Note 3 signal reception?

[MissouriFarmer]

That is good to hear. We need to remember that the LTE 4G Signal doesn't travel as far as a 3 signal. Verizon will have to add more towers in between the LTE towers.

Sent from my SM-N900V using AC Forums mobile app

Not a tech, however I heard that 4g uses a higher frequency which is supposed to carry further.
It was just hearsay and may certainly be wrong.

Sent from my SM-N900V using AC Forums mobile app

 

[Joey Pikachoo]

Hi, I'm a noobie and finally decided to ditch apple and go to android..I originally got a verizon note 3 from someone and I inserted my tmobile sim card into the phone. I went to settings and chose network mode to GSM. But I can't get anywhere over 3 bars, whereas back in my iphone it would always be full. Any ideas what's going on? signal strength is always between -85 dBm and around 15-19 asu..

Finally attempted to reset the apns to default (I still get signal but only 3 bars at max).

 

[jerry12]

So the phone has a worse antenna? So glad I didn't wait for a Note 3 if this is true.

On a side note those who talk signal strength comparisons need to look at the dBm numbers. That means a lot more than a random bar which isn't consistent at all.

Sent from my Motorola Droid Maxx using Tapatalk 4

I have checked my Note 3 Dbm against some friends that have Motorolas & the Dbm reading are about the same. Even my Note 2 has about the same Dbm as the Motorola that I have checked it against.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[OTACORB]

I just got an Note 3 AT&T about one week ago. Initially it seemed that my cellular reception was lower than my iPhone 5S. I've not ever noticed any issues with Wifi reception. So, today I took my iPhone 5S and put it in field test mode, so I could see the dBm and of course the about screen on the Note 3 to monitor the same information. What I found is that in some areas the Note 3 did better and in other areas the iPhone 5S did better. I tested this is very strong signal areas and also in very fringe areas. I would say that 95% of the time they were both within 2 or 3 points of each other. However, for some reason at my house my iPhone 5S does around -82 dBm most of the time and the Note 3 fluctuates a lot bouncing between -83 dBm and -90 dBM. The Note 3 does seem to be a bit more stable if laying flat on the desk, whereas picking up the iPhone 5S doesn't add much fluctuation. It could be though that iPhone signal indicator just doesn't update as quickly as the Note 3.

This of course is not scientific and just one end user making note of the dBM # between the 2 devices. I've rarely seen the Note 3 drop out of LTE mode unless I am in an area that doesn't have LTE. Now with all that said I think I and likely many others have become obsessed with looking at the signal strength rather than just taking the phone and using it. If the signal really doesn't impact your ability to use it vs a previous phone then its not a problem.

For me while numbers wise I can clearly say the iPhone 5S gets better reception, thus for the tad bit lower reception by the Note 3 has simply not impacted my ability to use the phone and do whatever I want without impact to its performance (calls, texting or data). I realize some others have been impacted because the reception is so much lower. I think after while though constantly monitoring dBm its sort of like a dog trying to catch its tail. LOL

I am done monitoring now I am just going to use this baby and enjoy my transition to Android.

 

[dcamjones]

Objection, hearsay

Wouldn't that be "heardsay"

 

[Kegman]

bars mean ****. the carriers and phone manufacturers can manipulate the bars. Lets say you have 5 bars. 1 is bad, 5 is awesome. your cell reception is measured in dBm like you(forgot to quote person) stated. your iphone and note3 can be getting -85 dBm but the iphone might display 4 bars while the note 3 displays 2 bars. Your signal is -85, they are the same signal, the companies manilpulate the data to make their service/product better.

Case in point Google put out the galaxy nexus 2 yrs ago and with that same "good" signal, the phone displayed 2 bars max, rarely 3. From what I read, the nexus was displaying the true bars for that signal while other phones typically display inflated bars. Believe it or not, either google or verizon caved and in an update, started showing inflated bars for the same signal. This was due to a placebo effect where everyone thought their signal sucked because they had 1 or 2 bars. I never dropped a call on that phone despite having 1 bar most of the time

so what you need to do is compare those dBm numbers between the phones. Lower is better I believe.

 

[eric2234]

I've had the note 3 since launch on the Verizon network. It is my first Samsung device.

The reception on the Note 3 is terrible....This phone randomly drops from LTE and full bars to no service for 30 seconds or so then goes back to full service. All the while my wife's G2 never loses connection in the same area.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Celf11]

The reception on the Note 3 is terrible....This phone randomly drops from LTE and full bars to no service for 30 seconds or so then goes back to full service. All the while my wife's G2 never loses connection in the same area.

+1 (not verizon, but a Dutch Provider) from almost full 3G to "no signal" in less than a minute. After that a few minutes only GPRS and up to 3G again.

 

[emscapt47]

I've had my note 3 for two weeks and had a issue with reception so I went in to att and they switched out my SIM card it worked for 4 days. Well while on squad I noticed that where I always had 4-5bars I had 1. Called them again was told to get yet another SIM card. Not happy at all.......love my phone but come on....

 

[dpham00]

I've had the note 3 since launch on the Verizon network. It is my first Samsung device.

The reception on the Note 3 is terrible....This phone randomly drops from LTE and full bars to no service for 30 seconds or so then goes back to full service. All the while my wife's G2 never loses connection in the same area.

Posted via Android Central App

Interesting, someone here had the same problem with the Droid Maxx and was bad enough that he switched to the note 3


http://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=342710

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 3 via Tapatalk Pro

 

[emscapt47]

Ok my wifi won't stay on for more than 3 mins at a time and now I'm lucky to have 2 bars what the f--- I'm not a happy camper anymore.

 

[emscapt47]

So anyone eles?

 

[dpham00]

So anyone eles?

Mine is okay

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 3 via Tapatalk Pro

 

[ambientdata_digital_forensics]

PLEASE DONT BUY THE PHONE!!!! Galaxy 2 is the best phone from Samsung!! G2 has always connection and my new NOTE 3 Loses connection every 5 min!!!!!!! Jeg I'm sick and tried of IT!

 

[ambientdata_digital_forensics]

There does seem to be a quality issue with the antennas. I constantly lose cellular and wlan connectivity or have weak reception. Just moved from Note 2 to Note 3 and it is the same in terms of quality of service. BB Q 10 sitting side by each has no issues. Does anyone have information on who makes the antennas for the Notes?

 

[Kevin Watters]

Just went from an iPhone 4s to the Note 3... same carrier, same sim in the phone. The note 3 gets NO reception in my house at all compared to my iPhone 4s (which my son now uses). iPhone has 3-4 bars and can make/receive calls no problem with perfect clarity. Note 3 right beside it... no signal or 1 bar at best and drops out. Sooo I would say its nowhere near as good as an iPhone. But maybe it varies from phone to phone... but then that would be just as bad...

 

[emscapt47]

Just went from an iPhone 4s to the Note 3... same carrier, same sim in the phone. The note 3 gets NO reception in my house at all compared to my iPhone 4s (which my son now uses). iPhone has 3-4 bars and can make/receive calls no problem with perfect clarity. Note 3 right beside it... no signal or 1 bar at best and drops out. Sooo I would say its nowhere near as good as an iPhone. But maybe it varies from phone to phone... but then that would be just as bad...

Who do you guys have for cell providers?

 

[dpham00]

Just went from an iPhone 4s to the Note 3... same carrier, same sim in the phone. The note 3 gets NO reception in my house at all compared to my iPhone 4s (which my son now uses). iPhone has 3-4 bars and can make/receive calls no problem with perfect clarity. Note 3 right beside it... no signal or 1 bar at best and drops out. Sooo I would say its nowhere near as good as an iPhone. But maybe it varies from phone to phone... but then that would be just as bad...

Something seems wrong. My wife's 5s and my note 3 have the same bars

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 3 via Tapatalk Pro

 

[OTACORB]

GN3 here on AT&T in Central, LA and I have had zero reception problems. I've had my phone since the end of Nov. I've been using iPhones for a while now and switching to the GN3 has just been great for me.

Certainly with the reports of the reception issues on this forum it surely seems like there are some qa issues with the antennas across the GN3 line. Glad I got a good one. I think the best advice for someone that gets one with poor reception is to just bring it back and swap it.

I already already replied in this thread about the test a ran between the iPhone 5S (which is sold now) and my GN3. Good Luck!

 

[emscapt47]

I'm on vzw and I was told it could be a sim issue...dunno....