• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

calls lose 3G/H signal

pulsarman

Member
Oct 27, 2009
76
0
Hi all I have a problem and hope someone can help. When i turn on my phone it gets a 3G signal then H but after a while it drops to just a G signal. When on a G signal the browser/market/facebook app etc dont work, (says check internet connection) If i tick the 2G only box then untick it I get 3G/H signal again? Also when i recieve phone calls the G/3G/H signal disappears totally (just the 3-4 bars). Once the phone settles on G signal it wont go up to 3G or H signal again without ticking 2G only then unticking? Any ideas whats wrong here?
 
My phone behaves like that in the UK on Orange network. Went abroad for 5 days with a data roaming package. When I arrived the hero defaulted to T-MobileNL and the signal was bursting out the phone for 5 days, superfast connecting to my bookmarks 100% found every page for 5 days, every text went first time, no dropped calls. Arrived back in UK and back to daily reception/signal problems on Orange.
Dont let anyone tell you the Hero has a poor Ariel, its UK network issues that effects its performance.
 
Upvote 0
Yeah that might be a network issue in your area. But the fact is the antenna on the Hero isn't in a sensible place if it's where your hand always is when you're using it!

As an example...I don't get a consistently high 3G/H signal with the Hero as I did on my previous phone, although fortunately the signal in my area on Vodafone is brilliant so I have yet to face significant issues. But in those marginal areas, where my previous phone would slip in and out of signal...I don't get any on the Hero.
 
Upvote 0
I didnt suddenly start holding the phone any different in Holland.
Phone performed like a dream for 5 days, all functions.
Immediately i arrived back in the UK, reception/signal problems in lots of locations daily.
You may have been very close to the mast where you were in Holland...

As I said...I have excellent performance on my Hero where I live...and none of the problems you describe on Orange.

However, at uni...where signal quality on Vodafone is not as good, I no longer get signal in many places, where I used to get signal (just about) on my old phone (unless I physically hold the Hero upside down). That has got to be an antenna issue lol
 
Upvote 0
Thanks for the speedy reply, i'll give it a try in different areas, bit hard because 3G/H usually stays for about an hour but will give it a go thanks, is there any apps or a way to turn off 2G connections so its only 3G/H and not 2G/3G/H?

Just in case this has not been answered:
Menu>settings>wireless controls>mobile network settings>uncheck 'use only 2G networks'
 
Upvote 0
Er...well it's not a great antenna because of it's silly location (on the "chin")! It means whenever you're holding it you're covering it up! It definitely makes a difference.

Just wondering...How do you hold a cell phone without covering the antenna? Regardless of where the antenna is, you'll be covering it up with any phone with an internal antenna; furthermore, the human body is negligibly conductive, so it's not going to impede your signal very much.

I will agree however that the Hero only has an average antenna, pretty common with smartphones.
 
Upvote 0
Just wondering...How do you hold a cell phone without covering the antenna? Regardless of where the antenna is, you'll be covering it up with any phone with an internal antenna; furthermore, the human body is negligibly conductive, so it's not going to impede your signal very much.

I will agree however that the Hero only has an average antenna, pretty common with smartphones.
Well yes I agree that the human body can't make that much of a difference. But it can't help having your hand over it.

And usually the antenna is at the back and at the top...why would your hand ever be at the top? Most people tend to grip a phone in the middle (i.e. half way up from the bottom).

But yeah...average antenna. A shame but a worthwhile trade off.
 
Upvote 0
new update to the situation, spent the last 3 days at girlfriends house (about 20miles away) and the reception stayed on 3g/h the whole time! come back anf it dropped to g again and would not load any internet pages/facebook/market etc. I chose 2g only but did not untick it and now it loads pages/facebook/market etc? So it looks like when my phone drops to 2g the internet dont work but if i select 2g only it all works, any ideas?
 
Upvote 0
What's happening is that you're in an area where you just about receive patchy 3G, but any slight movement/drop in signal means you lose that and it switches back to 2G.

But there's a delay in transferring data when it switches. The data connection cuts out.

Thus, when you force 2G only, it sticks to that and stops trying to switch to 3G, and therefore stops dropping the data connection.

(I'm pretty sure this is what's happening, as I just experienced it today on my Hero when I was sitting in a waiting room trying to browse the web - I forced 2G and everything worked fine)

Edit: So in your case, when it drops to 2G, it's still trying to go back up to 3G because there's a weak 3G signal in some spots.
 
  • Like
Reactions: bluenova
Upvote 0
at the moment i seem to be switching between no data and 3G lol. if it drops to just a G signal roughly how long would it take before i could use the market etc? Given that you said there is a switch over time? Ps i understand what you said about trying to get a 3g signal while on 2g but it never ever does and i dont seem to be able to use market etc unless i force 2g only.
 
Upvote 0
thanks for the help bhav i will have a read of the link to see if there is any ideas there. the only reason i want 3G/H is for using phone on google maps for directions. I brought a car windscreen mount and use it to get locations but google maps has to load as you drive so 3G would keep up better (especially driving at 300mph lol)
 
Upvote 0
Ah i see.

If the signal quality and strength is good enough then it should stay on 3G/H without needing to be forced. Given that it may require forcing, it suggests that Google Maps still won't work very well since the connection will probably just drop out randomly.

Give it a go anyway, and report back on your results!

If you're trying to use it as satnav...I strongly recommend CoPilot - only uses GPS and it really is a brilliant app.
 
Upvote 0

BEST TECH IN 2023

We've been tracking upcoming products and ranking the best tech since 2007. Thanks for trusting our opinion: we get rewarded through affiliate links that earn us a commission and we invite you to learn more about us.

Smartphones