Related
Lets compile a list of areas with poor reception.
Having looked into options to improve reception, If the xda wasnt such a damned good device I'd hate it as a phone as I just cant use it as a mobile when I'm at home reliably, and lets face it networks lie about temporary faults with coverage.
Saying that, my Motorola V60 is also poor in my area - So I thought if we could all post bad areas anyone interested in buying an O2 xda in the same area would certainly think long and hard before committing to a contract for a year.
GSM/GPRS
Next to no coverage in the lower hill areas in Rusthall near Tunbridge Wells for O2
GPRS doesnt connect sometimes
single dot on antenna symbol, one bar next to it very occasionally.
SMS
SMS sending sporadic
VOICECALLS
Voicecalls are distorted
Other Network coverage
T-Mobile - coverage awful.
No service whatsover (cant even send sms)
Orange
We also get a poor reception here using Orange (although miles better than O2)
Anyone live nearby with Vodafone?
I'm hoping to switch networks for my xda after the years contract with o2 is up
http://www.webmap.btcellnet.net
Put in your postcode and it can tell you exactly how many O2 cells you have in your area and how close they are.
How damn useful!!!
Is there a weblink for other service providers that anyone knows about??
Rog
its lying about the lower part of Rusthall!
Anon, I notice you're not man enough to use a real name. And that you have to resort to being abusive.
The whole point of this thread is to make people aware that salesmen who say that coverage is ok in your home area are sometimes unitentionally misleading the public.
If you enjoy misleading people then please leave this forum alone - its for sharing information - please read the posting guidelines.
And as for it being a simulation, dont you think its misleading, and why do you think I started this posting, to get REAL data - so we can compile our own results - and help other people who want to buy an xda. After all if a map showing coverage is false - whats the point of it. Would you sail to america in a yacht with a simulated map?
Moderator, how come people can post replies as guests anyway?
The whole system is set up so that guests can post messages. We've felt that the advantages have outweighed the disadvantages so far.
I've deleted the offending post and contacted the user behind this IP-number to see if we can achieve a change in behaviour.
derekcfoley said:
its lying about the lower part of Rusthall!
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Click to collapse
mmm. The colour coding seems to be misleading but its handy to know how close the cells are. Even if you are very close to the cells I would guess there are things that can block the radio signals (eg. hills, trees, building etc.).
You say T-mobile and Orange are worse than O2, so I would definately try Vodafone.
Also interesting is that O2's cell indicator has a form you can fill in if you have a piece of land they could put a new cell on. Might be an option?
Spent last week in the UK with my Qtek on Vodafone. WHAT A NIGHTMARE!!! You guys have the worst mobile coverage ever! And people seem to think it's ok!
I lost connection all the time while going on major roads between major cities! On the site of the company I visited you had to go outside in certain spots to get any coverage at all, and they used Vodafone as their main supplier. And last but not least, getting a GPRS connection worked like one time out of twenty.
Here in Sweden, I find it irritating that I have bad coverage at my summer house. Which is like 20 minutes drive from the nearest major road or small town. No wonder they use Sweden as a test bench for new mobile services!
Could that also have something to do with the fact that the two largest mobile manufacturers are Scandinavian? You'd sort of expect it to work in your own back yard. When they try and turn up the juice in the UK, everyone complains about their kid's brains getting fried
rgds,
Alex.
well I can safely say that O2 in NW sheffield and south of Leeds is rubbish.
according to the map it should be GOOD
uh uh.
the whole area is a sinkhole for decent reception. about the only phones that give good signal in this place is orange.
Kent seems to work pretty much everywhere for O2. I live in Dartford and work in Bexleyheath and have no troubles.
Rgds,
Rob.
O2 in central Cheltenham is total crap and has been for as long as I can remember and I have used lots of different phones.
Anonymous said:
.
You say T-mobile and Orange are worse than O2, so I would definately try Vodafone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Never had a problem with Vodaphone here............
Works phone is on Vodaphone...............
The only time I loose the signal is when I am hiding down in the Subway at work....!!! (Birmingham New Street Station!)
addendum to my post about Sheffield and Wakefield.
reception is crap if you are running windows 2003 PPC 4.00.05 and 4.00.11
I put 3.17.03 on my XDA yesterday and I am stunned at the difference.
In my works building on 4.0.05 and 11 I never got a signal. now I thought fair enough because I am in the basement below ground level with iron bars on the window. not even one bar
since I've put my XDA back to 3.17.03 I've never had less than 3 bars, even in places where I've never got a signal.
I think I'll wait until an official O2 ROM release for 2003.
Here are my list of bad spots....
Almost any part of the top of the mendip hills apart from near to major towns. One notable exception being orange, who seem to have much more coverage there.
Crediton in devon, and the road from tiverton to crediton. Reception is patchy at best. This is true for all neworks.
Parts of avonmouth are bad for O2 coverage, with orange being the best in that area.
Parts of the A38 from Churchill to cross, patchy reception for all networks.
Winscombe to Banwell, O2 is ok, but other networks patchy.
Flixton in norfolk, very patchy (stand outside and point the phone in the right direction).
Wooky Hole (village not the cave!) almost no signal on any network, unless you walk to the top of the nearest hill.
Frome a bit patchy for O2, not sure about other networks.
cells said:
http://www.webmap.btcellnet.net
Put in your postcode and it can tell you exactly how many O2 cells you have in your area and how close they are.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.webmap.o2.co.uk/
This is the current URL for this site, which according to my Post Code says i'm 0.3km from my nearest Cell. I'm also 0.35km (as the crow flies) from my O2 shop - in my O2 shop my XDAII gets 5 bars reception, from my living room, 0 bars!!!
What can I do to get a better reception?
PS my area is Worthing (town centre), West Sussex.
Anyone have any experience with these ?
Does Tmo normally make you buy them or what ?
I have an issue with signal and data only at work but, after pricing
Sprint, Verizon, and At&t, I would be paying double what I am now each month.
I called them and they said I could only get one for home use because
if a call was made to 911 from another cell phone in the signal booster
radius, 911 would not be able to tell the phones location.
Would they even be able to tell that I was using it at work instead of home ?
I just signed a new contract a week ago and bought the Amaze so I am well within the 30 days I have to reverse the contract.
I cant tether at work, I can barely make a call, and many times I cant even do that.
You could change your billing address to work and then go that route. The 911 part is likely a regulation so I don't think there's anything you can do about that.
id also like to know more about a signal booster? the woman at the store mentioned it but tech support didnt
going_home said:
Anyone have any experience with these ?
Does Tmo normally make you buy them or what ?
I have an issue with signal and data only at work but, after pricing
Sprint, Verizon, and At&t, I would be paying double what I am now each month.
I called them and they said I could only get one for home use because
if a call was made to 911 from another cell phone in the signal booster
radius, 911 would not be able to tell the phones location.
Would they even be able to tell that I was using it at work instead of home ?
I just signed a new contract a week ago and bought the Amaze so I am well within the 30 days I have to reverse the contract.
I cant tether at work, I can barely make a call, and many times I cant even do that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do you have wifi at work? nov 13th the wifi calling update is going to be released (hopefully)
I'm with TMO and just got their signal booster about a week ago.
The tech support person I talked to wasn't particularly helpful and seemed very concerned about following her script rather than actually helping - that said, to get the free booster, you must meet their criteria precisely, no room for judgement here.
Their requirements are you are not in an apartment complex, you have to have 2 bars of signal, and the person I talked to was extremely concerned with the physical size and floors of my house.
Installing the unit is really simple - there is a receiver and a transmitter. The receiver needs to be in the best place to get a signal in your house and the transmitter basically needs to be in the middle of your house. The two devices need to be a certain distance apart to work. Again this was a source of confusion with tech support. She was convinced the device only works on one floor and there is only one part to it. I mention this in case you have similar issues communicating with TMO.
All in all, it took about 45 minutes on the phone to get the device and once it was here, 10 minutes to get everything in place. Since then I've had a great signal here - 4 or 5 bars. Data has been around 14mbs down.
Anything else?
Thanks. I will have to stay on them about this signal booster. Can't wait to have signal ay home
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using xda premium
I don't have wifi at work .
I just wonder if they could tell if I used it at work .
I wouldn't leave it on all the time it even leave it there because
risk of loss.
I do only have randomly one or two bars at home though .
Guess I'll try and get one.
I can't see how they could tell where it was being used.
The issue though is capacity.
The way the device works is the receiver is put where you get the best signal. It then re transmits over a different open public frequency (like a cordless phone), to the transmitter. The transmitter then acts like a mini cell tower.
The problem is the transmission between the two units has a limited bandwidth. If more than a few cell phones are talking to the transmitter, the band width will be used up and signal will degrade.
So if you take it to work and no one else winds up connecting to it, you're fine. But if more than a couple of cell phones connect, you will all get crappy service. (this is also why they don't use it in apartment complexes)
buy/own your own signal booster. the same one you can get from T-Mobile:
http://cel-fi.com/overview#get_celfi
use this code to get $100 off:
Code:
5BARS
it's expensive... $525-$100=$425, but you don't have to jump through T-Mobile's hoops to get it and use it
338lm said:
buy/own your own signal booster. the same one you can get from T-Mobile:
http://cel-fi.com/overview#get_celfi
use this code to get $100 off:
Code:
5BARS
it's expensive... $525-$100=$425, but you don't have to jump through T-Mobile's hoops to get it and use it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK I will get one myself as T-Mobile required a two year contract
And I just this month entered one for this phone.
going_home said:
OK I will get one myself as T-Mobile required a two year contract
And I just this month entered one for this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're already in a contract, its not an additional 2 years, its 2 years from the date they send the device.
I got my phone, under contract, a month before I got the cell booster, so in effect it only extends my contract one month.
If you plan on buying a unit, and you're not intimidated by a little wiring, there are better options out there for the same or less money. They just require you to run a cable from the receiver to the transmitter. (search amazon for wilson electronics)
Those options allow you to get customize your antenna to allow for a much better signal.
-Tony
Tony,
Do you have a link to the repeater that T-Mobile sent you? I have very marginal reception in my house, and want to look over what it is they send you. Any other tips (which number did you call? etc.) for getting one of these repeaters? I just got my Amaze a couple days after it was released.
Ryan
Contracts don't add up so you wouldn't have 4 years... You'd just extend 2 years starting at this point.
Cel-fi is the brand.
I just called the regular customer service number and went to technical support. I had to talk three people to get to the right person - they each knew it was possible to get a booster, but weren't empowered to make it happen - and the final person wasn't too up on things either.
Just let them know you have at least two bars in an area of your house near a window (don't know why, but the person I talked to was concerned this was the case) and the rest of your house is worse. If you live in an apartment, that will exclude you. The person I was talking to was also convinced a three story house was out of the question, but its working perfectly for me.
It may not work for you and if it doesn't they do have a 14 day or 30 day (I forget which) period that you can return the device and they roll back any commitments .
If your signal is really bad, you may have to purchase you're own unit with a directional antenna. They're not hard to set up, just way more time consuming to install and cost about $350+/-
oryan_dunn said:
Tony,
Do you have a link to the repeater that T-Mobile sent you? I have very marginal reception in my house, and want to look over what it is they send you. Any other tips (which number did you call? etc.) for getting one of these repeaters? I just got my Amaze a couple days after it was released.
Ryan
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, i looked up the Cel-fi, and it won't work for me
http://cel-fi.com/overview#get_celfi
I only have 2G at my house, and this requires at least 1 bar of 3G. I'll just wait for the WiFi calling on the Amaze, then I wouldn't need it anyways.
I'm sure that this problem is not unique to me. I live in a small community with poor cell service. I have a vzw booster, it's placed in my living room. That way I get good service in my yard. The problem is that most people in my town have become aware of it. We have some really questionable people that have become quite a nuisance, the type of people who you don't want to know when you are home or not. It's really starting to bother my wife. We can't even sit in our living room anymore with the windows shades open. I know that this probably the best place to post this. Can anyone help me out with blocking numbers or something. I'd hate to have to unplug it, I've searched for the answer. But have officially given up. :'(
I mean really? I paid for it, shouldn't I be able to control access just like a router?
Unfortunately it is just extending the cell service frequencies. All the same rules apply that apply to a cell tower. I'm sure Verizon could control roaming of phones on the device, but any low level tech would probably deny the possibility. They probably just don't have a easy one click solution. But i would call them and complain. Tell them you have limited data on your home internet and you don't want the whole neighborhood using your service.
There is also the possibility that your extender could be a repeater of the closest tower to you, in which case you could never deny any phone service because it would also cut that phones service from the tower.
Good luck, please post any info you gather.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
XxStechxX said:
I'm sure that this problem is not unique to me. I live in a small community with poor cell service. I have a vzw booster, it's placed in my living room. That way I get good service in my yard. The problem is that most people in my town have become aware of it. We have some really questionable people that have become quite a nuisance, the type of people who you don't want to know when you are home or not. It's really starting to bother my wife. We can't even sit in our living room anymore with the windows shades open. I know that this probably the best place to post this. Can anyone help me out with blocking numbers or something. I'd hate to have to unplug it, I've searched for the answer. But have officially given up. :'(
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Click to collapse
I found this in the FAQ, it may pertain to you.
Can I manage and secure access to my Network Extender?
Yes. Only the Network Extender account owner can sign in to My Verizon to manage device settings. You can set your Network Extender for Open Access or Managed Access.
Open Access allows any Verizon Wireless phone within range to use your Network Extender.
With Managed Access, you can prioritize access to your Network Extender to up to 50 Verizon Wireless callers you select. Where a compatible tower is unavailable, callers that do not appear on your Managed Access list may access the Network Extender when not in use by priority callers. All callers may access the Network Extender for emergency (E911) calls.
Also Section 2 in the manual it also mentions this.
http://support.verizonwireless.com/pdf/network_extender_user_manual.pdf
Everything I find says I can set a priority list for 50 phones, but not block. Idk
There's a debate going on on a cruise forum I'm part of and a lot of bad info is getting thrown in. I thought I'd best ask the experts here and give them a definitive answer.
As you may or may not know cruise ships have their own mobile cell to allow mobile comms (I assume using satellite tech but that's not important!). People are claiming that once you are out of reach of a terrestrial signal with roaming turned on (as you need it to be to use free data/comms in the EU) your phone automatically jumps onto the ships cell and can then incur no end of costs for use of data and/or calls and texts. I have always thought that my android mobile won't jump onto a chargeable network (i.e. one that my provider does not have a free deal with) without asking me but I'm no where near 100% sure of that.
Does anyone have the patience to explain this to me, perhaps it's even a setting in the OS somewhere?
Thanks.
hi community, i got my usa version of 1 iv and worked with mint-mobile (using t-mobile's network) to connect/activate. Calling/word text worked fine (image via text did not work), but no internet/data connection over 5g/LTE while browsing. Tech support could not get it working and escalated ... wondering if anyone would know how/what could be done. Thx!!
You must be missing the APN config on your device for TMobile. also, check if mobile data is enabled.
Here is T-Mobile info on how to setup Tmobile USA APN:
Tutorials | T-Mobile Support
Not related to the post (getting T-Mobile service) on any of the Asian firmwares at the moment.
I flashed the Euro, US firmwares and no signal at all. The radio power in hidden menu shows as off.
Does anyone know if crossflashing with this model also flashes the radio modem?
Seems to have worked naturally for Xperia 1 II and Xperia 1 III.
Not sure why this doesn't work now aside from intentionally restricting the phone to the intended region model.
Mine is XQ-CT72 global version on US T-Mobil.
I'm getting 800+, but US version should be better because of better band selection.
Mine goes that fast only certain places.
xperialiker said:
hi community, i got my usa version of 1 iv and worked with mint-mobile (using t-mobile's network) to connect/activate. Calling/word text worked fine (image via text did not work), but no internet/data connection over 5g/LTE while browsing. Tech support could not get it working and escalated ... wondering if anyone would know how/what could be done. Thx!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I own the USA variant of the phone and I have absolutely no issues with 5G data nor wi-fi. The only issues I am experiencing is the fact that voice over Wi-Fi has not been provisioned. Coincidentally my phone also tells me within engineering mode that video over Wi-Fi is also not implemented. Sony wants to point the finger at T-Mobile and T-Mobile wants to point the finger at Sony.
Other than that I love this phone.
hnt20 said:
You must be missing the APN config on your device for TMobile. also, check if mobile data is enabled.
Here is T-Mobile info on how to setup Tmobile USA APN:
Tutorials | T-Mobile Support
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the correct APN that you mentioned and still no luck for voice over Wi-Fi. I spent over half an hour with a T-Mobile troubleshooting technician and she was not able to remedy the scenario. They have created a trouble ticket and forwarded up the food chain. They claim you will take about 3 days for them to get back to me so cross your fingers (VoWifi).
igotroot said:
I have the correct APN that you mentioned and still no luck for voice over Wi-Fi. I spent over half an hour with a T-Mobile troubleshooting technician and she was not able to remedy the scenario. They have created a trouble ticket and forwarded up the food chain. They claim you will take about 3 days for them to get back to me so cross your fingers (VoWifi).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, that is a different question. that means you are able to get data and your problem is only with VoWiFi which is expected. your original post question was totally different.
Sony blocks TMO VoWiFi in their software by blocking the network code in their settings. You will never get VoWiFi with Sony and TMO together unless you root and hack your sony build settings to enable it.
Your next best option is to move to GoogleFi that uses TMO network and you will be able to get the full VoWiFi service there since it has different network code.
hnt20 said:
Ah, that is a different question. that means you are able to get data and your problem is only with VoWiFi which is expected. your original post question was totally different.
Sony blocks TMO VoWiFi in their software by blocking the network code in their settings. You will never get VoWiFi with Sony and TMO together unless you root and hack your sony build settings to enable it.
Your next best option is to move to GoogleFi that uses TMO network and you will be able to get the full VoWiFi service there since it has different network code.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rats. I've been looking to upgrade from my Note 10+ on T-Mobile, and the Xperia 1 IV looked promising, but VoWiFi being nerfed is a non-starter for my needs. Curse the manufacturers for moving away from expandable storage!
T-Mobile basically did a bunch of farting around and could not provision Wi-Fi calling on my phone. I have confirmed from at least three people on XDA developers that the workaround is to jump on board with Google fi since they do support Wi-Fi calling provisioning.... Or somehow root your phone and find an engineering workaround.
igotroot said:
T-Mobile basically did a bunch of farting around and could not provision Wi-Fi calling on my phone. I have confirmed from at least three people on XDA developers that the workaround is to jump on board with Google fi since they do support Wi-Fi calling provisioning.... Or somehow root your phone and find an engineering workaround.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is Still a good attempt from TMO to try to help, It is really not TMO fault here as nothing they can do. Sony is at fault blocking TMO network code in their VoWiFi software.
Sony has decided to block this service from the second largest US carrier, wondering why Sony sales not picking up in the US
seriously genuine question......why is that so important? I mean, can't you just call a person on whatsupp or telegram or any other service? After all, it is just VOIP, right?
kinggo2 said:
seriously genuine question......why is that so important? I mean, can't you just call a person on whatsupp or telegram or any other service? After all, it is just VOIP, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since WCDMA and GSM are sunset, if you want to call someone or receive calls with your phone, you need VoLTE or VoNR. TG and Whatsapp are not that popular in the US, and imagine someone wanting to use their phone as a phone....
well, I get that. We still have 3G and GSM. And every time I work on new rollout things are more and more complicated because of all generations are still in use. Connecting to a unknown wifi every time seems very not practical and if it is not opened public network (which again is not great) how does that work then? I get it if you are at home/family/friends but my question is more like, no cell signal, jut some random wifi. To me it looks more like a patch then an actual service/solution for the lack of cell signal. Or is that something that you really can rely on?
kinggo2 said:
seriously genuine question......why is that so important? I mean, can't you just call a person on whatsupp or telegram or any other service? After all, it is just VOIP, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The issue is when I'm in my local public supermarket there is no T-Mobile coverage in the building. There is Wi-Fi and I do use Google meet and other apps over Wi-Fi but if someone calls my phone number my phone will not receive the call. That is the point.
Someone would have to actually know that I'm in a no coverage area and utilize one of those other apps to reach me. If not businesses, job offers, local businesses that don't know me personally, someone new that I've met etc etc would never get through to me and I would eventually receive some type of voicemail message indication. That is unacceptable when you have children and other family members and friends that need to get in contact with you immediately.
igotroot said:
but if someone calls my phone number my phone will not receive the call. That is the point.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly the point, your phone number is the primary way many reach you. if your phone does not have any 3G\4G\5G coverage, then WiFi might be your only other option that gives people the ability to call you directly with your phone.
OK, but who provides wifi? I get that is is just a voip, but you still need internet connection. So instead of cellular it uses wifi.
Here, in many big business buildings or malls we have indoor base stations, sometimes it is combo indoor and out door. Indoor usually is set up as MIMO so all of the providers share the same indoor infrastructure.
Also, many of public places have a wifi but since we are covered with cell signal, nobody really cares about it. Mostly because you can't just connect to it. you need a pass from your bus ticket or your bill in bars or are greeted with front page of the mall that wants you to register and so on. So using wifi here is PITA, that's why I wonder how all that works there and why is it such a big deal.
kinggo2 said:
OK, but who provides wifi? I get that is is just a voip, but you still need internet connection. So instead of cellular it uses wifi.
Here, in many big business buildings or malls we have indoor base stations, sometimes it is combo indoor and out door. Indoor usually is set up as MIMO so all of the providers share the same indoor infrastructure.
Also, many of public places have a wifi but since we are covered with cell signal, nobody really cares about it. Mostly because you can't just connect to it. you need a pass from your bus ticket or your bill in bars or are greeted with front page of the mall that wants you to register and so on. So using wifi here is PITA, that's why I wonder how all that works there and why is it such a big deal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are many places that I have frequented where cellular data and cellular calling will not go through. In those places Wi-Fi is available. While you can use WhatsApp and other individual applications to make video calls and even voice calls you will not be able to receive native incoming calls when someone calls your regular phone number nor will you be able to use your native dialer to make a regular phone call if Wi-Fi calling is not provisioned on your phone. Unfortunately our phones do not get provisioned for T-Mobile Wi-Fi calling apparently due to some issue between the Sony and T-Mobile. So by switching to another carrier or mvno, Wi-Fi calling will be enabled reportedly.
UPDATE: Switched to Google Fi.... Problem solved. Wi-Fi calling now enabled.
That part I get, but still don't know which wifi do you use for that. For mobile network, there is a SIM that handles the connection between cells. Phones can't connect to any available wifi, right. So..... I get what it is, but as someone who works on cell towers installations and from perspective of wifi networks here and my knowledge I still don't get which wifi do you use in that case.
kinggo2 said:
That part I get, but still don't know which wifi do you use for that. For mobile network, there is a SIM that handles the connection between cells. Phones can't connect to any available wifi, right. So..... I get what it is, but as someone who works on cell towers installations and from perspective of wifi networks here and my knowledge I still don't get which wifi do you use in that case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It can work on any Wi-Fi network that has adequate bandwidth. I can go to my local Publix supermarket....no cellular signal in there: I turn my WiFi on, I can make/receive calls with the native phone dialer. No cellular tower needed.
Even tested this at home.... I turned Airplane mode on, then afterwards I ONLY turn wi-fi on.... Calls can be made/received.