[Ben]

Anyone noticing they're getting worse/less coverage on O2 with the iPhone 3GS?

I've noticed "No Service" just down the road from my house a couple of times now where I'd not seen it before, and slow switching in other places along with weak 2G coverage in parts of my house leading to calls dropping in and out.

Will have to do some side by side comparisons with the 3G.

I'm guessing it's using a different radio chip as this one supports faster HSPA standards... perhaps it'll take Apple the usual few tries to get the drivers quite right. That's assuming that anyone else has noticed anything?

[chagle]

In my house signal has always had O2 poor coverage - I simply never get 3G at home. Don't mind as I use WiFi of course..but today I got No Service - I haven't had that before. So maybe you're right.. it's a 3GS thing?

[Ben]

Yeah, mine has always been crap, too, but Apple's refinements did seem to help to the point where I didn't notice how bad the coverage was anymore!

Now it suddenly seems very obvious again... so I'm quite sure something's up. Whether it's the 3GS or 3.0 I'm not so sure.

[miffed]

As you say , some side by side comparisons would give you a good idea of whats going on.
Oh ,and talking of Network problems ...... I have a mate whose 3G simply won't connect to the internet after upgrading to 3.0 - He went to the o2 shop and they told him they were hearing a lot of this ,and they'd had some 15 similar enquiries that same DAY !! - They advised him to go home and restore , and if that did not help to come back - I have not heard from him since , so do not know what the hell is going on there !! I have noticed no interruption to data on my 3G (now PAYG) or 2G on contract .

[3g-g]

Strangely, on my 3G, I've had a few network lost, no service messages... I've thought the 3G signal has seemed slightly worse... even though there's a 3G site just up the road (typically the O2 3G antennas are at the bottom of the tower and don't give good service to me!). I suspect 3.0.1 will be out sooner rather than later!

[gorilla]

It has something to do with the final 3.0 firmware. 3.0 beta 5 was ok, but as soon as 3.0 GM was released I started getting "No Service" quite often. I've now had to disable 3g as it was getting to be a problem. There's talk that the first bug release update is coming shortly due to the wifi problem (not joining the network automatically or something like that) which I also have.

[Ben]

Subject amended... hoping it's 3.0 and not the new hardware.

It'd be really nice if Telefonica splurged some money on O2's antiquated UK network infrastructure, it's not like I'm bathed in coverage anyway.

[chagle]

I've been out and about today and places I would normally get a reasonable signal (3G) I was getting No Service. Mmmm... so let's watch this space. Hopefully like Ben says, it's a bug in 3.0 rather than the hardware!

:p

[a_ukboy]

Strangely enough I'm getting the opposite, noticably less call drops and no service then with my iPhone 3g and been comparing the signal on both my 3g and 3gs and the 3gs seems to almost always show better signal, often displaying 3g when the older 3g model displays only 2g!

Hmmmm..

[chagle]

Strangely enough I'm getting the opposite, !

Hmmmm..

90% of the time, I have no problem. So as long as it doesn't get too much I'm happy..

Still glad I upgraded! (yes..upgraded!) :-)

[miffed]

I am not much help here , as I seem to get a full 3G signal pretty much everywhere I go ... but one thing I can add , is that on 2.0 , before the "tinkering" I got about 2-3 bars at work , post tinkering I got a full signal

Now, running 3.0 , I am still seeing the full signal at work .. this suggests to me that 3.0 is not suffering the same 'problem' as 2.0 did (for me, my hardware & my location at least !! )

.... But then there is always the possibility that o2 have improved coverage here since then ? we are talking about nearly a year ago after all.

[Hands0n]

My tuppenceworth - things have got better for my 3G (not S) since the update to 3.0. I've noticed at work the 3G signal is more persistent on my floor (L5) than it ever was before. I had thought that maybe O2 had beefed up the signal in the area. But then I'm getting a weak but persistent 3G signal at home too whereas before it would drop to 2G unless I went out into the street and down the road a bit.

Likely this is a software issue, although for the life of me I can't see why 3.0 is better on some 3G (not S) handsets than on others.

[gorilla]

Seems that this affects quite a few people

Checking online, I found others reporting a similar situation. So I contacted Apple Support for an explanation. They said they were familiar with this matter and that there was nothing wrong. At least not with my iPhone 3GS. According to Apple, the software behind the status bar on an iPhone 3GS does a better job of showing when a switch from 3G to EDGE has occurred than does the comparable software on an iPhone 3G. The status bar on the older iPhone 3G may persist, at least for awhile, in showing the 3G icon even when the phone is actually on an EDGE network. In other words—again according to Apple—both iPhones are likely on the same network at the same time, even if their status bars don’t always agree.

Source: Macworld (http://www.macworld.com/article/141405/2009/06/iphone3gs_signalstrength.html?lsrc=rss_main)

[Ben]

Good find. Not sure I agree with them, though, lol, "No Service" means just that!

[MrBriz]

I haven't really had any issues, though I have noticed the "No Service" come up when in the depths of the warrens here at work.

Only thing I have noticed is that my WiFi at home seems to jump around. Starting on full strength, then dropping down to one bar. Sometimes I find I have to turn off WiFi and then turn it back on again to get it working.

Anyone else seen this?

[gorilla]

I have similar issues on wifi as well. I really hope this can be fixed with a firmware update as opposed to having to get new hardware.

[Ben]

My WiFi seems ok - though at home I have the AEBS so I'd be a bit peeved if that didn't work well!

[blush]

My wifi seems to have that problem too.

Another problem I have with my 3GS is when the phone rings I only get two rings with incoming calls, carries on vibrating but no audiable signal.

[MrBriz]

Guess I might have to take a trip to the apple store and see if it's a know issue or if I just have dodgy hardware.

Saying that I don't ever notice the issue at work.... hmmmm.

[Ben]

Probably best to wait for the next software update before returning anything at this stage unless the issues are chronic.

[Hands0n]

I hope it is just a firmware thing - just to confirm that I do not see any of those things on my iPhone 3G [not S] with firmware 3.0.

There are new comms chips in the 3GS - it could just be that Apple will have to fine-tune the code for those as it did with the 3G [not S].

[gorilla]

Just an update with a few screen shots to prove a point.

My 3GS behaves no differently to the 3G, but 3.0 has definitely affected reception and should be rectified with 3.1. I would have expected iphone number 3 to have better cellphone hardware (whatever that is :D ) but alas we'll make do with a firmware update.

Charging significantly increases 3G reception, but as you can see my reception changes over the space of several minutes.

The test was carried out by me in the same room in my house.

[Hands0n]

3G (UMTS) signal strength can vary from time to time due to an effect called "Cell Breathing". As more handsets move into and out of a mast area and consume the signal from the mast its range/strength drop and expand (imagine a lung breathing). That is most likely what you are witnessing, and it would be the same with any 3G handset.



cell breathing

- Cell breathing is the constant change of the range of the geographical area covered by a cellular telephone transmitter based on the amount of traffic currently using that transmitter. When a cell becomes heavily loaded, it shrinks. Subscriber traffic is then redirected to a neighboring cell that is more lightly loaded, which is called load balancing. Cell breathing is a common phenomenon of 2G and 3G wireless systems including code-division multiple access (CDMA). CDMA2000 and wideband code-division multiple access (WCDMA) are designed to manage cell breathing.


URL: http://searchmobilecomputing.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid40_gci820970,00.html

[Ben]

I think you're preaching to the choir a little here :p Always nice to have a recap, though! ;)

[gorilla]

Can you explain why the N95 (on O2, in the same location) has 3-5 bars of 3G all the time then?
I thought it was accepted that the iPhone had a crap reciever?

[Hands0n]

Hmm, well, I would agree that the iPhone has a weaker signal reception than another handset such as the N95. I've seen the same on O2 myself in the early days of the 3G. But my own observation is that the 3GS is no weaker/different to the 3G. Maybe, just maybe, I have got an extraordinarily good 'un? Woo :D

The cell breathing I suggested may explain why you saw a signal that [from a static location] would vary in strength from time to time. I think it unlikely, unless a fault, that the handset itself would vary the signal strength received. But then again, these are sophisticated electronic devices so I suppose anything really is possible :confused:

[3g-g]

Can you explain why the N95 (on O2, in the same location) has 3-5 bars of 3G all the time then?
I thought it was accepted that the iPhone had a crap reciever?

I think from experience of various phones over the years, and dealing with them and their actual signal levels in dBm (and not going on what bars are displayed) that Nokia over-egg what their display actually is representing. So, when the signal might not actually be that great, they'll still show 2/3 bars as calls are still manageable.

[gorilla]

I can live with that! Let's be honest, the iPhone isn't going back :D

[dgilbert2]

:mad:
Subject amended... hoping it's 3.0 and not the new hardware.

Hope your right Ben :)

Early reports of people with 3.1 Beta have not indicated any imrpovement to date though :mad: