Help Call quality very sub-par (not signal strength)

conn · May 10, 2010

As a follow up to my previous post, I believe this phone does not handle a "low signal" very well. I made several test calls from work & home with each phone (2 droid Inc's & 2 Samsung intensity's). Both Samsungs have much better call quality than the Inc's. I usually have a low signal from work & home, of course these are the places where I need the phone's the most. Without question the quality is less than good on these phones. I called Verizon and got the same "I haven't heard that yet" line. They offered to replace it but I don't believe that's going to make a difference. I'm going to keep them for now and hope there's an update of some sort that can fix this.

talk · May 10, 2010

The problem I've been writing about was call volume, so low I was almost unable to hear.
Pleasant surprise: the second Verizon store said they'd send a replacement within two weeks. I got it in two days. I honestly don't know if the replacement is new or rebuilt (it was in bubble wrap...does that mean it wasn't new?) but it makes no difference, since everything works well now. I hope others with the same problem keep pushing because when the INC is good, it's terrific.

tispectrum · May 10, 2010

colnago said:
Yeah, but when the frame alone costs over $2,500, more than my Master-Light w/Campy Chourus, it's a lil "too real" for me. Bilenky bikes (Philly) saved my a55 last summer after bending my rear droput...but I digress.

I came across this "not too technical" article, can't vouch for accuracy but good read nonetheless, which may explain why some people are having "clear calls" @ -100dBM and others may not (tower pollution section...basically a "busy tower", et al):

CDMA vs TDMA

...also probably why I drop calls in the same spot on I-95 w/AT&T..."hard hand-off, not a dead zone"?

Are you the Colnago that posts on the NYCC message board?
I've complained on this board about my incoming voice quality. I took it back to wear I bought it. The salesman cleaned off the red mike on top of the phone. My calls have noticeably improved.

colnago · May 10, 2010

tispectrum said:
Are you the Colnago that posts on the NYCC message board?

No...different person.

Deleted User · May 11, 2010

mas90guru said:
c. The process of interaction with Verizon by phone was relatively pleasant. I found going into the stores a complete waste of time (lengthy waits only to be told the call quality was in my mind).

Oh yeah. Same here. When I went to the store with the call quality issue the tech who gave me back my phone was short with me, telling me there is no problem and she made 2 test calls to the store just fine. She said they could do nothing for me until they experience the issue.

So I had our business rep send a replacement, got it last week, hands down significantly better call quality.

Deleted User · May 11, 2010

ShiftLft said:
I'm the original poster for this thread and had call quality issues immediately with my Incredible since the 29th when I got it. Today I received my replacement Incredible and have made 3 test calls to people - they all sounded good. It was only 3 calls from the same story in my house but regardless, my original Incredible sounded bad on 9.8/10 calls.

Since Sunday I've made a good number of calls, 25-30, and 99% of them have been excellent and miles better than my first phone. On one or two calls I may have heard perhaps 2 dropped words and both were people on cellphones. The ringing before someone answers still sounds weird and a bit distorted but I've had someone call places with their Droid and it sounds the same so that's not a big deal.

So unless something changes with my call quality experience in the future it appears that this resolves the issues I was having. It's satisfying to know that it was indeed faulty phone hardware and not a low signal or a tower problem in my area. I encourage everyone who is still having quality issues to continue to get replacements until you get a good one. Chances are you still have plenty of time left before 30 days so why not. Good luck.

tranceFusion · May 11, 2010

I called customer service to ask for a replacement. They said they can send me one, but they are only able to send refurbs (they have new ones in stock, but can only exchange for a refurb). I assume refurbs at this point are ones that someone else complained about and returned, and they gave a quick wipe down and boxed it up to send out again. I don't see how they could have gone to the factory and back for repairs in this time frame.

She said I could go to a verizon store to get a new replacement, but it sounds like people are catching a bunch of crap from the sales reps.

barrister89 · May 11, 2010

There are no Incs in my town and Verizon keeps pushing the ship date for new orders. I'm still considering returning mine due to the low volume at the earpiece issue, but think I'll wait till near the end of the 30 days. I'd rather not get a refurb if possible.

I tried yet another Inc. today and the call volume was exactly like mine. That makes 4 other phones I've tried. Interesting that so many rave about call quality. My conclusion is 1) there are a very large number of defective units given that I've tried 4 other phones; 2) people claiming excellent call quality are not being completely honest or haven't owned many other phones; or 3) my hearing aint what it used to be.

happy123 · May 11, 2010

I returned mine for a refurb. Refurb was in perfect condition...looked brand new.

Noticed the red speaker looked a bit different on it then my old one. Need to test call quality now.

talk · May 11, 2010

Found out the INC I wrote about was refurbished, not new.
Looks exactly the same, works far better.

esn · May 12, 2010

I have been reading a lot about the call quality and reception with the incredible lately and can't believe it! I am not saying its not happening but for me so far call quality and reception has been great no issues what so ever. I don't look at the bars unless I get bad reception on a call. I use over 4000 minuets a month and travel daily within a 400 mile radius and I can't complain. My home gets spotty reception sometimes and the incredible has been doing good there..

kwilsonw · May 12, 2010

esn said:
I have been reading a lot about the call quality and reception with the incredible lately and can't believe it! I am not saying its not happening but for me so far call quality and reception has been great no issues what so ever. I don't look at the bars unless I get bad reception on a call. I use over 4000 minuets a month and travel daily within a 400 mile radius and I can't complain. My home gets spotty reception sometimes and the incredible has been doing good there..

Will you please trade phones with me??

c_aus · May 12, 2010

This is a problem I am experiencing as well, and even posted about but had no replies. I can hear people better over the speaker phone feature, but that is not always an option. It is when I am using the earphone that I have trouble hearing the other person.

I gave tech support a call a few days after I first noticed the problems thinking maybe it will go away after a bit. The tech mentioned that she couldn't find any suggestions since the device is new but to dial ### and press call when I experience problems so it can be marked on their system as a problem area. When I dial ###, I get a "your call could not go through" message, which really does not make me feel like my problem is being reported.

curtisdr · May 12, 2010

c_aus said:
I can hear people better over the speaker phone feature, but that is not always an option.

I reported a similar behavior regarding the speakerphone. It seemed better on average using the speakerphone, but that didn't always resolve the quality issue. Again, it may have been the way I was holding the phone as some have reported that covering the antenna causes signal problems.

c_aus · May 12, 2010

curtisdr said:
I reported a similar behavior regarding the speakerphone. It seemed better on average using the speakerphone, but that didn't always resolve the quality issue. Again, it may have been the way I was holding the phone as some have reported that covering the antenna causes signal problems.

Which part of the phone is the antenna?

I just called tech support again to see if they had any updates to resolve the problem, but they do not. The suggestion was to wipe the device and reload everything. If it's still not working properly, then they will need to replace it.

esn · May 12, 2010

I am sure there are defective phones out there just glad I didn't get one for the first time in my life. My Eris had a bad battery it only lasted an hour! My storms were a disaster enough said. Personal I thing all new electronics have a percentage of new defective devices.

curtisdr · May 12, 2010

tranceFusion said:
I called customer service to ask for a replacement. They said they can send me one, but they are only able to send refurbs (they have new ones in stock, but can only exchange for a refurb).

For me, a refurb is simply not an acceptable solution within the 30 day window. If I had to sign a new two year contract with a $350 ETF, I want a new phone.

Deleted User · May 12, 2010

c_aus said:
This is a problem I am experiencing as well, and even posted about but had no replies. I can hear people better over the speaker phone feature, but that is not always an option. It is when I am using the earphone that I have trouble hearing the other person.

I gave tech support a call a few days after I first noticed the problems thinking maybe it will go away after a bit. The tech mentioned that she couldn't find any suggestions since the device is new but to dial ### and press call when I experience problems so it can be marked on their system as a problem area. When I dial ###, I get a "your call could not go through" message, which really does not make me feel like my problem is being reported.

My Verizon tech said the same thing, to dial ### or *** after bad calls to log them in their system. He said I would hear that failed message and it's okay because by dialing that it's indicating the previous call was poor.

Hilly · May 12, 2010

-1 for me...my call quality has been great.

rushmore · May 12, 2010

I agree that the speakerphone seems to have better sound output and the ear speaker seems less clear. The bar issue distorts some perception of signal and makes some think it is bad and some there is no problem, since bars and dBm levels do not correlate at all.

Incredible appears to have an average radio signal- not good or bad, IMO. Whoever in R&D worked on the bar and dBm level correlation scales for the Incredible must have been an intern.

bsdbytes · May 12, 2010

rushmore said:
I agree that the speakerphone seems to have better sound output and the ear speaker seems less clear. The bar issue distorts some perception of signal and makes some think it is bad and some there is no problem, since bars and dBm levels do not correlate at all.

Incredible appears to have an average radio signal- not good or bad, IMO. Whoever in R&D worked on the bar and dBm level correlation scales for the Incredible must be a crack addict.

I wish I was lucky enough to have a phone like that. I'm averaging 1-2 dropped calls per day in the metro area. My son's Samsung has yet to drop a call.

rushmore · May 12, 2010

curtisdr said:
For me, a refurb is simply not an acceptable solution within the 30 day window. If I had to sign a new two year contract with a $350 ETF, I want a new phone.

This sounds odd, since there is a 30 day return policy. If they have a pool of Inc refurbs already, must be high return rates. Not adding up.

BTW, Samsung phones on Tmo have very weak radios. T349 is an example- yuck! Perhaps the CDMA versions are better, but the GSM ones suck bad eggs.

bsdbytes,

I live in KY and have yet to drop a call and 3G almost everywhere. Even the 1X streams Youtube almost as good as Tmo 3G (that is sad). If anyone should have a rough coverage issue with an assumed weak radio, I should

That said, I have not tested the Inc in a congested city. Should be in London later this year, but CDMA does not work to test. Then again, we have big hills and some 30 floor "skyscrapers"

barrister89 · May 12, 2010

I'm curious if owners who are pleased with call quality keep the volume maxed. Again, for the me the problem is more volume than clarity. I feel better that some have exchanged and received phones without the problem.

sean76 · May 12, 2010

Such a rediculous problem to be having. Mine is still not 100% clear! What is weird is that sometimes it's clear, and sometimes it's down right terrible.

colnago · May 12, 2010

rushmore said:
...Even the 1X streams Youtube almost as good as Tmo 3G (that is sad)...

Meh...that just means that the youtube vid is streaming at less than 300kbs. T-Mo's 7Mb+ data on the phone is nice...not necessary in most cases, but nice. Esp for Skype video calls.

Help Call quality very sub-par (not signal strength)

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