Epic not getting a good signal, would Evo work better?

[colestein]

I've looked for an answer all over the web but coming up blank. I switched to Sprint from US Cellular on Sunday and bought the Epic. I liked the keyboard and the screen. However, at home and in the office I am hard pressed to get one bar of service. It hovers between zero and one. Called Sprint and they offered an Airrave but I don't want to pay extra to use my phone at home and at work.

The phone shows -106dbm if that helps.

The guy on the phone said the Evo has a better "radio" and can pick up signals better.

Aside from 3G and 4G (I'm in Chicago), I'd like to just get phone service. Is it possible that the evo will give me more bars? I don't want to switch back to USCC but always got amazing coverage.

About the evo. I understand the battery isn't so great if it's not "rooted" and I don't want to fool around with that. The battery in this phone is getting me 5-6 hours with minimal usage, can I expect the same?

Guy at the store says you can't see the evo in the sun very well, is that true?

Any other advantages/disadvantages?

I have a few days before i go out of town for a week and would love to get this resolved before i go.

Thanks!

 

[smileshappy]

All the Samsung phones I have ever had have had low signals. They also have very low SAR (radiation) levels. Don't know if that is why the reception is so bad..

I can say my Evo pulls in a better signal than my Black Berry curve does at my work.
So that might be true about the radio being stronger in the Evo.

I was able to go 10 to 12 hours on the stock battery before I went with the seidio 3500 battery. The last update seems to have gotten most people better battery life.

The screen can be hard to read in direct sunlight. But it isn't that bad.

I love my Evo. Hope that helps a bit.

 

[digmys]

I get about 20 hrs of battery life using my EVO normally. Not a problem for me but it obviously for some people.

As far as the signal goes, The EVO gets better signal than both my blackberry 8330 and 9630s did, which I did not think was possible.

ALSO, if you know that there is good verizon signal at your office, you can root your Epic, and then for $4 download the app Roam Control. This app will let you force the phone to roam onto verizon, and roaming is free with Sprint.

I also have 0 sprint service at work and just turn on the roaming when I get there and off when I leave and I have an excellent signal 24/7. If you go this route you could keep your Epic.

What it comes down to may just be a poor Sprint signal in that one area, in which case rooting (very very very easy) and $4 can let you hop onto the Verizon (as well as other carriers that have roaming agreements with Sprint) whenever you need to.

Hope that helps.

 

[hbwright]

I have full bars at home with my Evo and only had 3 with the Epic. I also either seem to get better battery our its the fact that the Evo charges much faster so if I forget to charge I can throw it on the charger for a quick charge and have some charge for use where the Epic took forever to charge and a quick top off was just not possible. I have no regrets switching.

 

[dekcufi]

i have both phones and side by side the evo has more signal. the charger on the epic i believe puts out less power then the evo charger.

 

[sasha]

Where in Chicago are you what side of town. I'm on the south side and Lake Michigan is literally my back yard the signal on my Evo sucks. I have the Airave at home which Sprint actually waved the fee for the first year with it. I work downtown and I have no problems at all full 4g service.

I know paying extra for the airave sucks but this may be your only option if your sticking with Sprint not sure switching phones will help, it didn't help me any.

 

[caliskimmer]

I don't have official readings, but after owning both, the Evo's signal has seemed to be miles better than the Epic's signal (at least in LA).

 

[Caitlyn McKenzie]

Signal differences will be minor, and also do not forget that the responses you will receive here will be biased towards the EVO for obvious reasons.

 

[Mikey47]

So, when you say between 0 and 1 bar -- do you have trouble making/receiving phone calls? It could just be the differentiation in how signal is interpreted by the software.

I don't understand why people say that a phone that gets 5 bars has the strongest possible signal, mine goes all the way up to 11!! ;-) (Sorry for those of you who have not seen Spinal Tap)

 

[estebancam]

Had an evo for three months and now have an epic. The evo did get better reception, as well as better speeds download and upload on 3G.

 

[yaggermr]

"I get about 20 hrs of battery life using my EVO normally. Not a problem for me but it obviously for some people. " You lie to your friends and i'll lie to mine but let's not lie to each other.

 

[caliskimmer]

Except some of my responses, Vincent, I'm the Samsung mod and I've got to be quite neutral. However, after owning the Evo, I cannot say that I'm not biased towards the Evo. I can say though that from what I saw on my phone and from what I've experienced based on 3 Epics and 2 Evos, it seems to me that the Evo's signal is more consistent. To be honest though, the Epic's signal is not far off in some place. Yes, I wrote that the Evo's signal was miles better, but I wasn't thinking when I wrote that. The signal strength is good on both phones, but I just think that the Evo's signal doesn't fluctuate as much.

 

[splmonster]

"I get about 20 hrs of battery life using my EVO normally. Not a problem for me but it obviously for some people. " You lie to your friends and i'll lie to mine but let's not lie to each other.

He is not lying.. I get anywhere from 18 to 20hrs a day on normal use.

 

[digmys]

He is not lying.. I get anywhere from 18 to 20hrs a day on normal use.

Exactly, thank you. Those that scream LIES, either don't know what they are doing and leave 4G on 24/7 or something else stupid or have a defective phone, end of story.

 

[colestein]

Thanks Everyone! Looks like I'll try the Evo's. As for the 20 hour battery...is there a way to get that without "rooting"? I'm not sure I want to try something like that, i'm not too computer savy. Thanks!!

 

[digmys]

The best thing that I did was first doing a factory reset the day I got my phone. Not sure why it helps but hundreds of people on here agree that a factory reset will extend your battery life.

Second I installed juice plotter, it tracks your battery usage so you know when you are using tons of battery.

I also have Locale installed and it turns off 3G and on Wifi when I am at home, work, or school and turns off bluetooth if I am not in my car.

 

[colestein]

THanks!
I found a guy who will put VirusRom (?) on the evo. I'm going to give it a try. These tips have been crazy helpful!
JC

 

[NxTech3]

each manufacturer has a different radio signal strength based on location. Some radios will work better different places. Too bad Sanyo doesnt make a ballin Android phone (Zio doesnt count)

 

[caliskimmer]

I got about 10 1/2 with extreme tethering, email, texting, etc. However, I was rooted and running Fresh w/ Netarchy Kernel, which has not shown me justice when it comes to battery life. I definitely believe the 20 hours.