Calls being dropped...

[greenmunky]

So this has happened a few times when my wife and I have been talking on the phone together (we both have the Eris, both 2.1) and one of us will hear a very faint beep followed by silence. When I take the phone away from my face the security pattern screen appears and there's no notification that I had even been talking on the phone a couple seconds previous. This has happened at least twice recently while my wife and I have been on the phone, again when I was talking to my real estate agent (he has an iPhone), and another time while on the phone with my dad who was on a Verizon wireless phone. I don't know what to do or if this can even be fixed. My wife says the same thing happens to her on occasion when she's talking to other people. If anyone could help or give some advice it would be much appreciated.

 

[Frisco]

The fact that the same thing is happening on two phones with the same carrier and of the same type of phone seems to point to a problem with the nearest tower(s) in range when you're making or receiving calls.

I doubt if it's a problem with the devices, but there are a few things you can try; one is to check your slot cycle setting and if it's 2 or above adjust it down to 1 or 0.

##778 > Call > Edit Mode > 000000 (six zeroes as password) > Modem Settings > Slot Cycle Index.

If you make a change be sure to click Menu and confirm the change, then the device will reboot.

Also, we've seen reports from Eris users saying that a call to Verizon solved the issue; apparently the tech can sometimes go into their computer and make an adjustment that cures the problem in some cases.

If you do that, please post your results and, if you think of it, during the call to the tech ask what he or she is about to do if they offer to make some sort of adjustment.

 

[Adam63impala]

MY phone won't open up the menu when I call that number.

 

[Frisco]

MY phone won't open up the menu when I call that number.

Try rebooting your phone and then dialing ##778 again. Be sure to click the green "call" button and also be sure to give it enough time; it'll sometimes take a few seconds to open the menu.

 

[Adam63impala]

I gave It a whole minute.does the app call confirm mess it up

 

[Frisco]

I gave It a whole minute.does the app call confirm mess it up

That seems likely.

 

[Adam63impala]

AS always, thanks for your advice man. WILl try later on lunch break

 

[Adam63impala]

AM sick of it taking 3 minutes to type out one sentence on here. Eoes your Eris lag that bad when typing on here? I might do a factory reset today. JUst gotta read on here what all to back up and how.

 

[Adam63impala]

ALSo does changing the slot cycle drain the battery, I thought I had read on here that it does, my phone lags too much to search on my lunch break. I cleared the cache .still lag

 

[Frisco]

There is a trade off in setting the slot cycle to a lower number (which polls the tower at more frequent intervals); battery saving measures should be taken in other areas of your phone if you don't want to see a bit of quicker battery drainage.

As far as the factory data reset goes, I'm an advocate of doing that as the last step in the OTA installation process.

Your mileage may vary, but it is getting good reports on a regular basis (see http://androidforums.com/htc-droid-eris/80233-factory-data-reset-option.html).

 

[Adam63impala]

DAMn.after the update my battery drains fast enough. ANd I knew u were , just didn't read your forum posts until after I had updated and put everything back on my phone.so is that the number of seconds its polling? If I set mine at 9, would it ring a long time on the other persons end when they called me?

 

[Adam63impala]

WIll I have to redownload the update to 2.1?

 

[Frisco]

No, 2.1 is in your device; you won't need to re-download or re-install it.

The slot cycle numbers correspond to given amounts of time between polls of the tower, but not to the actual seconds.

The higher the setting the longer the interval between contacts from your Eris to the tower, but, again, a setting of 1 does not mean one second. I have mine at zero and the interval is less than two seconds.

Battery saving tips can be found here: http://androidforums.com/htc-droid-eris/19176-optimize-your-droid-eris-battery-life-read.html

 

[Adam63impala]

I thank you very much sir. YOU have been a great help. WILl factory reset after work.

 

[Frisco]

You're welcome, Adam.

As an addendum, the time intervals at the three most common slot cycle settings are:

Setting at 2 - 5.12 seconds
Setting at 1 - 2.56 seconds
Setting at 0 - 1.28 seconds

 

[Adam63impala]

Very cool. Thank you

 

[Adam63impala]

DO you work for HTC?

 

[Frisco]

DO you work for HTC?

No.

If I did I probably wouldn't know a thing about HTC products.

 

[Adam63impala]

HAhaha

 

[Frisco]

Kidding aside, any information I've been able to pass on to others has been derived from these forums; most posts are about issues dealt with and resolved in the various threads here at www.androidforums.com.

Some of it comes to us as we use and explore our phones, too.

Caddyman is the Premiere Library of Knowledge here, in my opinion. OfTheDamned is up there, as well. I probably possess about ten percent of their know-how.

And there are others around here.. many others; just read around as much as you have time for.

 

[greenmunky]

The fact that the same thing is happening on two phones with the same carrier and of the same type of phone seems to point to a problem with the nearest tower(s) in range when you're making or receiving calls.

I doubt if it's a problem with the devices, but there are a few things you can try; one is to check your slot cycle setting and if it's 2 or above adjust it down to 1 or 0.

##778 > Call > Edit Mode > 000000 (six zeroes as password) > Modem Settings > Slot Cycle Index.

If you make a change be sure to click Menu and confirm the change, then the device will reboot.

Also, we've seen reports from Eris users saying that a call to Verizon solved the issue; apparently the tech can sometimes go into their computer and make an adjustment that cures the problem in some cases.

If you do that, please post your results and, if you think of it, during the call to the tech ask what he or she is about to do if they offer to make some sort of adjustment.

It makes sense that it could possibly be our nearest tower but I don't think the slot cycle has anything to do with it. I've adjusted mine in the past but found my battery drain to be too great for the benefit. I just did a *228 to update my roaming capabilities so we'll see if the problem persists. If we continue to experience issues I'll give Big Red a call and see if something can be done... if any instruction is given to me or I can ask what they're doing to fix the problem I'll be sure to post what I learn here. You're a class act Frisco, thanks for the help.