And the network extender won't even do anything as it only can provide a 3G signal so that won't help at all, it will just be another useless fee in your bill lol
Well, it's a one time buy device with no monthly fee, but yeah, you still stay connected to wifi for data, but the 3g would be a lateral move considering the 3G is 5 bars.
ethancedrik wrote:
Yeah honestly 1 bar if LTE doesn't matter if your on wifi as all calls are placed over 3G, so if you have good 3G signal you'll have good quality calls and good wifi signal for good quality data. In fact I currently have LTE disabled as I have a limited data plan and always use wifi, plus it saves battery life
Calls are placed over 1x not 3G. This is a something people constantly get wrong. 1x is around 850 MHz. 3G is 1850-1910 MHz for uplink and 1930-1990 for downlink. Though Verizon only owns 20 MHz of each at most. Slightly worse for uplink than AWS slightly better for downlink than AWS.
Chum1 wrote:
Weth, thanks so much but I have no idea what you are talking about but I did what you advised and the Freq Band Indicator is "4" -- I am not worried about data speeds, as I am on my wifi for data. I am worried about call quality which is no good at 1 bar, except in one very tiny corner of my apartment, where for some odd reason, I occasionally get 3 bars. But it is impossible to stand in that spot for long. I work at home, so need the phone part to work well, if possible.
Verizon uses 2 difference frequency bands for 4G. They used to just use what is commonly called "700 MHz" or 700 c block which is 746-756 MHz for downlink and 777-787 MHz for uplink. It's referred to as LTE band 13. Verizon has upgraded most areas to what they called XLTE which uses the AWS band which is also known as LTE band 4. Which for Verizon in your area would use 1710-1730 MHz for uplink and 2110-2130 MHz for downlink. So the downlink frequency on 700c is nearly 3 times the size of AWS which means that signal can travel further and penetrate buildings better.
Any building will affect a radio signal. If you building has concrete/brick, metal, and uses e-glass then yes that will really do a number on a signal. Also I wasn't aware you could turn off 4G and leave 3G on I can't do that on my device. I can shut off mobile data but it's all or nothing. 3G isn't very fast even if you have 5 bards by the way. Are you sure that's 3G and not the 1x signal?
You are correct, it is the 1X signal not the 3G signal. The best will be to hear the report on the signal strength when in a call which will be the 1x signal.
You guys are awesome. I wish I understood what everyone was talking about...the one who made the most sense so far was Weth (thanks though to everyone). So, here is the issue: you guys are right, when I turn off LTE, I get 3-5 bars on "3G" depending on where I am in the apartment, but still phone calls are dropped mid-conversation or I'm not able to get a call to go through, whether or not the LTE is turned off or on. I do get dropped calls outside my apartment too, but not as frequently. Maybe this will all improve if Verizon ever enables WiFi calling. My issue in the apartment and elsewhere is NOT data, that is ok, usually I'm on Wifi, or if needed LTE, which seems to work outside the apartment. My sole issue (so far!) is calling. Thanks so much.
If you issue is calling then 4G or 3G doesn't matter. 3G is not used for calling so 5 bars doesn't matter. 4G is only used for VoLTE calling which the 5S can't do anyway. So the difference in signal strength between 3G and 4G is moot. The only thing that matter is the 1x signal strength.
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So is the general consensus that an extender (or whatever it's called) will not help me to make calls without them being dropped or not connected? I should not look at the bars on my iPhone to determine whether or not I can make calls? That is so strange because I always thought the bars told me everything I needed to know about whether or not my calls would go through or stay on for the duration of the conversation? I'm sorry if I'm asking you to repeat yourselves. I'm sure that's frustrating but I would like to be sure of my next steps, if any. I'm kinda wishing I'd stayed with Sprint b/c at least I had zero expectations for undropped calls. haha Thanks!
The bars you see on your phone when you are not in a call is not measuring the signal you will use when you make a phone call.
I would go by the bars on the phone when you are in a call, that is measuring the signal it is receiving for making calls.
Despite what the number of bars on the phone have during a call if:
1) You don't drop calls or have other calling issues, then I would not do anything ( I realize you are not in this category)
2) If you frequently drop calls, despite having 2 or more bars on the phone when calling, I would check to see what other Verizon phones do in your apartment, as it could be a phone issue and not a signal issue.
3) If other phones drop calls as your phone does, and you already have wifi, you may certainly benefit from an extender.
Verizon is releasing wifi calling this year, so keep that in mind. Even if they do, it will likely only be for newer handsets, such as iPhone 6, but that information is not known at this time.
WiFi calling. That's interesting. Seems like Verizon is catching onto features found in 3rd party apps and other providers like video calling (Skype, Hangouts, etc) and wifi calling (Hangouts, T-Mobile, Republic Wireless.)
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