Develop Bugs

[Q] 3g everythere but at home????

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....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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!!

bad reception on sgn

I am on att wireless
I have noticed that in a low service area i get none at all.
However my wife on her iphone has 1/2 bars and my bro on his atrix also has 1/2 bars.
Anyone else having similar issues?
12/7 Update - More information on what I have attempted
Setting APNS for 4g on ATT
getting correct 4g data plan on account
New Sim cards
Replacement Galaxy Nexus
Different Roms
Stock Restore Rom
restore to default and install nothing
different radio
update to 4.0.1
Once the signal drops to almost unusable levels , the only way to get it back is either reboot the phone or toggle airplane mode. After that the signal returns to a solid 89-93 DBM. After roughly 30-60min it will then drop and I have to toggle it again. All other phones in my location have no problem including my iphone 4s with the exact same sim card.
I am in a decent location for signal. On the nexus reboot its at -89 dbm , my iphone 4s is at -87. The iphone stays that way and the galaxy nexus over time drops to -105 to -111.
Still no conclusion.

I only have problem with Wi-Fi where the reception is considerably weaker than any other device just around it.

aimetti said:
I am on att wireless
I have noticed that in a low service area i get none at all.
However my wife on her iphone has 1/2 bars and my bro on his atrix also has 1/2 bars.
Anyone else having similar issues?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bars mean very little, as devices have their indicators calibrated differently. You should be comparing signals, in dBm for a meaningful comparison.
The acid test, of course, is whether you can make and hold a call, and or send/receive data.

aimetti said:
I am on att wireless
I have noticed that in a low service area i get none at all.
However my wife on her iphone has 1/2 bars and my bro on his atrix also has 1/2 bars.
Anyone else having similar issues?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah kind of hard to gauge from bars. Nokia and motorola are known for excellent reception. Samsung not so much. They do seem to be improving on all fronts though, including wifi and gps.
Sent from my samsung gt i9250 which is in the wrong country.

I havent got too in depth with testing but its simple to see there is an issue. Everyone around me can make calls and i cant. Cell standbye taking up battery life as well and has been out of signal for a while

I'm seeing a similar issue.
When I have 2g only selected, I get 2 bars -98 asu 7. When I have it deselected I have no bars and signal is -111 asu 1.

Well ive had similar issues
Today I wiped phone and came back to initially 4/5 bars and download speeds of 4 down 1 up.
Then after about 10 min , right back down to 1/0 bars and 800 kbps down 200 up.
popped off back cover and then pulled sim , reset sim and then reboot. Again it initially came back with 4/5 bars with hsdpa. Again about 10 min later back down to 1/0 bars and a -113 dbm reading,
Then oddly enough i was in the status screen just watching it hover around -113 to -105 , it clicked to edge full 5 bars , then came back to 3G 4 bars and now at -93 dbm.
Does this sound at all normal? I havent changed location more than a few feet through all this. My wifes Iphone seems to be having 0 issues right next to me.

just watched it do it again.
Was at 1 bar went to 0 , got stuck on -113 dbm for about a minute or 2 clicked over to edge-2 -87 dbm then back to hsdpa -93 dbm
:/ i got no clue at this point
there is a video showing some of the issue
http://youtu.be/dbSAEHVcosI

aimetti said:
just watched it do it again.
Was at 1 bar went to 0 , got stuck on -113 dbm for about a minute or 2 clicked over to edge-2 -87 dbm then back to hsdpa -93 dbm
:/ i got no clue at this point
there is a video showing some of the issue
http://youtu.be/dbSAEHVcosI
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this at home or a place where you frequently are? If so, I would do one of two things (provided you want to keep the device):
Write an NFC tag that you can tap on your way in (and presumably on on the way out as well) that would switch you over to "2G only" (which it seems gives you a better signal), and back to 3G/3.5G on your way out the door. or...
Either write yourself, or wait for one to be written, a kernel that will throw more power to the radio (at the expense of battery life however- but if you are constantly searching for signal your phone is probably wasting a ton of battery right now anyways)...

ya i am at home.
My wife consistently gets 3 down 1 up on her 4s.
No one else seems to be having issues , perhaps mine is just defective?
this is what happens when i lightly grip phone
http://youtu.be/-eqlMUoeq_I

aimetti said:
ya i am at home.
My wife consistently gets 3 down 1 up on her 4s.
No one else seems to be having issues , perhaps mine is just defective?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe, but I can't think of a way to reliably test whether it is defective or not. My Samsung phones have always had lightly weaker radios than my HTC and Moto phones, and my sister's iPhone, so I will wager that it is just that in the name of battery life the radio is under-powered, which can be changed in the kernel. I was in a similar boat back when I was on T-mobile (right on the edge of service), and luckily someone had posted a custom ROM for the G1 that routed more power to the radios, and gave me just enough to hold a signal and use my wifi for data. Whatever that kernel in that ROM did, it gave me about 10 dbm difference. You might want to throw a request in the development section.
you can also try exchanging the device (if ever unhappy at all you should try to), but I am wondering if it will actually make a difference. Do you know someone with a recent Samsung phone like a SG2 (not LTE/Skyrocket) or maybe one of their Windows phones (I don't know what radios/speeds they use), to see if it gives similar results?

s.m.knipe said:
Maybe, but I can't think of a way to reliably test whether it is defective or not. My Samsung phones have always had lightly weaker radios than my HTC and Moto phones, and my sister's iPhone, so I will wager that it is just that in the name of battery life the radio is under-powered, which can be changed in the kernel. I was in a similar boat back when I was on T-mobile (right on the edge of service), and luckily someone had posted a custom ROM for the G1 that routed more power to the radios, and gave me just enough to hold a signal and use my wifi for data. Whatever that kernel in that ROM did, it gave me about 10 dbm difference. You might want to throw a request in the development section.
you can also try exchanging the device (if ever unhappy at all you should try to), but I am wondering if it will actually make a difference. Do you know someone with a recent Samsung phone like a SG2 (not LTE/Skyrocket) or maybe one of their Windows phones (I don't know what radios/speeds they use), to see if it gives similar results?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ya , i was at my brothers house yesterday with no service at all.
My bro had an atrix with 1/2 bars and service.
my wife had an iphone 4 with 1/2 bars and service
and my sister in law had a galaxy s2 with 1/2 bars and service as well.
I had 0 at all.
The odd thing is , every time I reboot my phone it holds on to 4/5 bars at the location im at right now for a good 10 minutes , then flatlines.

aimetti said:
Ya , i was at my brothers house yesterday with no service at all.
My bro had an atrix with 1/2 bars and service.
my wife had an iphone 4 with 1/2 bars and service
and my sister in law had a galaxy s2 with 1/2 bars and service as well.
I had 0 at all.
The odd thing is , every time I reboot my phone it holds on to 4/5 bars at the location im at right now for a good 10 minutes , then flatlines.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what APN are you using? Use the same APN settings as your Sis-in-law's GS2- when my Nexus first came I noticed the APN did not match my Atrix and it would not hold an HSPA+ signal for long; I changed it to match the Atrix and speeds/holding towers has been much better. Try the APN thing.
The GN and GS2 would have the same radio chip (I would imagine), and be set to draw the same amount of power by the kernel. If the APN thing doesn't work then you might want to consider an exchange I guess, maybe it is defective
The fact that it flatlines AFTER 10 minutes (presumably after all the syncing is finished for the various apps and services) is suggestive of a sort of "demand" model- like maybe the device amps up the radio when it knows there will be a lot of need, then scales back when demand is less- or over compensates at first, then under compensates later after some sort of calibration? The ten minute thing sounds odd, but sounds like something software/firmware/kernel-based...
[Keep in mind that there is much speculation contained in that advice, the true test for defective or not would simply be another GN at the same location- as that is unreasonable we'll have to speculate. Also, if your sis-in-law comes back over, check her phone status for her signal strength (not bars but dbm and asu) and see if it matches yours. The bars that you see are a software representation of those two numbers, and can be modified to under represent the actual signal.]

I am using the default cingular 410 apn
ive been reading that if support put a 4g data plan on my phone that it could potentially cause data loss. Is that correct?
also changed to 2g only for now and have 5bars -81 dbm constant.

aimetti said:
I am using the default cingular 410 apn
ive been reading that if support put a 4g data plan on my phone that it could potentially cause data loss. Is that correct?
also changed to 2g only for now and have 5bars -81 dbm constant.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure I follow, if AT&T made your data plan a 4G data plan, it would interrupt your service?
I think you are asking if changing these APN settings will trigger something at AT&T, and they will "bump" you to a 4G plan- in which case I don't really know, I had to jump onto a "4G" plan when I got my Atrix. I think it would never reach that point though, when you set up the new APNs, that step where you touch the dot to select the HSDPA APN, it would default back to your cingular 410 apn if it were not able to connect (via SIM provisioning or whatever). If unavailable it wouldn't be connected at that rate to begin with.
How old is the data plan you are on (is it prior to the tiered plans)? If you are worried about the connection (APN) not matching the SIM, you could request a new (4G) SIM. Maybe stop in your local store, or call customer service and tell them you are thinking about buying a 4G phone, your friend's brother's uncle' pizza delivery boy's nephew has an unlocked phone you could test speeds with, could they switch out your old SIM for a newer 4G one to see if it will be worth your while at your house, then just pop in that new SIM, change the APN and away you go? (Or to be even less complicated take your old phone in with your old SIM, and just ask for a new SIM card, that yours isn't working right, and it should be a new 4G (not LTE) card...
Well, at least the phone is usable on the 2G band for you, and will save a lot of battery. Meanwhile we'll try to get you connected to an HSPA+ tower.

s.m.knipe said:
Not sure I follow, if AT&T made your data plan a 4G data plan, it would interrupt your service?
I think you are asking if changing these APN settings will trigger something at AT&T, and they will "bump" you to a 4G plan- in which case I don't really know, I had to jump onto a "4G" plan when I got my Atrix. I think it would never reach that point though, when you set up the new APNs, that step where you touch the dot to select the HSDPA APN, it would default back to your cingular 410 apn if it were not able to connect (via SIM provisioning or whatever). If unavailable it wouldn't be connected at that rate to begin with.
How old is the data plan you are on (is it prior to the tiered plans)? If you are worried about the connection (APN) not matching the SIM, you could request a new (4G) SIM. Maybe stop in your local store, or call customer service and tell them you are thinking about buying a 4G phone, your friend's brother's uncle' pizza delivery boy's nephew has an unlocked phone you could test speeds with, could they switch out your old SIM for a newer 4G one to see if it will be worth your while at your house, then just pop in that new SIM, change the APN and away you go? (Or to be even less complicated take your old phone in with your old SIM, and just ask for a new SIM card, that yours isn't working right, and it should be a new 4G (not LTE) card...
Well, at least the phone is usable on the 2G band for you, and will save a lot of battery. Meanwhile we'll try to get you connected to an HSPA+ tower.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks for all the help really appreciate it.
Anyways a few things have happened since I last posted.
I had an iphone for the last 3 years. I went into ATT last week and got a normal 4g sim card in advance. Today I called my buddy who is a manager at a corporate store and he checked my account. Found that the lady had the wrong data on it. He ended up setting the sim to the 4g plan etc (which is unlimited)
I was able to add the ATT HSDPA apn and successfully connected to it. Prior to this I actually installed modaco's rom and restored everything.
At this point I am getting consistently 3 bars in my house (which is more than my wifes iphone 4s) on 4g.
Seems to be working much better now. The only other issue that remains is when I turn on WIFI. If i turn it on the cell reception goes to 1 bar or sometimes 0. I dont have the exact dbm values right now unfortunately. Calls and text still seem to go through however. Is it possible the wifi is drawing power designated for the radio?
Thanks again !

aimetti said:
thanks for all the help really appreciate it.
Anyways a few things have happened since I last posted.
I had an iphone for the last 3 years. I went into ATT last week and got a normal 4g sim card in advance. Today I called my buddy who is a manager at a corporate store and he checked my account. Found that the lady had the wrong data on it. He ended up setting the sim to the 4g plan etc (which is unlimited)
I was able to add the ATT HSDPA apn and successfully connected to it. Prior to this I actually installed modaco's rom and restored everything.
At this point I am getting consistently 3 bars in my house (which is more than my wifes iphone 4s) on 4g.
Seems to be working much better now. The only other issue that remains is when I turn on WIFI. If i turn it on the cell reception goes to 1 bar or sometimes 0. I dont have the exact dbm values right now unfortunately. Calls and text still seem to go through however. Is it possible the wifi is drawing power designated for the radio?
Thanks again !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome, glad it worked out.
And possibly yes, depending on how the kernel relegates power wifi could "commandeer" a little from the cell radio, and reduce the dbm just enough to reflect in the "bars" algorithm.

perhaps a new radio will eventually come out that I can test.
either way seems to be at least in service now , signal definitely drops when i hold the phone but as long as I can make calls it should be fine.

aimetti said:
perhaps a new radio will eventually come out that I can test.
either way seems to be at least in service now , signal definitely drops when i hold the phone but as long as I can make calls it should be fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
in the meantime i'll suggest using the open signal widget https://market.android.com/details?id=com.staircase3.opensignal&hl=en
which will tell you the real reception in the phone, and see what you are getting behind those bars
don't expect to make a good call when the signal drops to -90 dbm and above
and if you have multiple phones like i do, then you can compare if other phone in the same spot, connected to the same tower, is having higher or lower dbm than SGN
for example my Nexus S had worse reception than my Milestone XT720.... go figure

AllGamer said:
in the meantime i'll suggest using the open signal widget https://market.android.com/details?id=com.staircase3.opensignal&hl=en
which will tell you the real reception in the phone, and see what you are getting behind those bars
don't expect to make a good call when the signal drops to -90 dbm and above
and if you have multiple phones like i do, then you can compare if other phone in the same spot, connected to the same tower, is having higher or lower dbm than SGN
for example my Nexus S had worse reception than my Milestone XT720.... go figure
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks I will try it out,
Overall i dont think the issue is fixed at all now. Went to bad and signal dropped all the way again. Stuck at -111 dbm. I held the phone i saw it switch to edge 5 bars and then click over to H 4 bars.
I really believe its some kind of software thing. If I cycle airplane mode on / off I get 4 bars (unknown dbm but its working) of 4g service. I know the service is here and working as my wifes iphone is fine but something is causing it to not hold the signal and eventually drop and not recover.
Makes no sense
Downloaded the app ,
Was at 42% signal strengh, I noticed when I picked up phone and lightly held it , it dropped right on down to 5% and got stuck there. This wasnt death gripping it either , barely holding it. Does anyone else have this issue or is it just mine? I know all cell phones have this issue but this seems excessive , worse than my iphone 4 ever was. I then cycled airplane mode again and signal strength went right up to 65% again -89 dbm

Three network - 2G/3G

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.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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
Click to expand...
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.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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..
Click to expand...
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.
Click to expand...
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?
Click to expand...
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.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sure?! That sounds very unrealistic.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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.
Click to expand...
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...
Click to expand...
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
Click to expand...
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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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.
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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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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

[Q] [Request] Signal bar hack.

Does anyone know how to have the bar indicator read HSPA even when I'm connected to LTE? To me, when I'm connected to LTE I could care less about signal strength because speed is all that matters. I prefer to know how my call would be, so I'd like the bars to read my HSPA signal and forget about the LTE strength. I like to know I'm connected to LTE but like i said, i could care less about what the LTE strength is. If anyone knows how or could point me in the right direction, that would be awesome if its possible. I've looked all over the place and couldn't find it, all the threads I've found tell you how to change the icons and such, which I've done. But this is something I do not know. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

Harmtan2 said:
Does anyone know how to have the bar indicator read HSPA even when I'm connected to LTE? To me, when I'm connected to LTE I could care less about signal strength because speed is all that matters. I prefer to know how my call would be, so I'd like the bars to read my HSPA signal and forget about the LTE strength. I like to know I'm connected to LTE but like i said, i could care less about what the LTE strength is. If anyone knows how or could point me in the right direction, that would be awesome if its possible. I've looked all over the place and couldn't find it, all the threads I've found tell you how to change the icons and such, which I've done. But this is something I do not know. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
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Signal bars don't have anything to do with LTE. Unless I completely misread what you said.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk

Harmtan2 said:
Does anyone know how to have the bar indicator read HSPA even when I'm connected to LTE? To me, when I'm connected to LTE I could care less about signal strength because speed is all that matters. I prefer to know how my call would be, so I'd like the bars to read my HSPA signal and forget about the LTE strength. I like to know I'm connected to LTE but like i said, i could care less about what the LTE strength is. If anyone knows how or could point me in the right direction, that would be awesome if its possible. I've looked all over the place and couldn't find it, all the threads I've found tell you how to change the icons and such, which I've done. But this is something I do not know. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
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Click to collapse
Reading this as you have written it, it sounds like you want to read the other car's spedometer on your dashboard and don't care what speed YOU are going at... (not very much of a useful report)............
It makes no sense and is most likely impossible due to the fact that the "strength" is read according to the frequency the radio is working.
Also, "Strength" is not the correct description of the signal bars shown, as it is a COMBINATION of available bandwidth as well as signal strength properties. You could be having a GOOD signal, but there are too many users in your cell service area so the bars are less of a quantity, but you still have service. It's too bad they didn't have a better way of showing that condition.....
Anyways, good luck and Aloha!

bobolinko said:
Reading this as you have written it, it sounds like you want to read the other car's spedometer on your dashboard and don't care what speed YOU are going at... (not very much of a useful report)............
It makes no sense and is most likely impossible due to the fact that the "strength" is read according to the frequency the radio is working.
Also, "Strength" is not the correct description of the signal bars shown, as it is a COMBINATION of available bandwidth as well as signal strength properties. You could be having a GOOD signal, but there are too many users in your cell service area so the bars are less of a quantity, but you still have service. It's too bad they didn't have a better way of showing that condition.....
Anyways, good luck and Aloha!
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I appreciate the response. The thing is, the bars haven't been consistent with speed. At one bar where I work, I pull down 15 Megs, when I go to lunch at the Mcdonalds I have 5 bars of LTE and pull 15 megs. Bars on HSPA also factor in Call quality where as LTE doesn't because you can't make calls on it. The phone has to stay connected to HSPA because of this, I basically want to be able to see my call strength before Make a call. I've read in certain phones especially on Verizon and other carriers especially, they manipulate the signal this way to make it look better. That's what I'm after in a nutshell.

Just change the data settings so that the phone only goes up to HSPA connections. Basically turn off LTE entirely.
That will always show HSPA strength in the status bar because it will always be connected at HSPA signal strength.

He wants lte. But does not care how strong the lte signal is. He only cares about being able to see the hsdpa connection strength.
With that said, if you have lte, you more than likely have full connection to hsdpa. I've forced hsdpa while in a one bar lte zone and hsdpa read full bars. So if your data connection says lte, 99.9 percent of the time you will have full hsdpa connection.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk

elesbb said:
He wants lte. But does not care how strong the lte signal is. He only cares about being able to see the hsdpa connection strength.
With that said, if you have lte, you more than likely have full connection to hsdpa. I've forced hsdpa while in a one bar lte zone and hsdpa read full bars. So if your data connection says lte, 99.9 percent of the time you will have full hsdpa connection.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk
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If he wan'ts that then he can't have it. The radio can only connect to one signal type at a time. And the only way to know what the HSPA signal strength is would be to be connected to it so it can be monitored. So in any situation where it's possible to determine the HSPA signal strength, you can't be connected to LTE.
Unless you carry another phone around that's always connected to HSPA and use that as a refference, but that seems....dumb.

Skipjacks said:
If he wan'ts that then he can't have it. The radio can only connect to one signal type at a time. And the only way to know what the HSPA signal strength is would be to be connected to it so it can be monitored. So in any situation where it's possible to determine the HSPA signal strength, you can't be connected to LTE.
Unless you carry another phone around that's always connected to HSPA and use that as a refference, but that seems....dumb.
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I was just wondering if it was possible My question becomes, if it can only be connected to LTE and not both, how do I receive incoming calls cuz I know that they don't do calls over LTE yet cuz they haven't launched VOLTE. Unless you were a lucky Mtetro PCS Customer. Not trying to be a pain in the ass, legitimately curious.

Harmtan2 said:
I was just wondering if it was possible My question becomes, if it can only be connected to LTE and not both, how do I receive incoming calls cuz I know that they don't do calls over LTE yet cuz they haven't launched VOLTE. Unless you were a lucky Mtetro PCS Customer. Not trying to be a pain in the ass, legitimately curious.
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Your connection switches to hsdpa. If you set your connection to "lte only" calls will not work. So it switches before connecting. And about VOLTE, will we need a new phone for that to work or is it basically a T-Mobile side thing?
Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk

Cellular strength and throughput

We know how much you like to stream, ahem, "videos", and so cellular data is mega-important. Rate this thread to express how you think the Samsung Galaxy S8+'s LTE performs. A higher rating indicates that it's fantastic: throughput is excellent and signal strength is top-notch.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add.

I get a low 4g signal at work whereas on my s7 edge I didn't get anything

Mine is a lot better than any phone I've had before. Usually at home on all my other phones I have 1-2 bars and on the S8+ I have at least 4 bars.

Bars are no indication of true signal strength. My S8+ doesn't get nearly as strong of a signal as my Pixel XL. I drop signal a lot more often now. I was rather disappointed with the performance of the cell radio actually.

For me, the signal is about the same at home. But at work, the S8+ performs much better than the Note5 that I had... Must be an extra band or something. The Note5 would hang on to an unusable LTE signal or drop to 3G/1x inside my job. The S8+ stays on on LTE with a usable signal.
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

It's worst Then S8 as I used that before shifting to S8 plus. But download speed is great.

My S7 was better. The S7 ised a new duel antenna tech, I am not sure the S8 used it or not.

My AT&T Note 4 and my new S8+ get about the same signal, which is really disappointing

I generally see around 5-8dbm better then I did with my pixel xl at home..notice the s8+ does drop signal little easier tho then my pixel in fringe areas

Tested right outside my house. Never had these speeds on my Note 5.

Comming from a S6, the signals and speeds are far better, also my s6 was missing a few bands so never ever got speeds like this on my Jio 4G Network in India

At work on LTE Im getting 31 Mbps down and 6 Mbps up. Not bad! Faster than our company wifi!

webtech9 said:
At work on LTE Im getting 31 Mbps down and 6 Mbps up. Not bad! Faster than our company wifi!
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I used to get 54Mbps which WAS faster than the company wifi. Then we bumped up to 500Mb.

Poor Reception in Canada on Bell Mobility
I just got an unlocked S8+ that was apparently originally from Sprint (because that is where the home page goes in Samsung Internet).
I do not get very good reception on it – even in urban/suburban areas. Sometimes, when I am inside a building, it disappears altogether. I often get 1 or 2 bars on the reception indicator. If I check the “Sim Card Status” screen under settings I get -105 dBm 3 asu. I don’t really know what those numbers mean.
Is there anything I can do to improve reception? Should I be calling Bell and maybe they need to know what kind of phone I have? Should I expect an S8+ purchased directly from Bell (they also carry this phone) to have better reception? Or is the reception of “105 dBm 3 asu” fine and it’s just the indicator showing low levels?
As much as I like this phone I cannot be missing calls randomly. I have a business to run.
Thanks.
The Fish

thefish123 said:
I just got an unlocked S8+ that was apparently originally from Sprint (because that is where the home page goes in Samsung Internet).
I do not get very good reception on it – even in urban/suburban areas. Sometimes, when I am inside a building, it disappears altogether. I often get 1 or 2 bars on the reception indicator. If I check the “Sim Card Status” screen under settings I get -105 dBm 3 asu. I don’t really know what those numbers mean.
Is there anything I can do to improve reception? Should I be calling Bell and maybe they need to know what kind of phone I have? Should I expect an S8+ purchased directly from Bell (they also carry this phone) to have better reception? Or is the reception of “105 dBm 3 asu” fine and it’s just the indicator showing low levels?
As much as I like this phone I cannot be missing calls randomly. I have a business to run.
Thanks.
The Fish
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Hey fish you want it down, the dBm i mean. Here's a quote "-50 dBm is great signal or full bars. -120 dBm is very poor signal or a dead zone." you at 105 dBm is garbage, no wonder your missing calls.. Since you are experiencing network issues, you could get a replacement, but i don’t think it will make much difference. as it's all same hardware. Why not get a Google Pixel XL i heard they got awesome reception! Or if you’re at home a lot, purchase an lte repeater booster ? Problem Solved!

Drop in signal & Block sign
Im living in UAE - and my service provider is etisalat, and my 4G signal is dropping and sometimes i get block sign, i tried my sim in different device it working.
i have started a thread on the subject if anyone could help me please.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ga...block-sign-t3851575/post77823171#post77823171

N1NJATH3ORY said:
Hey fish you want it down, the dBm i mean. Here's a quote "-50 dBm is great signal or full bars. -120 dBm is very poor signal or a dead zone." you at 105 dBm is garbage, no wonder your missing calls.. Since you are experiencing network issues, you could get a replacement, but i don’t think it will make much difference. as it's all same hardware. Why not get a Google Pixel XL i heard they got awesome reception! Or if you’re at home a lot, purchase an lte repeater booster ? Problem Solved!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went through a whole “carrier switching” routine (details found somewhere on these forums) and after changing the CSC to Canadian I flashed Bell Mobility's firmware. The phone now shows that it’s an SM-G955W which is the Canadian model. And apparently now supports additional LTE bands 29(700) and 30(2300) which were missing from the SM-G955U (I determined this by dialing *#2263#).
I have no idea if it *really* supports these bands or just *says* that it does but my gut tells me that it really does support them. I suspect that the hardware for the SM-G955U and SM-G955W is 100% identical and any differences are controlled through software only.
And I seem to have better reception now. I am getting 4 to 5 bars in most places and under -100 dBm in most places. Plus Wi-Fi calling works now so I have reception in my basement at my house.
The true test will be when we go camping next summer.
The Fish

thefish123 said:
I went through a whole “carrier switching” routine (details found somewhere on these forums) and after changing the CSC to Canadian I flashed Bell Mobility's firmware. The phone now shows that it’s an SM-G955W which is the Canadian model. And apparently now supports additional LTE bands 29(700) and 30(2300) which were missing from the SM-G955U (I determined this by dialing *#2263#).
I have no idea if it *really* supports these bands or just *says* that it does but my gut tells me that it really does support them. I suspect that the hardware for the SM-G955U and SM-G955W is 100% identical and any differences are controlled through software only.
And I seem to have better reception now. I am getting 4 to 5 bars in most places and under -100 dBm in most places. Plus Wi-Fi calling works now so I have reception in my basement at my house.
The true test will be when we go camping next summer.
The Fish
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Happy days for you i do suffer poor signal in my house:crying: i'll see if i can flash the CSC to fix it, thanks for the update!

s7 does lot better than 8+ in the same room