Very slow 4G speeds

[mariol90]

I've had the Thunderbolt for almost 3 months, and my data speeds were normal on both 3G and 4G up until nearly a month ago. Now I'm getting this:

LTE, local server: http://speedtest.net/android/60929916.png
3G, same server: http://speedtest.net/android/60930249.png

LTE, 500mi away: http://speedtest.net/android/60930796.png
3G, same server: http://speedtest.net/android/60930373.png

(not quite sure how to embed images here)

Our area (airport and some surrounding areas) has had  LTE since December. I've completely reset my phone so I don't think that's the problem, but it's possible. Websites are very slow to load, any updates download slowly, and pandora has issues streaming, so it's not just the speed test.

[Neander]

Those numbers (at least the LTE anyway)  are pretty shabby.  They ought to be ashamed to call it 4G.

BTW: I've found you have to save each image on your drive first,  then upload.   I've learned it takes png files OK but not gif's.

[deloswilbur]

That's not terribly wrong for Verizon 4G, what you seeing is their problem were data packets start getting lost during transfer, it's a problem they have had since December.  Pings still go through so some data registers but for the most part you are hung.  Disconnect and reconnect after a few reboots and you will be fine...for a few minutes to a few hours. Welcome to Verizon

[willzzz99 · Accepted solution]

You are MOST LIKELY at the edge of a cell site.

Here's a good test: Drive near a cell site and test again.

See if you have full 4G speeds 5Mbit+.

If yes that's your problem which won't be solved until VZW builds more 4G towers which takes time because every single 4G tower requires fiber back-haul.

[mariol90]

Ann154: the links didn't get posted properly, if you copy/paste the links into a web browser they load properly.

deloswilbur: that makes some sense, but i've rebooted my phone plenty of times in the past month (I believe it's actually been one month now) and I'm still getting the same results. also I just went to Orlando, FL for the day and my speeds are fine there. I get 11-25 mbit/sec down and 3-9 mbit/sec up, so it's definitely a problem in my area (Fort Myers, FL).

willzzz99: My home is at the edge of a cell site, but when I drive to and from school/work I can test it on the way, where there is decent LTE coverage, but I get the same exact results. The thing is everything was working fine up until a month or so ago, so something happened here.

here are two tests, first is in orlando, second is in fort myers, both on LTE using atlanta, GA server:
http://www.speedtest.net/android/61306669.png
http://www.speedtest.net/android/61455456.png

[Ed1956]

when you had low speeds it still showing 4G?  my only show 3G...will go to town tomorrow and check if will change to 4G......Ijust got it last Friday.

BTW, I found out why mey network was dropping, it come wiht Juice Defender installed and that was disabling the network, had to reboot everytime I want the network . DO NOT install Juice Defender on Samsung Charge!

[mariol90]

yep it still showed 4G.

[deloswilbur]

Just out of curiousity how do you find a Cell site?  I am wondering where my tower is as I also am at the edge of 4G coverage.   That might explain much of my problems, but when I ask they say I am close enough it shouldn't.  If they just said yeah, that's the problem I would be fine with it. 

[mariol90]

in addition to antennasearch (which I recommend too) you can simply look at verizon's coverage maps. they are kind of accurate here. I'm at the extreme edge of a 4G extended area, and when I walk out of it or am inside, 4G drops which makes sense. speeds should still be fine when it's connected though.

[deloswilbur]

Hello Mariol90, are you in the extended 4G coverage on map?  that is where I am as I am on the top of a hill.  I had thought 4G was supposed to be less suseptible to signal fluxuations, but I could be just wrong.   I don't even care what speed I get as long as it's better than 3G, what I am really going for is the lower latency.  At this point though I would even take a stable 3G signal but now I have a flaky device.

[mariol90]

My house is in extended 4G coverage, but I've tested in areas that aren't extended, and the speeds are the same for download. uploads are normal for 4G though (3-6 mbit/sec).

[mariol90]

My problem was not solved, not sure why it says it was... I called VZW support and they filed a ticket, said I'd hear back within 5-7 days. My area's coverage is for the airport, and the problem occurs there. It's not an issue of being far away from a cell site since the problem occurs anywhere my phone says "4G", whether it's close to the airport/center of coverage, or far from coverage.

Once I hear back from support I'll post my real solution since the problem may not be solved within the next week according to the tech.

[whatsupdoc]

I've had a ticket open for this issue in Hudson, Ohio since Saturday, June 18, 2011 and was now told there is ANOTHER nationwide 4G outage.  It's also affecting a friend who has a 4G Thunderbolt at the same place.

[mariol90]

Are your speeds slow or is 4G completely missing? I check my speeds when everyone else says their 4G is fine. When it's down completely it doesn't really matter to me since the 4G coverage is bad in my city anyway, but it's nice to have sometimes.

[whatsupdoc]

It's very, very slow - almost non-existant where I'm at right now - which has worked fine ever since having the service except for the nationwide 4G outage more than a month ago and to my understanding another nationwide 4G outage is occurring but it's affecting about 80,000 4G LTE subs - I can't even get a speed test - the page will not load properly to perform the speed test

When working properly I have achieved nearly 20 MB down and 12 MB up but the normal speeds are about 8 MB down and 5 MB up.

[ArnettH_VZW]

Hello whatsupdoc,

I think I may have responded to a similar post about this concern but just in case, I will chime in on this one. The good news is that there is NOT a 4G outage in Ohio. Since you had a ticket opened, I would like to check the status of the work order first to check the progress. That way, I can give you a definitive answer on your issue. May I ask that you send me a private message with you mobile number, contact number, & the open ticket number so I can properly investigate. In the message, please refer to this posting as I do quite a few of these in a day.

Thank you...

[whatsupdoc]

I sent a PM to you thank you.  The problem still exists for me.

[Ann154]

You have to reach a certain contributor rank level before the ability to add images to posts is granted.
http://community.vzw.com/t5/Announcements/Verizon-Community-Ranking-System/td-p/21291

I tried to view the linked images and got an error on three of the four links.

[Ann154]

I'm sure there are others, but this is one that I have used in the past.

http://www.antennasearch.com/

[deloswilbur]

I have used that one before was hoping there was a different one 🙂    Verizon is often hosted on Crown Castle towers right?  I am 1.4 miles from one, but not sure that is a 4G tower as I dont' think I would show as on the fringe then.

[whatsupdoc]

The problem appears to be resolved for me.