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Just got mine today, and unlike my Hermes & Kaiser it's unable to hold on to a T-Mobile signal in my lounge.
I wonder if it's faulty.
ROM version: 1.90.405.1 WWE
ROM date: 08/01/08
Radio version: 1.02.25.19
Protocol version: 52.33.25.17U
It's a possibility... I know I'm from the states, so different ballpark altogether, but mine has had much better reception (especially with holding 3G) than other phones I've used.
I would say after reading round the forums that the poor signal complaints all one one thing in common. T-Mobile UK.
I have the TYTN II as well on T-Mobile and it always has a good solid signal round my house with the 'H' showing all the time.
I got my Raphael today and reached the conclusion that T-Mobile must be having problems because the signal has been ropey to say the least plus it has been a struggle to get the 'G' to turn to a 'H'.
After reading the various discussions on here I can only put it down to the phone being a bit deaf. Lets hope HTC address this
Right two things.
a) I am on T-Mobile and have experienced the same thing. Slightly lower but not drastic reductions.
b) I spoke with T-Mobile yesterday and they said they were having some intermittent issues with their 3G network.
I've been having all sorts of trouble with web browsing on my Vario II over the last few months. The Touch Pro seems to be better but still not perfect, I'm probably going to change networks soon though.
I have a friend at work with an iphone 3G on O2 and he doesn't get very good 3G coverage in the office, but says it's fine at home. I think I'll move to Vodafone and see what they're like!
I aint too sure where we are at the moment with SPLs so not sure if it is wise to flash a different radio version yet, however it might be worth seeing if a radio update emerges to address these issues, gotta say where i am on vacation at the mo (Norfolk) has jack **** reception for TmobileUK.
Its full 5 Bars HSDPA back in York so when i get hold of my Raph i'll post some findings alongside my Hermes (TyTN) for comparison.
Is reception in Norfolk really that bad?
My brother can get a good enough reception to talk on his phone with Tmobile at our place there... While my phone on orange cant get anything at all...
I was told Tmobiles reception was better than oranges... :/
I was hoping i could get some sort for data connection working there.
Also has the Touch Pro got an Antenna plug inside it? So you could hook it up to a more powerful antenna?
Antenna location
Well I don't have Raph yet however I've seen a Manual.
It says that antenna o Raph is placed at the bottom of Raph's back. I think this is pretty idiotic because everytime you grab your phone you automatically cover the antenna.
I don't think that the poor reception is related to the T-Mobile network itself. I think the problem is the device.
If you read the other threads it's quite obvious that T-Mobile works better/fine with other devices (same SIM) as compared to the Touch Pro.
I'm quite sure we will get similar bad reception reports from other network users as well as soon as the devices gets available in other countries.
As the Diamond has similar problems I do not think it's a software issue, I think the problem is related to the slim housing (antenna setup) of the Diamond and as the Touch Pro is a takeover in lots of parts it might suffer the same problems.
Ok this doesnt sound good :/
Does the touch pro have an external antenna plug hidden inside the battery compartment?
Im not planning on carrying an antenna about with me all the time. But wouldnt mind one attached to my house in norfolk. Just so i can get some sort of data network.
So is there an antenna socket?
Most phones hide theres with a rubber plug.
foo said:
I'm quite sure we will get similar bad reception reports from other network users as well as soon as the devices gets available in other countries.
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Click to collapse
Don't be so sure... With my Pantech Duo I would hardly ever touch a 3G signal down in my basement, with the Touch Pro I get HSDPA most of the time I'm down here. Best phone I've ever used when it comes to reception...
NutsyUK said:
Ok this doesnt sound good :/
Does the touch pro have an external antenna plug hidden inside the battery compartment?
Im not planning on carrying an antenna about with me all the time. But wouldnt mind one attached to my house in norfolk. Just so i can get some sort of data network.
So is there an antenna socket?
Most phones hide theres with a rubber plug.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I BELIEVE I've heard of things you can get hooked up in a building where it receives signal at the top of the building (via an antenna) and amplifies it throughout (working similarly to a wireless router)... I think they use them in office buildings, to prevent loss of reception due to the sheer size of the structure. May be very expensive, but I haven't really looked into it. Anyone else heard of such things?
foo said:
I don't think that the poor reception is related to the T-Mobile network itself. I think the problem is the device.
If you read the other threads it's quite obvious that T-Mobile works better/fine with other devices (same SIM) as compared to the Touch Pro.
I'm quite sure we will get similar bad reception reports from other network users as well as soon as the devices gets available in other countries.
As the Diamond has similar problems I do not think it's a software issue, I think the problem is related to the slim housing (antenna setup) of the Diamond and as the Touch Pro is a takeover in lots of parts it might suffer the same problems.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Id wait to see if a Radio update eliviates some of the issues, remember we are on a fledgling STOCK device at the moment, same thing happened with the Hermes and it was remedied quickly once a radio update was released (with the 0107 radio bootloader in it).
@NutsyUK
Well we stayed in Hickling last year and I got full HSDPA around there which was a surprise, where we are im in a fringe area methinks since all 4 networks are crap here (Horning)......depends where you are going?
krabicka3 said:
Well I don't have Raph yet however I've seen a Manual.
It says that antenna o Raph is placed at the bottom of Raph's back. I think this is pretty idiotic because everytime you grab your phone you automatically cover the antenna.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually think this is quite a sensible location for it...
Yes, you would be covering the antenna if you are holding it "normally" i.e. browse web pages etc, but when you are on a call and you are holding it up to your ear you wouldn't be covering it at all because it's at the same end as the microphone! So at least having the antenna down there maximises your signal strength when you need it most!
After reading many posts saying that the Pro is weaker on TMobile I must ask which 3G band does TMobile operate on? Is it 2100?
I'm in Australia on Three's network and I must say the reception is very poor.
To the point I lose connection at times and have calls fade in/out.
This is coming from a P3600 which it replaced. That had better reception with one of the proven upgraded radio ROMs.
So I hope a future radio ROM upgrade addresses this, as I'm starting to really like this device.
My internet key for Three's mobile broadband which uses the same network can be right next to the Pro and have 4 bars (out of 4 or 5) while the Pro only shows 1 (P3600 generally has 1 bar less than internet key)
Mrjasjam said:
After reading many posts saying that the Pro is weaker on TMobile I must ask which 3G band does TMobile operate on? Is it 2100?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use this site to check your local cell information (UK).
http://www.sitefinder.ofcom.org.uk/
THis is what i have found in my area
3G Network 2100MHz (umts)
TMob 1800MHz (GSM)
O2 900/1800MHz (GSM), 2100MHz (umts)
Voda 900/1800MHz (GSM), 2100MHz (umts)
Orange 1800MHz (GSM), 2100MHz (umts)
Tmobile must piggyback other networks umts as i am unable to find a Tmob cell with umts!!! If thats the case, its not the phone at fault. Maybe someone can check in their area that receives 3g on Tmobile.
Doing a quick search, it appears That Tmobile piggyback the 3G network in the uk, yet there are no reports of poor coverage on the 3G network.
The 3 an t-mobile HSDPA networks merged a while ago. So it would be interesting to know if the poor reception occurs with a 3 SIM. I would imagine that is shouldn't make any difference if they operate on the same band.
ardsar said:
Use this site to check your local cell information (UK).
http://www.sitefinder.ofcom.org.uk/
THis is what i have found in my area
3G Network 2100MHz (umts)
TMob 1800MHz (GSM)
O2 900/1800MHz (GSM), 2100MHz (umts)
Voda 900/1800MHz (GSM), 2100MHz (umts)
Orange 1800MHz (GSM), 2100MHz (umts)
Tmobile must piggyback other networks umts as i am unable to find a Tmob cell with umts!!! If thats the case, its not the phone at fault. Maybe someone can check in their area that receives 3g on Tmobile.
Doing a quick search, it appears That Tmobile piggyback the 3G network in the uk, yet there are no reports of poor coverage on the 3G network.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its been the following for a fair while:
O2 and Vodaphone : GSM900
Orange and Tmobile: GSM1800
AFAIK all four use UMTS2100 for thier 3G services.
Virgin mobile uses the tmobile network also.
Three: UMTS2100
However Three works on the same network ID as the O2 3G service which seems to take priority, however that might be an old story now?? Al i can remember is that several colleagues were told this by Three when they complained about calls cutting off many times.
Never been aware of tMobile "piggybacking" the 3G network since they were the first to offer 3G with the other networks following suit? It wouldnt make sence by looking at the data rate tarriffs each network offers since Tmobile is the only one to offer unlimited HSDPA, which surely would suggest the intrastructure is thiers out of majority??
My info was from this article originally:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-Mobile#United_Kingdom
It would definitely be interesting to know if the same problems occur with O2 etc...
[Edit: See post # 7 for hardware fix that solved my problem]
I need help with improving calling reception on the used AT&T Fuze I bought for use on the TMobile USA network, specifically North-Eastern USA (NYC metro area).
I have SIM unlocked the phone (thanks to purchased unlocker from Olipro), I have flashed with several ROMs (starting with NRG's EnergyRom "photon" series), and I have tried various Radios and matching ril dlls. It surprises me just how bad reception is. In areas that my old T-Mobile Wing (a.k.a HTC Herald)gets almost full signal, the Fuze fluctuates from three "bars" down to none, with the signal being lost and reacquired constantly. I have tried "locking" the band to 850 and 1900 GSM (which is what Tmo USA uses) with little effect.
I'm at a lost. I have tried searching this forum, but several posts are related to AT&T network (understandably as it is an AT&T phone) and issues with TMobile UK reception (which is supposedly bad). For the most part, it looks like TMobile USA should have great reception in general in my area..... but I don't. I know my area has coverage by looking at other phones, just not my Fuze.
Can anyone from the NYC Metro area (mostly northern NY area) who has successfully connected the Fuze to Tmobile help me? What ROM and Radio combo worked best for you?
Plus, can anyone with experience tell me if it is possible that my phone has a hardware problem. Could there be something wrong with the antenna? How could I test this, and or fix this if it is hardware?
(Note: I am referring to regular GSM signal. I know that there is no 3G for me due to unsupported 1700 3G radio band.)
Thanks.
Nonpaq
Radios I have tried are:
Ralp 1.10.25.18
Ralp 1.14.25.35
BS 1.17.25.09
Quartz 1.11.25.01
X1 1.10.25.18
Each was tried with the default RIL in ROM and the version specific RIL (when available). All have been identical with poor GSM reception.
Has anyone been successful with using the FUZE on TMobile in northeastern US?
Another question: Does keeping a radio for longer period of time help improve the signal locking, as if the tower and phone need to "learn" about each other? I remember old non-smartphones used to have to have their list of available towers updated so that the phone could recognize newer, closer towers. I assume that this is no longer the case.
Plus: Fieldtest shows occasionally the GSM 850 band is used, but most of the time the band is listed as "PCS". Is that the GSM 1900 band? I believe that Tmobile mostly uses 1900 in this area as well as 850. Is it possible I am not seeing the 1900 band?
-nonpaq
I have the Fuze on T-mobile as well. I am in the SouthEast and have good luck with Radio 1.14.25.05. I've tried them all. This Radio I've used for almost 5 months now; good reception, good GPS, good batery. Try it, with matching rilphone ofcourse. good luck.
Well I loaded up Energy Titanium latest build (Nov 10) and had radio version 1.17.25.09 from before, and all of a sudden I was getting 3 to occasionally 4 "bars" in my home (previously I would get two "bars" max). It would occasionally drop and rescan for signal but not often. Outside had a solid lock on the signal.
I thought I finally found the perfect combo, but unfortunately when I got to work, indoors, 40 miles away from home, it was the same ol' story. Mostly no signal lock, with an occasional 1 bar signal.
Watching FieldTest data is interesting though. While scanning for signal, I can see the NCell info get data, which I understand are cell towers the phone "sees" but are not locked in. It fluctuates from 1 to 6 towers seen, down to none with the phone not moving. The receive strength reported for these towers varies from -106 dbm to -97 dbm, but does not lock on to the signal. (I occasionally get GPRS lock with zero bars). Can anyone explain this to me.
Plus, can any of these reception problems be related to using an AT&T phone on the T-Mobile system, preventing the towers from allowing a lock? I always thought that the SIM card's IMEI controlled access, but could tmobile somehow lock out unknown phone models?
tt1114 said:
I have the Fuze on T-mobile as well. I am in the SouthEast and have good luck with Radio 1.14.25.05. I've tried them all. This Radio I've used for almost 5 months now; good reception, good GPS, good battery. Try it, with matching rilphone ofcourse. good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I flashed the Radio 1.14.25.05 and installed the matching RIL version and now I'm getting a lock of 1 "bar" where previously I did not. Fieldtest shows the same signal strengths as before for Neighboring Cell Towers [NCells] except now it is locking onto a signal of -105 dBm or better. (I even got 2 "bars" at -103 dBm ) According to the ARFCN field , it is now locking into the 1900 band (CNs in the 600s) where previously it would only lock into the 850 band (CNs in the 100s).
Looks good so far as I can actually get phone calls now!!! Thanks for the recommendation. (By the way... it looks like the signal gets better as time passes. By the time I finished this post, the phone is showing a steady 2 "bars").
My saga continues.....
My two bars at work were short lived. Signal is now back to 1 or no bars. I am going to experiment with some of the older radios.
Heres an interesting thing. I experimented with another persons AT&T SIM card and reception was great!! From the same location, AT&T gives "Full Signal" yet TMobile gives barely 1 bar and cannot hold onto the signal. Now I realize that the TMobile towers might be located further than the AT&T towers causing the difference in signal levels, but if not that, what else can cause one to be so much better than the other. (Keep in mind, my other TMobile phone, the HTC herald, gets great service, as does the other person's regular AT&T phone. So I know there is service here.)
I know the ROMs are not service specific, but are the radios optimized for particular services. Is there any radio that may be more generic, or optimized for the 850/1900 GSM band that TMobile USA uses?
I fixed my bad reception problems with my fuze on TMobile USA. It turns out that it was a hardware issue, the antenna was not making a good contact to the circuit board.
I opened my Fuze by removing the four screws under the back cover. Then use a flat plastic "stick" to separate the casing from the keyboard (careful, the back speaker is connected by a short wire from the circuit board to the back plate.) The GSM antenna is at the bottom (looks like black tape from the outside back). It connects to the circuit board by contact tabs that touch when the back plate is on. What I did was slightly lift these tab "fingers" so that they extended a little more. The theory is that when I reconnect the back plate they will press harder on the contacts on the other side.
After putting everything back together, I'm getting full service where previously I got only two bars.
If you have bad reception, and you are not afraid of voiding your warantee and cracking open your phone's case, you should try this simple fix. I recommend looking up the disassembly guide as there are several potential problems you need to be careful of. First, the back speaker wire can easily be broken. Second there is a main circuit board and a smaller daughter board which can separate. There are two connectors, a large one about the middle of the phone, and a small on on the side. Make sure both are connected (pressed together) before reassembling the phone case.
Let me know if this is useful for you. I can put together a step by step guide if you want. Just PM me.
where did you get the radio 1.14.25.05?
where can i find this radio with the matching RIL???
thank you im also having the same trouble with my htc fuze for t-mobile
I haven't seen any real comparisons that actually made sense to me.. So I am posting this information up to help others that might be thinking the same thing I was..
WOW and unlocked Samsung Note 3 The advert says 4G LTE... Well, that is not the case.. AT least with about 30hrs of searching I haven't found a way to make a 9005 LTE compliant since most LTE is 700 band 4, or 1700 Band 7?.. Anyhow here's my run down or take away..
Both of the following phones are Kitkat 4.4.2 One unlocked Model ATL (Spain Vodafone) 9005 and one ATT 900.
So I Bought an unlocked Samsung Note 3 9005 (SM-N9005ZKEATL).. This was before I did the research on LTE.. I've spent numerous hours pouring over info looking for LTE and the phones antenna just don't jive with ATT's or Tmobiles LTE service.. Of course this was after I bought the phone and used if for a couple of days only to find no ATT LTE
Now I can tell you on the 9005 that with ATT's sim I was getting a consistent HSPA+ signal and the UP/down times were decent but only 3G though the phone if used in Europe would be 4GLTE from what I have read..
Since I wanted to have an informed opinion I also bought a SM-N900 from ATT to see if there really is a difference between the 2 models with LTE and such..
The 900 when in active 4G LTE if all the stars align will offer speeds of up to 35mbps or even 50mbps but this is rare since I live out in the country. (I get a 4G signal 99% of the time) And in some cases like on the highway or such downloading music it would be handy.. But for Waze, internet searches, it's over kill since you don't need the bandwidth but if you are all ready paying for it.. It's nice to have..
The best I could get with the local area on the 900 is right around 5mbps to 7mbps.. The 900 4G LTE not offering any better signal or speeds vs the 9005 on HSPA+.
I did go to Tmobile in Worcester MA and had them install a sim to see what kind of network signal would be happening in case I switched to Tmobile.. It was very sad, after sim installed the APN information was setup: (the 9005 found the network just about right away after the sim was inserted) and then all the settings were verified. The best it would do is E.. This was in the Tmobile store.. I switched back over to my ATT sim and had instant HSPA+ back in the store..
As a side note.. The Samsung Note i717 ATT model always screamed at me for a Mobile Data toggle. Since I turn the function on/off often to conserve battery life while out Cycling. What a pleasant surprise it was to find the 9005 had a toggle with all the other ones as well as a few others the 900 doesn't have so back to the 3 button scroll functions just to turn it off.. vs the 1 on the 9005.
The other nice feature I like about the 9005 is when you hit the power button it brings up Device options for: Power off, Data network mode, Airplane mode, and Restart mode.. The 900 only has Power off, airplane mode and restart mode..
Battery life on the 9005 is much better than the 900.. 5 hr trip with Waze on, Data on, and a Triplog GPS mileage tracker app on and when I got back still had 87% battery life.. Very Impressive.
Today on the 900 2.5hrs with Waze on and the battery was at 75%.
Okay onto apps: 9005 no bloatware other than the standard Google apps and factory installed Samsung apps.
900 All ATT's bloatware and then some why they continue to put this stuff on the their phones if beyond me..
ON the Note 3's you can deactivate most apps now and even some of the google apps you can lock away.. Yeah...
Other thing is Samsung Kies 3 won't read the 9005 easily vs the 900 which backed up all the info that was in the phone when I tried it.. The 9005 when connected will only backup contacts and then times out..
As for Warranty info and registering the 9005 vs the 900:
I have a user account with Samsung and it recognized I had a 9005 and listed model # and serial number but offers no information.. It does offer some tags/links for manual, software and such but when I click it I am brought to a page that just says error with no working content..
As soon as I connected the 900, Samsung site recognized it and added it to my list of registered products and also had the correct info with Warranty, downloads, Updates and the usual stuff.. When I clicked the links I was immediately brought to the proper page with working content..
I'm not one to be able to offer any insights as to performance or screen info as I'm not schooled in these things.. But performance wise they seem about the same with Beach buggy blitz the 9005 seems to move faster as I crash more vs the 900 but it simply could be a placebo effect.
These screen shots of from the 900.
follow up screen shot: 3G
From the 9005.
HI there, I've seen some stuff in other forums and couldn't find anything through search on this forum (apologies in advance if it's there).
Big fan of the S6, especially since it supports the 700mhz band 12 for T-Mobile here in the states. Had a S6 Edge, but bought a 920F on Amazon for the cost savings. S6 Edge had amazing reception, especially in locations where previously I would have to rely on wi-fi. However, the 920F has horrible signal, often 2-3 bars less than other phones. To verify, I went to the tmobile store and got a new SIM card, and then when compared to other phone in the store my signal was 2-3 bars less than other Galaxy S6's there.
A quick google search found 1-2 threads on how AT&T restricts access to certain bands if not a registered IMEI. So, I called T-mobile and asked them to put a dummy IMEI, but that didn't change anything.
Any ideas if there is a way to improve signal on the 920F for T-Mobile via root + some flash?
Thanks!
When i use my G920i on T-mobile, it had same issue. When i stayed at home use lte, the frequency always stayed on Band 12, the speed is very slowly.
Hi all,
My problem is not a real problem but a question about the LTE Band 7 antenna inside the speaker module and its utility.
I own a LG G3 D850. I am in Paris, France.
I know : some french LTE bands aren't available through an ATT LG3. But the B7 Band, wich is the most important here is OK (my carrier is Orange).
I was surprised to see that the LTE level indicated by my LG D850, through the app "LTE discovery", in my home, is "-115 dBm" connected to Band 7, and with the same SIM card, at the same place in my home, but with a LG G2, connected to the same Band 7, the level is better (-105 dBm)
So, I decided to check the antenna pins of my G3, and specially the LTE B7 pins at the left bottom side.
And surprise : when i removed the speaker module, I lost GSM signal (normal), but the level of the LTE Band 7 is same (connection is up at the same level)
So, I check pins and cable. No problem seen.
And I try again and again to disassemby and reassembly the speaker module : no effect upon Band 7. The level indicated by LTE discorery doesn't vary.
It's not a real problem for me : my 4G connection is enough for my use (especially outdoor)
But it's curious : the B7 antenna in the speaker module is useless ?
Thanks for your idea.