University Campus Woes - G2 and Desire Z Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I just transferred to the University of Minnesota,and it seems like T-Mobile has terrible coverage and penetration on campus; my average bars are lower, and my battery life has tanked, with battery stats telling me that the cell standby is taking 35-50%, with anywhere between 5-35% time without signal. I can only guess that the radio is sitting at max power trying to grab signal, but I may be wrong.
I've tried both the 26.08.04.30 radio, and the newest Bell one, both seeing terrible performance. I find myself needing my phone data, so I'd rather not slap on airplane mode or turn off 3G if I can help it. I was even considering tethering whenever I decide to get a laptop.
Anyone have any tips?
EDIT: A couple additions, fixes.
Sent from my G2

Does your school have WiFi pretty much everywhere? My university does, and I am on a newer Even More plan so I was able to get free WiFi calling (does not use minutes). WiFi saves battery especially when using data when compared to cellular data. Just make sure you set the WiFi sleep policy to never in Settings > Wireless > WiFi settings > Menu > Advanced

I've been attempting to use that as my solution, but it seems like there are plenty of areas with flaky wifi. I feel like that's going to make the radio work hard to try grabbing a good signal, in addition to Wifi Calling trying to enable if it drops. I'm seeing how it goes.
Sent from my G2

Wifi calling is your best bet, I use it on campus and in lecture halls all the time. If Tmobile has crappy service in the area there really isn't much you can do to change it. Sucks.
Sent from my T-mobile G2 using Tapatalk

Related

[Q] no signal drains phone quick

I work in a building that is well shielded in most places and get no signal. My phone drains incredibly quick when this is the case. Is there a way to reduce the polling frequency that it looks for a tower to stop this? I thought juicedefender might but I can't figure a way to do this.
Rom: Fresh 4.0.0.4b
Kernel: netarchy 4.3.1.4 cfs have no sbc
hw version 0003
juicedefender ultimate
setcpu 200-1152MHz, smartass governor
Thanks!
When I'm in an area where I roam or have very poor signal I notice increased drain rate as well. This was the same with my TP2. I've always just understood that when the phone is constantly seeking signal and cycling back and forth between roam/3G/1x the battery drains faster.
Your best option, is to utilize "airplane mode" when you know you're going to be in an area that had no signal/you won't be able to use it. I hate to do it because I don't like my family not being able to reach me in case of an emergency, but it is one option for you.
I second the airplane option. Also, WiFi is available while in airplane mode. Perhaps your building has WiFi you can connect to and you can keep something like AIM or Facebook or Google Voice/Talk open and instruct those who might need you in an emergency to reach you through the method of your choice so that you may call out from a landline or step away from the building if there is an emergency.
Just a thought.
See if you can get in on the new Google voice option where you can make your sprint # your Google voice number. Once you have done that you can have your work # as one of your forwarding numbers if your work allows. Or airplane mode with a 2nd charger for work.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
Yep, Airplane mode is the ONLY way to turn off the cell radio. Otherwise, it will be constantly polling for a tower.
Dial ##3282# from a froyo sense rom and it will bring up a menu where you can change how often it polls the tower. It's Going to affect how long it takes your phone to receive calls though.
Sent from my EVO
If you know you're not getting reception, why not just use airplane mode? I mean, if you don't have reception you're not getting contacted anyway.
If you want to go the airplane mode route, Tasker is a great app that lets you control lots of things. You should be able to turn off your radios at set times during the day and have them enable after you get out of work.
I just loaded the 2.1 EPST and run a Verizon PRL when I am at work. I get a crappy Sprint signal at work. However your issue seems to be different as the walls/windows may be blocking all signals? Verizon seems to penetrate better though.
With Tasker, you can also set your phone to airplane mode during work hours, but automatically turn it off and enable data every fifteen minutes (or however long) to check for text messages, voicemails, etc. That is assuming that you get any signal at work... if you don't have a signal at all, just turn airplane mode on yourself.
To answer your question:
Yes, not having a signal will drain your battery. The phone will keep increasing the radio strength to lock onto a tower. Opposite is true to, if you have a strong signal, the radio will decrease the power level thus saving battery power.
You might want to contact Sprint ([email protected]) and let them know that you don't get service in your work building. They gave me a airwave device, but have to have Internet connection for it to work. The only other option might be to have some type of power booster/repeater that are typically very expensive. Not sure how your employer would feel about these suggestions - but never hurts to ask.
I am military and work on a base. The entire internet is locked down except for official military business, so an Airave device wouldn't work.
No internet, no cell signal and neither AM or FM penetrates. Maximum pain.
I'll try tasker, thanks guys.
tomplatz said:
I am military and work on a base. The entire internet is locked down except for official military business, so an Airave device wouldn't work.
No internet, no cell signal and neither AM or FM penetrates. Maximum pain.
I'll try tasker, thanks guys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In that case, if you don't already have Tasker, I'd just turn airplane mode on yourself when you get to work & turn it off when you leave. Or there are free apps that will do it automatically that aren't as complex as Tasker. Unless you find another use for it, then go ahead.
Would roam control work to try verizon towers? I think they have a stronger signal locally.
tomplatz said:
I am military and work on a base. The entire internet is locked down except for official military business, so an Airave device wouldn't work.
No internet, no cell signal and neither AM or FM penetrates. Maximum pain.
I'll try tasker, thanks guys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL you said it yourself. If the military doesn't want you getting signal, you're not getting signal. In general, if you can't get radio signal you can't get cell phone signal. Early cell phones operated on FM (type: frequency modulation) radio and what we're using now is basically a digital-type FM radio. In the end it's all EM waves and you're likely in a giant Faraday cage of a military base. I say avoid even trying to fix your problem and just go airplane mode.

No 3G signal after getting off Wifi

Just curious if this happened to anyone or is it just me: most of the time I'm connected to wifi to save battery (home, school, etc) and when I'm out of range it should automatically connect me to the 3g network but it's not. I check settings and 3g is still enabled. Anyone know why?
JBNAquatics said:
Just curious if this happened to anyone or is it just me: most of the time I'm connected to wifi to save battery (home, school, etc) and when I'm out of range it should automatically connect me to the 3g network but it's not. I check settings and 3g is still enabled. Anyone know why?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am also experiencing this. This happens to me when I am connected to WiFi with bad or no signal but then when I turn off WiFi and go to a good signal area it still registers no signal until I restart my phone then all is fine. Definitely a major bug.
ive had 2 of these phones, ive never had an issue with this. eh. maybe im lucky
Any solution to this?
Ever since I purchased this phone, I hardly get 3g signal. Will a hard reset fix this problem? I have to go by 4g or wi-fi on this phone for data.
JBNAquatics said:
Just curious if this happened to anyone or is it just me: most of the time I'm connected to wifi to save battery (home, school, etc) and when I'm out of range it should automatically connect me to the 3g network but it's not. I check settings and 3g is still enabled. Anyone know why?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
having wifi on will actually kill your battery more because you have another radio running, thats why they give you the option to turn it off. (to save battery)
hmm thats odd though mine turns back on just fine
try a hard reset.
its deff a software issue
dtr145r said:
having wifi on will actually kill your battery more because you have another radio running, thats why they give you the option to turn it off. (to save battery)
hmm thats odd though mine turns back on just fine
try a hard reset.
its deff a software issue
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong, having wifi on saves power because than your phone doesn't have to ping and search for cell towers
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
csdalporto said:
Wrong, having wifi on saves power because than your phone doesn't have to ping and search for cell towers
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1. Wifi Is definitelya battery saver. I leave wifi on all night at home. I get great battery life. I also never have the problem with 3g either. It always comes back even if I lose wifi signal.
The Evo3D Killer!!!
I noticed this in mine, so I went to Settings->Wireless and Network-> Mobile Network Data and then unchecked 3G and re-checked it and it hasn't had the problem since. Try it and report back.
a lot of users are having this issue along with low speed results on 3g, I read on another forum that Samsung/Sprint are working on it but I'd take that with a grain of salt. I fixed the radio wake up issue on my phone by doing factory reset and then going through the hands free activation again. Haven't had it since.
i'm having this issue too. Turning off wifi, or every time I go in an elevator and loose my 3g signal.
The strange thing though is I had this same problem with my OG Epic for the last two weeks I had it. I flashed back to the current Sprint rom and still had the problem. It was actually the reason I bought the Epic Touch on day 1.
I too am having 3G connection problems
My work is located a mile North of the 101 and Scottsdale and I can't get signal in my building, even if I walk to the big windows.
Of course Phoenix has no 4g so Im S.O.L.

4g Data On/Off Program?

Has anyone found an app to toggle the 4G on/off yet? I realise it is disabled in Android 2.3, but I see they have it working for the Evo and maybe others. I also saw at least one paid app that says it works, but I don't want to pay for it and then find out it doesn't work.
Thanks,
All the 4g toggles I've tried work on WiMax only
Why do you want to disable 4g? Its not like an lte out Wimax radio that causes massive battery drain so why turn it off?
Sent from my Hercules with xda Premium.
Data Enabler Widget
really? i did not know this. I'm not sure what Sprint uses, but i know when i had sprint if i disabled my mobile data it made my battery last MUCH longer.
most of the standard 4g toggle widgets included in most widget packs, i.e. widgetzoid, do not work on this phone.
the one toggle i have found to work is called "Data Enabler Widget" by "farproc" it is available on the market.
Be aware that picture messaging does NOT work without 4g data on, and you must re enable it before you use it. (wifi too for some stupid reason)
why disable?
I want to disable it primarily because i don't have unlimited data, but also to extend battery life as well. If there is no toggle switch that works I will just have get used to the extra steps of turning it on and off through the settings menu.
Yesterday I used 50% of the data that I would normally use in a month, because I thought I was using wifi, but apparently was not. That tells me that the phone either is not holding the wifi signal at home very well or the wifi is not overriding the data connection. Either way, I need to be turning off the data connection when I am at home or using a wifi hotspot.
if you would take the time to read my post, i just provided you with the exact app you are looking for. it is a widget available on the android market. it is called;
DATA ENABLER WIDGET by farproc.
kthx.
bikemaker said:
I want to disable it primarily because i don't have unlimited data, but also to extend battery life as well. If there is no toggle switch that works I will just have get used to the extra steps of turning it on and off through the settings menu.
Yesterday I used 50% of the data that I would normally use in a month, because I thought I was using wifi, but apparently was not. That tells me that the phone either is not holding the wifi signal at home very well or the wifi is not overriding the data connection. Either way, I need to be turning off the data connection when I am at home or using a wifi hotspot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Another option then is any this party power control app. You can turn off mobile data through those.
Sent from my Hercules with xda Premium.
I always used the power control app on my Hero, but unfortunately the one for this phone doesn't include a data toggle.
reata Enabler Widget
ApexZeph,
I tried the Data Enabler Widget you mentioned and it works perfectly! Thanks!
Sprint's 4G is not the same as HSPA+. HSPA+ is just 3G, or if you wanna feel better, 3.5G. It runs all the time and doesn't use extra battery because you're still only using the 3G radio. Sprint's 4G is WiMax, which is basically glorified Wifi and requires a totally separate radio. It works like Wifi; you turn it on, wait for it to scan and connect to the 4G network (which doesn't even deserve to be called 4G because it sucks ****).
Since you guys are on GSM, what you could do is disable 3G data and that would do it. You'd go to EDGE, but you'd save a ton of battery. Again, 4G is just a marketing term for you guys; you're still just using fast 3G.
kenvan19 said:
Why do you want to disable 4g? Its not like an lte out Wimax radio that causes massive battery drain so why turn it off?
Sent from my Hercules with xda Premium.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its not?
4G on idle 2 hours: 18% drain from 100%
EDGE idle 2 hours: 5% drain from 100%.
4G is a bleeder.
kenvan19 said:
Why do you want to disable 4g? Its not like an lte out Wimax radio that causes massive battery drain so why turn it off?
Sent from my Hercules with xda Premium.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HSPA+ uses a lot more power than EDGE. Programs like Juice Defender use this fact to their advantage and disable HSPA when the screen is off, and I hear it just about doubles idle battery life.
manekineko said:
HSPA+ uses a lot more power than EDGE. Programs like Juice Defender use this fact to their advantage and disable HSPA when the screen is off, and I hear it just about doubles idle battery life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HSPA+ = 3G. Yes, 3G uses more power than EDGE. It has always been and will always be that way. There is no magical "4G" toggle because HSPA IS 3G. So the only way to turn off your faux-G is to turn off 3G data and fall back to EDGE.
There is no 2g/3g(4g) toggle that works on the stock roms. It will just take you to the settings page where you have to choose GSM/HSPA, GSM only, or HSPA only.
knickfan5745 said:
There is no 2g/3g(4g) toggle that works on the stock roms. It will just take you to the settings page where you have to choose GSM/HSPA, GSM only, or HSPA only.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GSM only = 2G only
HSPA = 3G/4G only (remember, they use the same radio)
GSM/HSPA+ = whatever is available, with HSPA having priority.
Hey everyone,
I spent 4 hours this evening reading up on how to Root, CWM, and Flash a ROM onto my SGS2. Contained in one of the threads (I believe it was [ROM][NOV 14]Bombaridier V.2.0) I came across a brief mention of a program which allows the user to toggle 4g Data on/off simply by clicking the icon. I downloaded it, and just now I flashed Bombaridier (awesome ROM btw). That problem is now gone (obviously) and I can not, for the life of me, remember what it was called. I'm hoping someone can throw me a bone here so I don't have to sift through hundreds of pages again in order to find it. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks
Nate
You are probably speaking of Juice Defender but Ill let you know of another program that is better IMO. It's called LLama its event based. I have two events 1. Mobile data on when screen is on and 2. Mobile data off when screen is off. Juice defender does the same thing but every fifften mins turns on 4g grabs emails etc and then turns off again. The reason I think LLama is better is because in my job Ill forget about my phone while working and pick it hours later. yesterday my phone went 2hrs before it dropped from 100% to 99%.
the only problem I find with having mobile data off when screen is off (llama) personally is that I use GV as my text app. and if my mobile data is off, then I won't know that I've received any text.
When in the office, i do not have wifi, so I rely on my data connections for texts. Is there a condition where when the screen is off for 1 minute, then mobile data will be turned off and turn on again every 10 minutes or so (like juice defender) to help me check if i received any text?

[Q] WiFi networking - advice needed

I am completely ignorant of the WiFi configuration and purpose on this phone. Can anyone help?
1) I have an unlimited data plan. Should I care about using WiFi at all?
2) If I have a 4G/3G signal loss, will WiFi automatically kick in to sustain a signal?
3) I currently have no WiFi networks attached, and a scan returns nothing.
Should I be attaching WiFi networks manually. If so, how?
4) Should I just allow my battery optimizer app to disable WiFi?
mds54 said:
I am completely ignorant of the WiFi configuration and purpose on this phone. Can anyone help?
1) I have an unlimited data plan. Should I care about using WiFi at all?
2) If I have a 4G/3G signal loss, will WiFi automatically kick in to sustain a signal?
3) I currently have no WiFi networks attached, and a scan returns nothing.
Should I be attaching WiFi networks manually. If so, how?
4) Should I just allow my battery optimizer app to disable WiFi?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) That's upto you. If your speeds suck, or are in a terrible reception area (switching between 4G and 3G a lot, or stuck in 3G), then Wifi can be faster.
2) If you lose 3G/4G data, it may not connect to wifi unless your configured network is nearby. Normally, wifi will be always connected unless you're out of range of that particular signal.
3) Make sure Wifi is switched on. (switch will be blue in the on position). If you don't see any networks, then there are none. You may have to add networks manually, but thats because its not broadcasting its SSID (ie making itself visible), but thats usually in like a corporate environment.
4) I have noticed that being on Wifi saves me some battery than being on 4G, but your results may vary.
I can only offer advice on the first one. I also have unlimited data but I use wifi whenever possible. Wifi doubles my battery life. Using 4g all the time kills it way too quickly.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA
mds54 said:
I am completely ignorant of the WiFi configuration and purpose on this phone. Can anyone help?
1) I have an unlimited data plan. Should I care about using WiFi at all?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you're happy with your speeds then no. WiFi does save battery though.
2) If I have a 4G/3G signal loss, will WiFi automatically kick in to sustain a signal?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, because WiFi isn't always on (or shouldn't be), and won't automatically turn on. You'll have to turn it on manually if 3G/4G isn't available.
3) I currently have no WiFi networks attached, and a scan returns nothing. Should I be attaching WiFi networks manually. If so, how?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If there's no WiFi around you, then there's no WiFi around you... The only reason you'd have to manually enter a network is if you're at home and aren't broadcasting your SSID, so you won't pick it up on a scan. You should elaborate more on this.
These comments make me think you don't understand how WiFi works....
4) Should I just allow my battery optimizer app to disable WiFi?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Battery optimizer apps don't always know what's best. Usually how they work is they'll turn off WiFi when you get out of range of your house or other specific location (via GPS). Then enable when they "know" you're at home (again, by GPS). Usually its easier to just have a toggle widget for WiFi and turn it on when you're at home if you want it.
I think this additional info may be useful:
Wifi is not a feature of your phone service through your provider. It is a completely different technology that replaces, not amplifies, your 3g/4g connection when it is on and connected. When you are using your phone's data connection, you are connected to the internet through your phone provider, which is also functioning as your Internet Service Provider (in your case, Verizon).
A wifi signal only exists when a wireless device is broadcasting it locally. Most often this is a wireless router in someone's home, office, or a store that offers wifi for its customers. In this case, your internet connection goes through the router, then to a hard-wired internet connection off to whatever ISP the service is paid for through.
It is a much shorter-range technology than your cell service. As such, while your phone will eat through your battery boosting its signal if it can't connect to a cell tower, your phone will use much less energy looking for wifi signals.
If you are absolutely sure that you will not be connecting to wifi networks in your daily travels, you should turn wifi off and not worry about it. If you have an existing wifi connection at home/work, then leaving wifi on and letting it connect will save you battery when you are within range. The idle drain of wifi when it is looking for networks is fairly low, so if you are going to be spending large amounts of time in wifi zones, you might as well just always leave it on.
If your phone shows no wifi available by a scan, chances are very slim that there is a non-broadcast network that you would be able to connect to manually; someone is keeping it hidden and it is most likely password-protected as well. Most private networks will be visible to a scan, but are probably password protected. You will need to connect to these manually; your phone will not alert you to their presence. Your phone will automatically let you know if there is an unprotected network in range. By default, if wifi is enabled, it will automatically connect to any network that comes into range that you have already connected to.
Wow, you guys are good! Thanks!

Battery drain on bad reception

Hey, guys.
I have my phone now for 4 month and I've checked following thing: the battery drain is incredible on bad mobile coverage. In my apartment I have really pur reception, all phones loose the reception permanently (in this way one x is much better than my wife's Iphone 4).
It is normal, that the phone consumes much energy, but one x consumes just to much. For example, if I'm at home, the drain is like 2 or even 3 procent in hour even on sense roms, and if I'm in place with good reception, it's like 1 procent in 2 and more hours, so the overall batter life is waaaay much better...
Now the question is, if I could do something to make my phone to be not so aggressive on searching for the network? I know, it can bring worse network, but it is not really a problem for me.
P. S.:switching to flight mode is not an answer for me
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app
flight mode is the first thing i would have said, but not an option, so the next thing i would look at is something like vodafone suresignal - check with your network provider, they might offer a service similar, basically you get a little box from them, plug into your internet connection, and it will give your phone signal.
can't really think of something apart from a kernel tweak of some sort that would stop the phone scanning so much for cell towers, but i'm not sure where that would be, or even if it is possible..
its normal when signal drops out the phone turns the phones radio on full to scan for a network.
i would try going to settings > mobile network ( click the word not the switch) > network mode
and set it to GSM only, this will force the phone to only use 2g signal, means you don't get 3g internet so it will be very slow for internet, but 2g uses less power than 3g.
i do this alot as where i live there is low/2g signal only so i force it on to the 2g to stop it looking for a 3g network
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using xda app-developers app
treebill said:
its normal when signal drops out the phone turns the phones radio on full to scan for a network.
i would try going to settings > mobile network ( click the word not the switch) > network mode
and set it to GSM only, this will force the phone to only use 2g signal, means you don't get 3g internet so it will be very slow for internet, but 2g uses less power than 3g.
i do this alot as where i live there is low/2g signal only so i force it on to the 2g to stop it looking for a 3g network
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use this option a lot, this is not directly what I asked for. I just want my gsm radio to be not so aggressive. Just like changing cpu governors values
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app
Hi
Zlotin said:
I use this option a lot, this is not directly what I asked for. I just want my gsm radio to be not so aggressive. Just like changing cpu governors values
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If there is no reception at all the phone radio shouldn't use much power, this is because it is just listening for a signal and will not be transmitting anything. If the radio is consuming more power, it is likely because it can hear the transmitter (they obviously transmit with much more power) and so the phone on hearing the mother ship is trying to reply at full transmit power available to it, but this isn't enough to be heard which drains more power. It doesn't taking many attempts at transmitting at full power to have a battery draining faster than usual.
Some applications on having no data connection might start waking the device a lot in a panic and don't back off trying, so every few seconds they will be waking the phone trying to connect to a remote server somewhere. Do you have Wi-Fi on to keep applications happy if they want to keep phoning home?
You have few options really,
1) is to just the mobile phone part off and leave Wi-Fi running which should help. You can do this by switching to flight mode then enabling just the Wi-Fi, or there will be widgets available I'm sure to just turn off the mobile phone part.
2) Turn off syncing to see if it is an application getting panicky, again you will have widgets you can add to your home page to easily switch this setting
3) You can use a Phone Schedule type application and have your phone go to flight mode automatically timed for when you are usually at home and overnight to save battery drain, free ones at the Play store.
4) If you have internet access at your apartment and depending on your mobile phone operator you might be able to get a femtocell, this will give you a full signal and service at home.
Regards
Phil
Its not just the HOX that does this, its all phones and it is bloody annoying.
My wifes parents live in the middle of nowhere and if we didnt' change our phones (inc, hox, s2,n900,iphone3...) to flightmode when there over night they would be flat.
treebill said:
its normal when signal drops out the phone turns the phones radio on full to scan for a network.
i would try going to settings > mobile network ( click the word not the switch) > network mode
and set it to GSM only, this will force the phone to only use 2g signal, means you don't get 3g internet so it will be very slow for internet, but 2g uses less power than 3g.
i do this alot as where i live there is low/2g signal only so i force it on to the 2g to stop it looking for a 3g network
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have that option. What's up with that? Does AT&T lock that option on their phones?
Tcndeb said:
I don't have that option. What's up with that? Does AT&T lock that option on their phones?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
dial *#*#4636#*#* and goto phone information, scroll down, and you'll have all different modes there.
sometimes this doesn't stick though
that option would probably be there on a normal custom rom (unless this isn't actually possible on at&t??)
i could be misinformed, im from uk, so a little un educated on how the networks work over there..

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