Signal weaker than iPhone?

[farocco]

Hello, I notice that my unlocked pixel 7 on Verizon shows no signal offen, and my iPhone shows 3 bars.

I read on here from mustang to change 5g to LTE. I haven’t tried it yet.

Is the modem that much worse than iPhone?

 

[Krolt]

While my P 7 Pro is fine, both the 5G and WIFI signals were slightly better on my previous phone (Oneplus 8t) I think it's still quite an old Samsung? modem?

It's still fine and my favourite phone since my Moto x 2014 with leather back (last phone I used bare!)

 

[farocco]

Thanks for sharing, I am not finding similar results compared to my iphone. While driving, signal drops a lot more than my iphone.
I was wondering if because I have the unlocked version and not the 100.00 more verizon version.
Not sure if there is a difference.

 

[Krolt]

some people find turning off the 'Adaptive Connectivity' found under the 'Network & Internet' section of settings helps.
Mine is turned on, and it is by default, no idea what it does!

 

[Krolt]

" extends battery life and improves device performance by automatically managing your network connections"

 

[mgbosshogg]

Whilst drastically improved over the shocking 6 modem, the 7 is still weak for me. ( Tested against my iPhone 13 / S22U )


Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using AC Forums mobile app

 

[No_autorizado]

Not seeing any signal drops on my unit.

 

[sicario666]

I've actually seen increased strength on my pixel 7 pro over my iPhone 11 pro

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[davedigital]

I have no issues with my Pixel 7 Pro and its connectivity at all. My wife has an iPhone 13 Pro Max and the same provider as me (o2 Germany) and in most cases it has (the iPhone) really many issues with it. In our living room, sometimes it cannot find network from the provider and in some areas it has 4G where my Pixel has 5G.

 

[msm0511]

My 7 Pro has better signal and faster speeds overall compared to my iPhone 14 Pro. Neither beats the speeds I get with my Fold 4 though.

 

[farocco]

Hmm, Verizon had a hard time activating.

Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk

 

[PGrey]

Hmm, Verizon had a hard time activating.

Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk

That may be true (likely a particular VZW agent issue, I bet), but the VZW version of the phone only has additional high frequency support, which is only relevant in a teeny-tiny number of places (like a set of blocks in certain cities, and even then things have to be pretty specific), it's more about VERY high-density usage, where these "towers" (not really the right term, but same principle, really more like Femtocell units) are present, dozens on a block even, say for a high-rise, or similar with a LOT of concurrent users.
It'd be unusual to have these areas not be covered by mid-band 5G as well and/or solid 4G/LTE, as well, almost unheard of, at this stage of deployment, since many users depend on 4G/LTE (3G just sunsetted over the past couple of years, for most US carriers anyway), it'll be quite a few years before 4G/LTE coverage starts to lag, IMO, based on 2G/3G history.
How VZW decides to connect to different signal-tower thresholds, based on relative signal strength vs bandwidth is their call, as part of their provisioning (and can change, periodically).
My P7Pro performs vastly better, in terms of signal strength/quality in a few areas I've tracked, than my OnePlus 9Pro that it replaced. My daughter has an iPhone 13, and honestly I can't think of a time that either of has noticed significantly better signal quality.
No question, some phones do a better job with antenna setups, or have a bit better chipsets, but at this end of the spectrum of phone quality, and current times, I'd be interested to see some sort of "survey comparison", something reviewers almost never do, for a whole variety of reasons...

 

[farocco]

Thanks fro the deal reply, I agree the verizon agent seemed confused on how to activate my pixel. I guess the signal issue is not a deal breaker for me, but just noted that whenever I see no signal, my iphone shows 2/3 bars. It only lasts less than a minute.

i'm sorry I got talked into getting the iphone and locking into verizon for another 3 years.
I plan on using the pixel as my primary phone and iphone with apple card for purchases.

Now I am trying to decide on the pixel watch or apple watch (70.00 off at best buy for series 8)
I would mostly track my walking and sleep.

 

[pchain]

I have also noticed weaker signal strength and more dropped calls on my unlocked Pixel 7 Pro on Verizon than my previous Samsung S10 Plus. Sitting at my desk at home sometimes I cannot get any signal at all whereas previous phones had reception.

I'm not too pleased with this situation but otherwise love the phone. I may have to move on to the S23 Ultra as a result of this issue unfortunately.

 

[diesel97]

Thanks fro the deal reply, I agree the verizon agent seemed confused on how to activate my pixel. I guess the signal issue is not a deal breaker for me, but just noted that whenever I see no signal, my iphone shows 2/3 bars. It only lasts less than a minute.

i'm sorry I got talked into getting the iphone and locking into verizon for another 3 years.
I plan on using the pixel as my primary phone and iphone with apple card for purchases.

Now I am trying to decide on the pixel watch or apple watch (70.00 off at best buy for series 8)
I would mostly track my walking and sleep.

Try going into the network settings and find the actual db( I think that's measurement), not sure if I trust those little bars in the top right all that much.

 

[PGrey]

Yep, "bars" are not a great way to track signal, in general, and there's no standard for them, the OEM/OS makes the call as to these thresholds.
A bar can mean anything, from say a 20-25% threshold per, to say a 40-100% range, with 10-15% variations, it's a pretty blunt way to actually track signal values, in any appreciable way.
There's a handy little app called "Network Cell Info Lite" (I have zero affiliation, and the Lite-free version works fine for most functionality like this), that will ,let you walk/drive/whatever around, and watch the precise dBm values, to get a real idea about signal strength.

There's a mode that will track it as well, but it's pretty tough on the battery-life, IME.
As such, make sure to use the actual "stop" setting on the app (little international power standard icon, upper right) when you're done, or it'll churn away in the background, again, that pesky battery issue.
I've used this for quite some years now, to precisely determine the actual values, and to-boot it can help you tune a WiFi system as well, particularly if you have multiple APs, or similar (there are better apps for this, but the basic functionality in the WiFi side works fairly well for basic tuning).

 

[farocco]

Try going into the network settings and find the actual db( I think that's measurement), not sure if I trust those little bars in the top right all that much.

I tried, but am unable to find it, i also have wifi calling enabled.

 

[PGrey]

I tried, but am unable to find it, i also have wifi calling enabled.

It's under Settings -> About phone -> SIM Status (1 or 2, depending), that gives you basic dBm values, semi-updated (it times out after a bit).

Or, you can use the handy app I mentioned, your call: https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...com.wilysis.cellinfolite&hl=en&token=5-mqliMl

Wifi-calling really isn't a factor here. If your phone can use WiFi to make calls and do SMS-over-WiFi, that's great, but it's got not (much, obviously some handoff, radio-balancing, depending on if you have a mobile signal at all) an indication of your relative mobile radio signal.

 

[ras47]

Thanks fro the deal reply, I agree the verizon agent seemed confused on how to activate my pixel. I guess the signal issue is not a deal breaker for me, but just noted that whenever I see no signal, my iphone shows 2/3 bars. It only lasts less than a minute.

i'm sorry I got talked into getting the iphone and locking into verizon for another 3 years.
I plan on using the pixel as my primary phone and iphone with apple card for purchases.

Now I am trying to decide on the pixel watch or apple watch (70.00 off at best buy for series 8)
I would mostly track my walking and sleep.

As a smartwatch/tracker I use a Fitbit Sense with Android.

Basic timekeeping
Sleep tracking
Exercise tracking
Heart monitor
Phone notifications on my wrist
Weather

Battery life is outstanding - 3+ days on a single charge. And it's convenient to get email/text alerts on my wrist for all the time during work when my phone is tucked away in my pocket.

When I'm using my iPhone I also use an Apple Watch. But with my Pixel 5 running Android 13 the Fitbit has better integration.