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ysss is offline ysss
2010-06-10 , 17:49
Posts: 4,384 | Thanked: 5,524 times | Joined on Jul 2007 @ ˙ǝɹǝɥʍou
#21
How do you increase signal (receiving) sensitivity via soft/firmware settings???
Sounds like a job for external antennas/repeaters to me...
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Kham is offline Kham
2010-06-10 , 18:02
Posts: 44 | Thanked: 9 times | Joined on Feb 2009
#22
Originally Posted by benjijk View Post
if the rest of you don't have the answers to the questions why give all these random suggestions? this thread has turned useless, it was otherwise an important question. I'm sure it was not an uneducated question. of course, it means slightly increased radiation, of course, lower battery life, everyone knows that. now, if you know how, please chime in. if not, please feel free to not respond to the thread.

for me personaly I think Nokia reduced n900 signal strength with the PR1.2 update to improve battery life. prior to this, on Tmobile I had no dropouts at home and now my 3g signal always cuts out. but I have noticed longer battery life. I'm sure they did something, and I need it to be reverted to the original power. i'm noticing that the signal fades down and then drops out, and jumps back up to full power again. i have"t heard of any tmobile updates for network maintenance in my area, and all this only after PR1.2. I'd appreciate to know if anyone else is experiencing the same. (I'm in LA, CA.)
I noticed the same thing at a friend's house in South Jersey. I never took note of my signal strength before, but now it completely drops randomly and stays pretty low throughout the day. This was all noticed directly after the P.R. 1.2 upgrade.
----Kham

Edit: Also, I am on AT&T. I don't think his situation is completely isolated.
Last edited by Kham; 2010-06-10 at 18:40.
 
btyers is offline btyers
2010-06-10 , 18:26
Posts: 47 | Thanked: 8 times | Joined on Apr 2010
#23
Originally Posted by benjijk View Post
if the rest of you don't have the answers to the questions why give all these random suggestions? this thread has turned useless, it was otherwise an important question. I'm sure it was not an uneducated question. of course, it means slightly increased radiation, of course, lower battery life, everyone knows that. now, if you know how, please chime in. if not, please feel free to not respond to the thread.

for me personaly I think Nokia reduced n900 signal strength with the PR1.2 update to improve battery life. prior to this, on Tmobile I had no dropouts at home and now my 3g signal always cuts out. but I have noticed longer battery life. I'm sure they did something, and I need it to be reverted to the original power. i'm noticing that the signal fades down and then drops out, and jumps back up to full power again. i have"t heard of any tmobile updates for network maintenance in my area, and all this only after PR1.2. I'd appreciate to know if anyone else is experiencing the same. (I'm in LA, CA.)
I will ask you the same question I asked the OP: Did you contact your operator to inform them of this issue?

It is no as simple as increasing "power". Mobile networks actively manage devices that are connected to them.

Saying you are in LA (I presume you mean Los Angeles) means absolutely nothing in terms of cellular network coverage. Where in LA are you? What street? Where in LA do you have this problem? What street?

Since none of us work specifically for T-Mob USA (maybe there is someone working for T-Mob?), we will not be able to answer your specific network question.

Like I said, contact T-Mobile and inform them. And be persistant.
 
benjijk is offline benjijk
2010-06-10 , 19:37
Posts: 11 | Thanked: 1 time | Joined on Dec 2009
#24
@btyers

Now we have two people agree on the same thing. I've noticed this significantly only after the PR1.2 update. I have unlimited voice and data from T-mobile and yet my monthly use is way below 500mb. There's no reason for T-mobile to cut down my speed/usage.

To the post prior to that, I don't think there's a direct way to improve receiver sensitivity via firmware, but you can boost or decrease the amplifier strength to the receiver, which is what I presume might've been brought down with the update, to improve battery life. Its just a common sense guess, it may or may not be the case, but I've heard multiple reports on google searches after the PR1.2 update, and I didn't have this problem before, I would get full 3.5g signal inside my home. Now, 3g catches on, then drops, catches on again, then drops.

Does anyone know if there was any technical info in the PR1.2 changelog related to this? Or anything signifying a boost in battery life? These could be related.
 
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skalogre is offline skalogre
2010-06-10 , 19:48
Posts: 327 | Thanked: 249 times | Joined on Sep 2009 @ Λεμεσιανός, ρε!
#25
Funny you are mentioning this; I have noticed some strange behaviour with T-Mobile USA recently... I was wondering what the issue was. Maybe something was indeed changed with PR1.2.
Last edited by skalogre; 2010-06-10 at 19:52.
 
RFS-81 is offline RFS-81
2010-06-10 , 20:09
Posts: 207 | Thanked: 154 times | Joined on Nov 2009
#26
Power levels in 3G networks are controlled by base stations and the radio network controller. Your mobile just obeys their commands - when it does exactly what it is told to do, stuff can actually work. If it does anything else, nothing works. Period.
 
btyers is offline btyers
2010-06-10 , 21:29
Posts: 47 | Thanked: 8 times | Joined on Apr 2010
#27
Originally Posted by benjijk View Post
@btyers

Now we have two people agree on the same thing. I've noticed this significantly only after the PR1.2 update. I have unlimited voice and data from T-mobile and yet my monthly use is way below 500mb. There's no reason for T-mobile to cut down my speed/usage.
This is not what I am saying. You having unlimited data/voice has no bearing on how your mobile device operates, between the device and the mobile network Node-B (the radio masts).

The mobile network manages power and therefore signal of the mobile device. FULL STOP. You, or I as a mobile device user cannot influence the power output.

Firstly: 3G is a power efficient mobile technology.

There are two main cases of mobile devices in a network (there are more but they will not apply here):

1. Assuming you are in an area of good coverage from a particular radio mast:

If the 3G network "sees" a mobile device using too much power, and "shouting" over other devices in the network, it will order the device to turn down its power level.

The device must comply with the order.


2. Assuming you are in an area of patchy/intermittent coverage:

If the 3G network "sees" a mobile device trying to connect to a particular radio mast but it is having difficulty due to being on the edge of a cell, or "in a hole", it will tell the mobile device to increase its power, OR, it will tell the mobile device to talk to its neighbour radio mast.

The device will comply or else it will not get a connection.

This is in essence how a mobile device will connect to a network.

No other way.

3G is actually very power efficient (read the above 1 and 2 points).

The network orders the device what power to use, so that a) the device is power efficient, and b) so other devices are able to use the network also, and c) so the cell can supply connection for its full coverage area.


To the post prior to that, I don't think there's a direct way to improve receiver sensitivity via firmware, but you can boost or decrease the amplifier strength to the receiver, which is what I presume might've been brought down with the update, to improve battery life.
Pardon me, but what the hell does that mean? Like I said, 3G is a power efficient technology. The issues occur when the device starts switching from 2G to 3G and vice-versa.

Its just a common sense guess, it may or may not be the case, but I've heard multiple reports on google searches after the PR1.2 update, and I didn't have this problem before, I would get full 3.5g signal inside my home. Now, 3g catches on, then drops, catches on again, then drops.
So your device is stays on 3G or does it fallback to 2G ever? 3G and 3.5G are essentially the same technology (in these terms).

As long as it does not change from 3G to 2G it is keeping its power efficiency.

If your device is stationary in your house, but the signal is fluctuating, that sounds like radio mast coverage changing slightly.

It is commonly known as "cell breathing". It is caused by a cell becoming heavily loaded with users.

It all comes back to the power levels of the a) mobile device, and b) the cell.

Again, like I said ring your network customer support people. They are the only ones who can tell you exactly what is happening with your network.

Maybe they have moved a cell that was previously covering your area?

Maybe there are 1000 more users on that cell?

We can't say.

I hope that explains it.
Bernard
 

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btyers is offline btyers
2010-06-10 , 21:32
Posts: 47 | Thanked: 8 times | Joined on Apr 2010
#28
Originally Posted by skalogre View Post
Funny you are mentioning this; I have noticed some strange behaviour with T-Mobile USA recently... I was wondering what the issue was. Maybe something was indeed changed with PR1.2.
Are you in the same area as the previous poster? LA, CA?
 
btyers is offline btyers
2010-06-10 , 21:33
Posts: 47 | Thanked: 8 times | Joined on Apr 2010
#29
Originally Posted by RFS-81 View Post
Power levels in 3G networks are controlled by base stations and the radio network controller. Your mobile just obeys their commands - when it does exactly what it is told to do, stuff can actually work. If it does anything else, nothing works. Period.
Finally, someone else speaking sense!
 
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skalogre is offline skalogre
2010-06-10 , 21:36
Posts: 327 | Thanked: 249 times | Joined on Sep 2009 @ Λεμεσιανός, ρε!
#30
Originally Posted by btyers View Post
Are you in the same area as the previous poster? LA, CA?
Nope, in AZ. I also travel regularly for business and since the update noticed some odd behaviour where the connection would drop and reconnect sometimes in locations where I had previously had more stability, including L.A.
It is quite odd. Granted correlation is not causation, which is why I just assumed that T-Mobile could have been having some issues or infrastructure changes...
Last edited by skalogre; 2010-06-10 at 21:40.
 
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