Develop Bugs

WiFi strength, range, and throughput

Rate this thread to express how you think the ZTE Axon 7's Wifi performs. A higher rating indicates that it has excellent range, throughput, and signal strength. Like when you're taking a dump in the bedroom upstairs, do your videos have to buffer or do they come through without interruption?
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!

Both the Wifi, and cell signals are weaker than the Nexus 6P and the Samsung S7 Edge by a fair margin. With the Wifi, this is most notable when you're on a level of a house other than the level of the router. The Wifi cuts out periodically, and its signal strength is about 1/3rd of the other two phones in the same location.
It's cell signal on T-Mobile is also significantly weaker than the signal with the same sim card in the same location on the 6P and S7 Edge. Difference is -114db (Axon) vs. -101db (Nexus).

t1328 said:
Both the Wifi, and cell signals are weaker than the Nexus 6P and the Samsung S7 Edge by a fair margin. With the Wifi, this is most notable when you're on a level of a house other than the level of the router. The Wifi cuts out periodically, and its signal strength is about 1/3rd of the other two phones in the same location.
It's cell signal on T-Mobile is also significantly weaker than the signal with the same sim card in the same location on the 6P and S7 Edge. Difference is -114db (Axon) vs. -101db (Nexus).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well crap, I'm planning on buying one of these on tmobile and I live in an already mediocre signal area. I get about -122 to at best -106 at home though I just use wifi. Have you noticed any real world issues with the speed? Is -114 the best it gets in a max signal area?

I am on Tmobile as well which makes this disappointing. A few of the other issues noted didn't really sway me but this could be a dealbreaker for me. As I have a S7 and am happy with it, short of small(ish) display, I cannot deal with poor signal on either cell or WiFi where as now it's pretty fantastic. I have 2 weeks to decide as Newegg still claims to be shipping the gray model then. Thanks for sharing.

Ahhhhhhhh. I still haven't received my phone but between this and camera issues I'm feeling very concerned about my purchase.

Axon 7 has weak Wi-Fi performance. 5ghz
fluctuates like a bouncing ball. Really hope it's not a bad antenna design with this phone.
Anyone else tested wifi ?
The guy from the zte webinar didn't even know it's AC capable phone. This doesn't inspire confidence.

My WiFi was running around 60mb on a 100mb link.
PLUS, I am only 3 feet from the router, nothing in between them.

Yep, same here. In the same places I used to get no service with 2014 devices (like the s4 era stuff) I get no service with the Axon 7. Most of my previous devices (s7e, n6p, 5x, n6, blah blah blah) all retained at least a weak signal in those areas. Wifi seems actually better than my S7 Edge Exynos though.

bkakus said:
My WiFi was running around 60mb on a 100mb link.
PLUS, I am only 3 feet from the router, nothing in between them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's good but not much of a test for a Wi-Fi device.
You need to move at least 20 feet from the router.
All devices get good Wi-Fi performance if your a few feet from the router.
I have tested 50 dollar phones that get better Wi-Fi performance than this $400 phone.
---------- Post added at 10:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:27 PM ----------
robstunner said:
Yep, same here. In the same places I used to get no service with 2014 devices (like the s4 era stuff) I get no service with the Axon 7. Most of my previous devices (s7e, n6p, 5x, n6, blah blah blah) all retained at least a weak signal in those areas. Wifi seems actually better than my S7 Edge Exynos though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually I'm testing this phone in the same area as several older and newer devices with no dead spots.
The axon 7 is quite weak by comparison. No other device tested fluctuates signal strength when holding device still.
Very strange occurrence.
Could be a bad antenna design or maybe a few bad units. Hope it's a firmware fix!

It sounds badly. Radio volume can be pop up in the software but to tell true it does not help too much in practice without a good antenna. Also battery drain will be increased dramatically. It is hard to imagine such software bug which causes weak signal strength in both wifi and LTE signal cases. So it could be antenna issue most likely and if antenna design is bad that's it. Move on!
It would be good to read opposite experiences which can keep the hope.

It must be the lower end QCA6164. Max I can connect with axon 7 is 433Mbps. That is if I stand 1 to 3 feet from the router. More of a problem is the poor weak signal as you move away from router. Then connection is down to 190Mbps after 10 feet to 20 feet.
Must be a bad antenna system in this phone.
Most important part of a mobile device is connectivity. This phone is clearly weaker LTE and Wi-Fi than other phones.
Not everything that shines is gold

In my daily use, I don't notice any difference in wifi strength or speed vs my Nexus 6P or my Moto X Pure. In my back room, I still get as good or better speeds on speedtest.net using the app to test. I know this doesn't rate the db, but I notice no real difference.
It also stays connected about 70 yards up the street, about on par with my last few phones.

tele_jas said:
In my daily use, I don't notice any difference in wifi strength or speed vs my Nexus 6P or my Moto X Pure. In my back room, I still get as good or better speeds on speedtest.net using the app to test. I know this doesn't rate the db, but I notice no real difference.
It also stays connected about 70 yards up the street, about on par with my last few phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you mind telling what type of router you're Using? Qualcomm chipset routers work best with
This phone. Mine is a Netgear r7000 and it's not using Qualcomm chipset.
---------- Post added at 03:58 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:58 PM ----------
tele_jas said:
In my daily use, I don't notice any difference in wifi strength or speed vs my Nexus 6P or my Moto X Pure. In my back room, I still get as good or better speeds on speedtest.net using the app to test. I know this doesn't rate the db, but I notice no real difference.
It also stays connected about 70 yards up the street, about on par with my last few phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you mind telling what type of router you're Using? Qualcomm chipset routers work best with
This phone. Mine is a Netgear r7000 and it's not using Qualcomm chipset.

yaya444 said:
do you mind telling what type of router you're using? Qualcomm chipset routers work best with
this phone. Mine is a netgear r7000 and it's not using qualcomm chipset.
---------- post added at 03:58 pm ---------- previous post was at 03:58 pm ----------
do you mind telling what type of router you're using? Qualcomm chipset routers work best with
this phone. Mine is a netgear r7000 and it's not using qualcomm chipset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Netgear r6250

tele_jas said:
In my daily use, I don't notice any difference in wifi strength or speed vs my Nexus 6P or my Moto X Pure. In my back room, I still get as good or better speeds on speedtest.net using the app to test. I know this doesn't rate the db, but I notice no real difference.
It also stays connected about 70 yards up the street, about on par with my last few phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How is your LTE reception/speed versus 6P?

runderekrun said:
How is your LTE reception/speed versus 6P?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once again, I don't have actual db numbers, but my "bars" show lower but my connection is just as good and fast, or even slightly better in certain areas.
At my work, I had 4-5 bars of LTE on my 6P.... On the Axon 7, I have 2-3. But, the LTE speeds on the Axon 7 are on par to what the 6P was, and actually slightly better.
At home, I had 1-2 bars on my 6P - It's the same on the Axon 7, but when I go to the back of the house I would drop signal on almost all phones (except my Moto X Pure), but the Axon 7 will still let me carry on a conversation and not cut out.
So, I don't know what the actual numbers are, but I know I get signal where I didn't before and it's typically on par with, or better than my 6P.

tele_jas said:
Once again, I don't have actual db numbers, but my "bars" show lower but my connection is just as good and fast, or even slightly better in certain areas.
At my work, I had 4-5 bars of LTE on my 6P.... On the Axon 7, I have 2-3. But, the LTE speeds on the Axon 7 are on par to what the 6P was, and actually slightly better.
At home, I had 1-2 bars on my 6P - It's the same on the Axon 7, but when I go to the back of the house I would drop signal on almost all phones (except my Moto X Pure), but the Axon 7 will still let me carry on a conversation and not cut out.
So, I don't know what the actual numbers are, but I know I get signal where I didn't before and it's typically on par with, or better than my 6P.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you.
Other accounts on the ZTE forums are saying that is substantially worse than 6P or even the mediocre Oneplus One. This gives me hope at least.

WiFi is longer range on my 2.4ghz axon 7 vs my g3.
Haven't tested the data connection thoroughly enough to OPIN on that.

What is a recommended test for wifi and LTE data speeds? - speedtest.net app?

taijo said:
What is a recommended test for wifi and LTE data speeds? - speedtest.net app?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is a good app for the wan but, what about a lan testing app. Anybody know of an Android app for wifi testing the local area network?

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 ZTE Axon 7'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 was on my way up northern Michigan and my wife drove for a bit and I compared the axon to her Moto G (2016) and it they both had to about the same signal. Both had issues shedding weaker towers. Now that we are up at the cabin both phones have very similar signal. So I think the axon is at least as good as a Moto G (2016).

runderekrun said:
I was on my way up northern Michigan and my wife drove for a bit and I compared the axon to her Moto G (2016) and it they both had to about the same signal. Both had issues shedding weaker towers. Now that we are up at the cabin both phones have very similar signal. So I think the axon is at least as good as a Moto G (2016).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On what network?

murkwell said:
On what network?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
cricket (att)

Now that I am back at a keyboard I can expand a bit. I was testing via running speed tests. When I first started the Moto G was destroying the Axon. I started getting a sunken feeling, but then I noticed the Axon shifted off a tower only getting HSPA ("4G") to one using LTE so I reran a few speed tests and the Axon trounced the Moto G, as it was still stuck on the under performing tower. So that's when I thought maybe a rural roadtrip, with an iffy signal to begin with, wasn't the best way to test this. Once we arrived at the cabin we both had between 1 and 2 bars of HSPA connection that would only work in specific corners of the cabin effectively. Seemingly the same.
I know this isn't an empirical test. I wasn't comparing the actual db numbers or anything. But to my eyes, Axon is about on the same level as the Moto G (2016). I don't know how good the Moto G actually is but I remember reading it had good signal when I was originally reading reviews for it.
Once again this was all tested on the Cricket (via AT&T) network.

Up in Canada on Rogers and am having severely low signal rate. Cannot find service in any basement ive been in throughout the city. Signal of around -120dBm inside buildings. The signal seems very erratic and jumps from 96-143dBm extremely quick. I seem to think there may be a modem problem with this network. If anyone else is on Rogers please chime in on your findings.

The signal strength is worse than my s4, I checked the db and it is 5-10db worse, but occasionally will jump to being on par to the s4. Tested on tmo lte, neither phone was being held. Not sure how the rating is 4.5/5 as a reddit post agrees that there is some issue.

The signal quality is definitely not stable, had a few minor call drops if I am not in certain parts of my house and inside stores which can be tough on signals but it's nowhere near as strong as my other test phones such as the S5, Note 4, and S6 Edge+. I was dropping calls earlier this week and switched back to Note 4 and I was able to talk everywhere w/o dropped calls. This is on Tmobile and signal is decent in my area. Then on WIFI strength, the Note 4 beats it by 20-30% throughput. That's a 2014 device.
My problem with all these Chinese brand phones is they have great specs but software is lacking. Looks like I maybe back to my workhorse Note 4.

So I used this phone to drive Uber in Los Angeles all last night and had some pretty major problems.
GPS Signal would randomly shift positions so Google Maps would keep rerouting during trips. This didn't always happen, but happened enough to be annoying.
I'm pretty sure I lost a bunch of trip requests because they just never got through to my phone.
This is either because the OS wasn't allowing the notifications to come through correctly, or because of the network performance.
Interestingly I was streaming podcasts the entire time which came through fine for the most part, but they would cut out every once in a while if I ended up in areas with 1bar (which happened often last night).
This is a pretty major problem for me, I don't know if something like Cyanogenmod will fix me not receiving requests, but the cellular and GPS performance are very clearly performing poorly.
Edit:
Cellular performance is now much better after the update.
I would say it's on par with average smartphones (I still lose reception where most people do), and it no longer just drops and stays of signal for no good reason.
GPS performance is OK, it tends to shift around while I'm driving a bit (thinking I'm on the street next to me).

Antenna Strength
Has anyone been able to confirm that this is due to a bad physical design of the antenna and not a software issue?
I was ready to buy this device until I saw these reports of bad signal strength

Hi guys,
Can any European users comment on radio signal performance? Could the issue be limited to the US version?

joaste said:
Hi guys,
Can any European users comment on radio signal performance? Could the issue be limited to the US version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To asnwer my own post, it seems some amazon.de customers are returning the phone due to very poor reception.
I was soooo looking forward to buying this phone and am shocked that ZTE would put it on the market with such a problem. Time will tell if it is hardware related (which it probably is), but most likely my money will go to another brand. I sooo wanted good sound :crying:
EDIT: please, any feedback from European customers?

There are some reviews about the cellular strength on a german forum (android-hilfe.de/thema/empfang-des-axon.792336/) but without any comparison to other phones.

Radio Performance
The Pocket Now review of the Axon 7 mentions potential radio issues and compares it to other phones.
Axon 7 Signal Strength
It doesn't look good.
I wonder if the new "Mini" version of the phone has the same issue and if not, perhaps they corrected a hardware flaw.
There is a new software update for the Axon 7 coming soon. I hope it addresses the signal strength issue, but I wouldn't hold my breath. We may have to just wait for the Axon 8.

when new software coming.
((RayDar)) said:
The Pocket Now review of the Axon 7 mentions potential radio issues and compares it to other phones.
Axon 7 Signal Strength
It doesn't look good.
I wonder if the new "Mini" version of the phone has the same issue and if not, perhaps they corrected a hardware flaw.
There is a new software update for the Axon 7 coming soon. I hope it addresses the signal strength issue, but I wouldn't hold my breath. We may have to just wait for the Axon 8.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When new Axon 7 update coming? any link for that please

Note 3
Cellular: -93 dBm
Wifi 5ghz: - 46 dBm
Axon 7
Cellular: -118 dBm
Wifi 5ghz: -59 dBm
Can't perform an LTE speedtest on the Axon 7. It won't hold a connection long enough. Web pages constantly fail to load.
Signal strength is significantly worse than my 3 year old Note 3. So much so the phone is unusable at home.

I commented elsewhere on this as I'm mainly sending the phone back because of the very poor camera and the disappointing audio.
The radio however is the worst I've had since 3G was launched. I've been all over Brussels today and barely seen a 4G signal. I'd forgotten 3G existed until today. I managed to get the Axon to connect to 4G by toggling the mobile data on and off but it quickly went back to 3G.
My bedroom is in the basement but thanks to a nearby base station I get four bars 4G on my Honor 7. The Axon get one-two bars on 3G.
I'm bailing out now. I'm not waiting for a software update to fix the radio and I'm not sure the camera *can* be fixed, it's that bad.
The lovely screen apart, the A7 is a downgrade from the much cheaper Honor. Shame.
Grey Axon 7 purchased from Amazon Germany.

LTE: Nexus 5X: -105 dB, Axon 7: -113 dB
Forcing 3G on both phones: Both about -95 dB.

European version
Indoors in a café. Both of our phones are on the same network using the same base station. The Nexus 5x shows -106dBm on LTE while the Axon 7 shows -111 dBm on HSPA and is unable to load a page.
A bad camera, broken audio and a weak radio now seem a heavy price to pay for a nice screen and a top of the line chip.... it was too good to be true.

When I was walking home from campus today, I had 4G with a maximum of 2 bars missing (one missing most of the time, sometimes full bars) 90% of the 3km trip. Don't have any other LTE phones to compare it to, so take that with a grain of salt.

Bands and LTE Coverage

I got the phone 3 days ago ....
I love the design, the Concept .... Hardware seems solid ... very fast and responsive .... faster than my Note 7.
However I have a big issue ....... *(
Even though on the official ASUS webpage it says the phone supports LTE Band 12, 700MHz for T mobile, the phone refuses to see and connect to anything else except Band 4, 2100MHz.
I live in an area where Band 4 LTE sucks ..... I dont live in the City ...
LTE Coverage seems to suck for me at the moment ....
On top of the LTE issues ..... It seems that this phone does not get very good cell signal for making phone calls ....*(
All metal design ??
Any thoughts on the LTE issues ??

You may need to bring this up to support and find out what is going on with it (otherwise t-mobile). I have metor pcs, and i know that goes with t-mobile, just might be certain bands not connecting to it.

Update:
OK .... so after further testing and use of the phone, I have verified that the phone does connect to ALL of the T-mobile LTE bands ...... both 4 & 12.
But the phone it self seems to have Terrible signal / reception ....... *(
I have been carting around with me 2 phones ...... this phone and the Note 5.
it seems that this phone is just having a very hard time holding a good solid LTE connection.
Not even good enough for a Messenger call or Whatssapp call ...... *(
when the Note 5 had great LTE, this phone couldn't even hold a connection long enough for a 30 second Whatssapp call.
its very frustrating ........
I think it has to do with the all metal body of the phone.....
Any input ??

Are their tmobile APN settings the same?
Do you have a case on it?

xda_geekman said:
Update:
OK .... so after further testing and use of the phone, I have verified that the phone does connect to ALL of the T-mobile LTE bands ...... both 4 & 12.
But the phone it self seems to have Terrible signal / reception ....... *(
I have been carting around with me 2 phones ...... this phone and the Note 5.
it seems that this phone is just having a very hard time holding a good solid LTE connection.
Not even good enough for a Messenger call or Whatssapp call ...... *(
when the Note 5 had great LTE, this phone couldn't even hold a connection long enough for a 30 second Whatssapp call.
its very frustrating ........
I think it has to do with the all metal body of the phone.....
Any input ??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I believe you are right. I don't own this phone, but thought I'd give my two cents.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTsg7EyYKFM
Yes, this is not your phone, it's the ZTE Axon 7. Watch from around the 4 minute mark. Much loike the Zenfone Deluxe 3, the mostly all-aluminum body without much field testing is always going to be a drawback for wifi strength and certain radio frequencies on LTE.
The Axon 7 is arguably more plastic than the Zenfone 3 Deluxe (at the top and bottom at least) meaning there should actually be incremental differences for the ability to hold a frequency with good strength in the favour of the Axon 7, however it's receiving a few poor real-world reviews for those who have bothered to test. From that assumption, the more 'sleek' all-aluminum body of the ZD3 is going to have the same problems, so its no surprise that you are reporting it.
I'm considering getting this phone up against the LG v20 H990DS dual sim. But Wifi strength and reliability on 4G LTE is a huge considersation, as it's really a basic expectation of any flasgship - dont bother making a phone of all-alluminum if the drawback is poor performance. This is why the design of the v20 is 10x better, for instance.
RoOSTA

roosta said:
Yes, I believe you are right. I don't own this phone, but thought I'd give my two cents.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTsg7EyYKFM
Yes, this is not your phone, it's the ZTE Axon 7. Watch from around the 4 minute mark. Much loike the Zenfone Deluxe 3, the mostly all-aluminum body without much field testing is always going to be a drawback for wifi strength and certain radio frequencies on LTE.
The Axon 7 is arguably more plastic than the Zenfone 3 Deluxe (at the top and bottom at least) meaning there should actually be incremental differences for the ability to hold a frequency with good strength in the favour of the Axon 7, however it's receiving a few poor real-world reviews for those who have bothered to test. From that assumption, the more 'sleek' all-aluminum body of the ZD3 is going to have the same problems, so its no surprise that you are reporting it.
I'm considering getting this phone up against the LG v20 H990DS dual sim. But Wifi strength and reliability on 4G LTE is a huge considersation, as it's really a basic expectation of any flasgship - dont bother making a phone of all-alluminum if the drawback is poor performance. This is why the design of the v20 is 10x better, for instance.
RoOSTA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can assure you all just based on the quality of the display compared to the V20 this phone is a thousand times better. The blues are very apparent on the V20 and side by side it doesn't even come close. The V20 just looks awful. If you're browsing webpages and playing games I'd much rather do it on the Zenfone. I wonder what it's like up against one of the newer Samsung's. Maybe I'll test it out, but the sales people in most stores are so pushy to help and get in your way. Some people really need to learn the best way to a sale isn't by being pushy but feeling out your customer.
I think people's mileage is going to vary on signal strength. I noticed identical WiFi strength between this phone and the Moto G4 I have. I often get poor signal at work and this phone drops signal way less. I haven't really tested out LTE other than to check that it works and I get the same number of bars as the G4 in my house.

pacattack81 said:
I can assure you all just based on the quality of the display compared to the V20 this phone is a thousand times better. The blues are very apparent on the V20 and side by side it doesn't even come close. The V20 just looks awful. If you're browsing webpages and playing games I'd much rather do it on the Zenfone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AmOled wins every day over IPS, however limiting the display to 1080p on a flagship is... so 2014. You can get the V20 with same screen size and bigger battery. On top of that, it's removable. The best feature is repairability. Take off the back cover, 20 small screws and it's easy to lift out the plastic cover, motherboard cameras and screen with ease. Even the 3.5mm jack pops off easily. It's one of the last flasgships yo keep the FM radio and have a more than useful IR blaster.
Zenfone doesn't even advertise Nfc despite some deluxe owners saying their phone had it, but in a very awkward position. I can see you have a preference but I find it hard for there to be any comparison. Comes down to your requirements in the end.
RoOSTA

roosta said:
AmOled wins every day over IPS, however limiting the display to 1080p on a flagship is... so 2014.
RoOSTA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same can be said with putting an IPS display in a flagship phone. They chose 1080p vs 1440p because it's a well known fact 1080p gets better battery life. Put the phone side by side and pull up the same webpage and the text has the same clarity as the V20. Many will say the eyes can't tell the difference. Resolution aside, I can't express how much better the screen is than the V20. The phone is also lighter and smaller because it doesn't have the secondary display. At the end of the day, the Verizon's store rep owned the V20 and we both laughed at how awful the display on V20 looked compared to this phone.
Bottom line it's nice to have a removable battery, but it's the screen you look at most. I'd rather have a phone with the better display.

There's tonnes of IPS still used in non-amoled flagships. 1080 p does in fact get a better battery life, probably why LG increased the battery capacity. 2nd display is also very handy. A few grams/ounches weight isn't going to bother me when comparing both of these phones. Anyway, getting off topic. I think the design of this phone is the reason why you may be experiencing issues, or your radio could be faulty if it's happening everywhere, even in places you'd normally get good reception. See how the resulrs vary at inner city, more outer-suburban locations and compare to what you were getting previously (on this phoine or another 4G LTE).
RoOSTA

I got the phone to finally to replace my SG Note II N7100 version (I don't like newer Notes. I was hoping for same features past Note 4. Finally gave up replaceable battery feature for Asus ZF3D 64GB) Also I could finally use Tmobiles 4G LTE and add Freedompop H+ networks as secondary. I notice something with Tmobile LTE. At first Tmobile's 4G LTE had 1/4 bars and data speeds seem to fail a lot and if it pass it would read it as 0 kbps. But I kept using it for few days more. I'm starting to get 2 or higher on signal and data speeds hit around download 8/upload 1 mbps at 38 ms ping and this is at the same area. Not sure what happen in those first few days. Signal got boosted good if you disable secondary SIM. I get about 3 or 4 bars.
If I did get into good place I would hit around 10/25 speeds still better than Tmobile's H+ with Note 2.

^as long as lte signal gets better instead of few bars! What part of the USA?

snkchaos said:
I got the phone to finally to replace my SG Note II N7100 version (I don't like newer Notes. I was hoping for same features past Note 4. Finally gave up no replaceable battery feature for Asus ZF3D 64GB) Also I could finally use Tmobiles 4G LTE and add Freedompop H+ networks as secondary. I notice something with Tmobile LTE. At first Tmobile's 4G LTE had 1/4 bars and data speeds seem to fail a lot and if it pass it would read it as 0 kbps. But I kept using it for few days more. I'm starting to get 2 or higher on signal and data speeds hit around download 8/upload 1 mbps at 38 ms ping and this is at the same area. Not sure what happen in those first few days. Signal got boosted good if you disable secondary SIM. I get about 3 or 4 bars.
If I did get into good place I would hit around 10/25 speeds still better than Tmobile's H+ with Note 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the same exact problem on my phone. It cleared up after a few days as well. My Sim2 slot is still enabled, so I don't know how mine fixed itself. Maybe something with the cell towers, not sure

galaxys said:
^as long as lte signal gets better instead of few bars! What part of the USA?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I live in Tracy, CA.

snkchaos said:
I live in Tracy, CA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should usually have a good signal there. I'm in Vegas and have full bars with T-Mobile...

Hi all, I posted part of this message in another forum as it was part of a bigger posting. Here I am only posting issues with the Bands & LTE Coverage.
So I also upgraded my wife's phone (S5) to the Zen 3 deluxe (ZS570KL / 256gb hd / 6gb ram / 821 chip) and she hates it... calls keep dropping signal is low and it does not even say LTE. I did a speedtest comparison between her Zen 3 and my Zen 2 (rooted and running CM13) and mine is way faster. Hers is also disconnecting from cellular (AT&T) data and does not show 4G anymore along with no push notifications of emails. I get strong bars and the phone displays LTE, hers only shows 4G+.
Anyone else having these issues? Oh and she does have a plastic / silicon clear case.

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

Mate 20X 4G or 5G - real life use

I have a P30 Pro that I'm thinking of swapping for a Mate 20X.
I know the differences between the 4G and 5G models, particularly the smaller battery in the 5G.
Whether its 4G or 5G doesn't really make much difference to me, I'm more interested in how they stack up as daily drivers.
Any input is appreciated.

4G is fantastic...battery very very incredible

Yeah, from most reviews I've seen the bigger battery on the 4G does last a lot longer, but I've also seen that the 5G can still go an entire day.
I don't want to pay cash for another phone, so if I'm not successful getting a swap the best contract deal I can get is for the 5G model, there are no longer any 4G phones in UK networks stocks.
Anyone have a 5G they can give some input on?

I have 5g now, in past I had 4g.
Battery is really worse lot, I am heavy user and ofter charge a little during day. For low or mid-level or usage it is not necessary. 8gg is very useful on 5g. Also signal strength of 4g (no 5g in Serbia yet) and specially wifi is best I ever seen (I really had many models, mostly high end).
In many situations, in some areas, I am only who sees wifi signal and can use 4g. Useful for me. Sound is probably worse on 5g but I don't use it extensively for music.

Thanks, that's excellent feedback.
Great 4G and WiFi reception on the 5G model is interesting, and I know it doesn't have a true top speaker but I listen to music on a BT headset so it's not important.
I realise the smaller battery doesn't last as long, I'd expect that, but if it lasts a full day on average use that's also good.

With the overwhelming advice and experiences of other users here, I've bitten the bullet: I'll have a Mate 20X tomorrow. I remember just a few years ago these forums were so busy, but I think a lot of the inactivity now is down to OEMs keeping bootloaders locked and stifling development and custom ROMs.
I've already done a lot of research, read many reviews and watched numerous YT vids so I've a pretty good idea what to expect when it arrives.
It's the 5G EVR-N29 International version on Vodafone UK. My present P30 Pro is on Three UK and tbh the reception at home sucks but I'm pretty sure Vodafone will be much better.
I'll update this thread once I've set it up and used it for a while.
@ivanox1972 Thanks for your input, the info about 4G and WiFi reception being really good helped me decide on the 5G model :good:
Cheers buddy

Where u from? 5G Mate 20X will be useless for EU because it support N78 but in future we need N1 and N28.

I'm in the UK. The 5G model I have is already working here on 5G NR Band n78. Although as I said in my OP, 5G isn't an important factor in my choice of the Mate 20 X.

For now there is only N78, almost worldwide but N28 will be the new B20 4G.

Really?
Thanks for the input, that helps a lot.
So far I'm really pleased with my phone, the screen is a pleasure to use. I'm still getting used to handling it, it's quite a lot bigger than my P30 Pro. Using it one-handed is possible, I just need to refine my technique.