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Replacement phone for 4G data drop, will it work?

rich6661

rich6661

Member
I got tired of the constant 4G data drops all over Socal. I called Verizon and they really wanted me to do a phone reset which I resisted.
The only way I could keep a data connection was to keep the phone on 3G.
But what's the point of paying for 4G and not being able to use it.
Verizon sent me a replacement and I am really, really hoping this phone can maintain a 4G data connection.
Fingers crossed, otherwise I might need to look into the Samsung III
 
All depends on whether it's just a spotty 4g network in your area that keeps dropping you down to 3g or if it's an issue with the phone. I can't say much more because I have never really seen my Bionic drop signal.
 
rich6661 said:
I got tired of the constant 4G data drops all over Socal. I called Verizon and they really wanted me to do a phone reset which I resisted.
The only way I could keep a data connection was to keep the phone on 3G.
But what's the point of paying for 4G and not being able to use it.
Verizon sent me a replacement and I am really, really hoping this phone can maintain a 4G data connection.
Fingers crossed, otherwise I might need to look into the Samsung III
Click to expand...

The data drop issue on 4G is not a Bionic problem, it is a network issue mixed probably with some of the software on Gingerbread. The 902 release had been stable, but just as 905 went to soak test, people in some areas, including myself, started seeing the drop issue again. It wasn't 905 as some were still on 902 and saw it. Verizon had to do something that caused it. Several articles have been written on how it seems to be how Verizon's towers authenticate the phones.

But the data drops were seen by all the 4G phones at one time or another. The Razr's and even the Nexus all had it. ICS seems to have cleared it up from people who have used the leaks. Since we are likely no more than a couple of weeks away from ICS, possibly days, I would wait to see how that does before you switch. You could switch to another 4G phone that has ICS, but they aren't likely to give you a Galaxy 3 for free, so you could be out money needlessly byt switching at this time.
 
rich6661 said:
I got tired of the constant 4G data drops all over Socal. I called Verizon and they really wanted me to do a phone reset which I resisted.

Verizon sent me a replacement and I am really, really hoping this phone can maintain a 4G data connection.
Fingers crossed, otherwise I might need to look into the Samsung III
Click to expand...

I'm confused. You did not do a FDR (Factory Data Reset) on your old phone but went to a new phone? Wasn't this even more severe than a FDR? Didn't you do a FDR on the new phone?

I would try the following steps on the old phone ...

A non-evasive reset ... with it powered on hold down volume up/volume down/power until the menu appears and then disappears.

Make sure the SD-ext and SIM cards are firmly and squarely seated. Dropping the Bionic can jar them loose.

Some people have found that replacing the SIM card helps. There seem to be some bad SIM cards floating around.

Wait for the ICS OTA to be released to you.

Do a Factory Data Reset.

Replace the Bionic.

... Thom
 
wildkitten said:
The data drop issue on 4G is not a Bionic problem, it is a network issue mixed probably with some of the software on Gingerbread. The 902 release had been stable, but just as 905 went to soak test, people in some areas, including myself, started seeing the drop issue again. It wasn't 905 as some were still on 902 and saw it. Verizon had to do something that caused it. Several articles have been written on how it seems to be how Verizon's towers authenticate the phones.

But the data drops were seen by all the 4G phones at one time or another. The Razr's and even the Nexus all had it. ICS seems to have cleared it up from people who have used the leaks. Since we are likely no more than a couple of weeks away from ICS, possibly days, I would wait to see how that does before you switch. You could switch to another 4G phone that has ICS, but they aren't likely to give you a Galaxy 3 for free, so you could be out money needlessly byt switching at this time.
Click to expand...

A couple days to a week away? Maybe I panicked to quickly but the data drops are incredibly inconvenient when they are this constant. Oh well.
Oh and I am aware that I'd have to pay for the Samsung myself, i'm just at the end of my rope with this.
 
Thom Little said:
I'm confused. You did not do a FDR (Factory Data Reset) on your old phone but went to a new phone? Wasn't this even more severe than a FDR? Didn't you do a FDR on the new phone?

I would try the following steps on the old phone ...

A non-evasive reset ... with it powered on hold down volume up/volume down/power until the menu appears and then disappears.

Make sure the SD-ext and SIM cards are firmly and squarely seated. Dropping the Bionic can jar them loose.

Some people have found that replacing the SIM card helps. There seem to be some bad SIM cards floating around.

Wait for the ICS OTA to be released to you.

Do a Factory Data Reset.

Replace the Bionic.

... Thom
Click to expand...

Yes Thom, I realize now that the FDR is more drastic but its done.

I've done the non-evasive reset countless times with no effect just as checking and resetting the SIM card.

I've read as much as I can and this was my last attempt short of the new anticipated OS update.
I'm hoping to see if the data connects ok next week with the new phone when I'm in a 4G region (I dont have 4G in my home town yet), since Verizon did suggest that my might "be "corrupted" somehow.

Fingers crossed and waiting......
 
Thom Little said:
Cards well seated? SIM card swap?

... Thom
Click to expand...

Yes cards were well seated.
No on the sim card swap though.
I'll know more and have more details after Tuesday or Wednesday because at that point it will either be the sim card or network.
BTW I wanted the phone swap before the warranty ran out to avoid a potentially costly cause.
 
A lot of trouble for a phone that nobody else seems to be having trouble with...My bet is, replacing it will NOT help as in MY OPINION, they are flawed. I'm hoping that ICS will fix it.
 
my story is almost exact carbon copy as yours. my 4g area is from Appleton to Chicago.
going to 905 hosed the works
sim card swapped
both resets
'new' rebuilt phone
same deal.

only thing is i regularly call and register a complaint so its documented.

hoping ICS fixes the issue.
 
DDave said:
A lot of trouble for a phone that nobody else seems to be having trouble with...My bet is, replacing it will NOT help as in MY OPINION, they are flawed. I'm hoping that ICS will fix it.
Click to expand...
I have seen you say the same thing in other threads, yet you seem to ignore that OTHER 4G phones have had the same problems.

This Is Why Your Verizon Galaxy Nexus (Or Other 4G LTE VZW Phone) Is Losing Its Data Connection

As you can see from the title, this clearly is not a Bionic only problem. ICS seems to have cleared things up, likely in conjunction with changes in the network in how the phones authenticate. The Bionic has not gotten ICS yet because of how flawed ICS was on the Razr. The Razr's are very similar to the Bionic, so they likely have not released ICS till they get the bugs fixed so we don't see them as well.
 
they replaced my phone with another bionic and it had the same problem. they changed the sim card and still had the drops. so then they changed the phone to the razr running ics and all data drops have gone away. the rep made the comment that a lot of people have called and had problems with the bionic.
 
sinned6915 said:
my story is almost exact carbon copy as yours. my 4g area is from Appleton to Chicago.
going to 905 hosed the works
sim card swapped
both resets
'new' rebuilt phone
same deal.

only thing is i regularly call and register a complaint so its documented.

hoping ICS fixes the issue.
Click to expand...

Amen sinned6915. I'm hoping for the same.
If as wildkitten says that Verizon is working out the bugs that were present for the Razr then let them so we can hopefully finally get a reliable product
 
rich6661 said:
I got tired of the constant 4G data drops all over Socal. I called Verizon and they really wanted me to do a phone reset which I resisted.
The only way I could keep a data connection was to keep the phone on 3G.
But what's the point of paying for 4G and not being able to use it.
Verizon sent me a replacement and I am really, really hoping this phone can maintain a 4G data connection.
Fingers crossed, otherwise I might need to look into the Samsung III
Click to expand...

Dude, if it's really that big of a problem for you, just flash leak. 232. It absolutely stops the drops and it's virtually identical to the official ics. I know this because I was messing around with my buddy's Galaxy S III & I really couldn't see any difference between his ics and my leaked ics.
 
wildkitten said:
I have seen you say the same thing in other threads, yet you seem to ignore that OTHER 4G phones have had the same problems.

This Is Why Your Verizon Galaxy Nexus (Or Other 4G LTE VZW Phone) Is Losing Its Data Connection

As you can see from the title, this clearly is not a Bionic only problem. ICS seems to have cleared things up, likely in conjunction with changes in the network in how the phones authenticate. The Bionic has not gotten ICS yet because of how flawed ICS was on the Razr. The Razr's are very similar to the Bionic, so they likely have not released ICS till they get the bugs fixed so we don't see them as well.
Click to expand...

;)

I have a work phone, same Verizon network sitting INCHES apart, from each other. On my desk, in my car, on my dresser, at a bar.

I look down at the screens, what do I see? Bionic.. no data... Samsung Galaxy works you see...

So I wonder how can this be? One droid bionic, two bionic,
Wifes has same problem and friend at work makes three.

Hoping ICS will fix it, keeping my fingers crossed. For if it doesnt, Out in the yard, it may get tossed..

;)
 
DDave said:
;)

I have a work phone, same Verizon network sitting INCHES apart, from each other. On my desk, in my car, on my dresser, at a bar.

I look down at the screens, what do I see? Bionic.. no data... Samsung Galaxy works you see...

So I wonder how can this be? One droid bionic, two bionic,
Wifes has same problem and friend at work makes three.

Hoping ICS will fix it, keeping my fingers crossed. For if it doesnt, Out in the yard, it may get tossed..

;)
Click to expand...

Yes, now. What's the difference? ICS. Seems Verizon has done something with how it authenticates or something else. We haven't had a software update in a while whereas the other phones have, though considering how bad the Razr's ICS release was, I'm glad they didn't force it on us in that buggy state.
 
DDave said:
What? No comment on the Cat in the Hat type of response???
Click to expand...

I thought it was funny.
happy_biggrin.png
 
Just by my experiences with my Bionic, I can say that exchanging phones did not help the problem. I as well live in So Cal and I've literally have gone through 4 phones, with the last 2 being new. Did everything possible to remedy without FDR our having them send a replacement as well; Sim card swap, soft/hard reset, battery swaps, etc. All failed unfortunately. I've since installed ICS leak .232 and have not had any concerns with data drops at all!
Sorry that you're struggling with your phone but I hope this helps...
 
Wow I apologize to everyone I ever doubted about the data drops. I had been on ICS leaks for a while now and had no issues. Recently I got a Nexus 7 and with the talk that official ICS will finally be out for Bionic this month, I thought screw it, I'm putting the Bionic back to stock just so I'm ready for the update whenever it comes out. I needed GPS directions the other day and it took forever to work. Then this morning I went to the post office really early and I wasn't sure if they were open yet so I tried to check the hours on my phone and couldn't connect to a damn thing. I've had my Bionic since Feb so I definitely was on 2.3 before until the ICS leaks starting coming out but I don't remember data ever being this bad. This morning was driving me crazy. One web page would load, then then the data would drop out again, come back, drop out again. I was ready to throw my phone. First thing I did when I got home was to download ICS 232 again and reinstall. ICS never acts like that with the data. So I think for those of you who tried multiple phones trying to get this problem to go away, ICS may be the real solution.
 
How many of you have Data Roaming enabled on GB? I'm wondering if that makes a difference. I had my Data Roaming turned off because when traveling overseas I want to control data usage on my other sim. However, it occured to me that maybe turning on data roaming will allow the phone to switch to a 3G CDMA network here in the US quicker and keep a connection. Anyway I'm going to try it, um as soon as I get back from Taipei and Jakarta next week and don't have to worry about eating through international data.
 
Good question Lars. Unfortunately I ran back to an ICS rom so quick that I can't check whether or not I had the data roaming turned on. If it is off by default then I probably had it turned off because I didn't mess with too many settings after switching back to stock GB.
 
Lars said:
How many of you have Data Roaming enabled on GB? I'm wondering if that makes a difference. I had my Data Roaming turned off because when traveling overseas I want to control data usage on my other sim. However, it occured to me that maybe turning on data roaming will allow the phone to switch to a 3G CDMA network here in the US quicker and keep a connection. Anyway I'm going to try it, um as soon as I get back from Taipei and Jakarta next week and don't have to worry about eating through international data.
Click to expand...

I had data roaming off and on with no difference unfortunately...
 
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