but I hear just silence. Sometimes it will happen soon after a call, sometimes 20 minutes into a call, completely random timing and duration. Most of the times, the other person will hang up thinking it is their phone and call me back again, only to have the same problem again...
It gets worse though. About 25% of the time, people on the other end have told me via text, since they can't hear me, that my sound is coming very scrambled. Like an alien frequency jumbled up. I can't explain the sound but I've heard it and it sounds really weird. Obviously, they hang up, and call back but the same sound remains.
My only temporary solution to these problems is to restart my phone. I don't know how long I will be able to talk on the phone again before one of these two problems hit me again, at which point I have to do another reset.
I find myself resetting the phone about 5 times a day.
My hope is that this is a software issue, and that an update will fix this scrambing/muting out problem. I wanted to know if anyone else had any sort of issue with this, or what I can do to resolve this.
Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

Maybe it is a network issue?
Try making calls from a friends SIM card.
What provider are you with?
Maybe try popping your SIM into another phone and trying that too...
If not you'll need to try to get a new phone.

I am with Telus as my Carrier.
I will try the sim in another phone. I would hate to have to return it without the original purchaser being present - I imagine not being a Bell customer (even though I have the original reciept) would make it more tricky.

I *really* doubt that it is a hardware problem.
In fact, I've heard those kinds of noises from other phones (i.e. RIM) calling me from the belus network (I use globalive... much better.)
Possibly a radio update might improve compatibility, could also be sim related.
I suggest that you root the thing, upgrade to the latest radio firmware, and install either tmo-ota or cm-mod on it. Also try using it on a DIFFERENT network (it is also compatible with robbers, but not globalive) and try using it on the SAME network with a different sim card.

Bell and Telus' new WCDMA network stinks. It is super weak as for now they put up the minimum towers to get full coverage. What that means is anything to anything will interfere with the signal strength. If I had my choice I would go back to Rogers in a heartbeat.
You issues sound exactly like a loss of signal issue.

My wife has a bell desire z and it had the same problem. Should I return for a new one?
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App

Just one more thing. If it is a network related issue (bell). Why does my Samsung Galaxy S on the same network not have this issue? I think it is hardware related.
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App

I have experienced the identical issue a few times and I discovered it happens when you are on a call and the phone either switches to or tries to connect to a wireless network. My specific incidents have always been with a bluetooth connected however. Try turning off the wifi........

That is interesting because her wifi is on when it happens.
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App

I've just had the same problem... I've had the phone for around 26 days now and this is the first time this problem has happened. Anyone else solve it yet? I haven't even switched on the wifi.

BiMU said:
I've just had the same problem... I've had the phone for around 26 days now and this is the first time this problem has happened. Anyone else solve it yet? I haven't even switched on the wifi.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are certain that wifi was never on, then we need to call Bell.................

Desire call issue
Hey guys,
Having the same issue, this is my second desire for the same scrambled issue. it sucks. sounds like a transformer is in phone.

I'm leaning toward that it's a carrier issue, not a hardware issue. Seeing how there are several people posting they have tried it on different phones and still had the issue, it would show that the hardware is identical between the devices. Also, seeing how people are having issues are localized to the one carrier, that would also make a difference.
I would like to state that I think rooting the phone and flashing a new radio update may fix the issue. If it doesn't, it could be that the radio in the phone just isn't built to process the network. But since it can physically pick up the signal, it may be how the software is transferring it, which is why you're having the issue, which is why I am recommending a root/radio fix.
In regards to the Samsung Galaxy S being brought up, it's different hardware, different software. Though it runs on the Android OS, Samsung uses it's own hardware and scripting, so it may be built to handle the connection better. It's the reason why for the longest time they were having GPS issues and we weren't (at least for the Vibrant variation of the phone).
That's just my humble opinion from my own dealings with phones though

Can confirm it happens when wifi is off.
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App

I have had it happen 4 or 5 times and I have owned the phone for 5 months. Twice BT was connected as well. It has only rarely occurred for me...

My room mate is having the Same issue, stock Bell Desire Z on Bell network. The only two ways I have found so far to fix the issue is ether re-boot the phone or put it into airplane mode and then out of airplane mode. Doing a power off and then back on does NOT fix the problem (using fastboot), i'm sure it would fix it with the fastboot feature turned off.
Turning the radio on and off again fixes the issue so I am guessing it is a software issue. The Desire Z is an upgrade from an iPhone 3GS using the same SIM card on the same account, the iPhone never had the issue over the period of 1 full year.

Same Problem...
Hi everyone,
I wish there were a simple solution to this problem. My phone is doing the same thing (unlocked on the Telus network). I've researched this issue and found out that many people have also had the problem with the alien gurgling noise regardless of which network they're on.
I've had this problem occur regardless of wifi being on or off. It has nothing to do with the type of phone you're calling (as one Bell rep suggested). The problem is with receiving and dialing out calls. I've had several different types of phones while on this network and have never had this problem before. As for letting the problem sort itself out on it's own over time, that also doesn't work.
I brought my phone into Bell to be looked at. They thought the problem was the speaker. So they changed it and returned the phone to me. The first day I turned it on and activated it, the problem was back and worse than before. Couldn't make a successful phone call all day. So now it's back in the shop...again! The Bell rep said he's heard of this problem quite a few times. Something like 1 in 10 Desire Z's has this problem (that number sounds quite high to me). But yet, it doesn't look like these guys have a fix for the issue.
I love my Desire Z but I'm more than fed up because it's practically useless. I'm stuck using my iPhone again (not crazy about it at all) while I hunt for a replacement phone that will be comparable to the Desire Z (that will also work on the Telus network). Any ideas or suggestions? I was considering the Motorola Droid 2 Global but it didn't stand up to the Desire in speed/keyboard feel.
Thanks for listening!
P.S. - My phone was never rooted. Just unlocked.

Your all holding it wrong D: . Jk but I havnt had this issue but my gf tells me that it happens to her
Sent from my HTC G2 using XDA App

I never had this issue, but I did upgrade to 1.72 and last week to 1.82.xxx

Are you on bell?
Bonusbartus said:
I never had this issue, but I did upgrade to 1.72 and last week to 1.82.xxx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App

Related

Major problems with dropping calls!

First off, let me say that having been a WinMob guy for the past 4 years, this phone has been a revelation in good design. I love it.
The ONLY thing that is impacting my experience with this handset is its CONSTANT habit of dropping calls! This usually happens completely at random, sometimes 1 minute into a call, sometimes 10 minutes into one - happens with both poor service and full bar service.
Could it have anything to do with HSDPA being active during voice calls?? Haven't had this issue with any other phones before and I certainly don't want to have to return it for a fix.
Any help with this would be very greatly appreciated!!
I've experience it a few times, put it down to poor T-Mobile coverage so far.
Happens every call with me, really can't figure out what I can do to fix it. Just hope it's not a hardware fault.
Has any one had any similar experiences with their handsets? Or alternatively, any ideas on how to fix the issue?
Thanks, just want to know so I can decide whether to take it back or not...
Guys, any help with this?
Well, I've never had this problem until today when I dropped a call twice. Had full bars. Hmmm. (T-mobile in case it's a network prob btw)
Have you had a look on the T-Mo Android forum ?
http://support.t-mobile.co.uk/discussions/index?page=forums&forum=80103656d92cf90123e15db75a006088
I've not looked there for sometime now.
I've been using it in Switzerland for a week, and have had no dropped calls whatsoever, so i'm assuming it's something to do with T Mobile UK
(Just for the benefit of any one else who will read this, I'm on O2.)
Hey guys, might have found a fix for this -
1. Turn phone off
2. Remove SIM + battery
3. Put battery back in without SIM, turn handset on and leave for 3 or so mins.
4. Turn off, + put SIM back in w/ battery as well
5. Change Network data setting to receive WCDMA only
Seems to have worked, but haven't tested extensively.
Btw, thanks for the t-mobile forums link, did help.
ive also had the same issue. had the same problem on my hero on 3 before I got my desire which is now on Orange and still the dame problem. also g1 on 3 had same problem. must be a problem on Android or with data and voice at same time.
Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk
fredfox_uk said:
Have you had a look on the T-Mo Android forum ?
http://support.t-mobile.co.uk/discussions/index?page=forums&forum=80103656d92cf90123e15db75a006088
I've not looked there for sometime now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thinks it's more the phone since I'm AT&T with a Telus Desire.
This happens to me too with 2-4 bars. I thought it was my cheek hitting the End Call but it happens with BT too.
Maybe I've just been spoiled with Nokia and Motorola's reception...
It happened in Taiwan before. It's sim card's fault. We replaced our cards with new ones and problems are solved.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App

Frequent call drops/network drops - frustrated cry for help!

I have an original Desire bought in Norway, and imported (and hence VAT free!) to the UK, using my T Mobile SIM that has worked perfectly well in my G2/Hero.
Every few minutes or so, irrespective of how many connection bars, the network will suddenly drop off, and I get the "Cross of doom" on the reception icon.
If I am in the message app (standard HTC messages), and this happens, it will kick me off any message I was composing at the time, and I have to start again when the connection is back. It will also have no messages in the inbox until the network is back some seconds later and everything loads. It's almost like a blackout all of a sudden.
It will drop calls for the same reason, and 10 seconds or so I am back on connection.
I sent it back to HTC using the Global Warranty Scheme, who have changed the Main Board, FOC, and collected/delivered by courier. Very efficient service BTW. I was so disappointed to find it still having the same problem.
I have also exchanged my SIM with T Mobile for a new one (Same number). I have ordered a Vodfone PAYG SIM just to experiemt the likelyhood it may be the network provider. However, it looks more like the radio suffers a sudden loss of power, and conks out.
The APN settings have been set to WCDMA only (changed from AUTO/WCDMA) as it seemed to sort it out, but I got excited too soon.
At my wits end, as the phone is miles ahead of my G2 in so many ways, and I love it, but I don't know whether it's a T Mobile issue or if I should send it back to HTC again. As it's not provided by T Mobile, and I have another 7 months left of my contract, I am stuck if it's network related.
Any suggestions gratefully received.
OK...have now popped the PAYG Vodafone SIm into the phone, and it barely has reception and drops out too.
...so have phoned HTC again, and UPS will once again be collecting it on Monday. I asked what happens if a fault is still not found, and after the third return I can apply to have the phone replaced by HTC. It's not ideal, but beats having to pay for a flight to exchange it abroad.
Still, if anyone have any suggestions, please let me know!
Norwegianpiglet said:
At my wits end, as the phone is miles ahead of my G2 in so many ways, and I love it, but I don't know whether it's a T Mobile issue or if I should send it back to HTC again. As it's not provided by T Mobile, and I have another 7 months left of my contract, I am stuck if it's network related.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just an FYI, but I too am on T-Mobile, and recently replace my G2 with a Desire.
I find the network reception on the Desire is much better than on my G2, and I've no problems with dropped connections.
I know this doesn't help you, but it does point to the problem being your particular device.
Regards,
Dave
foxmeister said:
Just an FYI, but I too am on T-Mobile, and recently replace my G2 with a Desire.
I find the network reception on the Desire is much better than on my G2, and I've no problems with dropped connections.
I know this doesn't help you, but it does point to the problem being your particular device.
Regards,
Dave
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Dave, this does strengthen the case thinking it's the device. HTC were pretty swift in returning the device last time, so if it means a week X 2 being without it, I can live with that as I can then ask for it to be replaced on warranty direct from HTC.
I have the same issue with a Stock Desire from Vodafone..
Signal drops but more often it fluctuates like hell ... calls are dropped...
or other people can't hear me properly ...
Maybe it is an issue that will be resolved with a "Radio" update from HTC ?
Does someone know maybe this happened in the past with other HTC handsets and got sorted out later..
It is really buggy...
my girlfriend is having the same issues with her Desire
we applied the official update that was released a week or 2 ago (with a new radio) but that didn't solve the issue
sometimes she also hears a weird sound before the call goes dead..
did anybody have any luck in getting this solved?
will a custom rom fix the issues?
thanks!
coming from a htc hd2 (switched for this particular reason) i can report that this has happened on many htc phones, it is NOT a device problem, it has been mostly linked to your location and interference (buildings etc) as the frequencies used by the latest htc antennas use a frequency which does not penetrate as well.
you can read the 50 or so pages of it for the hd2, SOME progress has been made but never fixed, the only hope is HTC releasing a fix.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=614119
thanks for your fast reply!
I checked the thread you mentioned but it seems to be all about internet issues
my girlfriend never uses mobile internet so the issues she has are call related
these don't happen every day but every few days
about once every 3 weeks she gets a total signal drop which can only be solved by rebooting (this seems to be something mentioned in the thread)
then again most probably internet, call and signal issues are most likely to be caused by the radio so it could be the same problem..
is anybody experiencing the same weird loud static noise sound from time to time before a call gets auto-ended?
I just want to get all the facts straight because she is planning on sending it back to HTC for repair but if it's a new radio flash she needs there is no point in sending it back
sorry for the long post
Why don't you try setting it on AUTO, or GSM only, even better?
Sound like sudden loss of WCDMA connection.
tried that this week but the issue still remains..
is this something that can be fixed by flashing a custom rom?
or do we need to wait for HTC to provide another radio?
Maybe....
Maybe this is not your case but I want to share with you.
I had the same problem with Hero and then with the Desire. It was very frustrating. Then I got it: all the programs like auto-killer. task-killer etc were acting killing (apparently random) my voice call. Incredible ! Now I have the same Disre, but I haven't installed any task killer or task manager. The device works good and I don't have dropped calls anymore
Again, maybe it's not your case. Maybe could be helpful for someone else...
Just try if you have some task killer installed. Uninstall it

Mobile Network Drop

Not sure if anyone else has had this problem but i randomly get mobile network drops once or twice a week. The phone works perfectly well but the mobile network just drops, you cannot scan for network at all. The only way i have found around it is to enable plane mode to drop all connections and then turn plane mode back off so the network starts up. This often takes between 5 - 10 mins for it to kick in.
Tried two roms but now back to stock but still happening.
Have you tried flashing the latest radio? They are listed in the dev section.
The recent OTA 1.21.405.2 update included a new radio I think. Did you put this on too?
Since then, I have also been having the network drop out. I am missing a lot of calls as a result. Prior to this update I had two months of problem-free operation on my stock 2.1 ROM.
From reading the google forums, this is a wide-spread issue. The light at the end of the tunnel seems to be that people updating to 2.2 froyo seem to see the problem stop. Two weeks to wait for us stock ROM boys according to the rumours then! Fingers crossed.
It's a bit embarrassing having this flashy toy when it struggles to be a phone at random intervals. At the weekend one of my less techy friends was waving his Nokia 6210i in my face saying, "At least I can make and recieve calls!". So I changed the language on his phone to Turkish when he left it lying about. The old ones are the best.
I am going to test the 1.21.405.2 theory by doing a factory reset later this week when I have time. Problem should persist if it is the new radio. Will post back with the results.
OK did a factory reset this morning. I left all my apps off, and did not set back up any google account business. I basically left it as a standard mobile phone.
Within 7 hours, guess what....yes it's lost the connection again. Strongly believe this is a radio problem. I'm too noob to know if I can flash the radio without rooting. Anyone?
I have since submitted my complaint with HTC CS. Will await their response, and post it here.
In the interim, turning airplane mode off and on again does regain the connection, and I have installed an app from the market place called "No Coverage Alert". It will now beep and buzz if I loose the connection so at least I will be aware every time it bombs out. Far from ideal but should do for now.
Watch this space.
Yes i have tried the two radios posted but i havent tried any international ones such as europe or asia. I still randomly get network drop and i need to turn radio off and back on again for it to pick up.
Maybe i should ask a chef if these drops are logged anywhere on the device so i can root in and look at the logs myself and diagnose what the network drop is on my phone.
Just to confirm, tried multiple radios and roms, i know exactly what i am doing all i would like is explaination of why it happens. It is not user error as i have tried with stock rom, no fancy apps etc to stop it from working or changing config.
its got something to do with the network radio libs that need a service restart. i am 100% sure if i rooted in and knew which service to restart it would work also
Erm.... this is a little embarrassing but I feel I need to own up to prevent misleading anyone. I have arranged with HTC customer support to send my Desire back for repair. They pick it up Monday.
I bought a cheap £10 phone to keep me going. It arrived this morning. After I had finished laughing at it, I put the SIM card in and powered up the phone.
"No SIM card instered" was the message it greeted me with. After numerous power-up and power downs, and some SIM card hoakee-coakee, it finally recognised the SIM card......then dropped the signal to Orange. EXACTLY what my HTC Desire did.
Doh.
I had tried the SIM card in another phone (my girlfriends Blackberry) when the problems first started and it had worked straight away. But the SIM card seems to be random in it's failures. Should have tested more rigorously.
Sorry guys but in my instance it seems I have simply a faulty SIM card. The first one I have ever had go wrong in 12 years, but there you go. I was too fast to blame Android/HTC.
A|ex, please try your SIM card in another handset. Do several power-ups to see if it goes wrong. Would explain why trying numerous radios/ROMs has not helped you.
Let me know?
I had the same issue. Talked all day and evening, then toyed around with the phone a little, flashed a new ROM, no connection. oO okay, that's weird. Tried 3 different ROMs, reset to factory settings. Went to Orange, the SIM was borked. Thankfully, getting a new one took all of 5 minutes and didn't cost me a dime.
Yep. Was the SIM card. The new one arrived from Orange this morning. Popped it in and it's working straight away. My 3G has even improved slightly I reckon.
Six hours of use and not one drop yet.
Thank god for that.

Call Reception problems...

Are any of you guys having any drop call issues? My SG2 shows 4 full bars of reception while on a call and the call goes silent for a few seconds before it drops. It does this at home, on the road and at work.
Funny story…last night while driving home from work, I kept the screen lit and talked on the phone using my jawbone Bluetooth. I watched the bars drop down to 1 even 0 at one point yet the call never dropped that time. Isn’t that ironic
Unfortunately for me, all of these areas I have trouble are dead in the middle of excellent tmobile 4G coverage. My old phones never had this issue (HTC Sensation, iphone 4 etc)in these same exact areas.
So far, I’ve spoken with 611 & had the local TMO store replace my sim card but the phone still drops calls.
Would hate to have to exchange it for a new one but it looks as if I have no choice. Are any of you guys having any reception issues? If so please use this space to talk about it
EDIT
In case anyone asks, I'm using the original sim card that came with the phone. TMO store also pulled another SG2 sim card out for me to swap last night but so far the problem still persists
it could be software related, or it might very well be a hardware issue
are you still on stock, or have you flashed anything yet?
AllGamer said:
it could be software related, or it might very well be a hardware issue
are you still on stock, or have you flashed anything yet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm still running my stock rom. Sunday Night, I flashed the Odin root on the stock rom and ran that for two days. Afterwards I uninstalled the Odin root and went back to stock when I discovered the call drop issues in fear I'd have to return my phone back to the store.
Its been two days back on the stock unrooted rom and I'm still noticing the same reception issues.
For the root, I followed the instructions in this thread.
To unroot, I followed these instructions.
Everything went well in fact I'm using Galaxy S2 right now. Do you guys think this root could be the cause of my reception issue?

SIM card not detected - then detected again

My phone is constantly failing to detect the sim card, usually if I restart the phone or leave it for enough hours it will "find" it again.
Short of reflashing it I'm not sure if there's any way to determine if this is a software or hardware issue. The phone itself is a refurbished one (thanks to the phones insurance replacing it a few months ago), however it is now out of warranty. If it was a hardware fault, how much would it probably cost?
Thanks, Shaun.
The first thing I'd try is a different SIM card or a different SIM card insert (bit of plastic that the SIM sits in).
Has this always happened since you've had the phone?
or
Has it happened since you flashed the phone?
As for the price of repair I haven't a clue (i do all repairs myself), but my guess is in excess of £150
You may want to provide more information before other, more experienced people, come to your aid.
It's slowly gotten worse over the last few months (the first couple of times I just thought it was a once off bug or something, which is why it's very difficult for me to give you an exact when it happened).
The fact that its gotten worse in itself is leading me to guess its a hardware fault - I could have knocked or dropped it and not remember or something.
I don't have any other SIMs but I'll give flashing it to a different ROM or stock a shot first.
shauntp said:
It's slowly gotten worse over the last few months (the first couple of times I just thought it was a once off bug or something, which is why it's very difficult for me to give you an exact when it happened).
The fact that its gotten worse in itself is leading me to guess its a hardware fault - I could have knocked or dropped it and not remember or something.
I don't have any other SIMs but I'll give flashing it to a different ROM or stock a shot first.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I feel as if that is your best best before you go throwing money at it.
Good luck!
Does the phone say no sim card (with icon) or do you lose service?
nor1982 said:
Does the phone say no sim card (with icon) or do you lose service?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It has done both, the latter's slightly more common though. Probably more often than both it will momentarily drop out, then come up with a "Preparing SIM card..." message.
Still happening after flashing it with a different ROM. Looks like it's probably hardware :/
Might be coxicial cable that connects the pcb with antenea board they do come off from time to time
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app
Hi there,
i have a similar problem with my device:
network disconnects sometimes (for some reasons ok, as example when i sit in the underground or other places without gsm network) - but then the services doesnt comes back - i'm complete offline. next behavior: i'm just talking with full gsm bandwidth, and for really no reason i get disconnected -> no network anymore, no service anymore.
can it be a hardware fault or should i try to flash the modem (when possible) ? I'm on the latest HTC firmware, device isnt rooted or flashed... it is as i got it from the market.
thanks for a hint what i can try
See above could be that, what network you on?
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app
nor1982 said:
See above could be that, what network you on?
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm on GSM (in Germany the O2 network)
maybe the network fault can be solved:
just have read in the vodafone forum in uk and found a hint from a user, who was taping the back side of the SIM card with 2 stripes of plastic.
Have tried this and report tomorrow here if it solves the issue
Tested with taped SIM card and i can say: it works like a charme

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