Does Verizon have current compatibility issues with 17 Pro Max phones?

lcurfman

For about the past four weeks, my wife and my iPhone 17 Pro Max phones have experienced issues where when we make a call, the receiver hears us cut in and out though we can hear them the entire time. Verizon said to go to “standard” microphone settings. This worked (seemingly) briefly but then the problem returned same day.
other phones in our home (iPhone 12 and Samsung Galaxy) do not have the problem.
We do not have the problem when we leave our relatively rural area (5 miles north of the city center) and go into town. Suggestions? Thanks!

SynthpopAddict

When the caller on the other end says, "I can't hear you" or "you're cutting in/out", but you can hear the other person just fine, this is an indicator of poor signal strength on your end, or possibly network deprioritization bouncing your phone around on the towers constantly, causing audio issues due to constant tower handoffs. But with you being in a rural area, I would doubt that the towers are that congested there.

Would suggest using field test mode on your iPhone 17s to check your actual signal strength in the problem area. Instructions below taken from a Google search.

How to Access Field Test Mode

1. Turn off Wi-Fi: Open the Settings app, tap Wi-Fi, and toggle it off. This forces your iPhone to use and measure the cellular network exclusively.
2. Open the Phone App: Go to the standard Phone app and select the Keypad tab.
3. Dial the Code: Enter the following sequence exactly as shown:
   *3001#12345#*
4. Press Call: Tap the green dial button. The hidden Field Test application will launch.

Key Metrics to Look For

Once the menu opens, you will see a Dashboard or a categorized list of settings. Network technicians and enthusiasts typically look for these important parameters under the LTE or 5G tabs:

• RSRP (Reference Signal Received Power): This measures your actual cell tower signal strength, displayed in decibels-milliwatts (dBm).
  • -40 to -80 dBm: Excellent signal.
  • -90 to -100 dBm: Average/fair signal.
• -110 dBm or lower: Very weak/no signal (typically where drops occur). [*See side notes from me below*]
• RSRQ (Reference Signal Received Quality): Measures the quality of the received signal.
• SINR (Signal-to-Interference-plus-Noise Ratio): Measures signal quality relative to background noise or interference. Higher positive numbers mean a cleaner connection.
• Serving Cell Info: Displays the specific band (e.g., Band 66) your phone is currently utilizing to communicate with the nearest tower.

How to Exit

To close Field Test Mode, simply swipe up from the bottom of your screen to return to your Home screen.

—

Side notes from me: In my own experience, -110 dBm is adequate for voice calls. It's not the greatest signal strength, but it'll work. Dropped calls and poor audio quality ("I can't hear you") start happening when the signal is -115 dBm or worse.

Potential improvements:

-Make sure VoLTE is enabled on the iPhones in question. Settings > Cellular (or Mobile) Data > Cellular Data Options > Voice and Data > toggle on the VoLTE switch.

-Manually turn off 5G on the iPhones because it's possible they are constantly trying to run in 5G. 5G radio waves do not have anywhere near the same traveling distance as the older LTE radio waves. The iPhone 12 you mentioned was made before the 5G days, so is probably running in LTE all the time.

-Contact Verizon to see if you can get a 4G Network Extender. These extenders need a wired (preferably cable internet) connection to hook up to and will work as a mini cell phone tower. Your phones will need to be set in LTE mode to stay on the extender, as well as having WiFi Calling disabled.

-Invest in a 3rd party signal booster system compatible with Verizon to intensify weak signal.

-Use WiFi while at home.

-As a last resort, switch carriers.