Develop Bugs

Signal Indicator Problem

Has anyone else been having a problem with their newly purchased Sprint S6 where the signal shows as 1 bar LTE on the s6 while other phones activated on sprint show better LTE signal at the same location? Even though the s6 and other phone's downloads speeds are the same, it always shows as 1, max 2 bars lte on the S6, although when placing a call the LTE indicator shows more bars for some reason. My family has two new S6's on our plan, and their both experiencing this issue. That and a few calls that didn't go through are making my dad freak out and wanna go back to his GS4.

pearsonpsh said:
Has anyone else been having a problem with their newly purchased Sprint S6 where the signal shows as 1 bar LTE on the s6 while other phones activated on sprint show better LTE signal at the same location? Even though the s6 and other phone's downloads speeds are the same, it always shows as 1, max 2 bars lte on the S6, although when placing a call the LTE indicator shows more bars for some reason. My family has two new S6's on our plan, and their both experiencing this issue. That and a few calls that didn't go through are making my dad freak out and wanna go back to his GS4.
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Bars don't matter, what matters is Settings-->About Device-->Status--->Signal Strength.

I know, but I think there may be an error with the LTE indicator in the notification bar, and my dad says its driving him crazy.

pearsonpsh said:
I know, but I think there may be an error with the LTE indicator in the notification bar, and my dad says its driving him crazy.
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Mine is the same.

i have the same problem. i updated my prl and profile to see if it would help and it didn't. then contacted sprint and they did a manual provision refresh. that seemed to solve the problem for now.

Mine is at one damn bar of LTE everywhere... doesnt seem to affect my speed of data usage... its fast... but it does have to search for that signal allot...

OK I think I see what ya'll are saying now. Just curious, what's your software version, OCF?? Also, anyone got a good fix?

Same here, on OCF
I noticed that as soon as the call connects, the bars shoot up.

I also have this issue on OCF. Question, has anyone rooted OCF yet? If so, which method did you use?

I am in exactly the same boat. I just changed from the S4, and at work we tested our phones side by side an S4, S5, and S6 and mine was the worst. I had to turn my LTE totally off in order to do anything. Please tell me this is something that Samsung can fix because I love this phone and don't know what to do.

Ya know,, 2 days ago I did changed my mobile network settings from Automatic to lte/CDMA. ALSO DID run an PRL update a d such but my signal had great actually, and my battery actually has improved alot since the change. Very well could be an Radio issue. That's what I'm guessing it is

Is it me or does this phone have a issue with making calls example tons of dropped calls, or do I need to get another phone

Guys, Samsung knows about this.... Supposedly will be rolling out an OTA soon to fix it,

Lets hope so. I'm convinced all of this poor battery life is from the modem / signal.

JoeFCaputo113 said:
Guys, Samsung knows about this.... Supposedly will be rolling out an OTA soon to fix it,
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I was messing around if you just select CDMA you will not drop calls until a fix if you guys want to do that

The signal display mainly looks bad because it's a Tri Band phone. On your s4 it would display the voice strength even though you were connected to LTE. On the tri band phones it only connects to LTE, and the switches to voice when making or receiving calls that's why you see the signal jump up when making a call. LTE does not travel/penetrate as well as voice and CDMA, but good news is that it does not have too to get good speeds.
Check out an app called Signal Check. It's cool to actually see your real signal and it just some bars. It will also tell you what band of LTE you are on.

sethmcmichael said:
The signal display mainly looks bad because it's a Tri Band phone. On your s4 it would display the voice strength even though you were connected to LTE. On the tri band phones it only connects to LTE, and the switches to voice when making or receiving calls that's why you see the signal jump up when making a call. LTE does not travel/penetrate as well as voice and CDMA, but good news is that it does not have too to get good speeds.
Check out an app called Signal Check. It's cool to actually see your real signal and it just some bars. It will also tell you what band of LTE you are on.
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I understand that but doesn't help the people that are getting tons of dropped calls like myself

JoeFCaputo113 said:
Guys, Samsung knows about this.... Supposedly will be rolling out an OTA soon to fix it,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any info on a update I can't take all the dropped calls driving me crazy now

Even on OC9, we were experiencing the dropped calls. Finally, updated to OCF today, to see if it helped, but actually feel it may have gotten worse, seem to be experiencing more dropped calls.

LG G4 VS986 on T-Mobile LTE problem

Issue:
Phone will not stay locked on LTE in Global or LTE/UMTS/GSM mode. When in Global or LTE/UMTS/GSM mode and LTE does connect, it's momentarily and when trying to run a speed test or open a webpage, it quickly disconnects and connects to HSDPA. If switched to LTE/CDMA signal locks in great and data speeds are great however voice services are not available. Any thoughts or advice is welcomed. Thanks ahead of time!
Facts:
Phone: VS986
Android Version: 5.1
Build: LMY47D
Soft Version: VS98611A
APN: T-Mobile Fast apn (fast.t-mobile.com)
Strong LTE area
*#*#4636#*#* Not available on LG G4
Radio Swither Not available on LG G4
Rooted
Xposed installed
Gravity Box installed (no change when using smart radio features)
G3 Tweakbox installed but module will not register with Xposed Framework (I know it was along shot)

What band LTE are you connecting to? I found that here on band 2, I will connect at first, but then it switches back to edge. Seems fine in a band 4 LTE area though.

geoff5093 said:
What band LTE are you connecting to? I found that here on band 2, I will connect at first, but then it switches back to edge. Seems fine in a band 4 LTE area though.
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I'm in the Raleigh NC area. According to LTE Discovery i'm using Band 4. and I also experience the same. A brief connection while in global or LTE/UMTS/GSM mode then it falls back to HSPA.

taifuller said:
I'm in the Raleigh NC area. According to LTE Discovery i'm using Band 4. and I also experience the same. A brief connection while in global or LTE/UMTS/GSM mode then it falls back to HSPA.
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I haven't found LTE Discovery to report the band correctly, at least in my case. It would say I'm on band 4 on my Moto X, but when using a band 4 only device I would only get Edge, but when I go in a confirmed band 4 area it works fine. From what I've found, most 2G > LTE sites were converted to band 2 LTE. Although since you get HSPA the chances of it actually being on band 4 are higher.

I'm fairly certain this is a Band 4 area. The latest T-Mobile maps are pretty good about pointing out Band 2 areas. I've since sold the phone and acquired a iPhone 6 Plus which I'm looking to sell to replace it with an international G4 or T-Mobile G4. I was pretty impressed with that phone. If I had to rank my favorites, it's number 2. Nexus 5 is still king of the hill for me. There wasn't a better phone out when it was release for a better price.

did you ever figure this out? samething is happening to me

Unfortunately I didn't. I sold it and bought one for T-Mobile...... Which I just sold about 3 hours ago.

So I tested it out again, and in a band 2 area when I boot up my phone with a T-Mobile SIM, I get LTE for several seconds then it cuts back over to 2G.
Now that there is a new software update for the G4, I wonder if this is anymore reliable. Anyone who took the OTA update in the past few days, can you let us know if it's any better?
Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk

Been there, done that...wanted to switch over to T-Mobile, but unfortunately, the VS986 only works with two of their three LTE bands, as you know, and it seems everywhere I went, they were using the one the phone doesn't receive (I'm in southern California, for what it's worth, but tested it on a freeway run up the I-5 to the central part of the state - only got 4G-LTE in a few places). Wound up going back to Verizon

I'm getting the exact same results in Burlington, VT (T-Mobile band 2 market). I first have to manually select T-Mobile (defaults to roaming on AT&T HSPA+) then LTE works for less than a minute (LTE Discovery says band 4) and then I lose signal when I get signal again, I only have edge. It does this constantly and is really annoying.

Aww, bummer. I was thinking about switching to T-Mobile, but looks like that is not a viable option? So no one has been able to successfully use the phone on T-Mobile, even after enabling bands 2 and 4 only?
This whole plethora of LTE bands, where each provider does its own crap is such a mess, is just serves to lock in customers, since switching phones is expensive. Government should mandate that all phones can work on all US LTE bands, the technology exists.

I am on the same boat. Everything works on my VS986 on t-mobile network. but I cannot get the LTE to work properly. LTE discovery shows band 4 (not sure if correct though)

konradsa said:
Aww, bummer. I was thinking about switching to T-Mobile, but looks like that is not a viable option? So no one has been able to successfully use the phone on T-Mobile, even after enabling bands 2 and 4 only?
This whole plethora of LTE bands, where each provider does its own crap is such a mess, is just serves to lock in customers, since switching phones is expensive. Government should mandate that all phones can work on all US LTE bands, the technology exists.
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My VRZ LG G4 shows that it has Band 2, 4, 5, and 13. I tried enabling 2 & 4 only, 4 only, 2 only, 2&4&13 only but with no success.
What is interesting is I am coming from VRZ LG G3 and LTE was just fine and never had an issue.
I looked at the VRZ LG G3 LTE bands and I see Band 3,4, and 13 enabled. It did not even have band 2.

More testing:
When I switched the Network Mode to LTE/CDMA I get constant 4G-LTE & internet is working but my phone cannot place and receive phone calls.
with LTE/CDMA I see 4G at 100dBm and 1X at 120dBm

ruijay said:
More testing:
When I switched the Network Mode to LTE/CDMA I get constant 4G-LTE & internet is working but my phone cannot place and receive phone calls.
with LTE/CDMA I see 4G at 100dBm and 1X at 120dBm
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Click to collapse
Interesting, almost sounds like a bug in the LTE/GSM mode.
I assume when you switch to global mode, voice works but only HSPA, right?

konradsa said:
Interesting, almost sounds like a bug in the LTE/GSM mode.
I assume when you switch to global mode, voice works but only HSPA, right?
Click to expand...
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That is right.
The best internet speed was with LTE/CDMA but no voice or text

ruijay said:
That is right.
The best internet speed was with LTE/CDMA but no voice or text
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Click to collapse
Out of curiosity, what speeds do you get on HSPA in global mode?

konradsa said:
Out of curiosity, what speeds do you get on HSPA in global mode?
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With HSPA/3G I get around 7 mbps download and 1.88 mbps upload

ruijay said:
More testing:
When I switched the Network Mode to LTE/CDMA I get constant 4G-LTE & internet is working but my phone cannot place and receive phone calls.
with LTE/CDMA I see 4G at 100dBm and 1X at 120dBm
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ruijay said:
That is right.
The best internet speed was with LTE/CDMA but no voice or text
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Click to collapse
I think since someone reported before that this used to work the G3, it sounds like a bug to me. I guess we can hope and pray that this will work in future releases, but there is no guarantee of course. Not sure what complaining to Verizon will do, since they are probably not very interested in you using T-Mobile. Of course, you can always wrap the complaint into something like you are using the phone in a different country on vacation and it doesn't work. Maybe a complaint to the FTC could work too, since it sounds like Verizon is required to have their phones unlocked for use on other networks based on some settlement.

konradsa said:
I think since someone reported before that this used to work the G3, it sounds like a bug to me. I guess we can hope and pray that this will work in future releases, but there is no guarantee of course. Not sure what complaining to Verizon will do, since they are probably not very interested in you using T-Mobile. Of course, you can always wrap the complaint into something like you are using the phone in a different country on vacation and it doesn't work. Maybe a complaint to the FTC could work too, since it sounds like Verizon is required to have their phones unlocked for use on other networks based on some settlement.
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I am tempted to try the guide in here to add more LTE bands:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/g4/general/guide-enabling-lte-bands-t3137818
While some testers said the LTE bands are limited by hardware others reported some success modifying the software. Any thoughts?

calls keep going in and out despite good coverage

Hello just switched back to t mobile and have a question..have an unlock galaxy s8+ with t mobile firmware and when doing a phone call, myself , as well as the person I'm speaking with, the volume goes in and out despite the fact I have more then adequate service(-100dbm b4). Never drop a call just lose volume..Called t mobile and they have no idea. If I use WiFi calling I don't have the issue. Don't have option to turn off volte being in mostly band 12 only areas so I wouldn't be able to receive calls. Hard having a conversation when you miss seconds at a time of the conversation..tried reflashing firmware with odin as well as a factory reset. Do notice this phone switches between b4 and b12 really frequently despite the fact it isn't needed at my house as both have fine coverage and b4 rarely goes under -105dbm... Any advice?

fantasy2c said:
Hello just switched back to t mobile and have a question..have an unlock galaxy s8+ with t mobile firmware and when doing a phone call, myself , as well as the person I'm speaking with, the volume goes in and out despite the fact I have more then adequate service(-100dbm b4). Never drop a call just lose volume..Called t mobile and they have no idea. If I use WiFi calling I don't have the issue. Don't have option to turn off volte being in mostly band 12 only areas so I wouldn't be able to receive calls. Hard having a conversation when you miss seconds at a time of the conversation..tried reflashing firmware with odin as well as a factory reset. Do notice this phone switches between b4 and b12 really frequently despite the fact it isn't needed at my house as both have fine coverage and b4 rarely goes under -105dbm... Any advice?
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Is your sim card new? If not I'd start with replacing that. What apn settings are you using? I believe your phone should drop to HSPA+ on a phone call if you have volte off , well mine does anyways and I'm on similar bands but I have ATT as a carrier.
Sent from my SM-G955U1 using XDA-Developers Legacy app

Quickvic30 said:
Is your sim card new? If not I'd start with replacing that. What apn settings are you using? I believe your phone should drop to HSPA+ on a phone call if you have volte off , well mine does anyways and I'm on similar bands but I have ATT as a carrier.
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If I turn volte off I wouldn't be able to receive calls, majority of my area is lte only. Just got a sim 1 week ago when I switched back over to t mobile..i noticed that It happens while phone is changing between band 4 and band 12 which it does at the very least once every minute so I disabled band 4 and it seems to not do it now which stinks but it's not a deal breaker as phone still works fine and data speeds are still high enough that it's not a problem just weird

fantasy2c said:
If I turn volte off I wouldn't be able to receive calls, majority of my area is lte only. Just got a sim 1 week ago when I switched back over to t mobile..i noticed that It happens while phone is changing between band 4 and band 12 which it does at the very least once every minute so I disabled band 4 and it seems to not do it now which stinks but it's not a deal breaker as phone still works fine and data speeds are still high enough that it's not a problem just weird
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LTE only, I find that hard to believe as most lower grade and mid grade phones don't even have the option for volte but whatever, glad ya got it partially figured out. I would try flashing different basebands aka radio aka modem aka CP lol and see of that fixes the issue.

Quickvic30 said:
LTE only, I find that hard to believe as most lower grade and mid grade phones don't even have the option for volte but whatever, glad ya got it partially figured out. I would try flashing different basebands aka radio aka modem aka CP lol and see of that fixes the issue.
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If I remember correctly any baseband will work except Verizon ones as they are only one that blocks band 12 right? Hopefully find some odin flashable modems online so I don't have to spend forever downloading whole package off Sam mobile. I grabbed latest 955u1 t mobile firmware when I switched from Verizon last week bc phone wouldn't work or update from coming from Verizon for some odd reason

They're all literally the same CP/modem for the u and u1 models, so when changing modems you actually have to flash different build numbers not just different carriers modems with the same build number cause they're all the same lol, aka multi-csc

It's definitely when the phone changes bands, which I still don't get why it's so constant. Played around again tonight and would switch from -100dbm band 4, call would cut out as I switched to -92dbm band 12 then seconds later back to b4 to where it would cut out again. Fix for me is to keep band 4 disabled but then when I go to city I'm screwed bc parts don't have b12 only b4 and I have to go into dialer and re enable it..it. shouldn't cut out, my pixel never had this issue or nexus 6. Idk what to do about this

T-Mobile user, Can't receive phone calls, caller says they go straight to voicemail

Hello everyone.
I'm new here and this is my newest phone purchase after weeks and weeks of research I decided to purchase this phone. However I'm having one big problem. I cannot receive phone calls using the phone. However I can send text messages which is strange and when I try to talk to someone it switches to 2G for no real reason too.
It's fully updated and completely stock in fact just purchased three days ago. I'm wondering what I could do so I can get this thing working again. I have 30 days to return this thing, and I rather not because its a rather good phone and I like it a lot but if I can't get it to receive phone calls then I have to return it.
please help anyone.

Dallas Texas said:
Hello everyone.
I'm new here and this is my newest phone purchase after weeks and weeks of research I decided to purchase this phone. However I'm having one big problem. I cannot receive phone calls using the phone. However I can send text messages which is strange and when I try to talk to someone it switches to 2G for no real reason too.
It's fully updated and completely stock in fact just purchased three days ago. I'm wondering what I could do so I can get this thing working again. I have 30 days to return this thing, and I rather not because its a rather good phone and I like it a lot but if I can't get it to receive phone calls then I have to return it.
please help anyone.
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Click to collapse
Try installing the t-mobile visual voicemail app, there maybe settings in there you can adjust, only if your U.S though.

boe323 said:
Try installing the t-mobile visual voicemail app, there maybe settings in there you can adjust, only if your U.S though.
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Click to collapse
I had the same problem check the apn settings my was the stock tmo setting with the phone and a . Was in the wrong spot

boe323 said:
Try installing the t-mobile visual voicemail app, there maybe settings in there you can adjust, only if your U.S though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
rob420p said:
I had the same problem check the apn settings my was the stock tmo setting with the phone and a . Was in the wrong spot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright I'll try and install the T-mobile visual voicemail app and see what is good
APN settings yes? I have tried that and tried inputting a manual one and even the ones on there which has three types of T-mobile settings

I'm not an expert on this but I have been looking for info on this for a while before I buy an A2 Lite to use on T-Mobile and I believe this post by a T-Mobile MVNO customer service rep may answer your question
The TLDR is that T-Mobile strictly uses band 12 for all VoLTE calls and if the phone doesn't support band 12/VoLTE T-Mobile forces it to use 2G for calls and texts. In some areas where the spectrum has been refarmed and there are a lot of 2G users your incoming call will time out before the tower finishes searching for you on VoLTE and ultimately tries to connect you to 2G, resulting in your phone not actually ringing.
This would also explain why there are no issues with texts, since they don't time out like an incoming call. Apparently there is no solution to this if you live in certain areas and use T-Mobile, and it will continue to get worse as spectrum is refarmed.
Sorry for the delay -- I'm technically off today. I saw you question and just had to pop in and answer, because I have a complete answer for you. Your issue is band compatibility, specifically the lack of Band 12. Let me explain:
For years and years, T-Mobile sent all their calls over the legacy 2G network on 1900MHz. Every call and text message went over this frequency, and all T-Mobile phones still support it for backwards compatibility.
Then, T-Mobile launched Voice over LTE, or VoLTE. But, they made the stipulation that VoLTE would only ever work on LTE Band 12. That means that any phone that didn't specifically have Band 12 LTE would still have to use the 2G 1900MHz frequency to send all calls and text messages. Any phone that did support Band 12 could use VoLTE and would send all their calls and texts through that VoLTE Band 12 connection.
That's not really a problem for most people, as T-Mobile's 2G network is still live in all their markets. These phones will connect to the LTE network for all data, but all their calls and texts go over that 2G connection.
Enter the problem: Spectrum crunch. Spectrum in the US is a limited resource. That's why the auctions always for it always go for millions of dollars for tiny portions. T-Mobile (and by extension, all its MVNOs, as we have no power over how they build their network) wants to make LTE the new standard, and push into 5G. In order to do that, they need to launch LTE in more places, and feed more devices than ever. They only have so much spectrum, so they reallocate what they already have to the new technology.
This is already happening with 3G. 2G is, again, just being kept around for backwards compatibility. They take the sectors that broadcast 3G (and 2G) and make them smaller and smaller, so the rest of the room can be used for LTE to service more devices faster. It makes business sense.
The process is called "re-farming" spectrum, and a quick Google search quickly becomes a rabbit hole as you find other people in your circumstance. They put the disused services on tiny little slivers of spectrum, some as small as 5MHz, which without getting too technical, is tiny.
If you happen to be unlucky enough live in an area where they're re-farming 2G spectrum to LTE, and your phone doesn't support VoLTE on Band 12, you're effectively fighting all the other T-Mobile (really any carrier, but for arguments' sake) customers whose devices also need to connect to that 2G network
Add enough people, and you get the problem you're having. A call comes into the network, and the towers go to work trying to find you. First, they try VoLTE, and don't find you there. Then they try the old 2G network, but there's like 200 other people in your area that are connected to that one tower, so it has to fight through them all to find your SIM card number and connect the call and-- right before it connects, the call times out of rings and your caller is sent to Voicemail.
You never get a missed call alert, your caller isn't alerted that your phone didn't ring, and because your phone didn't get a confirmation, you probably won't get a voicemail notification.
This doesn't affect the phone's ability to connect to the 3G network or 4G LTE Bands 2 and 4, which lots of phones support. But calls and texts don't travel over those networks. You'll still have an active, working data connection if this is what's happening to you, which is why it's hard to diagnose not just for Ting reps, but our customers and other MVNOs, as well as T-Mobile itself.
This problem isn't going to go away, and it's only going to get worse as re-farming 2G goes nationwide. It's not Ting-specific. Any T-Mobile device will have this problem if there are enough 2G-talk-and-text users in your area.
The phone in question, the Blu Vivo 5, supports Band 2 and Band 4 for LTE, but doesn't support Band 12, and thus doesn't support VoLTE. This is exactly what's happening to you.
This is exactly how it happened to my S/O. She had a Motorola Droid Mini on Ting GSM that worked great for years, on two distinct T-Mobile-powered networks. Then, T-Mobile re-farmed enough 2G in our area that she started missing calls, texts wouldn't arrive and she wouldn't get voicemails. The key identifier that this was her problem was that placing a call would take something like 10-15 seconds to connect. Typically, this should be instant.
There was nothing wrong with the phone at all -- it was working as designed. The second I got her into a Band 12 VoLTE phone, the problems disappeared completely. Nothing else changed.
The only solution is a new (or new-to-you) phone that supports Band 12 and VoLTE. No number of hard resets, network resets or new SIM cards will fix this problem. You'll have this problem on any network that uses T-Mobile as their backbone, as long as the phone you're using doesn't support Band 12 LTE and VoLTE.
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I don't have a high enough post count to post a link but it was posted on r/Ting if you search that subreddit for the thread titled "Over 4 years and now this" you should find it. The info was written by u/literallyunlimited.

D412 said:
I'm not an expert on this but I have been looking for info on this for a while before I buy an A2 Lite to use on T-Mobile and I believe this post by a T-Mobile MVNO customer service rep may answer your question
The TLDR is that T-Mobile strictly uses band 12 for all VoLTE calls and if the phone doesn't support band 12/VoLTE T-Mobile forces it to use 2G for calls and texts. In some areas where the spectrum has been refarmed and there are a lot of 2G users your incoming call will time out before the tower finishes searching for you on VoLTE and ultimately tries to connect you to 2G, resulting in your phone not actually ringing.
This would also explain why there are no issues with texts, since they don't time out like an incoming call. Apparently there is no solution to this if you live in certain areas and use T-Mobile, and it will continue to get worse as spectrum is refarmed.
I don't have a high enough post count to post a link but it was posted on r/Ting if you search that subreddit for the thread titled "Over 4 years and now this" you should find it. The info was written by u/literallyunlimited.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks fam, I'll return it and get another phone I appreciate the information brother.

Weak antenna?

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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Where did get this theme and icons in screen shots ?

Maystro said:
Where did get this theme and icons in screen shots ?
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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.
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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.
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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.