Tried a Motorola Razor in my metal building once and it didn't work at all, whereas the current LG plain Jane flip phone has 3 bars in there..works great. But in need of web/email phone now and wondering if the new $99 iPhone would have better signal strength than the Razor ?
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OT- Reception in fringe areas with Apple IPhone ?
- Thread starter Milacron
- Start date
- Replies 31
- Views 3,544
surplusjohn
Diamond
- Joined
- Apr 11, 2002
- Location
- Syracuse, NY USA
I have had a Razor on Verizon for several years, and I hardly ever have a problem with reception, my Daughter has a Iphone on AT+T [of course] in NYC and has problems all the time, like it works ok in her apartment except the kitchen, etc. I think that is AT+T's network problem. Otherwise, she loves it, bought one the first day they were out and is a power user for her job, free lance movie set designer. Her record is 210 calls in one day!
2lmaker
Cast Iron
- Joined
- Aug 5, 2004
- Location
- Canton,Pa,USA
iphone
I have original iphone since no 3g here. While I like it I wouldn't consider it a good phone. Youngest son has old motorola not sure of name but is plane phone not a flip. He gets decent service here while I don't.
Middle boy is a phone addict had original then 3G ( lots of problems with it in 3G mode couldn't talk on phone without shutting off 3G went thru 4 of them ) he finally switched to Blackberry Bold. Had Bold till new 3G S came out couldn't stand it sold the Bold now has 3G S. Say's ok but hasn't been in 3G area yet to compare.
Long story short there are better phone then iPhone.
Hope that helps
Happy Forth
I have original iphone since no 3g here. While I like it I wouldn't consider it a good phone. Youngest son has old motorola not sure of name but is plane phone not a flip. He gets decent service here while I don't.
Middle boy is a phone addict had original then 3G ( lots of problems with it in 3G mode couldn't talk on phone without shutting off 3G went thru 4 of them ) he finally switched to Blackberry Bold. Had Bold till new 3G S came out couldn't stand it sold the Bold now has 3G S. Say's ok but hasn't been in 3G area yet to compare.
Long story short there are better phone then iPhone.
Hope that helps
Happy Forth
mnl
Hot Rolled
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2007
- Location
- Maryland near DC
iPhone is ATT network. I just checked their coverage map for Beaufort. It looks a bit spotty so it is very hard to say.
http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/
Fringe issues are very subtle and hard to predict. I have a 3GS iphone, had the 3g and gave it to my wife, the phone performance is about the same. My office can be a challenge for a phone, lot of metal, but I have typically been able to talk from the inside conference room and stairwells. A few days, though, I can't use it reliably right next to my window, seems to be related to some external condition in the ATT network. In southern Illinois, which is similarly spotty, I seem to have performance with it very similar to other folks verizon phones. If they can see a network I can see a network and vice versa. But some areas where both networks claim coverage there is none!
The new 3GS is also noticeably faster than the older 3G and battery life seems to be about the same.
Cheers,
--Michael
http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/
Fringe issues are very subtle and hard to predict. I have a 3GS iphone, had the 3g and gave it to my wife, the phone performance is about the same. My office can be a challenge for a phone, lot of metal, but I have typically been able to talk from the inside conference room and stairwells. A few days, though, I can't use it reliably right next to my window, seems to be related to some external condition in the ATT network. In southern Illinois, which is similarly spotty, I seem to have performance with it very similar to other folks verizon phones. If they can see a network I can see a network and vice versa. But some areas where both networks claim coverage there is none!
The new 3GS is also noticeably faster than the older 3G and battery life seems to be about the same.
Cheers,
--Michael
moonlight machine
Diamond
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2007
- Location
- marysville ohio
My brother has an I phone on ATT, says it sucks most of the time.....
You shouldn't do research based on assumptions that have no basis. My main concern is reception in areas other than Beaufort... mostly my shop 35 miles west of Beaufort, where AT&T reception is excellent (Cingular antenna just two miles away)..but not excellent in my 15,000 sq foot metal building. Reception good with LG phone, non existant with Razor, and questionable with iPhone...hence the thread.
Bottom line I was looking for someone that had previously compared iPhone in spotty reception building with other cell phones in that same building.
2lmaker
Cast Iron
- Joined
- Aug 5, 2004
- Location
- Canton,Pa,USA
iPhone
I live in very fringe area. Like I said in my house iphone reception is spotty at best. Son's Sliver is better. In my steel building neither work but I think it more of location issue.
I've heard the 3G & 3G S have better reception then my original. I just can't get myself to upgrade since plan is $10 more a month for the 3G and it isn't available where I live.Though the gps works nice. Also processor in the S is way faster we compared the two side by side and his loaded every page faster.
My son with 3G S will be home on Monday I'll compare it to Sliver & iphone for the heck of it.
I have considered a repeater just so I can use cell phones reliably in shop.
I live in very fringe area. Like I said in my house iphone reception is spotty at best. Son's Sliver is better. In my steel building neither work but I think it more of location issue.
I've heard the 3G & 3G S have better reception then my original. I just can't get myself to upgrade since plan is $10 more a month for the 3G and it isn't available where I live.Though the gps works nice. Also processor in the S is way faster we compared the two side by side and his loaded every page faster.
My son with 3G S will be home on Monday I'll compare it to Sliver & iphone for the heck of it.
I have considered a repeater just so I can use cell phones reliably in shop.
well, cant comment on the status of signals in USA........but , yes you get blind spots all over the country you are in!there are many factors to consider
who is serving your phone
do they reroute through another server,and many do,
certain phones have more powerful recievers
so its,where you are,who serves you,do they route,what phone you have and if your in a shop,(concrete bunker!)metal and invisable power everywhere its trial and error, to find the magic phone and server.
I have had three razors. Two died of natural causes, and the last one died in a anger managment moment. All of them had no signal at work. Too much metal, and electrical. My neice works in a cell phone store. It a general opinion from customers feedback she has recd that signal strength on most Motorolas are not good as others. She stated to me that the least problems she gets from customers are the ones that have purchased Samsung, or Blackberry phones. I do not use the same service as you do, but most offer same phones w/different names.
I am not a person that needs all the latest high tech tools. I just want the best signal strength when I can get it, and reliability. I ordered a BBerry pearl yesterday. I was in walmart w/no signal, and my neice had 4 bars next to me. Last straw hence the anger managment moment.
Jim
I am not a person that needs all the latest high tech tools. I just want the best signal strength when I can get it, and reliability. I ordered a BBerry pearl yesterday. I was in walmart w/no signal, and my neice had 4 bars next to me. Last straw hence the anger managment moment.
Jim
Fyi
Milacron,
My neice just stopped by. I read her your post. She told me that the big trade shows were a few month back, orders were made, and most cell phone companies should start coming out with a whole new line of product in the next month and a half. Since you have to sign a new contract to get a price break on a new phone you may want to wait. She was rather excited about the new technology salesmen have been showing her.
Jim
Milacron,
My neice just stopped by. I read her your post. She told me that the big trade shows were a few month back, orders were made, and most cell phone companies should start coming out with a whole new line of product in the next month and a half. Since you have to sign a new contract to get a price break on a new phone you may want to wait. She was rather excited about the new technology salesmen have been showing her.
Jim
G
Guest
Guest
I have 2 friends who switched from Verizon to AT&T because they had to have the new Iphone, they are not happy as AT&T doesn't have the best coverage in fringe areas of Northern California they live in, I find it annoying to try to talk to them now. As for me I have a RAZR phone and Verizon and have zero reception issues inside the metal building I work in,
here in beautiful Northwest Riverside California. For what it's worth I feel Verizon has the best
blanket coverage for most areas in the USA.
here in beautiful Northwest Riverside California. For what it's worth I feel Verizon has the best
blanket coverage for most areas in the USA.
Actually, no I don't... (too much to explain and serves no purpose to do so anyway as it's irrelevant to the actual question)
Irrelevant as AT&T is the only cell service that works in my building. Still looking for info comparing PHONES, not services.
TonyOW31
Stainless
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2008
- Location
- Brisbane Australia
I can have my sons iphone sitting on a shelf next to my old nokia (we are in a poor service area) the iphone has no reception, my old nokia has three bars (out of 5). I would not have one for this reason.
Limy Sami
Diamond
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2007
- Location
- Norfolk, UK
Same in the UK, my 8 Y/O Nokia 3310 ''ordinary phone'' get's good signals where a lot of modern fancy phones won't get anything, on the same network too.
Ahhh...FINALLY...an answer to my actual question...thanks Tony.
lazlo
Diamond
- Joined
- May 23, 2005
- Location
- Austin, TX
You have to take the bars on the display with the grain of salt -- that's a software setting that determines how many bars to display, and the cell phone manufacturers are infamous for releasing firmware patches that artificially increase the number of bars, without actually improving the reception.
That said, Nokia phones in general have better reception than most phones, and the iPhones (including my 3G) have mediocre reception.
That said, Nokia phones in general have better reception than most phones, and the iPhones (including my 3G) have mediocre reception.
Notice I never mentioned the word "bars" and spoke in terms of true reception capabilities only.
lazlo
Diamond
- Joined
- May 23, 2005
- Location
- Austin, TX
Tony's response, which you indicated answered your question, was based on the number of bars on the display:
OK, I get ya now...good point...so I STILL don't know for absolutely sure the scoop....arrrrgghh !
Having said that, in my experience the numbers bars, while not definitive... are as at least "somewhat" indicative of reception quality differences between phones. In other words, if one phone has 4 bars and another has 3 bars, the reception could be identical in reality. But if one phone has 3 bars and the other one has 0 bars, almost certainly the 0 bar phone is worse reception than the 3 bar one. Just a question of how much worse, but almost certainly the 0 bar phone is not going to work at all, whereas the 3 bar phone will work.
Apparently there is a way to enter a special service mode and see *exactly* what the signal strength is on the iPhone..but lost the link to that info..
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