Let's run some tests
I've talked to a few helpful people in customer service, but unfortunately they don't seem to have access to much information about what is going on in this area. I think we can get an idea of what's going on here since we are all knowledgeable about the technology.
First, for a bit of background info...
I'm speculating that this is due to the Verizon and Alltel network integration. I was informed of the integration when I had a different but related issue calling certain numbers.
For those of you who don't know, the "800 MHz" Cellular coverage is divided into an A and B block. In Raleigh and most places West (except for a few parts of the mountains), Verizon had Cellular A block before the merger. East of Raleigh, US Cellular still controls the Cellular A block. In most parts of the state, except for some parts of the mountains, Alltel controlled the Cellular B block. There were (and still are) some exceptions.
After the merger, Verizon ended up keeping all of its Cellular A block licenses, and ended up with almost all of Alltel's Cellular B block licenses.
VZW and Alltel also had PCS licenses in most of the state, which helped to increase capacity, especially for EvDo, but that isn't particularly relevant for this discussion (yet).
Now, with that background information past us, if anyone is interested in helping out, please read on...
If you aren't in Wake, Durham, or Orange counties, there's no need to follow these instructions. They will not necessarily be accurate due to the above mentioned differences in licenses. If you are in range of a femtocell (network extender) or repeater, you will need to turn it off to get accurate results.
Don't use your Thunderbolt for these tests! Instead, use any old CDMA feature phone or smart phone, whether or not it is active on your account. These tests are not accurate for a 4G device. They could even cause problems with a 4G device, so be safe and don't even try it.
After reading the above warnings, do the following with a 3G smartphone or feature phone:
Post the results here. If you get a weaker signal on one vs. the other, this could be a contributing factor to your problems. If one of them works but the other won't connect, don't panic - that isn't a problem. If they both act the same, that is probably OK too.
I'm trying to figure out if they might still be in the middle of changing things around. The results of this test should not be considered conclusive, as we are still dealing with limited information, but will at least give some indication into what might be going on.
I've talked to a few helpful people in customer service, but unfortunately they don't seem to have access to much information about what is going on in this area. I think we can get an idea of what's going on here since we are all knowledgeable about the technology.
First, for a bit of background info...
I'm speculating that this is due to the Verizon and Alltel network integration. I was informed of the integration when I had a different but related issue calling certain numbers.
For those of you who don't know, the "800 MHz" Cellular coverage is divided into an A and B block. In Raleigh and most places West (except for a few parts of the mountains), Verizon had Cellular A block before the merger. East of Raleigh, US Cellular still controls the Cellular A block. In most parts of the state, except for some parts of the mountains, Alltel controlled the Cellular B block. There were (and still are) some exceptions.
After the merger, Verizon ended up keeping all of its Cellular A block licenses, and ended up with almost all of Alltel's Cellular B block licenses.
VZW and Alltel also had PCS licenses in most of the state, which helped to increase capacity, especially for EvDo, but that isn't particularly relevant for this discussion (yet).
Now, with that background information past us, if anyone is interested in helping out, please read on...
If you aren't in Wake, Durham, or Orange counties, there's no need to follow these instructions. They will not necessarily be accurate due to the above mentioned differences in licenses. If you are in range of a femtocell (network extender) or repeater, you will need to turn it off to get accurate results.
Don't use your Thunderbolt for these tests! Instead, use any old CDMA feature phone or smart phone, whether or not it is active on your account. These tests are not accurate for a 4G device. They could even cause problems with a 4G device, so be safe and don't even try it.
After reading the above warnings, do the following with a 3G smartphone or feature phone:
- Dial *22800 (forces your phone to connect to activation on Cellular A) then press Send
- Do not press any buttons
- Note whether or not the call connects
- Note the signal strength (if you know how to access the debug menus, also note the receive power in dBm)
- Hang up, do not try to activate or update
- Repeat the above steps once or twice just to make sure you get accurate results
- Dial *22801 (forces Cellular B), then Send, then note the behavior as stated previously
- Remember to power off your old phone to prevent any strange registration issues
- If the phone drops to no service, don't panic - it will come back on its own after a minute or two.
Post the results here. If you get a weaker signal on one vs. the other, this could be a contributing factor to your problems. If one of them works but the other won't connect, don't panic - that isn't a problem. If they both act the same, that is probably OK too.
I'm trying to figure out if they might still be in the middle of changing things around. The results of this test should not be considered conclusive, as we are still dealing with limited information, but will at least give some indication into what might be going on.
Last edited:
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