Child Item

Site Totals

61488 Questions Answered 271 Categories

Verizon iPhone 4s dropping 3G connection

I live and work in Westchester, NY, a close -in suburb of NYC where I have never had problems with dropped calls on my previous Verizon service on a nonsmart phone. Since I have used the iPhone 4s I notice that I get the "circle" instead of 3G going on and off throughout the day, even if I am sitting in the same spot with the phone. I don't think the phone call are a problem even though the bars fluctuate from 2-3 or 4, but I wonder if searching for 3G is causing the battery to drain.

I find the same problem in my home, where 3G seems unstable. My battery life is terrible, and I have used all the tips I have read to extend battery life to only some avail. I wonder why my 3G connection is so unstable.

To make matters worse, I have an iPad with 3G through ATT, and I have a consistent 3G connection all the time, even in the same places where Verizon 3G drops off.

I have called Verizon and reset the phone and the network and rebooted, but I still have unstable 3G. Has anyone else noticed that there is a problem connected to 3G with the iPhone 4s?

Comments

gerio

raynas wrote:
I live and work in Westchester, NY, a close -in suburb of NYC where I have never had problems with dropped calls on my previous Verizon service on a nonsmart phone. Since I have used the iPhone 4s I notice that I get the "circle" instead of 3G going on and off throughout the day, even if I am sitting in the same spot with the phone. I don't think the phone call are a problem even though the bars fluctuate from 2-3 or 4, but I wonder if searching for 3G is causing the battery to drain.
I find the same problem in my home, where 3G seems unstable. My battery life is terrible, and I have used all the tips I have read to extend battery life to only some avail. I wonder why my 3G connection is so unstable.
To make matters worse, I have an iPad with 3G through ATT, and I have a consistent 3G connection all the time, even in the same places where Verizon 3G drops off.
I have called Verizon and reset the phone and the network and rebooted, but I still have unstable 3G. Has anyone else noticed that there is a problem connected to 3G with the iPhone 4s?

Are you sure you don't actually have a Droid Bionic?... :smileyvery-happy:

Kidding, of course. Seriously, maybe something is wrong with that iPhone. I had a Bionic after a few really good Android phones and the Bionic was continuously dropping the 3G connection. I finally sold it and paid full pop for an iPhone 3 weeks ago. In the same area that I used the Bionic, I've not powered down the iPhone at all and it has yet to drop a call or the 3G data connection. The little circle just means that the phone has dropped back to a slower connection (some phones show that as "1xx").

Since you say the iPad holds its connection, I'd be suspect of the phone.

Geri O

raynas

The iPad is on ATT: the iPhone is Verizon. I'm hoping I did not choose the wrong provider. Verizon was known to be most reliable in the area for phone calls.

flyhighyuta

Hey,

I'm from Japan. and I read article about dropping 3g on iPhone 4s[CDMA] in Japan.
Article says many people complained dropping 3G. Apple Japan do exchanging old iPhone 4s to new iPhone 4s. They says it is only way to solve dropping 3g issue.

Go to Apple store and exchange your iPhone.
Hope you get a good reception new one.

gerio

If your voice signal is good, you might need to call Verizon and make them aware of the 3G signal problem in that area.

If your voice signal is weak, Verizon may not be your best choice for that area.

If it's good outdoors, but weak indoors, maybe a network extender would help...

Geri O

raynas

Thanks for the input. I spoke to Verizon today and they said they would exchange my phone by mail. I think I am going to go to the Apple store and see if they will do it for me, so that they can restore it from the iCloud whild I am there. I wonder if anyone else here is having the dropped 3G problem.

unknown

Raynas, thank you for sharing your concerns with the community. Have you received your replacement device yet, and if so, are you still experiencing issues with losing 3G? If you have friends or family with VZW smartphones, I would suggest checking to see if they are having issues losing 3G in same area. That way we can determine if this is an equipment or network related issue.

Also, Apple has reported seeing some battery degradation with iOS and has just recently released a new software update iOS 5.0.1 for this issue. If you have not already received the update, follow these instructions to update.

raynas

I was told by your tech support to reset and restore my phone as new to see if that solved the problem. When I attempted to do so using iTunes, I could not because the sim card was not inserted. There was no sim card in the phone. I was told one would be overnighted to me Wed night.. I have not yet received it since it was not yet sent! I was at the Apple store from 9:40am to 7 pm on Thursday to resolve this problem, and despite multiple calls to all tiers of Verizon customer service and tech support, no way could my phone or a replacement be activated with a replacement sim card. Finally a phone was activated again without a sim card. I now don't know how I will ever be able to restore a phone since it is simless? I am totally frustrated!

tonosman

Yes, There is something seriously wrong with the new iPhone 4S 32gb. I have been through 3 of these bad boys and still constantly dropped calls, static mic reception, SLOW if any DATA speeds , rattles and yes the occasional electrical shock. They sent me a replacement that could not be activated with the sim card that it shipped with installed. I love Apple, but... I am seriously disappointed. I really hate the droid phones,... But they seem way more stable even though they appeared to have way more problems before switching from my Evo 3D to the iPhone. Goes to show whats going on here. Unfortunately VZW says there is nothing they can do even though my phone is brand new, they tell me this is a job for Apple. So I'm currently playing "Monkey in the middle" and I'm the Monkey who's losing out on all fronts in this situation. Still stuck with a $750 + tax Phone and a premium data plan bill for service thats equivalent to 1982 standards. Yeah! So glad I switched to the Big Red! I can only pray and hope that both VZW and Apple prove their commitment to customer care and satisfaction, but no hope is in sight so far. I am really missing Steve Jobs right now. OK Tim Lets see your magic! And For VZW I think they should be Discounting our service or compensating us in some other serious fashion. What do you all say? Are you with me? Are you all feeling a bit Class Action too?

dieselmcfadden

I've been having this problem too all week in NYC too.

Drops from 3G to the 'o' symbol. someitmes it'll come back by itself, sometimes i have to turn

on airline mode, go back to home screen and turn airline mode off.

This is when standing in the same spot. It does this many many times a day.

It also eats through battery like crazy. i have an morphie juice air extra battery pack. that with the

internal battery, i can't make it through the afternoon.

I've reprogrammed with *228#, I don't run any background processes like Viber or Skype.

has anyone else had the same problem?

I'm taking the device to the apple store tomorrow.

-diesel

gstrauss13

I also live in Westchester, NY.

I pre-ordered a Verizon iPhone 4s, 64 GB and received it on the day it was released. It worked perfectly for a couple of weeks and then I started having continuous problems with losing the 3G signal. Every time I would try to use a online app or safari, the 3G would change to a circle and would become basically unusable.

I finally called Verizon and we ran some tests but still had the problem. They finally agreed to replace the phone with a new one.

The new one is better but still not perfect. I still lose 3G connection from time to time but it's much more manageable.

Personally, I think it's a phone issue because I've been in the same room with other people who have the Verizon iphone 4S and their phone would show 3G and mine would show a circle.

Hopefully this could be fixed with some kind of a software upgrade from Apple.

raynas

I don't understand how they cannot address this problem. I am also getting a new iPhone 4s sent to me after many many compaints. I am waiting for a new shipment from Apple since Verizon is out of stock until Dec 9. I cannot believe how much of a problem this phone has been. Did Verizon every admit there is a problem with dropped 3G? Is it just in NYC, Westchester, or all over. A person responed to say it happened in Japan also!

raynas

Please let us know what the Apple store tells you. Everyone I talk to at Apple and Verizon says they never heard of this problem!

rocketboy89

I am also having the same problem here in Toledo, OH. They have "never heard of the issue" as well but that is not what the support forums show. I can be sitting next to my friend with a droid X and he gets over 1 mbps data speeds and i get 0.3 mbps. Seriously?! My original droid had faster data than this!!!

Ladyfrances

My iPhone4S drops calls all the time when I am at home, although this problem started only mid-April 2012, prior to which reception was perfect. Prior to this time, I had perfect reception on the iPhone and had no issues at all with making or receiving calls.

Now though, since reception is so low (fluctuates around 1 or 2 bars, sometimes 3 woohoo!), my calls are getting picked up by someone's Network Extender but the calls drop as soon as calls connect since my phone is not an authorised user of the Network Extender. Effectively, therefore, I cannot use my phone when at home. Sometimes if I sit on terrace and wait a couple of minutes I am lucky to get a non-Network Extender connection to an actual Verizon cell tower and I can make a call. Serious problem exists with incoming calls because they are always picked up by the Network Extender and therefore get dropped. Verizon says there is nothing they can do about this since the Network Extender is the private property of an unidentified neighbor. I work from home frequently and take overseas calls. I get disconnected so have to try to get back to people using my house landline which costs me extra money. Very dissatisfied with Verizon and would be delighted to get into a Class Action suit against them for poor reception. PS: Phone works perfectly when in Manhattan! (I live in Fort Lee, right near the George Washington Bridge.)

Adozark

I have to same problem, It's interesting to see that this problem is not just in my area (Austin, TX). I will get dropped 3G signal when I am standing in the same spot that I was and using the 3G. Also, I have tons of issues with dropped calls, not just in buildings or when driving, everywhere. It's not a reception issue either, because I will have 4-5 bars when the call is dropped. I only heard the horrors of dropped calls at AT&T, and the thing is, I had AT&T at one point, no dropped calls. I'm not sure if it's the iPhone or Verizon, I'm curious to try an android phone and see if that changes anything. (although I like the simplicity of the iPhone, it's useless to me if I can't use it as a phone)

Ladyfrances

My immediate neighbor has a Motorola Droid and I was disappointed to learn from him (since I am a Motorola fan having had them for many years before the iPhone) that he gets no calls at all. All his calls (in this building) go to voicemail. I do occasionally manage to get more than 10 seconds on a connection and sometimes that enough!!
I am convinced it is a VerizonWireless problem. They are passing the buck by telling me they can do no more for me. Where does that leave us as customers?

dbonilla2001

Thankfully I have someone to relate too. I also upgraded to the 4S and I absolutely hate my phone. I lose connection everytime and it keeps giving me a search signal. I am not sure if it is area towers but I do not believe so since this happens everywhere I go. I have rebooted my network one time and still no resolution. I am convinced to give up my iphone and switch to droid. My sister did it and she absolutely loves her phone and she gets great 4G signal.

GoingfortheGold

Ok I'm not the only having the same problem except my problem is a step worse as my iphone goes into the searching mode and has a couple of times said sim card failure. If you go and search Apple forums you'll see this problem dating back to Nov 2011. Get your carrier to run some diagnostics and then let Apple check it. I am taking my iphone in today with Verizon to have them change my sim card and see if that helps.

JockNumberFour

I live in New York City and I work in Connecticut and I can attest first hand that what the original poster wrote is indeed the truth. I lived in the Financial District and my 3G service continously cut off in my apartment. I since moved to Upper West Harlem where it cuts off every night in my bedroom. There was one night last week it was cut off for hours and even disconnected from the cell tower temporarily saying "searching" and "no service". Throughout Manhattan and in Brooklyn, the 3G service is very spotty. All you have to do is take a taxi ride from downtown to uptown and look at your phone to see how often the 3G service cuts off. I spoke to one customer service representative and he insisted Verizon has more cell towers in my area of Manhattan than competitors. This doesn't solve the issue, however. The service also happens to be very slow anywhere in Manhattan or Connecticut that I go to. Two weeks ago, on a Friday night, I was with my sister and her friend at Ajna Bar in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. My Verizon 3G service was low and cut off several times inside the bar while their Sprint 3G service was consistent and was shy of one bar. We all have Iphones by the way!

Ladyfrances

Seems to me Verizon cannot handle the iPhone traffic. Remember how bad AT+T was when they first got the iPhone! Also, Verizon is lying about its cell tower proliferation and how good their service is. It has deteriorated to the extent that they are no better, perhaps worse, than the other providers. They need to correct the situation and make their many customers happy again or we may decide to jump ship.

Keitarou

This also happens to me and I work in the financial district in NYC. I called Verizon and emailed using contact us and had a technician come out to check out the area. They did find that the 3G in the area is extremely slow but are not able to do anything. Both 3G and 4G in this area is slow. According to carriercompare for the iphone, sprint has the best 3G speed. Surprising!!! Since Verizon can't do anything about the slow speed in this area, I will probably switch to Sprint when my contract ends. You guys might do the same thing. Especially in NYC downtown area.

Daisydancer12385

I have started to have this issue for the past week or so. Places where I was getting great service, I am now lucky to get 1 bar. I have updated my roaming 2 days in a row and it doesn't help. I've never had problems like this with my phone before, I usually get great service. What the heck is going on?

afkingstn

Over the last few months I started to notice my iPhone 4 dropping the 3G connection quite often, this is in and around Boston and south of the city. I followed Verizon's trouble shooting and reset my network settings, rebooted by phone, etc. None of that made a difference at all. I recently bought a brand new 4S at the Verizon store and figured it may not have the same issues, wrong.. same problem.. still dropping the 3G connection. My good friend and a co-worker are both noticing the same thing, 3G dropping constantly. All of us upgraded to IOS 6 but this was happening prior to the upgrade as well. Something must be wrong with the network, how the iPhone interacts with it, or some kind of bug with the software on the phone. I have had an iPhone since August 2011 and never experienced this problem until sometime this past summer, not sure exactly when, but it's been a frustrating last few months. I'd love to have this fixed and not be told to reset my network settings, reboot my phone, or restore it to factory settings. Since I just bought a new phone, had followed these steps with my previous phone, nothing would frustrate me more that to be told to follow the standard steps... again... Please fix this, we pay for 3G, I'd like to actually be able to rely on it.

DeerP

It looks like this has been a problem for over a year! In the past couple of months, I've started having issues with constant dropped calls (even been in the middle of some important business calls!) .. call them back, drops again, call them back, drops again... VERY frustrating. This happens with alot of calls. By the way .. I'm in the Houston TX area. My phone has also started not ringing, and I'm missing calls (that I did not even know I had). I also have the internet connection problem (gets worse, by the day). I've had my Droid for at least a couple of years .. no problems .. until now. I rechecked all of my settings, sim card, battery .. and there is absolutely no reason to be having these issues. I'm due for a phone upgrade this month .. wondering if that will resolve all of the issues. But by reading everyone else's posts, it has to be more than equipment problems ... don't you think? Help!

jophan_c

I primarily use mobile data while commuting on the train. I've found that the iPhone 4S has lousy connectivity while we are moving. For example, if I follow a Twitter link to a website or even want to view an embedded photo, if the train's moving it just waits and waits. The download doesn't complete until the train stops in a station. This is at 6 a.m., so congestion isn't likely to be an issue.

I've never had a dropped call, but I'm a very low volume user (under 100 minutes per month).

crherl

I'm having a similar experience to the original poster. I ride the Hudson line train every day and get the dreaded O from Harlem 125th to at least Croton Harmon, sometimes farther. The very frustrating thing is sitting next to my wife who has the iPhone 5 and seeing that she has 3G and LTE service in these areas.

Coupled with the incredible battery drain I've been experiencing since I updated the OS, I'm extremely disappointed with this phone and service.

Does anyone have any current solutions to the loss of data service or to the battery drain for the 4S? I've reset the phone several times and turned off everything I can think of but haven't had any success.

ahall528

I'm down in Fort Smith, Arkansas and have had this same issue ongoing for over a year now(I believe October or November of 2011). I have had 4-5 network tickets open with Verizon Tech Support...and the answer I get every single time, is that there is nothing wrong with the network in my area and the towers that I am between. It only happens when I am at work or within a 2-3 mile radius of my work(which is a big portion of my town). It also happens on my girlfriend's phone at our house quite frequently. Verizon has sent us both 2 replacement devices, and still get the same issue...yet Verizon keeps telling me that it's not a network issue, or a known network issue..and the funny part, is there are NUMEROUS topics about this same issue on these Support forums! They have offered to put me into a different device, but never offer a phone that is even near comparable with the iPhone 4S. Seriously thinking about switching to Sprint(I'd hate to lose my unlimited data...while I still have it anyway). I think I'll open my 6th trouble ticket today...may get the same result, but I think it's time to keep on with this until they find some resolution..whether it's with their network or getting me a better device.

Child Item