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So I have a perfectly good 4G LTE signal going, data speeds are great and all, but every once in a while it will just stop receiving data. The 4G LTE icon is still there, occasionally I see the upstream arrow flash, but the downstream arrow remains blank. A difference that I see from other people's connectivity issues is that I never once see it switch to 3G/1X when this happens.
One thing to note is that this behavior is not readily apparent until you're doing something real-time network dependent, like streaming audio/video for a considerable duration of time until it cuts you off suddenly.
Between 10 seconds to several minutes after data stops transmitting, it starts working again. Sometimes I get impatient and just toggle between CDMA only/LTE automatic to get 4G LTE working again without having to wait.
Is this a common issue among Charge owners? I noticed the reviewer at Anandtech had a near identical experience (though not always fixable without a reboot for him):
"My only complaint is that every once in a while, the LTE data session sometimes stalls briefly – sometimes for a a few seconds, other times for a few minutes. When that happens, you’ll see the uplink green arrow blink, but no orange downlink arrow. Rebooting the device fixes things."
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After conversing a bit with him (he also reviewed the Thunderbolt/Revolution), this apparently only happens with the Charge, but he also has faith that Samsung would fix this through software (RIL) or hardware (firmware). Given Samsung's track record with smartphone updates, I'm not so sure they will.
PeterDLai said:
Given Samsung's track record with smartphone updates, I'm not so sure they will.
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Considering a month after the phone's launch we already have a Gingerbread leak I think this device will most definitely see support from Samsung. It is a DROID branded phone after all, and Verizon is statistically the best carrier for updates, they do take special care of the "DROID" phones over every other Android handset.
4G is flakey, on both devices that offer it. I have both the Thunderbolt and Charge with me most of the time, and I see all kinds of flakiness on both. It's the network.
It is definitely the network. I had a Thunderbolt before the Charge and it was FAR worse with network connectivity falling off the face of the planet despite having full 3g/4g.
Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk
I have had the same problem. I usually wait and it comes back in about 30-45 seconds, but it is annoying. It was really bad for a couple of days but has been better the past couple.
I personally haven't had to much issue with 4g dropping out. However people need to keep in mind that LTE is new for both the mfgs & carrier. So it is going to take time to get all these bugs worked out. That said I have to give props to VZW and the mfgs tho because back when they were building out 3G originally you want to talk about issues my lord was it bad.
I have had this issue, with the 3G and the 4G, but I can't say that it's a deal breaker for me, compared to the lousy HSPA+ signal my Vibrant had. It's only ever happened to me at my house, which is right on the edge of LTE coverage, so it switches back and forth a lot. But I have to give the network the benefit of the doubt for right now, it's a brand new network and a brand new device. And the 97% of the time that things work properly, it's so far above and beyond the T-Mobile network I have no regrets about switching.
I called Verizon with the same issue last Friday. Their resolution after a couple of questions was to overnight me a new (certified like-new) Charge and SIM card - the replacement was received on Monday. I haven't had any issues since, but I also stopped seeing the issue after I made the complaint.
Regardless, replacement has been better and locks a GPS signal much quicker. Maybe it's the SIM card?
SAME CRAP HERE!!!!
Sent from my SCH-I510 using XDA App
I tested if I have this behavior using LTE only mode (dial **583 in Phone app) and indeed I do, so this furthers my belief that my issue is not due to something wrong in the hand-off between 4G/3G.
I found out the way to actually change the data modes and tested using EV-DO Rev. A instead of eHRPD (in conjunction with LTE) and also using just CDMA 1X (in conjunction with LTE, essentially disabling 3G), but my issue of dropping data exists. The 4G LTE icon is displayed the entire time when it happens, I just seem to lose connectivity (and all three of the tests in the Phone Info area fail) temporarily. For what it's worth, I'm not moving the phone around at all when this happens.
I think I would actually be more content if when the data connection stalled, my 4G LTE icon just disappeared or if it switched to 3G because then it would make more sense to me (that I may have lost connection to the 4G service and it's attempting to reconnect to either 3G or 4G), but as it stands, all I get is a constant 4G icon with intermittent dropouts. The switch to 3G/1X seems to be the more common issue among 4G smartphone owners, but my (and the reviewer at Anandtech's) issue seems to deal completely within the 4G network, and I've tried every leaked radio to no avail.
The regularity of the dropouts seems kind of random as well; I'm not sure how I can figure out the source of the issue. Does anyone know if there are some logs that I can look into to see if something is happening to my phone at the very instant that I'm having these stalls?
Of course, I'm not discounting the fact that it might completely be on the side of Verizon's network and/or my area in San Diego and has nothing to do with my phone, and I may in a minority of users that actually continuously uses the 4G enough to notice these dropouts, which on average happen once every half hour to hour or so. Sometimes I'm able to stream something for several hours without the stalls, and other times it'll happen frequently within a short time span.
I just got off the phone with tech support for the intermittent data drop problem. After confirming that I was on EE4, and that I had tried doing a factory reset, he is fedexing me a new sim card.
Really hope it works, I love the phone but losing data for 1-2 minutes at a time randomly is pretty lame. Especially since I switched to Verizon for their reputation as the better network.
Racer447 said:
I just got off the phone with tech support for the intermittent data drop problem. After confirming that I was on EE4, and that I had tried doing a factory reset, he is fedexing me a new sim card.
Really hope it works, I love the phone but losing data for 1-2 minutes at a time randomly is pretty lame. Especially since I switched to Verizon for their reputation as the better network.
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Is your problem the same as mine (data drops all while 4G icon is displayed) or is yours the more common 4G to 3G/1X transition or losing the 4G network icon data drop?
PeterDLai said:
Is your problem the same as mine (data drops all while 4G icon is displayed) or is yours the more common 4G to 3G/1X transition or losing the 4G network icon data drop?
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The data will stop. Then the 4g or 3g icon will disappear entirely for a minute. Then it will reconnect at either 4g,3g or 1x, I don't really see a clear pattern, it seems totally random to me.
Is there anyone who's reading this that regularly uses their 4G continuously (i.e. hours) for streaming web content (e.g. radio streams, live video streams, etc.)? If so, do you experience any occasional dropouts or is the 4G connection for you rock solid?
Racer447 said:
The data will stop. Then the 4g or 3g icon will disappear entirely for a minute. Then it will reconnect at either 4g,3g or 1x, I don't really see a clear pattern, it seems totally random to me.
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hey, I have exactly the same problem!
same here,lose 4g icon when i use either the mobile hotspot or the tethering option.longest i have been connected was about 15 minutes.
fender22 said:
same here,lose 4g icon when i use either the mobile hotspot or the tethering option.longest i have been connected was about 15 minutes.
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Tested on mine and same result.
Edit: Rebooted and it works fine been on it 20+ now, I'll be testing some more
A couple of days ago my SIM card crapped out.
Now that i have a new one my 4G signal has been more consistent and stronger than ever. I live in a fringe area and before the new SIM it would constantly switch between 4 and 3G. Now i go for hours on 4G and it even stays on 4G in places that it would always switch and stay on 3G.
Get a new SIM before getting a new phone.
Sent from my Samsung Droid Charge: Stock EE4
After reading this thread I'm considering switching to either the Thunderbolt or the Revolution, or something else when it comes out...
Anyway, I have experienced this same thing.
The only difference in my situation is that I'm trying to use my LTE internet as a dedicated connection. The setup I'm trying to do is plug my phone into my router and have the router distribute the verizon LTE internet through my apartment. My router currently has the latest version of tomato installed and I compiled my own RNDIS module (modified to work with the charge). Everything works for the first few minutes (15-20), then I notice the 4G icon "stall", then disappear, then reconnect. After the first disconnect and reconnect, the internet connection is very unstable and will disconnect every couple of minutes until I disable and re-enable the internet again... very frustrating.
In the interim, I've been using EasyTether and this works very well. I have streamed hours of 720P video and it works flawless; not one skip or reconnect.
This leads me to believe that it is either one of the following:
The kernel - I'm currently using the PBJT kernel found in the latest version of humble. I'm not sure if the stock rom will provide better stability.
The radio - I currently have the EE4 radio installed, but am very curious to know the stability of the GB radio updates (EP1f, etc.).
Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Every so often my M8 will basically become disconnected from the network. This NORMALLY appears when I'm in a low coverage zone, and it's as if my phone just doesn't want to reconnect when I get back into a higher coverage area.
For instance at my gym, I frequently get a weak signal, but it's usually 4G. Sometimes it'll drop to 3G, and then sometimes when I get back into an area of the gym that has 4G coverage my phone will say it's still on 3G. However, there's actually no connectivity at all, and I need to either reboot or toggle airplane mode to get a connection again.
Sometimes (at least 2-3 times in the last week) it happened while, at least to the best of my knowledge, I was in a 4G area (though with weak coverage) the entire time. Again I fixed it each time by toggling airplane.
Has anyone else seen an issue like this? It's frustrating as hell. And more importantly has anyone heard of a fix for this?
sfreemanoh said:
Every so often my M8 will basically become disconnected from the network. This NORMALLY appears when I'm in a low coverage zone, and it's as if my phone just doesn't want to reconnect when I get back into a higher coverage area.
For instance at my gym, I frequently get a weak signal, but it's usually 4G. Sometimes it'll drop to 3G, and then sometimes when I get back into an area of the gym that has 4G coverage my phone will say it's still on 3G. However, there's actually no connectivity at all, and I need to either reboot or toggle airplane mode to get a connection again.
Sometimes (at least 2-3 times in the last week) it happened while, at least to the best of my knowledge, I was in a 4G area (though with weak coverage) the entire time. Again I fixed it each time by toggling airplane.
Has anyone else seen an issue like this? It's frustrating as hell. And more importantly has anyone heard of a fix for this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, actually I had a thread about this a while back; I tried just about everything (other ROMs, new sim cards, factory resets, the whole shebang) and my only solution so far (if you intend on keeping your current phone) is to completely unroot my phone, along with removing all root-related applications (namely Xposed). It still happens from time to time, but a lot less frequently then when rooted and running Xposed modules. I have a new phone coming in today from Verizon, so hopefully that unit will not have any of these issues... I still am not entirely sure what causes it, though it is definitely exacerbated by Xposed. Hopefully some of this helps? If you have any further questions feel free to ask, either through PM or this here thread.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Sevinex said:
Yep, actually I had a thread about this a while back; I tried just about everything (other ROMs, new sim cards, factory resets, the whole shebang) and my only solution so far (if you intend on keeping your current phone) is to completely unroot my phone, along with removing all root-related applications (namely Xposed). It still happens from time to time, but a lot less frequently then when rooted and running Xposed modules. I have a new phone coming in today from Verizon, so hopefully that unit will not have any of these issues... I still am not entirely sure what causes it, though it is definitely exacerbated by Xposed. Hopefully some of this helps? If you have any further questions feel free to ask, either through PM or this here thread.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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I am having same did getting new phone help? I think its just crappy radios myself nothing to do with root exposed or anything.
wooddale said:
I am having same did getting new phone help? I think its just crappy radios myself nothing to do with root exposed or anything.
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Click to collapse
I have a new phone now, and so far I haven't experienced any data connectivity issues. This morning I did notice that my SMS were not sending properly, but that issue has since faded away, so hopefully it was Verizon network based... Anyways, I will try reinstalling Xposed and a couple modules later today (likely Snapshare and the Sense 6 Toolbox) and will report back sometime tomorrow or the next on how it goes. Fingers crossed...
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Sevinex said:
I have a new phone now, and so far I haven't experienced any data connectivity issues. This morning I did notice that my SMS were not sending properly, but that issue has since faded away, so hopefully it was Verizon network based... Anyways, I will try reinstalling Xposed and a couple modules later today (likely Snapshare and the Sense 6 Toolbox) and will report back sometime tomorrow or the next on how it goes. Fingers crossed...
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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Thanks keep us informed.
wooddale said:
Thanks keep us informed.
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sfreemanoh said:
Every so often my M8 will basically become disconnected from the network. This NORMALLY appears when I'm in a low coverage zone, and it's as if my phone just doesn't want to reconnect when I get back into a higher coverage area.
For instance at my gym, I frequently get a weak signal, but it's usually 4G. Sometimes it'll drop to 3G, and then sometimes when I get back into an area of the gym that has 4G coverage my phone will say it's still on 3G. However, there's actually no connectivity at all, and I need to either reboot or toggle airplane mode to get a connection again.
Sometimes (at least 2-3 times in the last week) it happened while, at least to the best of my knowledge, I was in a 4G area (though with weak coverage) the entire time. Again I fixed it each time by toggling airplane.
Has anyone else seen an issue like this? It's frustrating as hell. And more importantly has anyone heard of a fix for this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, so after installing Xposed, I suddenly started having issues maintaining a solid 4G connection; 3G works fine, just whenever I do manage to connect to 4G I am unable to use any data (says I am connected to the mobile network, but I do not get any upload or download data movement). Even after removing Xposed and all associated modules, I am still experiencing this problems. I am going in today/Monday to get a new SIM card (hopefully this is what is causing my issues) but goddamn I just cannot seem to catch a break in terms of my phones' data connection. If the above doesn't work I may have to send for another phone, though after having now received three replacements this entire process is getting a little irksome... I really do love this phone, but it seems as if it is my M8 is rejecting my love from every angle.
UPDATE: The new SIM didn't do anything, I still am having 4G issues, so another phone it is...
it's not just your phone....
Sevinex said:
Lol, so after installing Xposed, I suddenly started having issues maintaining a solid 4G connection; 3G works fine, just whenever I do manage to connect to 4G I am unable to use any data (says I am connected to the mobile network, but I do not get any upload or download data movement). Even after removing Xposed and all associated modules, I am still experiencing this problems. I am going in today/Monday to get a new SIM card (hopefully this is what is causing my issues) but goddamn I just cannot seem to catch a break in terms of my phones' data connection. If the above doesn't work I may have to send for another phone, though after having now received three replacements this entire process is getting a little irksome... I really do love this phone, but it seems as if it is my M8 is rejecting my love from every angle.
UPDATE: The new SIM didn't do anything, I still am having 4G issues, so another phone it is...
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a lot of feedback on the web across multiple carriers of the poor lte signal retention on this phone.....this is starting to sound like a hardware defect or a major "radio" software glitch.
biswasd said:
a lot of feedback on the web across multiple carriers of the poor lte signal retention on this phone.....this is starting to sound like a hardware defect or a major "radio" software glitch.
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I dumped mine could not handle it anymore get rid of it before you loose any more money. I have had a lot of phones when there bad from the start they don't usually get any better. The Droid Bionic being the only exception.
sfreemanoh said:
Every so often my M8 will basically become disconnected from the network. This NORMALLY appears when I'm in a low coverage zone, and it's as if my phone just doesn't want to reconnect when I get back into a higher coverage area.
For instance at my gym, I frequently get a weak signal, but it's usually 4G. Sometimes it'll drop to 3G, and then sometimes when I get back into an area of the gym that has 4G coverage my phone will say it's still on 3G. However, there's actually no connectivity at all, and I need to either reboot or toggle airplane mode to get a connection again.
Sometimes (at least 2-3 times in the last week) it happened while, at least to the best of my knowledge, I was in a 4G area (though with weak coverage) the entire time. Again I fixed it each time by toggling airplane.
Has anyone else seen an issue like this? It's frustrating as hell. And more importantly has anyone heard of a fix for this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the same problem with my new M8 when travelling from/to areas with low or no data coverage back to areas where I knew there was a LTE signal. Only toggling Airplane Mode would make the data reconnect. That problem was solved for me with a new sim card.
I also had very bad data connectivity at home in a major southern California city (best was -105 dBm) whereas I got up to -83 dBm in some rural town in Arizona.
Read trook's posts #34 and up here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=53838257
Some of these problems may be connected to the new data service VZW is rolling out.
I would wait a few weeks before ditiching this phone. 'Cause it rocks!!!
bull**** phone
berndblb said:
I had the same problem with my new M8 when travelling from/to areas with low or no data coverage back to areas where I knew there was a LTE signal. Only toggling Airplane Mode would make the data reconnect. That problem was solved for me with a new sim card.
I also had very bad data connectivity at home in a major southern California city (best was -105 dBm) whereas I got up to -83 dBm in some rural town in Arizona.
Read trook's posts #34 and up here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=53838257
Some of these problems may be connected to the new data service VZW is rolling out.
I would wait a few weeks before ditiching this phone. 'Cause it rocks!!!
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Click to collapse
it has nothing to do with the AWS rollout - i have a Verizon Galaxy S5 sitting right next to my M8 ---- guess what - consistent data speeds on the s5 (15 mbs down)......on the m8 (3-4mbs down) - and the data flucutates and in the signal meter , I'm getting about -6db less on the M8 than the s5.
trust me, i so desperately want to keep this phone, b/c quite frankly, i hate the amoled screen on the s5, but alas, i cant keep a phone that doesn't work well
biswasd said:
it has nothing to do with the AWS rollout - i have a Verizon Galaxy S5 sitting right next to my M8 ---- guess what - consistent data speeds on the s5 (15 mbs down)......on the m8 (3-4mbs down) - and the data flucutates and in the signal meter , I'm getting about -6db less on the M8 than the s5.
trust me, i so desperately want to keep this phone, b/c quite frankly, i hate the amoled screen on the s5, but alas, i cant keep a phone that doesn't work well
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Did you have to do that?! You just ruined my evening! That's really not what I wanted to hear!
The cold hard truth - aaaarghhh. [emoji24]
Now I have to re-think this purchase 'cause I use my phone 80% for data related functions!
But thanks anyway for posting. Even if it hurt...
cold hard facts
berndblb said:
Did you have to do that?! You just ruined my evening! That's really not what I wanted to hear!
The cold hard truth - aaaarghhh. [emoji24]
Now I have to re-think this purchase 'cause I use my phone 80% for data related functions!
But thanks anyway for posting. Even if it hurt...
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yes - sorry bro - i'm quite disappointed by what i am seeing with my own two eyes as well as all the others across the US and the rest of the world who are experiencing the SAME symptoms. so this is not a verizon network issue --
me thinks its a faulty radio which is causing bad handoffs between 3g and 4g (LTE). once the phone drops down to 3g, it never regains 4g signal for some reason. also, there is the issue of the constant signal fluctuations even when the phone is on LTE...so who knows. maybe combo of bad radio and poor quality antenna module.
i'm not a phone engineer but i have enough common sense and knowledge about phones to know a lemon when i see one......so, yup, i'm keeping the s5 and return the m8 tomorrow under the 14 day guarantee from verizon. shame....
biswasd said:
yes - sorry bro - i'm quite disappointed by what i am seeing with my own two eyes as well as all the others across the US and the rest of the world who are experiencing the SAME symptoms. so this is not a verizon network issue --
me thinks its a faulty radio which is causing bad handoffs between 3g and 4g (LTE). once the phone drops down to 3g, it never regains 4g signal for some reason. also, there is the issue of the constant signal fluctuations even when the phone is on LTE...so who knows. maybe combo of bad radio and poor quality antenna module.
i'm not a phone engineer but i have enough common sense and knowledge about phones to know a lemon when i see one......so, yup, i'm keeping the s5 and return the m8 tomorrow under the 14 day guarantee from verizon. shame....
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Click to collapse
To tell the truth I have been reading about the same issue on the general M8 forum - probably just didn't want to make the connection.... So thanks for opening my eyes.
I'm hoping for bad radio software that may get fixed with some future update (although my 6th sense tells me it's the bad antenna module....)
Too late for me for a clean exchange. Gonna have to read the Squaretrade fine print.....
Verizon M8, live in Washington DC.
I am consistently getting stuck on 3G or single-bar LTE in or outdoors on my M8 in DC and in N. VA.
While on single-bar LTE (or sometimes 2 bar) I'm also getting poor network throughput. Like 2mbps down, .9 up. Sometimes I might actually get 3-6mbps down, and 1-2 up.
This is piss poor. My Moto X had LTE all day all over the place. Wasn't even sure the X had a 3G mode.
Curious if anyone is experiencing this.
I will say the phone walks circles around the X in speed, fluid UI, WiFi performance and reception, and the display is leaps and bounds better. I don't even mind the size of the M8. But if I can't sort this network thing out soon, I'm going to end up dropping it out of my car window some day!
dcmovin said:
Verizon M8, live in Washington DC.
I am consistently getting stuck on 3G or single-bar LTE in or outdoors on my M8 in DC and in N. VA.
While on single-bar LTE (or sometimes 2 bar) I'm also getting poor network throughput. Like 2mbps down, .9 up. Sometimes I might actually get 3-6mbps down, and 1-2 up.
This is piss poor. My Moto X had LTE all day all over the place. Wasn't even sure the X had a 3G mode.
Curious if anyone is experiencing this.
I will say the phone walks circles around the X in speed, fluid UI, WiFi performance and reception, and the display is leaps and bounds better. I don't even mind the size of the M8. But if I can't sort this network thing out soon, I'm going to end up dropping it out of my car window some day!
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Click to collapse
I started experiencing this too (Southern California). I got this phone at launch, and didn't start having the problem of 3G until maybe a couple weeks ago. I hadn't changed anything, so I assumed it was Verizon's network rather than the phone's radio. I know they're making some changes to their lte network, so I wonder if that could be to blame. As of now the only solution I have found is to toggle airplane mode. Definitely sucks
I agree it's the network, not the phone. I have seen speeds of 30 Mbs down, if I'm in a perfect reception area, but 99.9% of the time I'm getting less than 1 Mbs up and down. I wouldn't even mind this since I'm usually within reach of Wi-Fi. I just object to being charged for a data plan when it's useless to me.
yes, they're turning on AWS or "XLTE" - our phones can access that band, and it's supposed to be faster, and I think support VOLTE (voice over LTE). The idea was that it was just them turning it on, then our phones would just magically use it.
Maybe our phone is having issues accessing the AWS band, and are in some sort of network limbo?
I recall back in the day there was some sort of mode you could go into to have your phone re-connect to nearest tower, etc.. but I can't remember if that was GSM phones, or for older EDGE phones.
This happened to me too. Got the phone at launch and the lte has been this slow. I'm convinced I have a defective unit. Gonna call vzw when the red one comes out and get a replacement.
Glad to see I'm not the only one experiencing this issue. I'm going to wait it out one more week try flashing another ROM and then just call Verizon, its been happening for about two weeks now.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
I had a longer, more detailed post, then accidentally refreshed the page... :good:
Bottom line was my S6 has reverted to 3G a few times over the weekend in places where it shouldn't. I've owned all the VoLTE devices on Verizon so far, and none of them did this. Data is also very slow at times. It could be a fluke - maybe VZW was tweaking some stuff locally over the weekend. But it feels eerily similar to when LTE was first introduced back in 2011 and so many of those early LTE devices had problems managing LTE and 3G.
That combined with the, so far, completely inconsistent battery life with cell standby issues has me a bit concerned. I love this phone overall - it feels like the total package. I hope this (and battery) isn't its one glaring weakness.
I'm just curious what other Verizon users' experience has been so far.
Same here
jntdroid said:
I had a longer, more detailed post, then accidentally refreshed the page... :good:
Bottom line was my S6 has reverted to 3G a few times over the weekend in places where it shouldn't. I've owned all the VoLTE devices on Verizon so far, and none of them did this. Data is also very slow at times. It could be a fluke - maybe VZW was tweaking some stuff locally over the weekend. But it feels eerily similar to when LTE was first introduced back in 2011 and so many of those early LTE devices had problems managing LTE and 3G.
That combined with the, so far, completely inconsistent battery life with cell standby issues has me a bit concerned. I love this phone overall - it feels like the total package. I hope this (and battery) isn't its one glaring weakness.
I'm just curious what other Verizon users' experience has been so far.
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Click to collapse
I noticed the same thing a few times on my VZW S6 Edge. A web page would load super slow or it would be on 3g, when my note 4 never had this issue. Part of it could be the fact that Samsung went from using qualcomm chips for the radios to in house chips. Qualcomm has been making and updating radio chips for practically every Mfgs phones for years. I'm thinking samsung just doesnt have the experience that Qualcomm does. Hopefully its just a matter of a firmware update.
Drhoot said:
I noticed the same thing a few times on my VZW S6 Edge. A web page would load super slow or it would be on 3g, when my note 4 never had this issue. Part of it could be the fact that Samsung went from using qualcomm chips for the radios to in house chips. Qualcomm has been making and updating radio chips for practically every Mfgs phones for years. I'm thinking samsung just doesnt have the experience that Qualcomm does. Hopefully its just a matter of a firmware update.
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Click to collapse
The VZW and SPRINT versions actually have QCOM modem chips as opposed to their own Shannon modem. The Antenna configuration and other parts are completely different from other phones or previous Samsung phones.
my 2 cents
equake said:
The VZW and SPRINT versions actually have QCOM modem chips as opposed to their own Shannon modem. The Antenna configuration and other parts are completely different from other phones or previous Samsung phones.
my 2 cents
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Click to collapse
Ahh, thanks for clarifying. I read that they used their own chips instead of QCOM. Guess the CDMA variants are different. I assumed that could be part of the problem.
Drhoot said:
Ahh, thanks for clarifying. I read that they used their own chips instead of QCOM. Guess the CDMA variants are different. I assumed that could be part of the problem.
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Click to collapse
Every model is somewhat different. My S4 gets decent LTE reception while my wife's S5 switches to 3G in the same place. It's also the the S/W on the phone. The Lollipop update on the phones have been lowering the connection quality in my opinion. The S5 had better reception when on 4.4.x
my 2 cents
I also noticed this. At home, I have fair LTE connectivity usually around -105 to -115dBm, and on my previous G3 I always remained connected to LTE. Now on the S6, I have similar signal levels but it often drops to 3G or even 1x.
geoff5093 said:
I also noticed this. At home, I have fair LTE connectivity usually around -105 to -115dBm, and on my previous G3 I always remained connected to LTE. Now on the S6, I have similar signal levels but it often drops to 3G or even 1x.
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Click to collapse
Yes, this exactly. My signal level is "normal", but it's switching to 3G. That makes me think it's a software tweak, which is good I guess. But I still hate the similar feeling to 2011...
jntdroid said:
I had a longer, more detailed post, then accidentally refreshed the page... :good:
Bottom line was my S6 has reverted to 3G a few times over the weekend in places where it shouldn't. I've owned all the VoLTE devices on Verizon so far, and none of them did this. Data is also very slow at times. It could be a fluke - maybe VZW was tweaking some stuff locally over the weekend. But it feels eerily similar to when LTE was first introduced back in 2011 and so many of those early LTE devices had problems managing LTE and 3G.
That combined with the, so far, completely inconsistent battery life with cell standby issues has me a bit concerned. I love this phone overall - it feels like the total package. I hope this (and battery) isn't its one glaring weakness.
I'm just curious what other Verizon users' experience has been so far.
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I am having the same experience. Areas that were very strong 4G LTE on both my S4, S5 and even an iPhone 6 are switching to 3G. This is very disheartening to me and hope very much so its a software tweak and not because of a larger hardware issue.
lilsalmon said:
I am having the same experience. Areas that were very strong 4G LTE on both my S4, S5 and even an iPhone 6 are switching to 3G. This is very disheartening to me and hope very much so its a software tweak and not because of a larger hardware issue.
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I know in the past, the hand-off to 3G too "early" was typically software related... but if the radio is weak (which I'm not convinced is the issue), software tweaks might only go so far.
Mine goes from LTE to 1x. Don't even see 3G. Lol
So just now I'm driving home and talking with my wife like I do every day of the week through the exact same area. On previous devices the LTE signal was weaker through this area (normally 2 bars depending on the phone), but I've never had any problems. Today, with the S6, my wife kept complaining that I was cutting out a lot. I looked down and had that first little dot of a bar and that's it. Within a minute or so the call completely dropped. I'm always frustrated with Verizon's handling of VoLTE, but this doesn't help the case for the S6 either.
droidiac13 said:
Mine goes from LTE to 1x. Don't even see 3G. Lol
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I assume that's not normal behavior?
jntdroid said:
I assume that's not normal behavior?
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I wouldn't think so, but who knows.
I to have noticed my S6 on 3G a lot, I have dropped about 4 calls today to..That is not normal, together with the poor battery life I'm thinking this sucker is probably going back.
sprke said:
I to have noticed my S6 on 3G a lot, I have dropped about 4 calls today to..That is not normal, together with the poor battery life I'm getting this sucker is probably going back.
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So frustrating b/c it's such a great device otherwise. I'm still hopeful, though...
jntdroid said:
So frustrating b/c it's such a great device otherwise. I'm still hopeful, though...
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Love the size, feel and screen. Another thing that happens is it will power off overnight while charging... How's that going to work if I depend on it for alarms?
Again this morning... dropped to 3G twice - once on my way to work (dropped call) and for about 15 minutes in my office. Both places that, historically, have never had any issues (edit: though they are places where LTE isn't the strongest - but never have I dropped to 3G). It's only a problem about 10% of the time, but it's a frustrating 10%, and a 10% I haven't had to deal with in a LONG time.
I have a friend who works for Samsung mobile US. From what he is telling me they are aware of the issue and are already planning a software release. It's noted in the bug fixes as "Radio Attenuation" It's already with Verizon for testing and approval, but doesn't have a firm release date because we all know how Verizon is with software releases.
He actually said this is due to the shorting testing period with vzw this launch.
So here is hoping this is resolved via a software update and not a longer standing hardware issue.
Quick question, is the S6 single antenna?
I'm guessing the S6 Edge is like the other Edge. Screen takes away an antenna.
This is disgusting from my point of view. From the exact same spot I generally pull between 18Mbs to 20Mbs... religiously for over a year on an S5 OR S4.
Why in the he'll is it so hard to get a phone right? They did everything else right with this phone and launch and now we have take. 2 generations steps backwards with the radios.
I've noticed a strange behavior with my T-Mobile V20. It really likes to drop service and then show a loading symbol for a bit before locking onto a signal again.
Usually the current reception is weak (1 bar), but not always. Sometimes it does it when I have 2-3 bars of LTE, just to switch down to 5 bars 2G.
There are also times when it'll show that I have 3-4 bars of voice reception, but the status will say "Searching" and calls won't work. Rebooting will make LTE appear.
Is this normal behavior? I just got this phone, and it's also the phone I used to switch off Verizon. T-Mobile definitely has better coverage where I am, but that's only when it isn't dropping the signal.
I have the same issue with my LG V20 phone. The reception/signal strength is horrible. Callers constantly complain that my phone goes in an out, making it difficult to maintain a conversation. Bluetooth connectivity is also an issue as connecting the device requires multiple attempts. This phone is becoming useless due to the reception and Bluetooth connectivity issues. I will continue to use my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 as a backup. I have never experienced any such issues while using the Samsung device. Hopefully the developers at LG are taking notes and a fix/update will be released before 2017.
lgV20_user said:
I have the same issue with my LG V20 phone. The reception/signal strength is horrible. Callers constantly complain that my phone goes in an out, making it difficult to maintain a conversation. Bluetooth connectivity is also an issue as connecting the device requires multiple attempts. This phone is becoming useless due to the reception and Bluetooth connectivity issues. I will continue to use my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 as a backup. I have never experienced any such issues while using the Samsung device. Hopefully the developers at LG are taking notes and a fix/update will be released before 2017.
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I haven't had problems with Bluetooth; in fact, I've had the opposite; Bluetooth works nicely.
I hate to say it, but I haven't actually made a call on my phone yet, so I can't comment on that, but you seem to be having it much worse than I am.
lgV20_user said:
I have the same issue with my LG V20 phone. The reception/signal strength is horrible. Callers constantly complain that my phone goes in an out, making it difficult to maintain a conversation. Bluetooth connectivity is also an issue as connecting the device requires multiple attempts. This phone is becoming useless due to the reception and Bluetooth connectivity issues. I will continue to use my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 as a backup. I have never experienced any such issues while using the Samsung device. Hopefully the developers at LG are taking notes and a fix/update will be released before 2017.
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What kind of case are you using? It sounds like you have something blocking the signal (your case), you have multiple, defective radios in your device, or something -- in the area within which you operate your phone -- is interfering with the signal. I am not experiencing those issues at all, and neither is my wife (we're both using US996).
Good luck in any case. Your phone not working correctly is a horrible experience.
wtharp2 said:
What kind of case are you using? It sounds like you have something blocking the signal (your case), you have multiple, defective radios in your device, or something -- in the area within which you operate your phone -- is interfering with the signal. I am not experiencing those issues at all, and neither is my wife (we're both using US996).
Good luck in any case. Your phone not working correctly is a horrible experience.
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Which carrier are you on?
I haven't had any problems with dropped calls. Then again, I'm usually somewhere near wifi and make most of my calls that way.
douger1957 said:
I haven't had any problems with dropped calls. Then again, I'm usually somewhere near wifi and make most of my calls that way.
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I remember you... Howdy
Zacharee1 said:
I remember you... Howdy
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Who's doing Note 4 customer service now that you and I aren't there anymore?
douger1957 said:
Who's doing Note 4 customer service now that you and I aren't there anymore?
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Well now that CM14.1 is for all Snapdragon variants, we've got some new helpers.
So I've figured out at least one of the signal oddities. I'm going from one bar on LTE on T-Mobile to roaming on AT&T. I was able to use the app LTE Discovery to see that I was on AT&T's LTE B17 (which isn't even listed as supported on the H918). The phone was just disabling voice and data.
My cell reception seems normal for tmobile(which is mostly not good in my area) but the weird thing is on bluetooth. When i bend down at work with my phone in my pocket the BT signal get choppy. Like im compressing the antenna or something. Weird.
Bubba Fett said:
My cell reception seems normal for tmobile(which is mostly not good in my area) but the weird thing is on bluetooth. When i bend down at work with my phone in my pocket the BT signal get choppy. Like im compressing the antenna or something. Weird.
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You could take a look at the FCC test for BT https://apps.fcc.gov/oetcf/eas/repo...on_id=Yart0xj3tUt4f53nf7wvbQ==&fcc_id=ZNFH918
I found out that this phone is rated for LTE B13 from there. Looks like it supports a lot more bands than LG or T-Mobile say, since even the FCC doesn't include B17.