Will the Ultra S22 phone have better cell signal VS my Note 10+ via Verizon service?

[Casey Cheung]

I have Verizon as my cellular carrier. The one thing that irks the cr@p outta me is having spotty cell signal service in various spots in San Francisco. The worst is having barely 1 bar of signal strength inside my condo unit of a high rise building in the busy downtown area of San Francisco. Even when I'm inside a certain restaurant, I will have almost no signal. I have zero signal inside the elevator in my condo, which is probably to be expected. The only saving grace for me is that my Note 10+ has wifi calling, so I simply connect my Note 10+ phone to my home wifi router and that's the only way I can have reliable cell connection for phone calls, etc. Otherwise without home wifi, my Note 10+ phone has terrible signal inside my condo unit. I have complained to Verizon in person about this issue, and even tried swapping out a new SIM card, but nothing helped. My question is whether the new Ultra 22 with its 5G signal will have better cell connection while I'm inside my high rise condo unit. I realize this question is based on speculation and nothing is certain until I receive my new Ultra 22 phone. Just wondering if anyone has also experienced this problem and hopefully the new Ultra 22 phone with its 5G signal will be the solution?

 

[donm527]

No one has a phone in hand so any answer you get would be speculation and who knows if consistent between carriers because each use different bandwidths at times. But for reading...

https://www.pcmag.com/news/exclusive-samsungs-galaxy-s22-is-a-low-signal-beast

 

[illdini]

I believe signal is dependent on your carrier's 5G UW rollout. From what I can tell on Verizon's website, it also depends on your plan. Here is a map:

https://forums.androidcentral.com/e.../www.verizon.com/coverage-map/&token=EPSCOrs0

 

[Casey Cheung]

No one has a phone in hand so any answer you get would be speculation and who knows if consistent between carriers because each use different bandwidths at times. But for reading...

https://www.pcmag.com/news/exclusive-samsungs-galaxy-s22-is-a-low-signal-beast

Thank you for the interesting article link, I found it insightful!

 

[Casey Cheung]

I believe signal is dependent on your carrier's 5G UW rollout. From what I can tell on Verizon's website, it also depends on your plan. Here is a map:

https://forums.androidcentral.com/e.../www.verizon.com/coverage-map/&token=G2g6yAZH

Thank you for the link! I went to a Verizon store and the rep says they have 2 different 5G plans. One is the lower and slower 5G plan and the other is the much faster speed. I have the faster speed plan!

 

[L0n3N1nja]

Unless things have changed since 2016, the antenna signal strength is regulated and the same on all phones, only difference is the placement of said antenna in phone. In 5 years I saw virtually no difference in signal strength between models, I've no reason to believe the S22 would get any better signal.

I may be wrong and I doubt anyone will actually know prior to the phone shipping.

 

[Mike Dee]

Thank you for the link! I went to a Verizon store and the rep says they have 2 different 5G plans. One is the lower and slower 5G plan and the other is the much faster speed. I have the faster speed plan!

I was not aware that they started selling 2 different speed 5G plans, however it's only faster in any area where Ultra Wide Band is available. UWB is not available in most places.

 

[Casey Cheung]

I was not aware that they started selling 2 different speed 5G plans, however it's only faster in any area where Ultra Wide Band is available. UWB is not available in most places.

I should probably clarify by saying the Verizon store sales rep said they have 2 different 5G speeds. I recall the rep using the word "ultra" for the faster 5G speed at a higher price. But if I didn't sign up for that optional higher plan, then I would default to their standard slower 5G speed. I'm not sure if that clarified anything.

 

[Mike Dee]

I should probably clarify by saying the Verizon store sales rep said they have 2 different 5G speeds. I recall the rep using the word "ultra" for the faster 5G speed at a higher price. But if I didn't sign up for that optional higher plan, then I would default to their standard slower 5G speed. I'm not sure if that clarified anything.

My plan includes both, however UWB is not readily available in most areas.

 

[anon(40376)]

Unless things have changed since 2016, the antenna signal strength is regulated and the same on all phones, only difference is the placement of said antenna in phone. In 5 years I saw virtually no difference in signal strength between models, I've no reason to believe the S22 would get any better signal.

I may be wrong and I doubt anyone will actually know prior to the phone shipping.

True, until the phone is received and used in the areas of question, no one will know. However, there is a lot more to the reception than the antennas and antennas' placement. The modem used in the phone is a major determination of the phone's capability of receiving and converting the signal for use. And from what I have read, the newer X65 Qualcomm used in this phone is supposed to be a lot better than the previous X60 and other modems used by other manufacturers. But time will tell.

And yes, power is regulated, in the USA per FCC regulations to a max SAR reading that normally relates to 0.6 watts for hand held phones, and 3 watts for non-hand held such as Onstar and other vehicle mounted phone systems. (NOTE: Just to clear up what I stated. It is per Federal Communications Commission that sets the regulations on communication devices sold in the United States. Other countries produce their own regulations and might be the same, allow a higher or lower wattage. I'm going to guess; all would be very close; but heck if I know.)

 

[Casey Cheung]

UPDATE: I can positively confirm that my new S22 Ultra phone on Verizon has a MUUUUUCCCHH better cell signal for making outgoing calls and receiving incoming calls inside my high rise condo building near downtown San Francisco. In fact, I no longer have to rely on using "WIFI Calling" feature that I had to do with my old Note 10+ phone. My S22 Ultra phone has a good cell signal even with-OUT having to connect to my home wifi router. I am finally happy with my Verizon signal whereas it was ****-poor spotty with my Note 10+ phone. So this one huuuuge improvement for cell phone signal is worth the price of admission for buying this new S22 Ultra phone!

 

[anon(40376)]

I can concur the signal is a lot better on this S22 vs. the Pixel 4XL it is replacing. Going from (on average) -110 to -120 dBm on the Pixel 4XL to (on average) -80 to -96 on the S22U.