4G not as good on S3

[durgaprasadzone]

Thanks for sharing information. Actually I had also the same question in mind for a long time anyways you started this thread & I am so happy.

 

[Raw Dodge]

Not sure If it's just my imagination, but I swear my 4g is better since I've been on the Verizon JB leaked software. It's still definitely not a Motorola phone, but 4g seems to be improved noticeably.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

 

[alboboy10]

My phone goes on 3g sometimes and stays on it....even though it's in a strong 4g area it doesn't switch back unless I pull the battery

 

[music life]

My phone goes on 3g sometimes and stays on it....even though it's in a strong 4g area it doesn't switch back unless I pull the battery

Strange I never have less than 4 bars 4G in strong areas. Never goes under 4 either.

 

[bsweetness]

My phone goes on 3g sometimes and stays on it....even though it's in a strong 4g area it doesn't switch back unless I pull the battery

I had that issue from time to time with the Galaxy Nexus, but so far I haven't encountered it with the S3.

 

[wooddale]

My phone goes on 3g sometimes and stays on it....even though it's in a strong 4g area it doesn't switch back unless I pull the battery

It is a problem but seems to be getting better I am in a real strong 4G and it doesnt happen here. I do notice it when I travel but it seems to be getting better. I here it is even better yet on the new leak. You dont need to pull your battery when it happens youall you need to do is put it in Airplane mode wait for it to turn green switch it back and youll get 4g abd she should hold it.

 

[cybertec69]

My phone goes on 3g sometimes and stays on it....even though it's in a strong 4g area it doesn't switch back unless I pull the battery

No need to pull the battery, just turn on airplane mode " it's on the top slider bar", once airplane mode engages turn back off, your 4G signal should be back on, unless you are in a weak 4G area.

 

[greglb]

Hello, I picked up an S3 and have concerns about signal strength which lead me to this thread. I seem to have signal strength problems at home with some phones and the S3 shows -113db. For the most part I haven't really been dropping calls or 4G, but I'm wondering if this might end up being a problem down the road, as I also spend time in more remote locations. I'm still in my trial period and am considering trading it in for a Razr HD Maxx, hoping for better reception. I really like the S3 otherwise and got a great price on it, but running into reception problems all the time would be frustrating. I'm just not sure how to interpret this low signal strength, since I'm not dropping calls yet.

It seems like this thread is focused on 4G. I'm also concerned with voice.

Any words of advice?

Thanks,
Greg

 

[wooddale]

Hello, I picked up an S3 and have concerns about signal strength which lead me to this thread. I seem to have signal strength problems at home with some phones and the S3 shows -113db. For the most part I haven't really been dropping calls or 4G, but I'm wondering if this might end up being a problem down the road, as I also spend time in more remote locations. I'm still in my trial period and am considering trading it in for a Razr HD Maxx, hoping for better reception. I really like the S3 otherwise and got a great price on it, but running into reception problems all the time would be frustrating. I'm just not sure how to interpret this low signal strength, since I'm not dropping calls yet.

It seems like this thread is focused on 4G. I'm also concerned with voice.

Any words of advice?

Thanks,
Greg

Hi Greg

Here is the deal. Samsung radios are not as good as Moto or HTC sometimes you can get a 4G sig on Moto or Htc but not on Samsung without forcing by doing Airplane it will get it just takes a bit which isnt the end of the world. 4G has nothing to do with your phone reception. You can have 4 bars of signal and have no data or the opposite. Im in a strong 4G area in IL never drop 4G but I never have more than 3 bars most times 2 I have dropped a call or 2 but I can count them on my hand and I have had the phone since launch. So if you have good reception where you are at and 4G its probably not gonna change. As far as traveling its a crap shoot the stronger the 4G signal the better you are when it gets down to about 4 or 5 kb the S3 might want to switch to 3G before Moto or Htc. Hope I helped if you have any more questions please ask.

 

[greglb]

Hi Greg

Here is the deal. Samsung radios are not as good as Moto or HTC sometimes you can get a 4G sig on Moto or Htc but not on Samsung without forcing by doing Airplane it will get it just takes a bit which isnt the end of the world. 4G has nothing to do with your phone reception. You can have 4 bars of signal and have no data or the opposite. Im in a strong 4G area in IL never drop 4G but I never have more than 3 bars most times 2 I have dropped a call or 2 but I can count them on my hand and I have had the phone since launch. So if you have good reception where you are at and 4G its probably not gonna change. As far as traveling its a crap shoot the stronger the 4G signal the better you are when it gets down to about 4 or 5 kb the S3 might want to switch to 3G before Moto or Htc. Hope I helped if you have any more questions please ask.

Thanks for the reply.

My confusion is in considering my poor reception numbers that I'm not really dropping calls or 4G. I typically get between one and two bars (-113db) at home (sometimes less) and have gotten no bars in areas that I had good reception with my old LG non-smart phone. The part that makes me unsure is the fact that I'm still able to make a call and typically hold 4G signals even with the low signal strength.

I would expect with the reception I'm seeing to be dropping calls like I do with my work phone (Sony phone on ATT), especially with the other complaints I've read about S3 reception. I've had problems with some other Verizon phones in the past, but others have done pretty well for reception.

I have noticed a wide fluctuation with 4G speeds, running speedtest multiple times, but I don't have enough experience with it to know if that's the nature of Verizon's LTE or if I'm having a hard time holding the LTE signal.

It seems from reading through this thread that most people are complaining about signal strength, which I've definitely got problem with, but in my limited time with the phone it hasn't correlated with dropped calls. I was just hoping to get a feel from other peoples experience if they had seen the low signal strength and then started noticing an increase in dropped calls due to it. It sounds like most people with the problem were dropping calls right away.

Thanks,
Greg

 

[wooddale]

Thanks for the reply.

My confusion is in considering my poor reception numbers that I'm not really dropping calls or 4G. I typically get between one and two bars (-113db) at home (sometimes less) and have gotten no bars in areas that I had good reception with my old LG non-smart phone. The part that makes me unsure is the fact that I'm still able to make a call and typically hold 4G signals even with the low signal strength.

I would expect with the reception I'm seeing to be dropping calls like I do with my work phone (Sony phone on ATT), especially with the other complaints I've read about S3 reception. I've had problems with some other Verizon phones in the past, but others have done pretty well for reception.

I have noticed a wide fluctuation with 4G speeds, running speedtest multiple times, but I don't have enough experience with it to know if that's the nature of Verizon's LTE or if I'm having a hard time holding the LTE signal.

It seems from reading through this thread that most people are complaining about signal strength, which I've definitely got problem with, but in my limited time with the phone it hasn't correlated with dropped calls. I was just hoping to get a feel from other peoples experience if they had seen the low signal strength and then started noticing an increase in dropped calls due to it. It sounds like most people with the problem were dropping calls right away.

Thanks,
Greg

Sometimes people put to much emphasis on signal strength. What really matters is if it works. If you can make and recieve calls now from your location unless someone errects a sky scrapper between your house and the tower your gonna keep getting good reception. If anything it should get better all things being equal. So if your happy with the phone and it works go for it. Its not gonna get any worse.

 

[brisk21]

I went from a Droid X to a Bionic, and now an S3. My wife has the Droid 4. All the Motorola phones get an equally full 3g signal in our house. (we live in a smaller town, 4g is still a few miles north of town). My S3 gets 2 bars of 1X in the house most of the time. I pick up a weak 3g signal once in a while. Very disapointing. The only reason I stuck with the S3 is that I have wi-fi at my house so data works great. I can't even walk around my house on the phone without losing a call sometimes. I will be going back to Motorola as soon as I have an upgrade.

 

[wooddale]

I went from a Droid X to a Bionic, and now an S3. My wife has the Droid 4. All the Motorola phones get an equally full 3g signal in our house. (we live in a smaller town, 4g is still a few miles north of town). My S3 gets 2 bars of 1X in the house most of the time. I pick up a weak 3g signal once in a while. Very disapointing. The only reason I stuck with the S3 is that I have wi-fi at my house so data works great. I can't even walk around my house on the phone without losing a call sometimes. I will be going back to Motorola as soon as I have an upgrade.

Kind of curious are you on the newOta? I realize the radios are not as strong as Moto or Htc but they shouldnt be that bad for you. I had a little problem with the S3 dropping 4G and going to 3G but I always had a signal. The only time I had a problem was when I am in an extended Verizon area by the cabin in Wi and my Bionic was the same. There may be something wrong with your phone.

 

[JRParsons]

I went from a Droid X to a Bionic, and now an S3. My wife has the Droid 4. All the Motorola phones get an equally full 3g signal in our house. (we live in a smaller town, 4g is still a few miles north of town). My S3 gets 2 bars of 1X in the house most of the time. I pick up a weak 3g signal once in a while. Very disapointing. The only reason I stuck with the S3 is that I have wi-fi at my house so data works great. I can't even walk around my house on the phone without losing a call sometimes. I will be going back to Motorola as soon as I have an upgrade.

I had an HTC Thunderbolt for about a year and never dropped a call at my house. Since I got the S3 on release day I have dropped about 8-10 calls. I've only had 1 call since the JB update yesterday (it didn't drop). The signal is definitely weaker on the S3 than my thunderbolt. I can't comment on Motorola, I had a Bionic for a weekend but that phone wouldn't hold a data connection for more than five minutes.

 

[brisk21]

I had an HTC Thunderbolt for about a year and never dropped a call at my house. Since I got the S3 on release day I have dropped about 8-10 calls. I've only had 1 call since the JB update yesterday (it didn't drop). The signal is definitely weaker on the S3 than my thunderbolt. I can't comment on Motorola, I had a Bionic for a weekend but that phone wouldn't hold a data connection for more than five minutes.

The guy at the Verizon store even warned me of the weaker signal with Samsung phones. I didn't listen. I should have.