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Samsung Galaxy S3 - 4.3 Update WiFi issues

I did the 4.3 update to my Samsung Galaxy SIII the other day and since then I have been experiencing WiFi issues at work. My phone only connects to the work WiFi only every other day! One day it works, the next day it doesn't. I am able to connect to my home WiFi network every day however I also have been experiencing some issues with staying connected or warnings that my WiFi network is unstable. Both of these issues never occurred before the update. My wife, who also has a similar phone is also experiencing the same issues on our home network.

Because of this I am on the Verizon mobile network every other day at work and it is drastically eating into my shared data plan!!! I wonder if this is a plan by Verizon to have their customers pay more by having to use more data? By using my work and home WiFi networks most of the time 3 of us within our family are able to share 2GB of data!

If Verizon or Samsung can't fix this I may take up T-Mobiles offer and switch plans.

Will there be an update to the update to fix this issue? Is there anything I can do?

Comments

dorothaj

I am having a similar problem since the upgrade. My phone always has a message that my wifi network is unstable and wants me to turn on mobile data only. It is constantly looking for a signal, which seems to run the battery down, as well. I really don't want to have to spend time on the phone with Verizon over this. Is there any way to undo the "update"?

rudeguyy

The update can't be undone. There is no way possible. I haven't heard of any good solution on the wifi issue. Some people said shutting off the bluetooth helps but I never have that on in the 1st place. I've heard there was talks of a fix but no timeframe was given so I wouldn't hold my breath.

Jason0x21

I'm actually seeing this problem, too. I've got no problems connecting to my home network (which has WPA PSK security), but when I try to connect to the work network (which has the same security, but multiple access points), the WiFi icon appears but the network isn't available. I have to disconnect and reconnect manually to get on the network, and when I move around the building between access points I lose it again.

From just a WiFi standpoint, this update is sort of a disaster.

upsetcustomer12345

My phone went through the update back in December. I was not able to "dismiss" the update, it happened on its own. Anyway, after the update, my battery drained like never before and I could not keep my phone connected to WiFi which is very upsetting. It kept kicking me off my home WiFi saying that my home signal was unsecure (whatever). I called Verizon tech support the first time, the tech said they hadn't heard of any issues similar to what I was having which I find VERY hard to believe considering there are forums ALL over the internet of people having the same problems. So, after troubleshooting with her (which I knew would fix nothing), even did the factory reset, this helped NOTHING. The factory reset just made me even more upset because after taking the time to sync your pics/music/whatever, you have to go back and download all of your apps again, just pointless. All in all, she sent me a refurbished "Like New" phone. She said this would fix the problem. Ok.. I got excited. A few short days later, my "Like New" phone came and I activated it annnnd it went through the update.. So, I spent ANOTHER hour on the phone with verizon's excellent tech support. Guess what? The tech sent me ANOTHER "Like New" replacement and said to dismiss the update every time it pops up. Ok.. I will try it. Two days later, i get my 2nd replacement phone. I activated it. I dismissed the update. 10:00pm rolls around and my phone restarts, by itself! When it comes back on... yes... It was going through the stupid update!!! I called back, again! Even more angry this time and spoke with a Nathanial who ended up transferring me to Samsung directly and the rep there told me they were not aware of any issues. COME ON!!! He eneded up telling me I could send my phone in to them for repair and they would fix it but, I would be without a phone for 2+ weeks. No Thanks. I spoke with "supervisor" Dan at verizon who was the most unprofessional person I have ever spoken to. No help what so ever and he was so rude and mean!!! He kept talking over me; his voice would get louder and louder as if he were trying to shut me up. He would also cut me off during his conversation. Long story short, he would not do anything and when I asked him for him employee ID # so I could report his customer service, he tried to give me his phone extension! It was even hard to get that from him!

I am just sooooooooo sick of verizon's crap. I had them several years ago and dumped them because of an issue I had with them but when I got married, my husband insisted on keeping his cell service. Good to know that some things will never change! Verizon has the WORST customer service. As soon as our contracts are up, we are gone. Either that or may possibly move to T-Mobile and accept their offer.. they pay ECF!

412girl

I am having the same issue. Nice to hear that I am not crazy and others are having the same issue. Sucks to hear that nothing is being done about it.

billysaechao94

i just made my wifi open(no password) then let it connect or reconnect it then change the setting on the wifi from the router back to what you had from the start and it should work. well i just tried it now and it worked

mostmuscular

Bill, your method may work well IF you have control of the router. I do not have that control here at work.

juniperfields

This isn't a problem exclusive to Verizon. If you look on Google, you can find people complaining about issues who are also on AT&T. It has to do with the upgrade to the S3, S4, Note, and I think other ones, but I'm not sure. That being said, this is REALLY annoying. There are many things about the upgrade that I don't like.

mostmuscular

I was away from work for three weeks because of medical issues but when I returned I found the problem was still there. I cannot get into my work wifi every day, only every other day. What is up with that?

My wife had a discussion with Verizon a few weeks ago and they suggested rebooting the phone but I am leary of doing so because I am afriad of losing all my contacts, etc. yes, I did as Verizon suggested and did a backup to their site but do I really trust Verizon to get my info back? NO. Not after the issues we have had with them.

I think I will be changing carriers as soon as my plan expires... if not before. Verizon has not been any help with this issue.

BinaryBoy87

I've had several issues as well since the android update in Jan, my WiFi is constantly dropping, the web browser seems to be more unstable, battery life took a huge hit as now I have to charge twice a day plus other issues! When is Verizon going to get these problems RESOLVED and push out a fix? I loved my Galaxy S3 before this latest update was forced on my phone and now I'm considering moving to another carrier. As a long time Verizon customer and IT Professional I would have expected much more in regards to testing these updates before pushing them out. Its been very disappointing, it would have been one thing to have a fix roll out in a few weeks (because I can relate to rolling out an update that has unforeseen complications) but now we are going on almost 3 months here and I'm having to burn more data than normal because I can't use my WiFi. Simply Unacceptable!

JacqueEvon

I was really hoping there was a fix for this, but I'm glad to know it's not just me having issues. I just discovered my boyfriend is paying the same amount through AT&T for 5 phones with 10GB that I pay Verizon for two phones with 4GB, so that on top of these issues are definitely making me lean towards switching to AT&T and back to an iPhone as soon as my contract is up.

GlxyS3

I was having the same issues. I found this solution on another forum. I have found it works, but I have to do it every time I want to connect to a new network. (it seems to save the setting for previously connected).

-Power the device off (remove and re-insert the battery).

-Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.

-When the device vibrates; release only the Power key while still holding the other two keys.

-When the Android system recovery menu displays; release the Volume Up and the Home key.

-Navigate with the Volume keys to the "wipe cache partition" option and press the Power key to select.

-Wait for the cache is cleared. While reboot system now is highlighted, press the Power key and reboot the device.

This worked for me. I hope it works for you.

StinkEye

Samdung, yes, SamDUNG!, pushed out that Dec 2013 update after fixing and changing who-knows-what. It turned off my auto-connect wi-fi, even though it reported wi-fi was on in the status bar. Hence my gigs trippled in just a few weeks. It took Teir 2 Brainiac just a few minutes to remote host, understand the source of the problem, fix it and give me an extra gig for the enormous inconvenience. Samdung added an advance settings page that includes auto-connect Wi-Fi. Go there and click the box. it will fix your problem.

mostmuscular

I had tried this suggestion but it did NOT work for me. I am still experiencing the same issues.

mostmuscular

How do you get to this advanced settings page? I go to advanced settings and I don't see a choice for auto-connect Wi-Fi.

rsstoner

Duplicate post - please see:

https://community.verizonwireless.com/message/1063074#1063074

Message was edited by: Admin Moderator

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