Hi there,
I have had my Sprint Galaxy S3 for quite a while. This pass month I see that in my area, i'm getting switched to 4g rather than 3g. I was thinking to myself, this is great, they are rolling out the 4gLTE soon and i'll finally get the speed that i'm paying for. After a couple days, i noticed that the 4g signal was getting cut off. Cut off as in i don't get any data signal at all. I would think that if i can't get 4g signal, the phone will switch over to 3g but that's not the case. My data signal is totally gone for about 5 to 10 minutes and comes back as 4g. This was getting very fustrating as i will be browsing the internet and then suddenly not get any data and would need to wait.
So i decided to call Customer Service. What the CS told me was that the S3 is not setup for 4g WiMax but setup for 4gLTE. But I told the CS that i'm getting 4g WiMax on my phone but it gets cut off for a long period of time. CS understands that we can get the signal but the phone doesn't react good with that signal, therefore, i'm getting cut off for period of times.
So the solution that the CS gave me to get constant data signal is to change my "Preferred network mode" from LTE / CDMA to CDMA only. I was taken back about this because I feel like i'm downgrading because of Sprints issues.
My question is, anyone else having this issue and can't find how the 4gLTE icon looks like for the Spring Galaxy S3, mine only says 4g, is that the LTE signal?
The s3 only supports lte, so yes the 4g icon is lte. No the s3 can't connect to wimax it can't even see wimax as an option since it doesn't have the hardware. It would be like trying to use your bluetooth headset to connect to your wifi Internet, just isn't gonna happen no matter how many different ways you try.
☆SoA: Son's of Android™☆
I like to break stuff!
Most likely they are working on the tower your connecting to. Anytime the do work upgrades your signal including data can go wacky untill the work is completed.
No Galaxy S3 on any carrier can get Wimax 4G. These phones can only get 4G LTE. And i believe T-Mobile gs3 can't get LTE not 100% sure but i believe so.
Turning your phone to CDMA only will lock your phone into 3G only.
Sent from a planet far far away.
As Evil said, when you see the 4G icon its connected to 4G LTE. Its not like the iPhone that will say 4G LTE. Im having the same issue as you are. Its great that LTE is rolling out in my area, however they are still updating towers. So I don't have great LTE speeds yet. So I've turned off LTE on my phone until there update is complete.
Sent from my Clean Bean v2.6 Galaxy S3
Related
Both me and my wife have EVO 4G, since sprint towers are going live in NY I started using it.
What we noticed, on my wifes phone it never finds any 4g signals while I have it all over the city. We actually have sprint tower on top of our building that gives me maximum strength signal while at home.
When we got phones I recall she was actually able to find 4g singnal here and there but it was way to sporadic to keep it on.
Both phones are rooted and running newest Wimax.
I found on forums possible issue with with bad MAC but I confirmed that is not the case.
Is there anything I can test/try at all or should I seek replacement from sprint?
I guess RUU and sprint store here I go
It seems whenever I don't have a 4g data connection, I'm not getting any data connection. Anyone else have this problem? When I'm in builldings I never get a data connection. Even when I'm outside I rarely get data connection unless it's a 4g spot. I know someone with a GN and side by side, he gets a connection at work while I have gray bars. Is this prevelant among most of you all? I'm on Verizon if that makes a difference.
Yes, I have this issue as well when I am at work but only when I have wifi turned on. With wifi on I get no 4g connection inside the building and the phone won't drop down to 3g, just gives me gray bars and no data. Manually switching from LTE/CDMA to CDMA restores my 3g data connection. Turning wifi off enables the LTE data connection. I assume it's trying to use the building's wifi network that I am not authenticated to for some reason. It's quite annoying and seems to be draining my battery.
My 4g reception sucks. I am rather disappointed. I canceled my ATT account and paid the ETF to switch to verizon for the GN. I am in plano tx which is in the Verizon LTE area and i dont get any signal except in a few spots on the highway. I work in Richardson, which is also in the LTE area, and i dont even have 3g in the building. I dont have any signal when i go deeper into the building away from the windows. I am running stock 4.0.2. I hope this gets better. I am already regretting dropping ATT.
jason.hamilton said:
My 4g reception sucks. I am rather disappointed. I canceled my ATT account and paid the ETF to switch to verizon for the GN. I am in plano tx which is in the Verizon LTE area and i dont get any signal except in a few spots on the highway. I work in Richardson, which is also in the LTE area, and i dont even have 3g in the building. I dont have any signal when i go deeper into the building away from the windows. I am running stock 4.0.2. I hope this gets better. I am already regretting dropping ATT.
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Click to collapse
Strange. I have excellent 3G and 4G signal in buildings, coming from Sprint I had non-existent data everywhere, especially indoors.
Just as an fyi. I went to Verizon to try to get a new phone. They told me my sim card was bad. I got the phone on the first day and they said they had issues with the first sim cards with the nexus. My wifes has the same problem.
New sim card, NO MORE connection issues. Yeah! Anyone else who has this issue might try this. I am now getting 3g and even 4g connections inside now.
ill go to the verizon store after work and switch sims. Just got it on 1/1. Ill go to a different verizon store to make sure its not a bad batch lol.
Wasnt the SIM card. Still getting crappy signal strength. I am going today and replacing the phone. If that doesnt work, i am going back to ATT skyrocket...
spencer88 said:
Strange. I have excellent 3G and 4G signal in buildings, coming from Sprint I had non-existent data everywhere, especially indoors.
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Click to collapse
In my office I get very weak to no 4G signal, so that the phone is constantly switching from weak 4G down to 3G and causing connection disruptions. I usually just disable LTE and use CDMA only mode to fix this. I have heard that a LTE signal should penetrate inside of buildings better, but apparently my workplace is almost impenetrable. We have a Verizon 3G repeater in the office or I would get no usable signal at all.
Spencer, what kind of speeds are you getting with LTE in the Columbia area? It seems like I got better speeds when I had my Rezound than I'm getting with my Galaxy Nexus.
jason.hamilton said:
My 4g reception sucks. I am rather disappointed. I canceled my ATT account and paid the ETF to switch to verizon for the GN. I am in plano tx which is in the Verizon LTE area and i dont get any signal except in a few spots on the highway. I work in Richardson, which is also in the LTE area, and i dont even have 3g in the building. I dont have any signal when i go deeper into the building away from the windows. I am running stock 4.0.2. I hope this gets better. I am already regretting dropping ATT.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had the exact opposite experience in Dallas. I switched from AT&T a year ago. I couldn't even make calls in my house. (I live in Lakewood) I had to go upstairs or outside. As far as data goes even on just 3G the Verizon speeds are much faster. I've done quite a few AT&T vs Verizon 3G side by side tests and Verzion has won every time. 4G is just a bonus for me. When I get a 4G signal there is no comparison. My coworker and I did a speed test on Tuesday at DFW. His iPhone 4s on AT&T vs my Gnex. I was getting 10-15 mbits down and he was getting like 2-3
3G Data
I am having the same exact problem. I thought it was related to airplane mode, I have it turning on at midnight and off at 6am. In the morning, if there is no Wifi and the phone is in 3G, I can't get data. Restarting gets data back, but I'm looking for a more elegant solution than that.
I'm having HUGE data issues, see:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1421440
just a quick question. are you guys running custom ROMs/kernels? if so, please add that in your post.
none at all here.
Some of the people who own a the S3 on Verizon are reporting issues with reception between 3G and LTE especially the handoff between CDMA and lte. Is anyone who has this phone on AT&T experiencing similar issues?
I'm not having any issues using the LTE apn (default).
giper54 said:
Some of the people who own a the S3 on Verizon are reporting issues with reception between 3G and LTE especially the handoff between CDMA and lte. Is anyone who has this phone on AT&T experiencing similar issues?
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Click to collapse
Perfect att reception here
AOKP jellybean by TGFY
i notice a definate death grip (i can verify this by checking the dBm under status in settings) and i also tend to see my data switch between h, H+, and 3g alot.
not in an LTE area
Sprint Galaxy S3 network connection issues
Good day everyone. I just recently purchased a New Galaxy S3 from a local Spint store. I have been a loyal Sprint customer for 15 years. I have owned many different phones (Star-Tac, Sony, Touch-pro 1-2, Evo, EVO 4G) Over the past 2 weeks since buying the S3, I've noticed a SERIOUS drop in network connectivity, both Data & Cell for absolutely no reason. Now, stop me if I'm wrong, but on my Evo 4G, I could connect to the internet EVEN if I didn't have a 3g signal... As long as I had Cell bars, I could access the web no problem. So the S3 is giving me some headaches and I've seen on other forums that others are too. These people are on diffferent carriers too.
So here's my issue. When I'm in a GOOD STRONG Sprint network, I've been attempting to access the web (Google Store or You-Tube) and have seen the 3g or 4G icon on the bar show data up/downloading then WINK, they dissappear and I get a "No connection RETRY" window. I've made many changes, selected CDMA instead of CDMA/LTE, vice-cersa. I've updated PRL, Profile, Firmware and even have the new Jelly Bean 4.1.1
I've contacted Samsung and "Chatted" with a technician, but this person had NO clue of this issue... I gave them the links to this and other Android forums...
So do I take it back? Revert back to my Evo? I have to say, the speed and versatility on the S3 when it's good, is GREAT, but I'm not one to have some half good, especially one so expensive...
Any imput is appreciated... :fingers-crossed:
GS3 on ATT in Austin Tx
giper54 said:
Some of the people who own a the S3 on Verizon are reporting issues with reception between 3G and LTE especially the handoff between CDMA and lte. Is anyone who has this phone on AT&T experiencing similar issues?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get stellar reception and speeds in major cities and highways throughout the state. Honestly I've never seen my phone drop to 3G but I'm not in rural areas often. I have see speedtests as high as 65mb down in Austin.
Nope nope nope.. All well n good
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium
No Problems Here
I have an ATT S3 and I haven't had any noticeable problems.
Great reception with my AT&T SGS3
Sent from my SGH-I747 using xda premium
Out in a 4G area here in Minneapolis, MN. It might have been a fluke with CM10, but my signal would cut in and out every 30 minutes or so. Flashed AOKP and it works fine, but it was weird.
we bought two galaxy S3 and a galaxy note 2 on black Friday and we are very impressed by the quality of the Samsung phones. However, galaxy s3 phones are having 3G network issues. Our apartment is not getting very good reception with sprint but 3G speed tests are consistent with less than 100ms ping and 0.4-1mbps download speeds and 4g wimax speeds are decent. We have an airave device since we had issues with voice reception and we are very impressed by the device. However, galaxy s3 phones are having issues with 3G reception regardless if it is under airave reception or just outside tower reception. It was getting good speed and all of sudden 3G network turns itself off and it comes back on. I thought it was due to weak 3G signal into our apartment but it is doing the same with airave 3G and I thought it was mainly due to the programming of the phone since galaxy s3 has better reception quality than my galaxy s epic 4g. so I went to setting > network > more options > mobile network > and turned on CDMA only and those issues are gone with galaxy s3s. I think the phones are trying to connect to LTE and if the area does not have the coverage yet, it resets the 3G radio. During the resetting, the 3G coverage disappears and disrupts the data. has this been ongoing problem for the galaxy s3 on sprint? my galaxy s1 epic 4G never has this issue and we are wondering CDMA only option is temporary fix for the issue. if anyone had similar problem and was able to fix it, let me know. thank you.
sangbyung said:
we bought two galaxy S3 and a galaxy note 2 on black Friday and we are very impressed by the quality of the Samsung phones. However, galaxy s3 phones are having 3G network issues. Our apartment is not getting very good reception with sprint but 3G speed tests are consistent with less than 100ms ping and 0.4-1mbps download speeds and 4g wimax speeds are decent. We have an airave device since we had issues with voice reception and we are very impressed by the device. However, galaxy s3 phones are having issues with 3G reception regardless if it is under airave reception or just outside tower reception. It was getting good speed and all of sudden 3G network turns itself off and it comes back on. I thought it was due to weak 3G signal into our apartment but it is doing the same with airave 3G and I thought it was mainly due to the programming of the phone since galaxy s3 has better reception quality than my galaxy s epic 4g. so I went to setting > network > more options > mobile network > and turned on CDMA only and those issues are gone with galaxy s3s. I think the phones are trying to connect to LTE and if the area does not have the coverage yet, it resets the 3G radio. During the resetting, the 3G coverage disappears and disrupts the data. has this been ongoing problem for the galaxy s3 on sprint? my galaxy s1 epic 4G never has this issue and we are wondering CDMA only option is temporary fix for the issue. if anyone had similar problem and was able to fix it, let me know. thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're probably right.
The only real way to avoid it is to disable LTE during the time when you're at home.
Alternatively, see if it will simply hold an LTE signal instead of using the airave, though I doubt it will.
The reason for the difference is that the Epic 4G is using Wimax, while the Galaxy S3 and Note II are using LTE.
sangbyung said:
we bought two galaxy S3 and a galaxy note 2 on black Friday and we are very impressed by the quality of the Samsung phones. However, galaxy s3 phones are having 3G network issues. Our apartment is not getting very good reception with sprint but 3G speed tests are consistent with less than 100ms ping and 0.4-1mbps download speeds and 4g wimax speeds are decent. We have an airave device since we had issues with voice reception and we are very impressed by the device. However, galaxy s3 phones are having issues with 3G reception regardless if it is under airave reception or just outside tower reception. It was getting good speed and all of sudden 3G network turns itself off and it comes back on. I thought it was due to weak 3G signal into our apartment but it is doing the same with airave 3G and I thought it was mainly due to the programming of the phone since galaxy s3 has better reception quality than my galaxy s epic 4g. so I went to setting > network > more options > mobile network > and turned on CDMA only and those issues are gone with galaxy s3s. I think the phones are trying to connect to LTE and if the area does not have the coverage yet, it resets the 3G radio. During the resetting, the 3G coverage disappears and disrupts the data. has this been ongoing problem for the galaxy s3 on sprint? my galaxy s1 epic 4G never has this issue and we are wondering CDMA only option is temporary fix for the issue. if anyone had similar problem and was able to fix it, let me know. thank you.
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Yeah and another thing that i have personally noticed is that they GS3 with some people, have problems connecting to the ariwave. this was one reason why i sold my first gs3 back in July.
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Call to action!
sangbyung said:
we bought two galaxy S3 and a galaxy note 2 on black Friday and we are very impressed by the quality of the Samsung phones. However, galaxy s3 phones are having 3G network issues. Our apartment is not getting very good reception with sprint but 3G speed tests are consistent with less than 100ms ping and 0.4-1mbps download speeds and 4g wimax speeds are decent. We have an airave device since we had issues with voice reception and we are very impressed by the device. However, galaxy s3 phones are having issues with 3G reception regardless if it is under airave reception or just outside tower reception. It was getting good speed and all of sudden 3G network turns itself off and it comes back on. I thought it was due to weak 3G signal into our apartment but it is doing the same with airave 3G and I thought it was mainly due to the programming of the phone since galaxy s3 has better reception quality than my galaxy s epic 4g. so I went to setting > network > more options > mobile network > and turned on CDMA only and those issues are gone with galaxy s3s. I think the phones are trying to connect to LTE and if the area does not have the coverage yet, it resets the 3G radio. During the resetting, the 3G coverage disappears and disrupts the data. has this been ongoing problem for the galaxy s3 on sprint? my galaxy s1 epic 4G never has this issue and we are wondering CDMA only option is temporary fix for the issue. if anyone had similar problem and was able to fix it, let me know. thank you.
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TO ALL!!!! this is a call to action. I too, like many others are experiencing unacceptable data speeds while on 3G and in great reception while uing the Galaxy S III. the speeds I should be recieving are 1.5-3 MB/s but instead I am recieving around 128Kb/s in the city and within excellent service. We all have to pay a 'Premium Data Add-On' charges just to own these phones and this is unacceptable. Please write an Email to [email protected], vice president of customer experience at sprint and let him know what you are experiencing. Maybe if enough pissed off customers write, they will finally listen!
4g4me said:
TO ALL!!!! this is a call to action. I too, like many others are experiencing unacceptable data speeds while on 3G and in great reception while uing the Galaxy S III. the speeds I should be recieving are 1.5-3 MB/s but instead I am recieving around 128Kb/s in the city and within excellent service. We all have to pay a 'Premium Data Add-On' charges just to own these phones and this is unacceptable. Please write an Email to [email protected], vice president of customer experience at sprint and let him know what you are experiencing. Maybe if enough pissed off customers write, they will finally listen!
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Click to collapse
You are a moron.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=36380064#post36380064
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=36380166#post36380166
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=36380185#post36380185
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=36380190#post36380190
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=36380266#post36380266
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=36380387#post36380387
They're not going to do anything. Your signature means you're a hypocrite. Calling people douchwads. Can't even spell.
Thanks for contributing! Its cheese bags like you that really make forums informational, And good job reporting me! I hope that made your life better. You know what, guy with no life, I have received at least 1 thanks, in at least one of the many forums I have found outlining the same issue ( that you linked to and BTW you missed a few! :-0) so its worth it to hear a sprint employee like you to shed some tears! Thanks for wasting everyone who reads your and my post's time!
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk HD
sangbyung said:
we bought two galaxy S3 and a galaxy note 2 on black Friday and we are very impressed by the quality of the Samsung phones. However, galaxy s3 phones are having 3G network issues. Our apartment is not getting very good reception with sprint but 3G speed tests are consistent with less than 100ms ping and 0.4-1mbps download speeds and 4g wimax speeds are decent. We have an airave device since we had issues with voice reception and we are very impressed by the device. However, galaxy s3 phones are having issues with 3G reception regardless if it is under airave reception or just outside tower reception. It was getting good speed and all of sudden 3G network turns itself off and it comes back on. I thought it was due to weak 3G signal into our apartment but it is doing the same with airave 3G and I thought it was mainly due to the programming of the phone since galaxy s3 has better reception quality than my galaxy s epic 4g. so I went to setting > network > more options > mobile network > and turned on CDMA only and those issues are gone with galaxy s3s. I think the phones are trying to connect to LTE and if the area does not have the coverage yet, it resets the 3G radio. During the resetting, the 3G coverage disappears and disrupts the data. has this been ongoing problem for the galaxy s3 on sprint? my galaxy s1 epic 4G never has this issue and we are wondering CDMA only option is temporary fix for the issue. if anyone had similar problem and was able to fix it, let me know. thank you.
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Had problem to for the first couple days after getting my s3 but all the bugs worked out. As far as cdma/lte and cdma option. I switched to just cdma being lte not up and running. This will save battery being phone wont be looking for lte network
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy s3
You can also contact sprint. They have updates for the airave and if that dont work they will send the new design one. Reason is s3 is new surf and talk and airave is standard cdma. Call takes about an hour for them to go through all thier steps. Before you call try *99 it will force connection to airave first and see if you still lose it.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda premium
Dude, why does Sprint suck now? I used to get 4G in my apartment, and all over the bay in many spots. Now I NEVER get a 4G signal. It's been months since I got 4G. I've had my phone for 1.5 years. Did they change something? I wanna switch carriers it's so bad. What's going on?
I checked and made sure my phone is set to be on LTE / CDMA.
I downloaded a app in play store that gives you more info on signal strength and connection type. I will get 4g at times but notice I get it more now with the dandriod 3.9.5 ROM.
Try the app and see what info it gives you. It will say LTE no connection if your not coming close to picking it up.
Signal Check Lite