Samsung Galaxy S3 carrier signal bouncing up & down.

Nine_Lives

Is this an issue with the Galaxy S3?

On o2 we get a poor signal at home as it is, but there are certain spots at home where if i put my phone (iPhone 4S, previously 3GS) i can get a 2-3 bar signal.
My wife had a 3GS also but moved to a Galaxy S3. At the spots i'm getting 2-3 bars, she's getting about 1 maximum. Most of the time that little triangle for the signal is blank, but there isn't (repeat: isn't) the circle with the line through it.

So she seems to be getting worse than me slightly at home.

Then when out today she was using it & said it was bouncing between 1-2 bars & 3-4 bars all in the same location.

Is this an issue with the Galaxy S3? I've got until the weekend to decide whether i want to ditch my 4S & switch for an S3, but i don't want to be switching if it has known signal issues.

thegoodman

The S3 is known for problem with the signal.
The batter life vs signal power. You will also see that S3 do not work at places where iPhone did.

This is not to say S3 is a bad phone you will need to find new places for it to work. Try going close to the door or windows or try to keep one window little open.

I have S3 as a 2nd phone and in compare to iPhone, S3's signal is weaker at places.
Thinking of changing from S3 to Nexus 4 16gb, at that price you can't go wrong.

Nine_Lives

So you wasn't removed then. Nice to see you're not plugging the iPhone for a change.

I bought the 4S after toying with the idea of the S3. I'm still undecided (have until the weekend to make my mind up). I can always get bars at the window, but the wife struggles a bit with her S3.

In town is a different matter - she has no issue. It's only at our house, which has always been awful with o2.

The screen size is a major draw for me with the S3. I don't dislike the way the iPhone works, as i've had it for over 2 years, but when you've been playing with the S3, it's kinda hard to go back to the smaller screen of the iPhone.

Forwandert

I've had two S3's (I only changed as I had a white one and wanted the red version) I haven't had any signal issues with either that I am aware of apart from the two times the o2 network was down. To be fair though I don't sit there watching the signal bar, nobody has ever commented to say they couldn't get hold of me at any point and when I've needed to use the phone or internet it's worked fine usually H+ for internet. It may be the area your in or the signal bar operating differently between the two phones you are comparing. There isn't really a reason to expect two different phones with two different OS to have the exact same amount of bars of signal.

Rusty!

Phones signal indicators don't really compare with each other, different manufacturers will set different bars for different levels. 3 bars on one phone could actually be worse than one bar on another.

Is the SGS3's indicator covers a smaller range than you're used to, it would move about more (whether it does or not, I do not know).

The real question is whether this actually causes you a problem, is it just cosmetic, or do you miss calls/texts?

thegoodman

The signal problem is well reported for S3 on all networks when you cannot make or receive calls
Try to update the os.

Forwandert

thegoodman wrote: »

The signal problem is well reported for S3 on all networks when you cannot make or receive calls
Try to update the os.

You mention in your previous post you have this problem. Have you tried your own advice?

thegoodman

Forwandert wrote: »

You mention in your previous post you have this problem. Have you tried your own advice?

No, I have not updated the os. I use it more for play phone on Wifi so not that worried as long as apps work. Also planning to sell the S3 and get nexus 4 16GB for the same reason.

Nine_Lives

Yeah she updated to that jelly bean last week.
She's had it 3 weeks now. The signal is bouncing all over at her workplace which is actually a good area for an O2 signal.

I was looking into switching my 4S for an S3 as this weekend is my last chance to avoid additional cost.

There are some trade offs which I accept, however some apps I have on my iPhone are available on the android but when you read reviews they don't work.
For example - shazam encore. Doesn't seem to work on the s3 & is getting panned on the play store reviews.

What's the point in getting a powerful phone if you don't even know whether the apps are going to work or not. There was another app but I forget the name.

Shame.

thegoodman

K_P83 wrote: »

Yeah she updated to that jelly bean last week.
She's had it 3 weeks now. The signal is bouncing all over at her workplace which is actually a good area for an O2 signal.

I was looking into switching my 4S for an S3 as this weekend is my last chance to avoid additional cost.

There are some trade offs which I accept, however some apps I have on my iPhone are available on the android but when you read reviews they don't work.
For example - shazam encore. Doesn't seem to work on the s3 & is getting panned on the play store reviews.

What's the point in getting a powerful phone if you don't even know whether the apps are going to work or not. There was another app but I forget the name.

Shame.

I always advice people to check and play with phone first over a few days to make sure you are happy.
Make sure all apps you need work with your new phone.
The Android apps will have problems due to many size of screen, memory, power etc. I think all this will change over time once Google start to release phones via Motorola due to having control over hardware and software, like iPhones.
Until then ios will give you the less problems with the apps then Android.
This is the main reason I use iPhone as a main phone. When you update the Android OS you will see that some apps will stop working until app update is released. It took Sky around 4 months to make Sky Go work with the S3, far too long for me.
It is also worth looking into Windows Phones.
In the end buy what you think is correct not what others are saying. The public forums are never accurate, as most are fanboys of one OS and never have used the other but happy to make negative comments.

Guys_Dad

Goodman ! We were wondering where you had got to. Keeping your head down with all the problems of the new Iphone, including its reported tendency to download trillions of gigabytes updating the software and bankrupting those without unlimited data???????????

And as far as your quote "When you update the Android OS you will see that some apps will stop working until app update is released" I am still laughing. Maybe you used the Apple Iphone5 maps facility and that's why you were missing of late.

Well, look forward to reading more of your splendidly unbiased views in the run up to Christmas and beyond.