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Title says it. Contemplating purchasing this phone because I want a sick Android device but its plagued with bad 3g reception stories. Is it that big of a deal? Does anyone regret buying the device over it? Is it a design flaw as i have read or software?
mrbox23 said:
... Is it that big of a deal?
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No
mrbox23 said:
Does anyone regret buying the device over it?
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I don't
mrbox23 said:
Is it a design flaw as i have read or software?
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It is neither. It is the wireless networks you guys have here in the US that sucks... (At least in El Paso, TX)
I'm tired of people blaming the wireless network, because that's just plain wrong in most cases.
I am a big N1 fan but I will be the first to admit that there's a 3G problem. But here is what I've observed:
- The problem is less evident on the AT&T model, as 3G runs on the same frequencies as 2G, and in general AT&T uses 850/1900, which are lower frequencies (better penetration) than T-Mobile.
- If you're in a very strong 3G area (like on the streets of NYC), you aren't likely to have any problems no matter how you hold the device.
- If you're in somewhat of a sketchy 3G area, and use the T-Mobile version of the phone, it's very possible you're going to drop to edge, if you cover the bottom portion of the phone with your hand. If you have the AT&T version in a sketchy area (low signal overall), it's possible you'll kill your signal entirely if you hold the phone a certain way...but I would say this is very rare.
There's probably a combination of a software and hardware issue causing the 3G issue. With future updates to the radio firmware, I'm sure there will be some improvements, but I don't know if it's going to be as good as some of the other phones available (especially in the case of T-Mobile, where the G1 tends to be fair a lot better 3G wise).
Having said all this - do I regret purchasing an N1? Definitely not - everything else about the phone makes up for the 3G issues, and I still have hope for future improvements.
Reception isn't "deal breaker" bad, and you'll notice there are much less complaints from AT&T users about it. If you are normally in areas with good coverage everything will will be great, but fringe areas might be frustrating. Weak signals are the phones kryptonite.
My question to anyone on the fence is usually, "name a better GSM phone" and then when they say "iPhone" I call them a fanboi. There's nothing worse than being an Apple fanboi.
its not a deal breaker at all. I still hold by my theory that the signal bars are just calibrated less conservatively than other phones, cause I've made and held calls for 15 min with zero bars of 3g showing. even my nokias had trouble doing that.
Sent from my Nexus One using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
PrawnPoBoy said:
Reception isn't "deal breaker" bad, and you'll notice there are much less complaints from AT&T users about it. If you are normally in areas with good coverage everything will will be great, but fringe areas might be frustrating. Weak signals are the phones kryptonite.
My question to anyone on the fence is usually, "name a better GSM phone" and then when they say "iPhone" I call them a fanboi. There's nothing worse than being an Apple fanboi.
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Just cause they say the iPhone, doesn't make them an Apple fanboy.. people can have legitimate reason why they like the iPhone more than the Nexus...
There could be something to the theory that the phone just reports reception more conservatively. But then again I can easily drop a call in a low signal area by moving my hand around. This is the first phone I've had that does that.
Just cause they say the iPhone, doesn't make them an Apple fanboy.. people can have legitimate reason why they like the iPhone more than the Nexus...
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Spoken like a true fanboi.
PS: I was actually joking. I have a jailbroken iPhone as well and its also awesome.
PrawnPoBoy said:
There could be something to the theory that the phone just reports reception more conservatively. But then again I can easily drop a call in a low signal area by moving my hand around. This is the first phone I've had that does that.
Spoken like a true fanboi.
PS: I was actually joking. I have a jailbroken iPhone as well and its also awesome.
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see i have always had the same problem with my other phones in low signal areas, they would ALWAYS drop the call if i moved my hand over it. but they all had antenna in the bottom, like the nexus. i think if your previous phone had the antenna in the top, then you never would have experienced this before.
my nokia n95 was the last phone i had with a top antenna, it was internal at the top near the camera, and that thing was superb with RF.
but then i got the e71 and the bottom antenna dropped calls when i covered it. no service, all the time. i trained myself to hold at the top ever since.
so the nexus doesnt seem abnormal to me. i just thought it was common knowledge though...
PrawnPoBoy said:
There could be something to the theory that the phone just reports reception more conservatively. But then again I can easily drop a call in a low signal area by moving my hand around. This is the first phone I've had that does that.
Spoken like a true fanboi.
PS: I was actually joking. I have a jailbroken iPhone as well and its also awesome.
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I also hope you were joking about the fanboi thing, as the nearest I've come to owning and iPhone was using family members ones for a few hours. My previous phone was a G1, and your misconceptions of me (if your words were not taken out if context) for stating something that is quite true is quite sad.
As stated before, people can have legitimate reasons as to why they favor the iPhone more than the Nexus. If I was sucked in to the iPhone when it was released, I would probably also be an iSheep - luckily I was only 12 at the iPhone's release. Phone technology wasn't really all that interesting yet.. I didn't care about touch screens etc. Now though, I still don't care about the phone much - but it was definitely brought unneeded hate in the internet towards those who adore it.
I love my Nexus One. No 3G issues on ATT, this actually has much better reception than my HTC Tilt2 with the best custom radio rom for my area. Flashing the radio of your Nexus will help a ton if you experience any of these issues so if you plan on flashing your phone don't worry about it. I love my Nexus and I spend much less time screwing with how the phone works and a lot more time using it.
about nexous one
I have never had any 3g problems ever and i bought this phone right when it came out
i love it get it you will to
This is really simple.
1. Buy the phone. If you have bad reception,
2. Flash to the newest radio. If you still have bad reception,
3. Return the phone.
You most likely won't get to step 3.
The phone legitimately does not get great reception.
I lined up, side by side, my BB Bold 9000, my Motorola Milestone, and me Nexus One, all just sitting on the desk, all with Orange (France) 3G SIMs.
The Bold and the Milestone get about the same signal. The Nexus gets consistently -4 to -10 dBm worse signal in any given placement. Wrapping your hand loosely around the phone will cut the signal by from -6 to -10 dBm on the Nexus, and by around -2 to -6 on the other two.
HOWEVER, the statistics don't really matter - I still get good enough signal at my desk on all three of them to download applications, use GTalk/SMS/telephone/browser all day, etc. Yes, a speed test shows generally better speeds on the Milestone, but it is more than good enough on both Android phones.
AND the Nexus is much faster in day-to-day operation. It scrolls faster, loads faster, runs faster, etc. It is almost sure to get updates from Google faster, and the dev community really does rock.
If I was in the US, I would have to consider some of the other phones out there, simply because the other networks are better than GSM networks, but here in France, the Nexus is fine and dandy.
If I were you, I would consider the network as well as the product, because it makes such a huge difference in the US. But once past that point, if you decide Nexus: buy it, test it, if you don't like it, sell it or return it. Easy.
I carried around my iPhone 3G with me the last few days and any time I had bad or no reception with my N1 I would swap the sim card and try the iPhone and without fail the iPhone would alway have more than enough signal strength.
The phone's reception is simply not as good as other phones, but it not enough for me to want to return it. I just hope that HTC learns from this like they did with the recent change to the atmel touchscreen instead of the clearpad component. I'm sure they will.
I've never had a problem with dropping 3G signal exactly, just the occasional instance where it'll get stuck on "uploading." Not sure if that's a T-Mobile issue or a phone issue. Either way, it happens only rarely and lasts no more than 10 seconds or so each time, so not a dealbreaker.
Other than that, the phone is fantastic. Incredibly fast and customizable. People complain that Android isn't user-friendly, but I honestly find everything quite intuitive (with the exception of a few badly designed 3rd-party apps).
I get the same (even better in a few places) 3G reception on my Nexus then I did with my iPhone 3GS
The OP needs to take note of all the people complaining about reception issues have also NOT mentioned whether or not they have updated the radio.
Everybody sitting with the stock radio from the models released in January/early-February are going to have a lot more complaints than someone who has either updated their radio or bought a newer model that has the updated radio preinstalled.
i still say its just a conservatively calibrated signal meter! seems to match my other phones just fine even if the actual bars are showing zero bars, its still making the call and receiving the data. me thinks its just a software calibration difference...
gsvnet said:
I'm tired of people blaming the wireless network, because that's just plain wrong in most cases.
I am a big N1 fan but I will be the first to admit that there's a 3G problem. But here is what I've observed:
- The problem is less evident on the AT&T model, as 3G runs on the same frequencies as 2G, and in general AT&T uses 850/1900, which are lower frequencies (better penetration) than T-Mobile.
- If you're in a very strong 3G area (like on the streets of NYC), you aren't likely to have any problems no matter how you hold the device.
- If you're in somewhat of a sketchy 3G area, and use the T-Mobile version of the phone, it's very possible you're going to drop to edge, if you cover the bottom portion of the phone with your hand. If you have the AT&T version in a sketchy area (low signal overall), it's possible you'll kill your signal entirely if you hold the phone a certain way...but I would say this is very rare.
There's probably a combination of a software and hardware issue causing the 3G issue. With future updates to the radio firmware, I'm sure there will be some improvements, but I don't know if it's going to be as good as some of the other phones available (especially in the case of T-Mobile, where the G1 tends to be fair a lot better 3G wise).
Having said all this - do I regret purchasing an N1? Definitely not - everything else about the phone makes up for the 3G issues, and I still have hope for future improvements.
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Bro, you're entire post actually supports the claim that the carriers need to build out their networks more in this country! Obviously if the phone works great in an area like NYC or Chicago, but not so great in "sketchy" places like where I live (Toledo, OH), then IT'S THE NETWORK!
PrawnPoBoy said:
I carried around my iPhone 3G with me the last few days and any time I had bad or no reception with my N1 I would swap the sim card and try the iPhone and without fail the iPhone would alway have more than enough signal strength.
The phone's reception is simply not as good as other phones, but it not enough for me to want to return it. I just hope that HTC learns from this like they did with the recent change to the atmel touchscreen instead of the clearpad component. I'm sure they will.
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Well, I have had the exact opposite experience. I always have a better signal with my N1 than my wife does with her iphone in the same places.
My wife and I used to have identical Nokia handsets, and her signal was always significantly better than mine. Minute manufacturing variations in low power RF devices can make huge differences, and such manufacturing variations are a normal part of any manufacturing process, including cell phones.
Comparing one phone to another and declaring a problem exists with an entire line of phones is just silly.
Basically, there is no real evidence of a unilateral "Nexus One" 3G problem, even if some handsets have less than expected performance.
So if you want a Nexus One, get it, and chances are that if you are happy with your network, you will be happy with your Nexus One.
I've seen lots of complaints about the HD7's reception. With my DEFY I've gotten the best 3G reception ever on T-Mobile. HTC seems to have longstanding complaints about 3G reception and hearing about it with the HD2 and HD7 isn't encouraging.
So, Is the HD7 the best or worst you've had on T-Mobile?
Mine is not good, the signal is very weak. My other phone which is the Nokia N8 gets better signal on the same spot.
Overall I get pretty good reception as I did on any of my other phones, except in my living room. It is a total dead zone. Only that part of my house, out of anywhere I go, has a problem. Otherwise I get on average 4/5 bars. I am in Northern California if location is anything important to you.
As more Radio's become available to flash we should be able to get optimal signals hopefully. I personally haven't found it any different to my previous phone (TyTN II)
I've owned a mytouch 4g, g2 and hd7 all of which are htc made
It seems that these phones tend to have a bad reception in low signal area
however the hd7 tends to have the worse
wi-fi calling really works in handy for the mytouch 4g and g2 and i wish they would release this for Wp7
I also have a Defy as well as a HD7. The Defy was the forth phone I had with T-Mobile the others being a Moto Razr V3, T-Mobile Tab and Nokia Nuron. The Defy gets the best reception I've ever had and still does. Sitting in the same spot in my home the Defy gets full bars 3G while the HD7 only gets 2 bars 3G. Even the Nuron gets better reception.
Remember that the "bars" don't mean that much. A better test would be seeing which phone keeps a working signal (can make phone calls) the longest, as you drive away from a tower and into a dead zone. Then you can see which phone actually has the best and the truest reception.
ace10134 said:
Remember that the "bars" don't mean that much. A better test would be seeing which phone keeps a working signal (can make phone calls) the longest, as you drive away from a tower and into a dead zone. Then you can see which phone actually has the best and the truest reception.
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Agreed
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
I had one or two disconnections during my conversations but the reception has been OK.
Reception in North Texas is good. Went out to lunch with a friend on Saturday who couldn't connect to the internet on his fruit phone but we could on my hd7. Every place will be different.
Well it's kind of disappointing to hear the varying but mostly bad reports on the HD7's reception. I guess I'll have to wait for something from Samsung or Nokia, if I can't get my hands on one for cheap.
The reception is not that bad its only if you live in the middle of nowhere where I see even a remote issue
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
My reception has been just fine in places where T-Mobile has reception. That being said, after updating my phone's radios, reception and even data speeds have improved greatly.
Now that I have the No-Do update I'm sorry to say that reception on this phone is still really bad. I was hoping that T-Mobile or HTC would include some sort of radio update. Well, since they didn't is a way I can update my radio firmware without flashing a whole new rom?
I only know of two TMOUS (531) Radios...
1. RUU_Schubert_TMOUS_1.20.531.01_Radio_5.51.09.11a_22.31.50.09U
2. RUU_Schubert_TMOUS_1.54.531.02_Radio_5.51.09.29a_22.32.50.10U
I'm currently on the 2nd one... but I've also tried the newer European and Telestra ROM/Radios as well...
All of them have worse receptions than the HTC TP2 that I had... and it really sucks at my house where I loose data connections all the time.
My reception sucks! I came from Verizon where my reception at home was not the best but with this HD7 its awful. I did have TMO before with an MDA and the reception wasnt nearly this bad. I drop calls daily. However, in some of my clients homes where my old verizon sucked, this phone shines, go figure.
Reception is going to depend on where you use your device. Try it out for 30 and if it doesnt work for you take it back. This phone is amazing and worth the trial! Good luck!
TechJunkiesCA said:
My reception sucks! I came from Verizon where my reception at home was not the best but with this HD7 its awful. I did have TMO before with an MDA and the reception wasnt nearly this bad. I drop calls daily. However, in some of my clients homes where my old verizon sucked, this phone shines, go figure.
Reception is going to depend on where you use your device. Try it out for 30 and if it doesnt work for you take it back. This phone is amazing and worth the trial! Good luck!
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Sure but making a call in a weak signal area with the right phone can be the difference between holding it or constantly dropping it.
dzotx said:
I only know of two TMOUS (531) Radios...
1. RUU_Schubert_TMOUS_1.20.531.01_Radio_5.51.09.11a_22.31.50.09U
2. RUU_Schubert_TMOUS_1.54.531.02_Radio_5.51.09.29a_22.32.50.10U
I'm currently on the 2nd one... but I've also tried the newer European and Telestra ROM/Radios as well...
All of them have worse receptions than the HTC TP2 that I had... and it really sucks at my house where I loose data connections all the time.
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I'm currently using the 2nd radio listed above. I really like this phone but the dropped calls are making me crazy. Damn if only T-Mobile would just go ahead and release WiFi calling on this phone.
JamesDax said:
I'm currently using the 2nd radio listed above. I really like this phone but the dropped calls are making me crazy. Damn if only T-Mobile would just go ahead and release WiFi calling on this phone.
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But your DEFY performs better under the same conditions? Right?
I have found the opposite.
I had the Desire HD, Galaxy S, and my HD7.
The HD7 works in my gym while the Desire HD did not. I found the reception the same for the Galaxy and the HD7.
I'm using mine on Telus.
I had a Nitro HD for about 30 days. During that time, I made observations where I got LTE, HSPA, coverages, and how it held the signal.
I now have a Vivid. It acquires LTE in fewer spots. In my parking structure, the Nitro would hold a signal to two levels under ground while the Vivid will hold to only one level under ground.
In the elevator, the Nitro would stay at HSPA while the Vivid would switch to EDGE. By the way, the Atrix 4G would also hold HSPA in the elevator.
Has anyone observed poor radio performance with the Vivid? Is there a way to tweak the thresholds?
Thanks.
Maybe defective phone. Can you guys flash radios yet?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
trell959 said:
Maybe defective phone. Can you guys flash radios yet?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
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Click to collapse
Not until we can get s-off achieved, which hasn't happened yet. We only have an unlocked bootloaderand can flash roms only at this point
Sent from my HTC Vivid using XDA app
I have been experiencing similar, if not the same issue. This is my first time with an AT&t phone. Back in 2002 I had Cingular so I am familiar with gsm but anyway. I have a sprint evo as my main phone and have been using it for over a year now. I sell phones and one of the things I am used to doing is a quick demo of the google voice search feature to "navigate to" somewhere. Works great on my sprint phone even with gps turned off. I try it with my vivid and it just sits there indefinitely looking for current location. When inside a building, doesn't matter if gps is on or off. This is extremely frustrating. Other little things I notice: can't find current location in gmaps, htc sense weather sticks on location way too long to the point of me having to wipe cache,dalvik, factory restore, my tune in radio app cannot find my location for local stations and puts me somewhere 700 miles away. These are all small things but add up to a big pile of bad. I can get the phone to work location via gps when i am outside but only for maps and navigation. Is this just gsm having a hard time in buildings because it is less intrusive a frequency compared to CDMA?
EVOwulf said:
I have been experiencing similar, if not the same issue. This is my first time with an AT&t phone. Back in 2002 I had Cingular so I am familiar with gsm but anyway. I have a sprint evo as my main phone and have been using it for over a year now. I sell phones and one of the things I am used to doing is a quick demo of the google voice search feature to "navigate to" somewhere. Works great on my sprint phone even with gps turned off. I try it with my vivid and it just sits there indefinitely looking for current location. When inside a building, doesn't matter if gps is on or off. This is extremely frustrating. Other little things I notice: can't find current location in gmaps, htc sense weather sticks on location way too long to the point of me having to wipe cache,dalvik, factory restore, my tune in radio app cannot find my location for local stations and puts me somewhere 700 miles away. These are all small things but add up to a big pile of bad. I can get the phone to work location via gps when i am outside but only for maps and navigation. Is this just gsm having a hard time in buildings because it is less intrusive a frequency compared to CDMA?
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I'm not sure why your particular Vivid isn't working well with finding location, because I have found the GPS in my Vivid is by far the best GPS in Any device I have seen. It even picks up satellites (8~12 satellites in 5 seconds) faster than my Garmin Nuvi 1450, by which I was Incredibly impressed. TuneIn Radio also accurately gets my location along with any other apps that needs it. I also don't any have issues grabbing satellites from inside my house, so I'm not quite sure why you are having problems. Could it be a case issue, or possibly a defective phone?
I'm not sure how it stacks up against the Nitro as it is possible that the Nitro has a stronger radio, but I would say that the Vivid's radio has performed better that the Inspire for me here in SoCal. As of right now, since we can't flash radio until s-off, there really isn't much we can do to tweak to increase radio performance.
Hello, most of the time, I have pretty bad signal on my Incredible S, most of the time only 2 out of 4 bars. Will updating the radio help? I'm on 20.4802.30.0822U_3822.10.08.28_M now.
Make sure your back cover is on properly. If you are using a cover/casing on top that may hamper the signal as well. There is no right thumb rule for radios what works for some need not necessarily work for all.
Generally speaking the radio you have should be alright for Incredible S. Try reflashing it and I won't be too fussed about the number of bars as long as you are getting a signal and it is not dropping off you should be ok. It also depends on your mobile phone operator and what sort of coverage they have.
Hope that helps
Been using my HTC One now since it's release day and although I wasn't a huge fan when it came out, it's grown on me like moss and i'm now 100% confident that I made the right choice in getting this instead of the S4.
However......
On my daily commute to work, a journey I've been taking for over two years now, I seem to have less signal than all the phones before this one ?
It's the same sim card, same number and the same network.
What happens is the signal will go really low to around 1 - 2 bars and the mobile data connection will teeter around Edge and 3G and come back up to H in parts.
My previous handset as you can see from my signature was a galaxy s3, it didn't ever drop below 3G, was mostly on H and never once went to Edge, on the same trip for well over a year, I've also used an EVO 3D which acted in the same manner as the S3, but the HTC One is really annoying me now as I'm not able to check things on the internet and such, which I've been able to do for as I said a few years now on previous handsets.
I'm currently on Venom rom 1.2.1 and I have an Orange Sim card in the UK.
My baseband is 4A.13.3231.27_10.31.1131.05L
I did try another Radio, however it had little impact on the reception and I was just wondering if anyone else had witnessed similar drops in signal quality themselves?
I'm using a case too, I have three, Double dip flip, Double dip and a silicone case, I've also had the phone without a case and it makes no difference at all.
Any help or thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks.
same problm
I'm in the US , recently unlocked my but but mine all of the sudden drops from 4 bars to no signal. I have noticed that while I have WiFi on, the network signal seems more stable. I've been reading a lot of ppl have the same problm.
I am on TMo in London. When I first got the phone my signal was awesome. I had H with 3 plus bars all the time all the way from home to work, in work, at home. Since the update I have the exact same issue as you. I lose signal completely, it goes to E a lot of the time now. All in all a very poor experience. I was thinking of installing the original radio to see if that would do the trick(I think it was mentioned that the new update had a new radio). I just do not want to root and lose my warranty. I am getting pretty p'd off though so may just take the plunge
Sent from my HTC One using xda premium
I'm in the same boat with you guys. My signal varies a lot from H+ to 3G and E and few times is just disappearing completely, taking a good 1-2 minutes until it comes back. I tried like 4 different radios, all with the same behavior.
I'm on GE 4.3 ... stock.
issue solved
ro_explorer said:
I'm in the same boat with you guys. My signal varies a lot from H+ to 3G and E and few times is just disappearing completely, taking a good 1-2 minutes until it comes back. I tried like 4 different radios, all with the same behavior.
I'm on GE 4.3 ... stock.
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Click to collapse
I was also facing the same issue. Finally realized that it was because my network setting was on GSM or WCDMA i.e. 3G.
I changed my network to 2G and everything is fine.
try this out.
same issue!!
Is it possible 2b a Hardware problem !