Database Info

[Q] NS4G Nexus S 4g, very poor signal, seeking advice

Hello all,
I just received my new Nexus S 4G for Sprint yesterday (5/14) and I love the phone, but I have just awful service on my phone.
I live in Princeton, NJ, which is a town notorious for not having the best service (for all providers) to begin with, but compared to my Epic4G that I came from, there is definitely something wrong with service for my NS4G. Note: there is no 4G here, so I cannot test that.
There are not much discussion of poor signal for the NS4G here on XDA, but there are numerous reports from people having similar problems elsewhere, i.e. http://community.sprint.com/baw/thread/67927?start=0&tstart=10
I will describe my problem...
Calls and texts, MMS, works just fine... however, my 3G service is abysmal. Running speedtest.net, half of the time I pull in 30-40 KB/s, occasionally (maybe 1 out of a dozen times) I can pull in 40-80 KB/s. The other half of the time, either speedtest refuses to run because of network problems, or I literally pull in 3-6 KB/s. My browsing experience is horrendous, almost useless, downloading apps from the market is a 20 minute ordeal.
I have been able to connect to a WiFi network, and everything seems OK from that standpoint.
My fellow XDA users, I seek advice from you all...
I know that the NS4G is brand new to the Sprint network, and is the first CDMA nexus phone. I know that other phones have launched with similar problems, and they usually receive fixes relatively soon...?
Do you think I should try swapping my NS4G for a different one? In my opinion, I think if I swapped the NS4G, I would just have a different phone with the same problems.
Should I wait 30 days and see if service improves by then?
Anyone with similar experience? Suggestions? Switch back to Epic4G and wait it out (noooooo! )?
Thanks

I'm having the same problems, except I'm pulling slightly higher speeds than you. I've talked to sprint and they got a tech to come check out my towers and they'll let me know by monday if its a tower problem, or if it's just slow speeds in my area (its not my phone as i'm able to pick up normal speeds in other areas). I'm giving sprint a week or two to clear this up or else i'm taking the phone back within the 30 days.
also, did you try updating your prl/profile? it's unlikely that it'll help, but worth a shot.

I get around 3mbps on 3G
And around 5-6 and sometimes 7 mbps on 4g
Som im clearly not having this issue, but i will go roaming after the phone falls asleep for a while.

same problem
Im having the same problem I only had the phone 12 hrs I thought mayb it was da tower den I did a speed test between my epic n the ns4g n the epic blows it out the water not on da speed test app but in real life testin like pullin up web pages

The signal is weird. Signal strength at work on my Epic was 5-6 bars. Nexus S 4G is 1-2 bars. Signal strength is between -76 and -92. I forget what my Epic was pulling in actual numbers strength wise. Speed is the same awful crap though on 3G.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk

I've had two Nexus S devices on Sprint and they both exhibit the same weak wireless reception. In real life I would say the differences are minor or insignificant but I was hoping for better or at least same radio reception as my almost 3 year old HTC Hero and clearly that isn't the case. Hopefully Sprint can rectify this in the future with some sort of update since I'm not aware of T-Mobile users having similar problems which would indicate an actual hardware flaw(?).

I'm almost sure its a sprint side issue. I left sprint for 3 months and came back and I've had an epic, evo, and nexus exhibit the same behavior. Before I left sprint I had zero issues and I've owned all of their smartphones and one point or another. It just seems like its slower in certain areas though.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk

try updating PRL

Since our phones don't accept network pushed updates you're going to have to do a manual prl update. If that hasn't been done your service will suffer. That should help a bit.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA Premium App

I've tried all the tricks, updated profile, PRL, reactivated my phone, etc.
Nothing is working...,
I've also noticed (completely unrelated issue) that my earpiece speaker crackles at any volume; its subtle but very annoying.

This seems to be an issue for people with the nexus. My old phone had full bars whereas with the nexus I'm only getting 1 or 2 bars on 3g. Seems to be an issue with their towers or Google. Its an issue with their network and not the phone. I spoke to sprint earlier today and they said they are aware and working to resolve this. So they say if course..
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App

Update (end of day 2):
For the last 5 - 6 hours I have been receiving moderate to adequate 3G service, albeit pretty inconsistent.
I now average 70-120 KB/s, and rarely drop below the lower 70s. This is more on par with what I was getting with my Epic4G for the last 6 months, always pulling in around 120-170 KB/s pretty consistently.
I've run 240 speedtest.net tests today, lol.
I hope it never goes back to how bad it was yesterday and this morning.
Time will tell, -- I'll let you know what happens.
I spent a good deal on the phone today with Sprint, 1 out of the 3 people I spoke to said that spotty reception on the NS4G was a known problem and engineers were at work fixing it. The others had no idea what I was talking about. I don't know what to believe.

Awww man you gotta be kidding me... I already get awful speeds with my Evo and now it's even worse with the Nexus 4g... the phone i'm planning on getting?!?!? this sucks =/

Anyone else's uploads constantly double or sometimes triple that of their download?
My last 5 3G speedtests in kbps
182/325
307/488
99/469
47/169
59/152
There is something seriously wacky with the way the radio is acting.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk

Update (Morning of day 3):
Everything is back to crap again this morning. FML, lol
Edit:
Each speedtest.net test keeps returning downloads between 5 - 15 KB/s

I'm getting crap 3g speeds as well, up and down

Ditto. 3G reception at least 30% weaker than my Evo. Side note, my battery life has been crap too, I wonder if the phone is using more power trying to hold the signal?

I spent a little over an hour on the phone with sprint yesterday for this same issue. They trouble shot my phone, prl updates, network refreshes, nothing worked. They told me I had a defective unit and to exchange it. I went to best buy and the rep had an evo. He had full bars in the store, his dBm was -76 or whatever, it was in the 70's. Mine had 0-1 bars and a dBm of -96. He activated my new phone and checked it, same exact thing. He got sprint on the phone and they made him go through all the same bs prl updates and stuff. After a half hour, they told him they were looking into the issue.
Ive seen alot of people say its AOSP that causes the poor reception, and that is true to an extent. The EVO running CM does not get the same as sense roms. I live in a basement apartment, I know. On sense, my evo sent an mms message almost instantly. On CM, it wouldnt send them at all and it dropped calls like nobodies business.
When it comes down to it though, the radio on the Nexus 4G is just not performing well. I hope there will be some sort of update from google or sprint to address this in the very near future, or I will have left Verizon and sold my Thunderbolt for no reason...

I hope this issue can be fixed with a software update. I would like to know within the 30 day return period so I can get back on an evo running cm7 if I need to.

This is getting blown out of proportion in more ways than one. YES, the Nexus S 4G does not have as great of signal reception as the EVO or Epic. This is already well known. However, just like the iPhone 4 when it came out, the AOSP version of 2.3.4 on the NS4G doesn't display signal bars properly. That's part of the problem. But when you dive down into actually how many dBm's you're getting - that's where the problem lies.
In San Francisco, I typically get 600-1000kbps on 3G and 4mbps-8mbps on 4G WiMAX. Lately, after continually attempting to update the PRL on the device and so on, I've gotten results like the one below. This is on 3G in Daly City, CA just outside SF.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

[Q] Moto G lose network service

Hello
I bought my Moto G in the past moth, and until today it happens to me 3 times, the phone gives me a Message "Emergence only" or something similar, and then a lose my connection to 3g and GSM.
I try to put in airplane mode and then put airplane mode off, but never ask for my pin and continuous without conection. The only way it is to shout down a take the sim and reenter again, after this it work.
I have the European version in the last KitKat version, no root and no moods.
Anyone knows how to fixed?

Hello,
I'm also getting the same issue with my moto g. It randomly loses the network, asking again for the SIM pin.
I have the 4.4.2 [Unofficial] AOSPA+ 4.2 [BETA2] Paranoid Android.
Any clues on this issue?
Thanks
PMJ said:
Hello
I bought my Moto G in the past moth, and until today it happens to me 3 times, the phone gives me a Message "Emergence only" or something similar, and then a lose my connection to 3g and GSM.
I try to put in airplane mode and then put airplane mode off, but never ask for my pin and continuous without conection. The only way it is to shout down a take the sim and reenter again, after this it work.
I have the European version in the last KitKat version, no root and no moods.
Anyone knows how to fixed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

It is different, my don't ask for the pin, my don't even recognize the Sim card.
I talk to the assistance of moto g, and they said to change to another Sim card. But I don't believe that it will solve
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

It can happen for places with low signal; i had same issue while being in my bedroom (walls are 1 meter thick made from stone) switching to 2g solved the issue and gave me max signal bars all the time.
Btw i did not have pin problem because i removed it

This happen in my home and in my university. They are near to each other and I have always 5 bars with the 3g one. I don't think it is that.
To solve temporarily the problem I just take off the Sim and put again, without turn off the phone and it immediately recognize the Sim and ask for the pin and works
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

I had this issue, and it caused no end of trouble. I'm currently without my Moto G, as according to the Phones4U Repairs Tracker, it's "Within repair process" and I left it with P4U 11 days ago.
I might have a different cause to you guys, because it looks like there is/was a software issue that causes this behaviour too. And this is going to sound stupid, and if I hadn't seen it myself, I wouldn't have believed it. But my issue is the spring-loaded SIM card slot has too much spring. It slowly pushes the bloomin' SIM card out slightly after a random length of time.
Initially I thought it was something I'd done, despite getting a SIM free one and only doing official updates. So I factory restored the phone, and that didn't help. So then I couldn't believe it was the phone, I figured it was the SIM card. So I swapped SIMs. Same issue. Then it happened to do it before I put the rear cover back on, and I could see the slight difference.
It happens after a random length of time, but because it doesn't come all the way out, it makes an intermittent connection. I could have fixed it with a bit of tape, but it was under warranty. I'm currently using a mate's LG Optimus 4X HD P880 while I await the return of my Moto. Bad times.
Thankfully I managed to demonstrate this to the lady at the desk in P4U who added it to the repair documentation, I got lucky because sometimes it didn't do it for ages after I'd reinserted the SIM. Otherwise Moto could have looked at it, not seen the problem actually occur in front of them (as it happens after a random length of time) and just sent it back with NFF. I've still got my fingers crossed that they fix it and this resolves the issue though.

I believe you, It can be a problem with the spring. My Sim card it was cut to fit on the micro slot, I will ask for one micro Sim on my carrier and see if it solve the problem.
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

Mine both came precut, it made no difference. My carrier is a UK MVNO called Giffgaff.

My it is Vodafone from Portugal. I will try anyway. But I hope that it solves by itself
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

Mine Sim 2 works fine but Sim 1 frequently loses signal.
I guess the problem occurs only when data is active.

I forget to say.
I solved the problem with a new Sim card. The other that I have was a old version, the inside cheap was bigger then this one, I have.
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

I had this issue when it said 'emergency calls only' and just for giggles I tried it and it would not even place a call to 911

But it is solved now for you?
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Sent from my XT1033 using Tapatalk

drops network connection during calls

Hey guys
Got me sim-modded photon q on ebay.
Thing is, it keeps disconnecting voice calls and showing me it lost the network (the reception strength bar icon goes black on the inside) and then not finding it again until I restart the device. It drops out only during calls, don't seem to have that problem when using internet/data
I'm using CM11 msm8960 on congstar germany (aka t-mobile)
Things I've tried:
Resecuring the sim
Toggle NFC, wifi, bt
Got any ideas?
material for thought.... might be related to low battery... *seems* not to happen during battery at over 80

gurila said:
Hey guys
Got me sim-modded photon q on ebay.
Thing is, it keeps disconnecting voice calls and showing me it lost the network (the reception strength bar icon goes black on the inside) and then not finding it again until I restart the device. It drops out only during calls, don't seem to have that problem when using internet/data
I'm using CM11 msm8960 on congstar germany (aka t-mobile)
Things I've tried:
Resecuring the sim
Toggle NFC, wifi, bt
Got any ideas?
material for thought.... might be related to low battery... *seems* not to happen during battery at over 80
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In the earlier revision of SIM mod done by CornholioGSM, the SIM ground was taken locally from the phone shielding and not wired directly from the ground pin of the original embedded SIM IC.
Some SIM cards work fine with this, but some are not stable when it's wired this way.
In my case, I had the same issue - occasional loss of SIM connection, usually during calls, needed to reboot to reinitialize the SIM.
You have too options:
1. Fix the SIM mod by adding the missing ground wire between the SIM slot and the embedded SIM IC spot.
2. Ask your network provider for a SIM replacement. In my case, I persisted bugging Vodaphone CZ until the third SIM I've got from them finally worked without issues, despite the ground being connected locally at the SIM slot. (I've got it fixed this way for me before we realized that the issue is caused by not using the SIM specific ground point. So I'm still on the earlier SIM mod variant - I haven't found the time for the SIM mod rework yet and I'm not pressed to do it now, when using the SIM that works fine.)

@gurila
half / temporary soluton you make set a WCDMA only i have that same issue if you dont have time to fix the simmod issue,
pickup from dial pad * # * # info # * # * (*#*#4636#*#*) , enter to phone information , scroll down and set WCDMA only
(for me this setting help to allways connection signal back when was lost)
I aslo have old simmoded photon without correclty grounded wire.

can this fix be done easily?
if so could someone please help out with some pictures?
Gesendet von meinem PHOTON Q mit Tapatalk

comstyle said:
can this fix be done easily?
if so could someone please help out with some pictures?
Gesendet von meinem PHOTON Q mit Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
is you asking about hard fix look on this below picture missing conneciton is mark on green
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
"missing" this may not be the correct term because ground is connected.,.. but is not taken from original embedded SIM IC what is mark on this photos ( but from other place on the phone) and that is a reason of signal issue
(sorry for my eng.)

still work in progress
@kabaldan and @niko99 thanks for the help.
 @comstyle is the guy i bought the xt897 from, and he opened it for me yesterday and we took a look inside... the grounding was already there. so it seems not to be the problem... he did put in new wires and clearned them up,... unfortunatly it has since it has gone from bad to worse
so FYI, the grounding seems not to be the problem with this bug.
I have ordered a new sim from the provider, let's see if that helps.
I DOES seem that the problem occurs when the battery is lower (no problems above 80%, somewhat at 60%, constant uder 40%)
nico, i will try the WCDMA trick... thanks... update once I have it...

Hi, guys!
My photon is affected by same issue. Sim mode have done together with colleague of mine.
Ground is connected properly.
My observation is: this issue occurs only with my main sim card from simqadrat - product of sipgate.de, MVNO based on eplus network. This happens mainly in areas with poor network coverage. Such area in my case - workplace. At home i had never such behavior.
BTW, i contacted cell provider already, and got sim card replacement. same issue. BUT: after i've put O2 sim card into the phone, issue disappeared.
Furthermore: i have also jolla handset. Jolla had also strange behavior with sim card from simqadrat. Handset los network, and had immediate reset. My Galaxy Note N7000 work perfectly with than sim card, and have no issues.
@gurila: you have congstar, it's MVNO too, based on T-Mobile network.
I'm not GSM expert, but i assume that MVNO is root cause of our both cases. Just try to use any sim-card from e.g O2 or T-Mobile directly.
I'm really disappointed. Photon q was big hope to get long awaited qwerty slider.
Regards!
gurila said:
@kabaldan and @niko99 thanks for the help.
@comstyle is the guy i bought the xt897 from, and he opened it for me yesterday and we took a look inside... the grounding was already there. so it seems not to be the problem... he did put in new wires and clearned them up,... unfortunatly it has since it has gone from bad to worse
so FYI, the grounding seems not to be the problem with this bug.
I have ordered a new sim from the provider, let's see if that helps.
I DOES seem that the problem occurs when the battery is lower (no problems above 80%, somewhat at 60%, constant uder 40%)
nico, i will try the WCDMA trick... thanks... update once I have it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

stasila said:
Hi, guys!
My photon is affected by same issue. Sim mode have done together with colleague of mine.
Ground is connected properly.
My observation is: this issue occurs only with my main sim card from simqadrat - product of sipgate.de, MVNO based on eplus network. This happens mainly in areas with poor network coverage. Such area in my case - workplace. At home i had never such behavior.
BTW, i contacted cell provider already, and got sim card replacement. same issue. BUT: after i've put O2 sim card into the phone, issue disappeared.
Furthermore: i have also jolla handset. Jolla had also strange behavior with sim card from simqadrat. Handset los network, and had immediate reset. My Galaxy Note N7000 work perfectly with than sim card, and have no issues.
@gurila: you have congstar, it's MVNO too, based on T-Mobile network.
I'm not GSM expert, but i assume that MVNO is root cause of our both cases. Just try to use any sim-card from e.g O2 or T-Mobile directly.
I'm really disappointed. Photon q was big hope to get long awaited qwerty slider.
Regards!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it's not MVNO, it's the SIM card.
I had the same conditions - poor Vodafone network coverage at my workplace.
T-Mobile SIM - zero issues, anywhere.
Then I switched from T-Mobile to Vodafone and troubles started.
At workplace, every 2nd or 3rd call has been interrupted by the SIM error.
Then I've got a replacement SIM from Vodafone and things got even worse, now I couldn't finish even a single call at my workplace.
Then I've got another replacement SIM from Vodafone and I have zero issues since then.
As you can see, no MVNO has been involved in my case. But I needed to get 3 SIM cards from Vodafone till it was right.
EDIT: see also http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=54047152

kabaldan said:
No, it's not MVNO, it's the SIM card.
I had the same conditions - poor Vodafone network coverage at my workplace.
T-Mobile SIM - zero issues, anywhere.
Then I switched from T-Mobile to Vodafone and troubles started.
At workplace, every 2nd or 3rd call has been interrupted by the SIM error.
Then I've got a replacement SIM from Vodafone and things got even worse, now I couldn't finish even a single call at my workplace.
Then I've got another replacement SIM from Vodafone and I have zero issues since then.
As you can see, no MVNO has been involved in my case. But I needed to get 3 SIM cards from Vodafone till it was right.
EDIT: see also http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=54047152
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
been away for a while and the beauty has languished in the drawer
before that I tried it with two other providers (1 in israel and another in egypt) with no sucess.
will continue to try...
failing that i'll have to sell it on ebay as broken

gurila said:
failing that i'll have to sell it on ebay as broken
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@CornholioGSM would probably be able to fix it for you... if he did the mod, perhaps for shipping only. Of course if he did not do the mod, then I'm sure he would ask for some fee... Send him a PM.

Slow, unstable data WiFi & 5G T-Mobile

My note 20 Ultra on T-Mobile seems to have intermittent data speeds and or unstable connections regardless whether or not it's on WiFi (6) Verizon Fios 1GB or 5G.
If I'm on WiFi I would need to turn it off and back on to get respectable speeds, on 5G I'm getting slower speeds than my Note 10 with 4G.
Is anyone else having this issue?
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

get it replace

Same issue here on Wifi unfortunately :\

no such issues on ultra 20 5G 512 unlocked on tmo in LA.
agree, get it replaced. obviously thats not how the phone should work.

rsacipher said:
My note 20 Ultra on T-Mobile seems to have intermittent data speeds and or unstable connections regardless whether or not it's on WiFi (6) Verizon Fios 1GB or 5G.
If I'm on WiFi I would need to turn it off and back on to get respectable speeds, on 5G I'm getting slower speeds than my Note 10 with 4G.
Is anyone else having this issue?
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just curious, did you set the phone up from scratch or did you restore a backup from another phone? If you restored data from another phone I'd do a FDR before exchanging the phone.

Try a network reset, then clear system cache on the boot menu.
Ask carrier for a reset on their side.
Clear sim toolkit data, double check configuration
if no joy replace sim card.

ggrant3876 said:
Just curious, did you set the phone up from scratch or did you restore a backup from another phone? If you restored data from another phone I'd do a FDR before exchanging the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I set it up from scratch.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

blackhawk said:
Try a network reset, then clear system cache on the boot menu.
Ask carrier for a reset on their side.
Clear sim toolkit data, double check configuration
if no joy replace sim card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll give this a try.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

rsacipher said:
I'll give this a try.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
More than likely a settings, software or firmware issue rather than hardwire.
It possible the base load got corrupted; if so a hard reset would not fix it.
It's irritating to send one back only to have the same issue crop up on the replacement and find out it's a settings issue that is easy to correct.
Been there, done that.
Samsung tech support is just about useless, but do document the problem with them.
Keep looking and send it back for factory service as the last option.
Samsung Experience centers can possibly find it or reflash it. They have diagnostic tools. They may do good... good luck.
Make sure the issue isn't the case... just saying.

I had issues where my unlocked would "unregister" itself with TMobile forcing me to reboot. I chatted with their online folks and they suggested I replace my "over 7 yr old sim".
knock on wood, after that the issue went away.
My wifi has been totally solid. I pay for a 500/500 plan with Frontier and I get 512/509 consistently on wifi. Little slower than wired but that's to be expected.

rsacipher said:
I'll give this a try.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Compusmurf said:
I had issues where my unlocked would "unregister" itself with TMobile forcing me to reboot. I chatted with their online folks and they suggested I replace my "over 7 yr old sim".
knock on wood, after that the issue went away.
My wifi has been totally solid. I pay for a 500/500 plan with Frontier and I get 512/509 consistently on wifi. Little slower than wired but that's to be expected.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should handle a sim like a stick of ram.
Few people handle them properly and this can cause a lot of avoidable trouble.
ESD easily can damage them.
>If you can see, feel or hear a static charge it's already enough to cause damage. ESD input protection is limited at best.
>Do not touch contacts.
>Do earth ground yourself before handling; a wrist strap and earth grounded ESD mat are best but simple touching an earth ground after sitting down can work.
>Best to do with humidity above 50%.
Almost all sim card failure are the direct result of ESD damage... it can take years to manifest itself.
Damage can be accumulative or the result of one exposure. Failure afterwhich is completely unpredictable.
Learn to it yourself if you want it done right...

blackhawk said:
You should handle a sim like a stick of ram.
Few people handle them properly and this can cause a lot of avoidable trouble.
ESD easily can damage them.
>If you can see, feel or hear a static charge it's already enough to cause damage. ESD input protection is limited at best.
>Do not touch contacts.
>Do earth ground yourself before handling; a wrist strap and earth grounded ESD mat are best but simple touching an earth ground after sitting down can work.
>Best to do with humidity above 50%.
Almost all sim card failure are the direct result of ESD damage... it can take years to manifest itself.
Damage can be accumulative or the result of one exposure. Failure afterwhich is completely unpredictable.
Learn to it yourself if you want it done right...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AFAIK, I've never touched the contacts. Just moved from phone to phone over the years. Never replaced it the whole time.
I didn't have any spares either.
Guy at local store took one look and said it was well past it's date and just swapped it out for me no charge.
As far as humidity. HA. I live in Florida. Between heat, mosquitos and sand, humidity is one of those things we have an over abundance of.
Guy at store suggested replacing every 3 years or so. Said it's why they "force a sim" in the package with every new phone they ship. (I always just tossed them) Going forward, maybe I'll just change it out the next time. (I know I can do it online, just never bothered)

Compusmurf said:
AFAIK, I've never touched the contacts. Just moved from phone to phone over the years. Never replaced it the whole time.
I didn't have any spares either.
Guy at local store took one look and said it was well past it's date and just swapped it out for me no charge.
As far as humidity. HA. I live in Florida. Between heat, mosquitos and sand, humidity is one of those things we have an over abundance of.
Guy at store suggested replacing every 3 years or so. Said it's why they "force a sim" in the package with every new phone they ship. (I always just tossed them) Going forward, maybe I'll just change it out the next time. (I know I can do it online, just never bothered)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's old. No clue if they upgrade protocols, code but it would seem likely.
At 90% humidity a static charge doesn't last long and is harder to form in the first place. At 10% it's everywhere.
Nothing worse than the AT&T guy walking across carpet in leather shoes before they handle a sim card in the nice dry air conditioner store.
In 10 years I only ever saw one person at a phone store do it the correct way... no joke.

blackhawk said:
10% it's everywhere.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Last time I was in an area with 10% humidity, people were shooting at me.

Compusmurf said:
AFAIK, I've never touched the contacts. Just moved from phone to phone over the years. Never replaced it the whole time.
I didn't have any spares either.
Guy at local store took one look and said it was well past it's date and just swapped it out for me no charge.
As far as humidity. HA. I live in Florida. Between heat, mosquitos and sand, humidity is one of those things we have an over abundance of.
Guy at store suggested replacing every 3 years or so. Said it's why they "force a sim" in the package with every new phone they ship. (I always just tossed them) Going forward, maybe I'll just change it out the next time. (I know I can do it online, just never bothered)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Compusmurf said:
Last time I was in an area with 10% humidity, people were shooting at me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've handled a lot of ram sticks and sim cards... never had one fail. Those sim and ram modules are 100% when they are shipped... what's that tell you?
A little care saves a lot of needless trouble shooting.

I have spoken to the T-Mobile reps, and it looks like it's a known issue with the S20 Ultra 5G models, and looks like it's been passed on to the Note 20 5G models. It has specifically to do with the 5G models. The non 5G models work just fine. They said they are in contact with Samsung to get it fixed, but it's not something that you will see fixed just by replacing the phone. I am on my #3 Note 20 Ultra, and still same issue with T-Mobile. I was on Verizon 2 weeks ago ( I literally just switched to T-Mobile), and when I had Verzion, I had 0 issues.

I turned off 5G and am getting much faster data speeds over LTE and the connection seems more reliable.
I'm not a fan of having to reinstall everything with a replacement and hopefully they have a software update that fixes it.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

rsacipher said:
My note 20 Ultra on T-Mobile seems to have intermittent data speeds and or unstable connections regardless whether or not it's on WiFi (6) Verizon Fios 1GB or 5G.
If I'm on WiFi I would need to turn it off and back on to get respectable speeds, on 5G I'm getting slower speeds than my Note 10 with 4G.
Is anyone else having this issue?
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have exactly the same issue. Everything is up to date and I have two massive Asus Rapture AX-11000 routers in mesh wired to a 2 Gbps fiber connection. And I am in Singapore, we have 5G.
Unfortunately my speed test ranges from great speed to miserable speeds:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

Note 10 Plus cellular reception

Just moved on from the S9 {SM-G960U1) to the Note10 Plus (SM-N975U1) and I'm experiencing some trouble: poor cellular reception.
This is not a lack of signal bars - I know those don't tell the story - this is a COMPLETE lack of service in areas where I usually have service. Today. I brought my second line - a Samsung S8 SM-G950U1 - with me and in about 75% of the areas I travel in, there was a complete lack of cellular signal while using the Note10 Plus meanwhile the S8 was pulling down 50 or 60 Mbps. Where there was a signal on the Note10 Plus, it would pull about 3 or 4 Mbps while the S8 was sitting at 80 or 90 Mbps.
What's going on? I already reset my Network Settings and the next day had my SIM card replaced. This was based on noticing that at my house where 80+ Mbps was routine with the S8 and the replaced S9 (SM-G960U1) the Note10 Plus can hardly muster 12 Mbps, usually 2 to 3 Mbps.
AT&T, just upgraded to their top plan with unlimited everything with no data throttling and 50GB hotspot per line. On Android 12 with the most recent updates. Sitting here with ZERO bars, no signal, thankful that there is Wi-Fi available.

Try in safe mode to rule out 3rd party apps.
Clear SIM toolkit data.
Network reset and clear system cache.
Ask AT&T advanced tech support to reset the network on their side.

blackhawk said:
Try in safe mode to rule out 3rd party apps.
Clear SIM toolkit data.
Network reset and clear system cache.
Ask AT&T advanced tech support to reset the network on their side.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cleared data, reset network settings, and started in safe mode. ZERO signal. I'll call AT&T again. I called them Monday evening and they reapportioned the card and reset the signal then yesterday i had the SIM card replaced. I'll request advanced support.

*#*#4636#*#*, device info
Access Point Names in connection settings should be this I believe:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

When I was first messing with the phone earlier this week, I came across a menu that had about a dozen radio buttons to select I think it was network type. I remember it had some options but the top one was Automatic and I think CLTE/????? or something was selected. I got out of there quickly but now I want to look at it to see what the options were.

blackhawk said:
*#*#4636#*#*, device info
Access Point Names in connection settings should be this I believe:
View attachment 5690885
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's mine:

I see one difference.
mnc number
If you replace the sim card, do it yourself and handle it like a stick of ram. It can be damaged by ESD, at least discharge yourself to a nearby earth ground before handling. They're a dime a dozen but a failure can be inconvenient and cause a lot of trouble.

I looked into the MNC. 280 and 410 are acceptable for AT&T and it depends on the SIM card number as to which one to use. 280 is correct for mine. Can't edit it anyway. It's locked to the SIM.

This is back home:
I mean, it's better than earlier in the week but I don't sit at home all day. To be sure, I'm perfectly happy with the above numbers. Hell, I'd even be happy if they were halved while out and about.

josiahg52 said:
This is back home:
View attachment 5690953
I mean, it's better than earlier in the week but I don't sit at home all day. To be sure, I'm perfectly happy with the above numbers. Hell, I'd even be happy if they were halved while out and about.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Those aren't good either... mind you there's a cell tower half a mile from me.
Maybe take it to a Samsung Experience center at Best Buy and let them run some advanced tests on it. See if they can pinpoint it.
Or return it.

I might be prolonging the inevitable but I messed around with it some more. Can you tell me what the preferred network is shown when you look in the phone info at *#*#4636#*#*

This thing is just junk. I got T-Mobile prepaid just to see if there's a difference and there is. It's slightly better. The same dead spots are there but they're briefer and the service is sometimes faster. Side by side another phone in the T-Mobile store where you know they boost that signal and I could barely manage a third of the other phone. Now, T-Mobile limits the prepaid customer to 65% of rated but it wasn't even close. We made sure we were using the same Speedtest server and he turned off 5G data. I'm going to perform a factory reset and try agdin but that's not going to work. If it doesn't work as a phone, what good is it?

josiahg52 said:
This thing is just junk. I got T-Mobile prepaid just to see if there's a difference and there is. It's slightly better. The same dead spots are there but they're briefer and the service is sometimes faster. Side by side another phone in the T-Mobile store where you know they boost that signal and I could barely manage a third of the other phone. Now, T-Mobile limits the prepaid customer to 65% of rated but it wasn't even close. We made sure we were using the same Speedtest server and he turned off 5G data. I'm going to perform a factory reset and try agdin but that's not going to work. If it doesn't work as a phone, what good is it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No issues on either one of my Snaps N975U/1.
Both run well on AT&T. Same sim card for over 2.5 yo.

The phone is not junk. It's a good device. It's just not working here.

josiahg52 said:
The phone is not junk. It's a good device. It's just not working here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure what the problem is especially if you have a good signal. My guess is that device itself. I spend little more time then it took to put in the sim card to set up the connection on the newest one.

I factory reset this morning with the AT&T SIM installed. I don't want to speak too soon but at my house, the speed test results are more than 60 Mbps every time. The last five have been over 100. Still have to take it out on my travels and see if there's an actual, real difference but that seems better.

Remember to turn on/off airplane mode when traveling if it has trouble in an area to reset the tower it's using.
Try a hard reboot:
Press and hold the Volume Down button first and don’t release it.
While holding it down, press and hold the Power key.
Keep both keys held down for 10 seconds or more.

I took my S8 and the Note out Thursday morning and compared them. Both are my phones and on the same AT&T plan. The Note just has a very difficult time picking out a good signal. I spent about 5GB of mobile data running speed tests, drove over 100 miles, and walked almost four miles. Where the S8 would aggressively cycle through the bands to maintain some connectivity - be sure, there were plenty of slowdowns - the Note just camped out. RSRP numbers ran -10 or more even up to -20 lower on the Note than the S8 across the board. What I learned is that the signal is not that effective in a lot of areas around my parts but I'm not asking for that or super-fast speeds. I just need to look stuff up from time to time and stream music. Most importantly, i need to be able to use my phone as a phone. It can't even do that well. Maybe it's defective but I'm not willing to go through this again. Looking at the Xperia. Had Sony phones in the distant past and looked at them before I got the S9 a few years ago. Just started looking, not really sure what I'll do.

Something about that copy. I'm not seeing that issue with either one of the two I own. My download speed was substantially higher.
Try a hard reboot:
hard reboot:
Press and hold the Volume Down button first and don’t release it.
While holding it down, press and hold the Power key.
Keep both keys held down for 10 seconds or more.