I went into Three shop on Oxford street today and aksed about returned defective handsets, but she didn`t know what I`m talking about. After I explained, she said they don`t use 2G for voice any more, its all 3G now, hence no returned phones with volume bug. "All 2G masts have been replaced with 3G ones, very very few 2G left".
I thought 3G was only for data? Or it can also transmit voice? Some time ago I remember they used o2 for their voice calls?
I`m currently on Vodafone and their coverage is so crap. Try getting signal(iPhone 4) indoors with thick walls or with steel constructions - good luck. Not even talking getting 3G for data. But my Three USB broadband dongle just flies, no difference indoors/outdoors whatsoever. Very impressive.
So, would this mean that if I switch to Three, my voice coverage would also be much better not just 3G?
I'm with 3 uk, good coverage and signal most places. I was told that 3 doesn't use the 900Mhz band so I can only assume it uses 3g for voice as well.
I've also had the GNexus for a week and not noticed the volume bug at all.
2G can be either voice or Data. You get crappy speeds compared to 3G, and the trade off is you can only have one running at the given time, meaning you can't browse the web while in a call.
3G is the next step after 2G, and allows for both voice and data(at least on a GSM carrier), and offers a lot better speeds than 2G.
To answer your last question, it really depends on the coverage you have in the area, so I cannot answer it; you just have to try it out yourself.
I am on three network, I am pretty sure they using "3g" (probably why its called three?), and don't actually has any 2g network/mast anymore. In fact, when you request for a sim card from three, it says you must have a 3g type of phone.
Where you get areas that doesn't have 3g, it will fall back to 2g but will be using someone elses network to provide (last I had heard was orange network). Not sure if that is true anymore as that news I had heard is a few years old.
They used to have a deal with orange to carry 2G, and it still works in a few places, although officially they'll tell you that's all done with. Three have been aggressively rolling out their network to replace all that (which is why you can get 3g signal in fields in the middle of nowhere).
Three only has 3g masts which means you get 3g signal pretty much everywhere. If you go somewhere with a poor or non existent 3g signal the phone will roam on to Orange 2g. Three used to have a roaming agreement with Orange for the entire uk however, recently they have started to end this agreement with Orange in areas where they know the 3g network is strong enough.
I'm with three and if you're on the three 3g network it will show 3 as the operator when you pull down the notification bar. If you roam on to Orange 2g it shows 3 with another 3 directly underneath it. On a side note I actually left orange for three due to signal issues, oh how the tides have changed since three first started out with 3g .
Oh and Three use 2100mhz for their 3g network and Orange use 1800mhz for their 2g which is why customers on Three or Orange never have the volume issue which affects people on o2 and Vodafone(both mainly use the 900mhz frequencies).
Rik.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk
DDRFAN said:
2G can be either voice or Data. You get crappy speeds compared to 3G, and the trade off is you can only have one running at the given time, meaning you can't browse the web while in a call.
3G is the next step after 2G, and allows for both voice and data(at least on a GSM carrier), and offers a lot better speeds than 2G.
To answer your last question, it really depends on the coverage you have in the area, so I cannot answer it; you just have to try it out yourself.
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Simultaneously? Can I surf web and at least receive phone call & sms? Or if somebody calls me it will go to voicemail?
aindow said:
Three only has 3g masts which means you get 3g signal pretty much everywhere. If you go somewhere with a poor or non existent 3g signal the phone will roam on to Orange 2g. Three used to have a roaming agreement with Orange for the entire uk however, recently they have started to end this agreement with Orange in areas where they know the 3g network is strong enough.
I'm with three and if you're on the three 3g network it will show 3 as the operator when you pull down the notification bar. If you roam on to Orange 2g it shows 3 with another 3 directly underneath it. On a side note I actually left orange for three due to signal issues, oh how the tides have changed since three first started out with 3g .
Oh and Three use 2100mhz for their 3g network and Orange use 1800mhz for their 2g which is why customers on Three or Orange never have the volume issue which affects people on o2 and Vodafone(both mainly use the 900mhz frequencies).
Rik.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
i'm confused.. does this mean three does not also get hsdpa? or hspa+? i get that signal on my orange desire hd - as the galaxy nexus is hspa+ device its now got me puzzled.. hmmm..
Three will not let you use 2g signal. They lock all their phones up so it's not possible. That's how they claim to have the fastest network in the uk. If your our of a 3G signal area, you have no signal.
GR36 said:
Three will not let you use 2g signal. They lock all their phones up so it's not possible. That's how they claim to have the fastest network in the uk. If your our of a 3G signal area, you have no signal.
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Are you sure?! That sounds very unrealistic.
MrYuzhai said:
i'm confused.. does this mean three does not also get hsdpa? or hspa+? i get that signal on my orange desire hd - as the galaxy nexus is hspa+ device its now got me puzzled.. hmmm..
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Click to collapse
Three has HSDPA/+ because I have their mobile broadband USB dongle.
GR36 said:
Three will not let you use 2g signal. They lock all their phones up so it's not possible. That's how they claim to have the fastest network in the uk. If your our of a 3G signal area, you have no signal.
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Click to collapse
That is rubbish IMO. Three use orange 2g as already said if there isn't 3g network. I work in the middle of nowhere and get excellent 3g signal from three. I have tried all operators before three and it has the best coverage and speed that I have found. Its like having 3 meg broadband.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App
I've used a 2G signal recently on 3 so can't agree with that either.
What I heard though is the 2G will be restricted to voice only? Not sure how true that is.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
rbs_uk said:
Simultaneously? Can I surf web and at least receive phone call & sms? Or if somebody calls me it will go to voicemail?
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Click to collapse
yes, on 3G or HSPA you can be online and receive calls and texts simultaneously.
with 2G you can only receive texts whilst in a call.
rbs_uk said:
GR36 said:
Three will not let you use 2g signal. They lock all their phones up so it's not possible. That's how they claim to have the fastest network in the uk. If your our of a 3G signal area, you have no signal.
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Click to collapse
Are you sure?! That sounds very unrealistic.
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it's not unrealistic, it's true
chrishiggins said:
That is rubbish IMO. Three use orange 2g as already said if there isn't 3g network.
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Click to collapse
According to this article dated more than a year ago, you are wrong.
oscillik, once again you're the one that's wrong. Three do still allow you to roam onto oranges 2g network in areas with no 3g signal. I know this is true as I still occasionally do it.
Did you even bother reading the Reg article you posted. Try reading the very first paragraph "3 has started to switch off roaming onto Orange's 2G network in locations where it reckons its own coverage makes the 2G partner redundant."
If that looks familiar, it should as it's almost exactly what chrishiggins said.
You must be getting used to being wrong by now...
erbain said:
oscillik, once again you're the one that's wrong. Three do still allow you to roam onto oranges 2g network in areas with no 3g signal. I know this is true as I still occasionally do it.
Did you even bother reading the Reg article you posted. Try reading the very first paragraph "3 has started to switch off roaming onto Orange's 2G network in locations where it reckons its own coverage makes the 2G partner redundant."
If that looks familiar, it should as it's almost exactly what chrishiggins said.
You must be getting used to being wrong by now...
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Click to collapse
Actually you are wrong. Here is what chrishiggins said, with the pertinent details bolded for you
chrishiggins said:
That is rubbish IMO. Three use orange 2g as already said if there isn't 3g network. I work in the middle of nowhere and get excellent 3g signal from three. I have tried all operators before three and it has the best coverage and speed that I have found. Its like having 3 meg broadband.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App
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Click to collapse
Now, as you can see, he quite clearly states that even in the middle of nowhere, he gets excellent 3G signal. Nowhere in his post does he make any allusions to anything that the Register article mentions.
Also, yes I did read the article, particularly the part that states that the article is a year old.
Since you seem to be so keen on facts, please, find every single instance of where I have been wrong and haven't admitted to being so, and post the evidence for all to see, collated into one area.
Take your time.
Wow, what have you been smoking? I know what he said, you have quoted it several times.
Let's try this one more time :
"Three use orange 2g as already said if there isn't 3g network" This is what you originally quoted and stated was wrong, it is in fact true and is exactly what the Reg article says. You used to be able to use orange 2g anywhere in the UK but now you can only use it where there no good 3g signal.
"I work in the middle of nowhere and get excellent 3g signal from three" So he has a good 3g signal at his work, what's this got to do with being able to roam onto 2g in bad 3g areas?
oscillik said:
Since you seem to be so keen on facts, please, find every single instance of where I have been wrong and haven't admitted to being so, and post the evidence for all to see, collated into one area.
Take your time.
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Click to collapse
I think I'll pass, but If I'm reading a thread where you're spewing ****e and generally being rude I'll make a point of replying.
erbain said:
Wow, what have you been smoking? I know what he said, you have quoted it several times.
Let's try this one more time :
"Three use orange 2g as already said if there isn't 3g network" This is what you originally quoted and stated was wrong, it is in fact true and is exactly what the Reg article says. You used to be able to use orange 2g anywhere in the UK but now you can only use it where there no good 3g signal.
"I work in the middle of nowhere and get excellent 3g signal from three" So he has a good 3g signal at his work, what's this got to do with being able to roam onto 2g in bad 3g areas?
I think I'll pass, but If I'm reading a thread where you're spewing ****e and generally being rude I'll make a point of replying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I apologise for being wrong with regard to your first point. As you have correctly made me out to be a fool here, chrishiggins does say that. Although it is still yet to be ascertained whether 3-UK still have any existing 2G roaming agreement with Orange, and if so, what areas this covers. I'm sure you can agree with me that 3-UK should really be a bit more transparent about which areas are able to receive 2G roaming. This would be beneficial for all existing and prospective customers.
The second point has a lot to do with being able to roam onto 2G in bad 3G areas, since in the majority of cases, 'middle-of-nowhere' places tend to not have 3G coverage. Now I know that is a very vague definition, but it is one that I'm sure you have experienced yourself. I would be very surprised if you had kept 3G reception whilst being in a place that most would regard as being in the middle of nowhere.
As for your closing point, I respect your tenacity. After the conversation we've had, you've successfully proven me wrong regarding something I have said, made me out to be a fool, and furthered the exploration of fact. You weren't trolling, you actually had a beef with what I had said. All in all, you've come out on top here, I've been given a swift clip round the ear, and other readers should hopefully be more informed. Can we at least agree that this is a positive outcome?
oscillik said:
I apologise for being wrong with regard to your first point. As you have correctly made me out to be a fool here, chrishiggins does say that. Although it is still yet to be ascertained whether 3-UK still have any existing 2G roaming agreement with Orange, and if so, what areas this covers. I'm sure you can agree with me that 3-UK should really be a bit more transparent about which areas are able to receive 2G roaming. This would be beneficial for all existing and prospective customers.
The second point has a lot to do with being able to roam onto 2G in bad 3G areas, since in the majority of cases, 'middle-of-nowhere' places tend to not have 3G coverage. Now I know that is a very vague definition, but it is one that I'm sure you have experienced yourself. I would be very surprised if you had kept 3G reception whilst being in a place that most would regard as being in the middle of nowhere.
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It would be nice if 3 were a bit more transparent about where 2g was still available, unfortunately I don't see that ever happening.
Personally I've had a fairly good experience with 3 over the last 5 months, I get a good 3g signal at home and at work and find it generally OK. I was down in Cornwall a couple months ago staying in a hotel that could have been described as the middle of nowhere, I had no 3g signal but I was still able to roam onto 2g, so I know it still works in some places.
3 do seem to have improved there network since I last used them a few years ago. As a bonus, I think my GN is able to pick up a weaker 3g signal than my N1 was, maybe the hspa+ radio helps.
oscillik said:
As for your closing point, I respect your tenacity. After the conversation we've had, you've successfully proven me wrong regarding something I have said, made me out to be a fool, and furthered the exploration of fact. You weren't trolling, you actually had a beef with what I had said. All in all, you've come out on top here, I've been given a swift clip round the ear, and other readers should hopefully be more informed. Can we at least agree that this is a positive outcome?
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Click to collapse
I try to never troll, If I'm arguing a point it's because I believe what I'm saying is correct. Anyway I'm glad in this instance we're able to agree
rbs_uk said:
Are you sure?! That sounds very unrealistic.
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Indeed, I'm calling BS here, I've been talking to them recently, they were telling me they don't run 2G themselves. If there really is no 3G coverage, they have a fallback in place that runs off the back of Orange.
They are slowing turning off 2G fallback in places where they consider their 3G coverage to be more than adequate.
cow.neondragon.net/index.php/three-begins-2g-coverage-switch-off-have-you-been-affected-your-rights
Related
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/tmobile3g/#signForm
People from the T-Mob forum hacked off by this ongoing issue have setup a petition.
Please sign if you are affected or support having this problem fixed!
They're merging with Orange in a matter of months... why would they do something now?
brummiesteven said:
They're merging with Orange in a matter of months... why would they do something now?
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Click to collapse
I was about to say that, in fact the reason I never moved over to a better T-Mobile deal was because of the crap 3g.
Speaking to orange when I upgraded to the Desire last week they reckon it will take 18 months to integrate the network so I cant see T-Mobile doing anything when plans are all ready in the pipe line
I think you should read your T's & C's, just because you have a phone, they have a network, there is no gurantee of service....
T-Mobile are currently merging their 3g network with 3UK's 3g network and that is on going and has been for 2 years.
The merger of Orange and T-Mobile will not bring about any overnight changes. In fact it may be a year or longer before any works are undertaken to merge the networks and once started it could take a year or two to complete.
I'm currently using my T-Mobile SIM in my Desire, and it's all working perfectly.. 3G is blazingly fast, MMS and SMS messages are good, calls are clear with zero drop outs.
Sounds to me like it's just a bunch of people who didn't check the coverage maps...
FloatingFatMan said:
I'm currently using my T-Mobile SIM in my Desire, and it's all working perfectly.. 3G is blazingly fast, MMS and SMS messages are good, calls are clear with zero drop outs.
Sounds to me like it's just a bunch of people who didn't check the coverage maps...
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Click to collapse
untrue. I'm in central london, as are other users and the coverage map shows my home and office locations as 'excellent'
ninjakettle said:
untrue. I'm in central london, as are other users and the coverage map shows my home and office locations as 'excellent'
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Click to collapse
Hi Ninja,
I work in mobile comms, mainly R&D for my companies mobile technologies for using data capture devices out on the roads. The main issues we have found with trying to transfer data in built up areas are because they are built up areas. We work in London and Birmingham and to say the least the 3G coverage we find is really sporadic, this is mainly due to the high rise buildings blocking and bouncing the signal all over the place, it has nothing to do with network coverage its just the way it is in.
Hmm, this is making me a little nervous.
I'm getting concerned about T-Mob coverage, as I've been trying to sign up as a new customer.
Hrm. Should I be cancelling ASAP?
langers1 said:
Hi Ninja,
I work in mobile comms, mainly R&D for my companies mobile technologies for using data capture devices out on the roads. The main issues we have found with trying to transfer data in built up areas are because they are built up areas. We work in London and Birmingham and to say the least the 3G coverage we find is really sporadic, this is mainly due to the high rise buildings blocking and bouncing the signal all over the place, it has nothing to do with network coverage its just the way it is in.
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Click to collapse
I can accept that langers- but the issue myself and these folk are having is that while the HSDPA connection is fine (blisteringly fast at times), 3G is non-existent. If only it were sporadic.
I was in Bath for my easter break and had the same issue there. HSDPA was great. 3G was non-existent.
sobrique said:
Hmm, this is making me a little nervous.
I'm getting concerned about T-Mob coverage, as I've been trying to sign up as a new customer.
Hrm. Should I be cancelling ASAP?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TBH Sobrique if you live in a city then all the providers will have the same problem, my company has used O2 and Orange and they both suffered from urban signal degradation. Being on Orange when I have been out and about I am pretty confidant I will get a signal where I am going, this includes sitting on top of a mountain in the lake district uploading my fb photos I have taken 30secs earlier. Best bet all ways check the coverage maps but bare in mind you will all ways have probs in the city (where u can usually pick up free wifi)
I've never had any such problems in Birmingham?
ninjakettle said:
untrue. I'm in central london, as are other users and the coverage map shows my home and office locations as 'excellent'
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're either in a poor reception area, are suffering from the same kind of "canyoning" that messes up GPS, or something nearby is interfering with your signal.
T-Mobiles network is generally fine, and certainly isn't deserving of anything as silly as a petition.
Have you tried other network SIMs?
phone is locked. so i can't try other sims. Look, if you visit the tmobile thread, their tech staff have posted and said there is an issue. They know there's an issue and they're investigating. It's no ones imagination or location. As i've said, i've moved around london and the uk quite a bit. I find the problem everywhere.
So it's either our particular handsets or something more. I'm happy you have no issues, but don't dismiss those that have. I'm not endorsing the petition, i can just identify with the problem. I'd like T-mobile to address it.
ninjakettle said:
I can accept that langers- but the issue myself and these folk are having is that while the HSDPA connection is fine (blisteringly fast at times), 3G is non-existent. If only it were sporadic.
I was in Bath for my easter break and had the same issue there. HSDPA was great. 3G was non-existent.
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Click to collapse
You HAVE to have 3g service to get HSDPA, it is a function of a 3g network. If it wasn't then you've found 2.75g as you got HSDPA in a 2g area if there was no 3g
beaker656 said:
You HAVE to have 3g service to get HSDPA, it is a function of a 3g network.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Someone more technical than myself would have to confirm that. All i know is that the phone connects under these different states and displays one of the following...
G - GPRS
E - Edge
3G - 3G
H - HSDPA (or 3.5g as it's sometimes known)
Yes, the last two are under the 3g family, but they must operate under a different..."band"?
I'm saying that when "3G" shows on the screen - nothing. When "H" does, all is well.
I use T-Mobile in London , used it on my G2 and now the Desire. Never had any major issues with it. I often watch you tube on the train home and its generally pretty good until I go in a tunnel.
You dont tend to hang around in tunnels do you?
My phone worked perfectly in Vienna including in the Underground stations and trains. Come back to London / SE same old problems no 3G connection.
Are people actually aware of the issue who are saying it works all ok?
paulruk said:
I use T-Mobile in London , used it on my G2 and now the Desire. Never had any major issues with it. I often watch you tube on the train home and its generally pretty good until I go in a tunnel.
You dont tend to hang around in tunnels do you?
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Click to collapse
Heh, no
Thanks for posting though, it's just as interesting to hear people on Desire's and G2's that don't have the issue.
The thing is that i have excellent data connection when on 'H', video's browsing, etc. It's when it dips to 3G that the problem happens. This dip happens more in my office location. I'm listening to the guys who say this could be "canyoning" etc. But it's a puzzler that 'H' from the same spot is perfect, whilst '3g' is dead.
It doesn't affect me hugely as it will always eventually flick over to H, but there's a lot of time wasted, waiting for it to do just that.
langers1 said:
TBH Sobrique if you live in a city then all the providers will have the same problem, my company has used O2 and Orange and they both suffered from urban signal degradation. Being on Orange when I have been out and about I am pretty confidant I will get a signal where I am going, this includes sitting on top of a mountain in the lake district uploading my fb photos I have taken 30secs earlier. Best bet all ways check the coverage maps but bare in mind you will all ways have probs in the city (where u can usually pick up free wifi)
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Click to collapse
I've been Vodafone with a Touch Pro, and it's worked ok. I've checked coverage, it looks good. Seen some complaints re Vodafone, and some re T-Mobile, but am slightly concerned about there being a 'tech problems on T-Mob' petition.
ninjakettle said:
Someone more technical than myself would have to confirm that. All i know is that the phone connects under these different states and displays one of the following...
G - GPRS
E - Edge
3G - 3G
H - HSDPA (or 3.5g as it's sometimes known)
Yes, the last two are under the 3g family, but they must operate under a different..."band"?
I'm saying that when "3G" shows on the screen - nothing. When "H" does, all is well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In Vienna I actually got Edge once come up and the rest of the time it was HSDPA and on the odd go 3G (working)
I have a problem with my Tmobile g2 running 2.2, it is all stock no modifications whatsoever other than handcent and fancy widget.
The problem is I can not connect to 3g or hsdpa network when I am at home. By this I mean the cell tower that provides service when I am at home. I have txt and calling capabilites but I have no data whatsoever. I have to manually switch to 2g or edge to check email or use the browser. I have called tmobile and they keep telling me that the problem is with my phone, however when I am 2 or 3 miles from my house and it goes to any other tower on the planet everything works fine.
I have searched the g2 forum here but could find no answers. I apologize in advance if this has been indeed covered or discussed to death and I have just failed to find it.
I did find the *#*#4636#*#* option and when it is on 2g I can run a ping test and it finds the server just fine, but on 3g it always fails to connect. Again this only occurs of course when I am sitting at home!
Thanks to anyone who can shed some light on this or point me in the right direction because leaving it up to tmobile has proven to be fruitless.
It might also be worth mentioning that i replaced the sim card today as well, this too had no effect on this phenomenon.....
My mom's nexus s has the same problem. Only difference is that when i walk out the door i get 3g. Once i walk back in, I get edge...... I think its might be just tmobile frequencies poor ability to pentrate walls.
Sounds like a problem with the 3G network in your area, or just a weak signal there.
I know its not the signal strength, I always have full bars at home Its something to do with the network....
DefiantMenace said:
I know its not the signal strength, I always have full bars at home Its something to do with the network....
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Full bars on 3G or 2G ? If you have full bars on 3G then it sounds like a network problem.
I have the exact same problem, but my building is probably over 100 years old with 300 coats of lead paint on it. It depends on your building. Signals can bounce off of mirrors for example and other materials. The more material the signal has to go through, the more attenuation happens.
I have a similar problem, my G2 can't maintain a consistent connection, I will go from 4 bars of HSPA+ to 4 bars of Edge to nothing (lost connection to network) and it will jump around wildly between these three states (every few minutes). My wife's MyTouch 4G doesn't do this, my G1 did not do this, our kids (dumb) phones have consistent connections.
I know it's some interaction between my phone and the TMO network, I'd say it was a defective phone except the only place it happens is inside my house.
I wish that TMO offered a microcell.
There is no reception problem, I have had the phone working here for awhile and it always has full bars, like I said I can hop in the car and drive a couple miles and it works just fine. Tmobile finally got back to me today and said they are having their Engineers troubleshoot the tower that provides service when I am home. I hope they get this fixed soon, they said 72 hours.......
It's that anti-cellphonereception chemical they put into paint!!
I'm in Chicago (both in the city and suburbs), and my S3 always shows "3G" in the notification area.
I know AT&T has an LTE network here, so shouldn't it say 4G or LTE? Could this be a problem with my account--or even the phone?
Thanks.
somewhere in the settings should be a network selection to choose between GSM/LTE(4G) and GSM(3G) only....at least on the Verizon phones there usually is, of course it says CDMA/LTE(4G) or CDMA(3G) only
eelton said:
I'm in Chicago (both in the city and suburbs), and my S3 always shows "3G" in the notification area.
I know AT&T has an LTE network here, so shouldn't it say 4G or LTE? Could this be a problem with my account--or even the phone?
Thanks.
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Click to collapse
I have ATT GS3 and it says 4GLTE tiny icon, if you are sure you are in LTE zone and only getting 3g , call AT&T or go to their store , sim could be old/wrong and or your account was not properly activated.
When i got my GS3 i wasnt getting any data at all , called AT&T and they sorted it out.
Run speedtest see what you getting ?
I have at&t in chicago as well. I live up in lake county and work in des plaines. I was also at navy pier a few weeks ago. Never had anything other than 4g or LTE. I literally have never seen the 3g icon on my phone
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda app-developers app
Thanks for the replies. I'll give AT&T a call.
I did run speedtest, while the phone was displaying 3G. the download speed was 7686 and upload 5704.
Well, I called AT&T and they couldn't find any problem. After 20 minutes, they said, "There's a network outage reported in Chicago, so that must be it." I asked how long the outage has lasted, and she said 17 hours. But I've had the phone for four days, and have never seen anything but 3G.
At any rate, they said I would have to call back in a couple of days. That conveniently got the rep off the phone.
I live in a 3G area, and it says 4G on my phone. Makes me feel like they are BSing us to believe 4G is everywhere.
Only time it has been off of 4G is when I"m in an Edge area. Speaking of which, I found it interesting that while driving up I90 in Wyoming (didn't look like anything was there for miles and miles), the data speeds were great. I was so surprised. Driving the much busier highways in the midwest, it is Edge, and it sucks.
Sorry...went off topic.
eelton said:
Well, I called AT&T and they couldn't find any problem. After 20 minutes, they said, "There's a network outage reported in Chicago, so that must be it." I asked how long the outage has lasted, and she said 17 hours. But I've had the phone for four days, and have never seen anything but 3G.
At any rate, they said I would have to call back in a couple of days. That conveniently got the rep off the phone.
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Click to collapse
Your account does need to be flagged as LTE or you won't get LTE service. I'm up in Gurnee and all over Chicagoland has pretty good LTE coverage.
Also, check your APN that you're on the "PTA" and not the older APN settings. If you see anything about cingular wap, you're on the old one.
I recommend going to an AT&T store, it's harder to blow you off when you're up in their face.
I have friends in Aurora, Lombard, Lyons and I used to work downtown; I always had great LTE signal out and about as well as my home area of Gurnee/Libertyville.
Lastly, AT&T distinguishes between "4G" which is HSPA+ and "4G LTE" which is their LTE network. Unless you're running a custom ROM with different icons, you'll have an E for edge (2.5G, total ****), 3G for a 3G area that hasn't been upgraded, 4G for a 3G area that's been "backhaul upgraded" to HSPA+ and 4G with a little LTE beneath it for an LTE area.
For me, I can tell speed-wise between "4G" and "4G LTE" mostly by the upload speed. HSPA+ (4G) I never see above 1.2Mbps or so, whereas on LTE I get up to 5Mbps roughly. Sad story is the LTE network in the Chicago area is the slowest of their LTE networks that I've seen anyway. I get so jealous of people in TX and whatnot that get like 24Mbps!
Sorry for the rambling...
One weird thing...when I click on my results in speedtest, it lists the network as LTE, even though the icon always shows 3G.
So maybe it's connecting to LTE, but not showing the correct icon? Does a download speed of 7686 seem faster than 3G?
To follow up, in case this helps anyone...
I spent another half hour on the phone with AT&T--level 1 and level 2 tech support. (The level 2 guy was much less informed than the level 1 woman.) Their bottom line was that I should exchange the phone.
However, when I use the network signal info app, it says I'm on the LTE network. So, I think I have an icon problem, not an actual network connection problem.
I think I'll just live with it, rather than exchange the phone.
I am going to put this here. Any comments from developers that can help us?
http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-312-sprint-lte-launch-market-connection-issues/
This has been confirmed by myself and others on that site. My nick is troyd96 on there.
Can a developer figure out how to manually adjust the signal thresholds so that the phone knows weak LTE signals are preferable to stronger 3G signals. An OTA might fix this, but I am not holding my breath of it coming.
There is no hidden menus where you can adjust this threshold.
I've been looking for setting to change threshold like I did for Wi-Max
Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2
Just trying to read the LTE signal strength can be challenging because the Android standard doesn't cover it yet. So even discovering what OEM voodoo is being done to read that on this phone would be interesting. See my post at S4GRU here.
boomerbubba said:
Just trying to read the LTE signal strength can be challenging because the Android standard doesn't cover it yet. So even discovering what OEM voodoo is being done to read that on this phone would be interesting. See my post at S4GRU here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may be voodoo, but it is obvious that places that should be getting LTE with live towers, on their weakest coverage area the phone does not like it and rejects it. Regardless of what the true signal levels are. There are enough people that have tested this, for me to believe. So regardless there is an issue here. It would be nice to try to play around with the threshold to see if it helps. IMHO it would.
slickdaddy96 said:
It may be voodoo, but it is obvious that places that should be getting LTE with live towers, on their weakest coverage area the phone does not like it and rejects it. Regardless of what the true signal levels are. There are enough people that have tested this, for me to believe. So regardless there is an issue here. It would be nice to try to play around with the threshold to see if it helps. IMHO it would.
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Click to collapse
I am not arguing with you or with the content of the S4GRU article. I just thought I might bootstrap the conversation with a little additional research on what to look for in the code. However this fallback threshold is being handled under the hood, it must include reading some metric for LTE signal strength.
I do not think this is a hardware issue.. I think it is more of a Sprint is lying about how many towers are actually live..
case in point.. I can go to the woodlands or to Copperfield and my phone locks into LGE4G and switches seamlessly as needed..
however.
anywhere else that Sprint is showing as active is pretty much dead with no 4G and patehtic 3G even though if you go to the LGE coverage map as of Sunday it is showing as covered..
I think a large portion of what they think is covered now.. really isn't.
CVSiN said:
I do not think this is a hardware issue.. I think it is more of a Sprint is lying about how many towers are actually live..
case in point.. I can go to the woodlands or to Copperfield and my phone locks into LGE4G and switches seamlessly as needed..
however.
anywhere else that Sprint is showing as active is pretty much dead with no 4G and patehtic 3G even though if you go to the LGE coverage map as of Sunday it is showing as covered..
I think a large portion of what they think is covered now.. really isn't.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't believe you are correct here. The creator of that site gets official info from Sprint about what towers are live, and he also has official info on Towers that will be upgraded and not live yet. People can force their phone to use LTE in those weak areas where it wants to go 3G by ##data## HDR/1X settings checking LTE only. The only issue with that is that you lose voice/text. So it is indeed something software wise on the hardware telling the phone to accept the 3G signal and reject the weak LTE signal.
The amount of towers live is accurate on that site. I am unsure of what maps you can see on the site if you are not a sponsor, but I have seen the maps they are accurate, but it does take sometimes up to two weeks for the info the be released to where he can update the "live" maps.
The LTE in the Atlanta area where I am is probably 20-30% complete, but the problem I am talking about is people on the edge of what should be coverage on a known active site (meaning it has been verified by users and by the site as a live tower) are getting switched to 3G.
There is known range of what LTE towers can do at certain frequency when it comes to coverage. People are within these ranges and on the weaker ranges of the LTE signal area they are being forced to 3G, when they can force their phone to LTE and it works fine.
So it is definitely software/firmware/modem based.
CVSiN said:
I do not think this is a hardware issue.. I think it is more of a Sprint is lying about how many towers are actually live.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nobody said it was a "hardware issue." The hypothesis in the article, proved in disabling the fallback, is that a firmware issue is a factor. There is a programmed threshold level of signal strength that forces the phone to fall back. The hypothesis is that this threshold would work better if it were set lower, because even a weak LTE connection can be better than a stronger EVDO signal.
And this is not mutually exclusive vis a vis your complaint about thin tower coverage. It is well known, at least to those who follow this closely at S4GRU, that these markets were launched with thinner coverage than originally planned but are continuing to be built out.
In fact, the fallback-threshold problem and the thin-coverage problem just magnify each other, because only those devices with very strong LTE signal will avoid falling back to 3G.
slickdaddy96 said:
I don't believe you are correct here. The creator of that site gets official info from Sprint about what towers are live, and he also has official info on Towers that will be upgraded and not live yet. People can force their phone to use LTE in those weak areas where it wants to go 3G by ##data## HDR/1X settings checking LTE only. The only issue with that is that you lose voice/text. So it is indeed something software wise on the hardware telling the phone to accept the 3G signal and reject the weak LTE signal.
The amount of towers live is accurate on that site. I am unsure of what maps you can see on the site if you are not a sponsor, but I have seen the maps they are accurate, but it does take sometimes up to two weeks for the info the be released to where he can update the "live" maps.
The LTE in the Atlanta area where I am is probably 20-30% complete, but the problem I am talking about is people on the edge of what should be coverage on a known active site (meaning it has been verified by users and by the site as a live tower) are getting switched to 3G.
There is known range of what LTE towers can do at certain frequency when it comes to coverage. People are within these ranges and on the weaker ranges of the LTE signal area they are being forced to 3G, when they can force their phone to LTE and it works fine.
So it is definitely software/firmware/modem based.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't care where he is getting his info from.. do you honestly think Sprint would come out and say they lied about coverage?
They are flat lying and covering their asses.
There is no 4G coverage in 2/3s of the areas down to street view where they say there is supposed to be live towers at least here in Houston.
and the fact that in the 2 places that have been confirmed in the other thread by other users just solidify my theory.
The hardware is working fine at least on the GS3.. it swiches in and out of 4G perfectly when it senses it..
you can sit in these 2 areas and it will pick it uip every time no reboot needed..
yet go to most of the other so called covered areas.. and reboot till your phone blows up or force to LTE and still not get crap..
they are lying..
I will post flat GPS pics of my exact location and then post the Sprint service map right over my coords.. and prove it to you.
I am right smack dab in the middle of a heavy LTE covered area on the sprint map..
but no matter what you do on the device there is no signal.
In the woodlands just as in Conroe, I have areas where no 4g, mid range, or full strength. I even went to Houston the other day. No 4g in sight around 1960 area or greater. I can say that it's not a 4g blanket as the coverage map wants you to believe. Seems that's actually a when completed map.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2
hayabusa1300cc said:
In the woodlands just as in Conroe, I have areas where no 4g, mid range, or full strength. I even went to Houston the other day. No 4g in sight around 1960 area or greater. I can say that it's not a 4g blanket as the coverage map wants you to believe. Seems that's actually a when completed map.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly my same experience.
hayabusa1300cc said:
In the woodlands just as in Conroe, I have areas where no 4g, mid range, or full strength. I even went to Houston the other day. No 4g in sight around 1960 area or greater. I can say that it's not a 4g blanket as the coverage map wants you to believe. Seems that's actually a when completed map.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. Dallas is same way. SHows a large portion of Dallas as covered and everywhere I have been I have connected in only 2 places.
The coverage map is very deceiving as this is clearly not all the covered areas. Now, maybe in future build out it will be, but certainly not right now.
I was in San Antonio over the weekend and for the most part I was unable to connect to LTE. That is until I was on the runway of San Antonio International Airport. Then afte I landed in Dallas I didnt recieve LTE at all. I walked all over the airport since I had a long as hell layover. Still no LTE. However the DFW airport seems to be sponsored by Samsung. They have a Samsung lounge as well as NFC chips everywhere to download stuff for free.
Uh, this thread is not about how overly optimistic Sprint's published coverage maps are. (I actually agree that they are way overstated, on the basis of credible reports on forums.)
That does not mean that the fallback-threshold setting does not also contribute to the problem! And that is what this thread is about -- actually seeking technical solutions. If people just want to rant about Sprint, there are lots of other threads for that.
CVSiN said:
I don't care where he is getting his info from.. do you honestly think Sprint would come out and say they lied about coverage?
They are flat lying and covering their asses.
There is no 4G coverage in 2/3s of the areas down to street view where they say there is supposed to be live towers at least here in Houston.
and the fact that in the 2 places that have been confirmed in the other thread by other users just solidify my theory.
The hardware is working fine at least on the GS3.. it swiches in and out of 4G perfectly when it senses it..
you can sit in these 2 areas and it will pick it uip every time no reboot needed..
yet go to most of the other so called covered areas.. and reboot till your phone blows up or force to LTE and still not get crap..
they are lying..
I will post flat GPS pics of my exact location and then post the Sprint service map right over my coords.. and prove it to you.
I am right smack dab in the middle of a heavy LTE covered area on the sprint map..
but no matter what you do on the device there is no signal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are not getting my point. We are not talking about the official sprint.com coverage maps. We all know those are inaccurate to what really is going on. He has specific placemarked towers on Google maps, he has several actually (known live maps which only sponsors can see, and planned towers which lump the live and not-live together on a non-interactive map). The completed ones (which have been verified by him and this is through internal sprint info) They have also been proven by people with phones going right where the known "live" sites are on his map and getting full bar 4G service. You obviously have not looked at his maps at all and are just assuming things, and you are assuming wrong. I have a tower that is "live" about 0.5 miles from my house I get almost full bars in my house. I go to other places pull up his maps and where he says they are live they are indeed live.
So now that we have gotten that out of the way. It is widely known how far LTE coverage will go per tower based on frequency and power broadcast. There is no disputing that. The problem lies within places that are in the outer range of that specific (or any specific tower) they are connected to. Forcing the phone to LTE only does make the phone connect to the LTE tower with verified speed and data flowing, so no the users aren't lying either. Once they turn their phone back to LTE/CDMA/EVDO, the phone again sees the stronger 3G signal and refuses to connect to LTE in the EXACT SAME LOCATION THEY WERE WHEN THEY TOGGLED LTE ONLY.
Stick your head in the sand and be negative about Sprint all you want, meanwhile the rest of us will continue to try to find a way to fix the threshold problem that indeed exists.
boomerbubba said:
Uh, this thread is not about how overly optimistic Sprint's published coverage maps are. (I actually agree that they are way overstated, on the basis of credible reports on forums.)
That does not mean that the fallback-threshold setting does not also contribute to the problem! And that is what this thread is about -- actually seeking technical solutions. If people just want to rant about Sprint, there are lots of other threads for that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But that is the issue.. if there was coverage where they say it is.. your phone would not need tweaked..
They are one and the same issue.
CVSiN said:
But that is the issue.. if there was coverage where they say it is.. your phone would not need tweaked..
They are one and the same issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It can be both causes. They are complementary, not mutually exclusive. (Sorry to interrupt your emoting with logic.)
slickdaddy96 said:
You are not getting my point. We are not talking about the official sprint.com coverage maps. We all know those are inaccurate to what really is going on. He has specific placemarked towers on Google maps, he has several actually (known live maps which only sponsors can see, and planned towers which lump the live and not-live together on a non-interactive map). The completed ones (which have been verified by him and this is through internal sprint info) They have also been proven by people with phones going right where the known "live" sites are on his map and getting full bar 4G service. You obviously have not looked at his maps at all and are just assuming things, and you are assuming wrong. I have a tower that is "live" about 0.5 miles from my house I get almost full bars in my house. I go to other places pull up his maps and where he says they are live they are indeed live.
So now that we have gotten that out of the way. It is widely known how far LTE coverage will go per tower based on frequency and power broadcast. There is no disputing that. The problem lies within places that are in the outer range of that specific (or any specific tower) they are connected to. Forcing the phone to LTE only does make the phone connect to the LTE tower with verified speed and data flowing, so no the users aren't lying either. Once they turn their phone back to LTE/CDMA/EVDO, the phone again sees the stronger 3G signal and refuses to connect to LTE in the EXACT SAME LOCATION THEY WERE WHEN THEY TOGGLED LTE ONLY.
Stick your head in the sand and be negative about Sprint all you want, meanwhile the rest of us will continue to try to find a way to fix the threshold problem that indeed exists.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have that map as well.. they are flat wrong.. at least for Houston and other members that have the same maps are reporting the exact same thing. So whose head is in the sand?
I literally work 5 blocks from 1 on his list and live right next to another.. and no 4G on those towers at all in LTE forced mode or not.
Ive been with Sprint for 8 years.. so I have earned the right to be a little angry over this broken promise and lied about coverage maps.
I would never have bought the phone this early had it not been for his maps which show coverage in my area. but in reality there is none.
CVSiN said:
I have that map as well.. they are flat wrong.. at least for Houston and other members that have the same maps are reporting the exact same thing. So whose head is in the sand?
I literally work 5 blocks from 1 on his list and live right next to another.. and no 4G on those towers at all in LTE forced mode or not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you looking at a sites complete map, or a map of the whole NV project for the area? Since only 14 percent of the total sites in the Houston market are reported complete, most of them have no LTE yet.
There's an LTE test app (maybe 2) in /system/app that may hold the answers. Just go ahead and create a shortcut to its activity with your launcher and see what's there. I've frozen it so I can't really comment on if it works for changing thresholds or not
Seeing 4 bars of LTE signal strength on my phone is like seeing a unicorn.
I live in Upstate NY and I have the A705MN phone.
I have tried three different sim cards, all of them of course GSM compatible. The result is exactly the same among all three. I typically get 1 or 2 bars LTE.
My previous phones under the same carrier and same sim card were typically 4-5 bars. (The Wifi strength, BTW, is equal to what I've seen from my other phones.)
What can I do to improve the signal strength?
I've seen posts by those with S10's where they do something to disable specific bands. But I'm not sure how to do that on the A70 phone. I've tried the specific codes that were mentioned in threads for the S10, but those codes do not work on the A70.
Please help. As much as I like the Samsung otherwise, this factor might be the reason I return the phone.
Yes same problem here
106IFA said:
Seeing 4 or 5 bars of LTE signal strength on my phone is like seeing a unicorn.
I live in Upstate NY and I have the A705MN phone.
I have tried three different sim cards, all of them of course GSM compatible. The result is exactly the same among all three. I typically get 1-3 bars LTE.
My previous phones under the same carrier and same sim card were typically 4-5 bars. (The Wifi strength, BTW, is equal to what I've seen from my other phones.)
What can I do to improve the signal strength?
I've seen posts by those with S10's where they do something to disable specific bands. But I'm not sure how to do that on the A70 phone. I've tried the specific codes that were mentioned in threads for the S10, but those codes do not work on the A70.
Please help. As much as I like the Samsung otherwise, this factor might be the reason I return the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try LTE only settings in settings>connections.
senseijtitus said:
Try LTE only settings in settings>connections.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the screenshots.
I edited the access point that I'm using and changed it to LTE. But then when I go to select network mode, I cannot chose LTE Only. That option does not show up. I have tried rebooting after editing and selecting the Access Point, and I still do not see that option.
I have tried using apps such as 4g Network Only and have switched to LTE only, but that change does not seem to make a difference or the network goes down altogether.
Any suggestions?
senseijtitus said:
Try LTE only settings in set5ings>connections.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There was a post in the forum for using settings editor app to enable LTE only option. It will enable this option for both sims.
senseijtitus said:
There was a post in the forum for using settings editor app to enable LTE only option. It will enable this option for both sims.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't been able to do this or find what it is you're referring to. I've tried adding a few values through Settings editor apps. Values such as "hw_networkmode_preference" etc.
Doesn't work.
But besides, why would setting the connection to LTE only fix this problem? I don't see how this is not a herring.
Most of the times I am see 2 bars of strength. Every now and then I get 3 bars, and more frequently than that I get only 1 bar. 4 bars is quite rare.
The real problem with this antenna is that if I step inside a supermarket or bathroom then my connection is gone. If I'm traveling around the state of NY, in more remote areas, I'm sure I will not have a chance of any connection.
I would LOVE this phone if it had a better antenna. I can deal with the subpar fingerprint reader. Just give me a strong antenna like all of my previous phones and then I'd be a happy camper!
I decided not to return the phone so I am stuck with this phone.
106IFA said:
I haven't been able to do this or find what it is you're referring to. I've tried adding a few values through Settings editor apps. Values such as "hw_networkmode_preference" etc.
Doesn't work.
But besides, why would setting the connection to LTE only fix this problem? I don't see how this is not a herring.
Most of the times I am see 2 bars of strength. Every now and then I get 3 bars, and more frequently than that I get only 1 bar. 4 bars is quite rare.
The real problem with this antenna is that if I step inside a supermarket or bathroom then my connection is gone. If I'm traveling around the state of NY, in more remote areas, I'm sure I will not have a chance of any connection.
I would LOVE this phone if it had a better antenna. I can deal with the subpar fingerprint reader. Just give me a strong antenna like all of my previous phones and then I'd be a happy camper!
I decided not to return the phone so I am stuck with this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Setting the band to lte only would help in better reception even at low signal strength. One thing I had noticed in lte band is its consistency in connection speeds and call quality even with low signal. I think this is because of the high bandwidth of the lte signals. But I'm not an expert in it. Try changing the band to lte only. It should work better.
senseijtitus said:
Try LTE only settings in settings>connections.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where did get this theme and icons in screen shots ?
Maystro said:
Where did get this theme and icons in screen shots ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bodhosativa theme from xda apps section.
senseijtitus said:
Setting the band to lte only would help in better reception even at low signal strength. One thing I had noticed in lte band is its consistency in connection speeds and call quality even with low signal. I think this is because of the high bandwidth of the lte signals. But I'm not an expert in it. Try changing the band to lte only. It should work better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But I'm trying to get better signal, rather than better reception with low signal.
There's got to be something wrong with my phone. It blacks out if I step inside a bathroom in a building and such and it's very rarely at 4 bars.
A thing I noticed. If I go and select 2g/3g only (switch off 4g lte) my signal reception instantly switches to full (4 bars) Usually I get around 2 bars with LTE active.
The strange part is that even with lte off I can still receive an lte 4g signal when outside..this is perfect for me as it means i have a really strong signal (reception) indoors but still have the benefit of 4G outside. I don't quite understand it tbh. I mean i have switched to "2g/3g only" yet i still see 4G pop up in the status bar on my commute, and it definitely receiving 4G speeds. I'm not sure if it's a bug or not but I kinda like it.
Con500 said:
A thing I noticed. If I go and select 2g/3g only (switch off 4g lte) my signal reception instantly switches to full (4 bars) Usually I get around 2 bars with LTE active.
The strange part is that even with lte off I can still receive an lte 4g signal when outside..this is perfect for me as it means i have a really strong signal (reception) indoors but still have the benefit of 4G outside. I don't quite understand it tbh. I mean i have switched to "2g/3g only" yet i still see 4G pop up in the status bar on my commute, and it definitely receiving 4G speeds. I'm not sure if it's a bug or not but I kinda like it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a terrific idea. Thank you for bringing that up.
I am implementing your suggesteion and it's nice to see 3-4 bars of strength again.
I don't need the fastest data connection. I just need a strong or secure basic data connection, since most of the time I'm not doing anything data intensive with my phone anyway when I"m away from a wifi connection.
But I'm not sure if my phone hops up to LTE at anytime.. I wish had the same "bug" that you do. I just started testing with your settings so I'll see if I can get it so that 3g is the preferred and basic network and 4g is the optional...
After another day, I'm back to LTE/3g/2g auto.
The general reception even for 3g or 2g is lower overall than what I saw from every other phone I have used. So in areas where I can expect to have a relatively low signal I get a particularly low signal for all bands, 4g, 3g, and 2g. That being the case, there's no practical difference if I cap my connection or not.
Samsung better warranty this phone. Does anyone know who I should call?
Since I bought my phone through an Ebay seller and the phone is West Carribean stock, not USA stock, which is where I am, I have no warranty on this phone.