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From: mpm on 11 Jul 2010 22:01
On Jul 11, 7:52 pm, Joerg <inva...(a)invalid.invalid> wrote:
> mpm wrote:
> > On Jul 11, 9:57 am, Joerg <inva...(a)invalid.invalid> wrote:
> >> Gents,
>
> >> My trusty old Nokia 2115i only gets one and very occasionally two bars..
> >> It does connect but calls fail. Can't get a new one before the next trip
> >> because it needs to be sent from VirginMobile and the local stores don't
> >> have any that would work. Is there some "typical" problem that happens
> >> with such phones, like bad solder joints?
>
> >> Or are there any issues with the Sprint network these days? That's what
> >> it uses.
>
> >> --
> >> Regards, Joerg
>
> >>http://www.analogconsultants.com/
>
> >> "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
> >> Use another domain or send PM.
>
> > Couple ideas to try:
>
> > Can you put the phone in "test mode"?
> >http://www.wpsantennas.com/pdf/testmode/FieldTestModes.pdf
>
> Thanks, cool! I always wanted a real signal strength indicator instead
> of those stupid bars. But I am going to try that after a slew of
> upcoming biz trips are over. Don't want to brick the phone a day before
> leaving town :-)
>
> > Maybe you can reset it, or find the RSSI (signal strength) screen and
> > do some experiments.
> > Go outside, find a nearby Sprint tower, etc...  See if it's really the
> > phone, or maybe Sprint has made some recent changes to the network,
> > and now you're sitting in a coverage black hole.?
>
> > If the latter, the phone should still operate normally at other
> > locations (i.e., where Sprint has not made any network changes).
>
> Well, I did that today. Turns out south of Hwy 50 I can get a signal and
> can call out on the cell phone. Not sure if the same signal strength
> though, can't remember how it was before.
>
> > Now of course, I have no idea if Sprint did any cell splitting, or any
> > other maintenance work (i.e., antenna downtilts, replacement of
> > defective antennas, water in the coax, etc., etc..,) that may have led
> > to your troubles...
> > There are many things that can go wrong.  (Even bad passive
> > intermodulation as things on the tower vibrate in the wind!)...
>
> Coincidentally we did get a smart-meter installed right around the time
> this happened. Didn't want it but PG&E foists them onto people around
> here. It's either take it or lose power. But AFAIK those work on 900MHz.
>
>
>
>
>
> > The point is, most (if not all) of those things will be localized to a
> > given tower, not the whole network.  Move, and the problem should NOT
> > move with you, if the culprit is a particular tower in the network.
>
> > And of course, we're just talking the RF path here, but that seems
> > reasonable since you mentioned an apparent reduction in the number of
> > bars you see.
> > An actual RSSI reading from the phone would prove much more
> > informative, but I'm not familiar with your particular handset.
>
> > If you happen to live in one of the areas where Sprint is rolling out
> > its 4G network, you can bet workers were on the towers recently.
> > Perhaps something got damaged or dislodged.  Happens all the time.
>
> > Or, hey, it's an old phone.  It's certainly possible its receiver is
> > kaput.
>
> > Good luck!!
>
> Thanks. At least it seems to work when far away from home. But old? One
> of my radios here is older than I am and still works. So does a fridge
> that's well over half a century old.
>
> --
> Regards, Joerg
>
> http://www.analogconsultants.com/
>
> "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
> Use another domain or send PM.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

I would wager a fridge doesn't fall out of your pocket as
often.... :)

Back in the 20's (maybe the early 30's?), my grandfather had this
brilliant idea to open a Frigidaire store in rural Mississippi.
Unfortunatly, he soon discovered most of his would-be customers didn't
have electricity!!!

Still, he sold quite a few to be used as (better insulated?) ice
boxes.

From: Joerg on 12 Jul 2010 11:57
Joel Koltner wrote:
> "Joerg" <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote in message
> news:89v6osFn4pU1(a)mid.individual.net...
>> Joel Koltner wrote:
>>> Joerg wrote:
>>>> Ok, I don't know the cell phone carriers in Canada but what would you
>>>> do with an unlocked phone in the US?
>>> 1: Take it to other countries with you, swap the SIM card...
>> If you have a pricey tri-band phone.
>
> Yes, although "pricey" is kinda relative... you can get some very nice
> tri- or quad-bnad phones in the $100-$300 range used, for instance --
> and for people already paying, e.g., $50-$100/mo for fancy "all you can
> eat" voice/text/data/etc. plans, the handset isn't a particularly
> significant cost.
>

Ok, in that cost range it really doesn't matter. For this kind of money
you can even buy a new one:

http://www.amazon.com/LG-KF350-Unlocked-Tri-Band-Bluetooth-International/dp/B002C73XJY


>> Mine is CDMA-only. In the US low-minute users like me don't have much of
>> a choice. AFAIK when you need voice-only there are only T-Mobile and
>> AT&T with major GSM networks and when I inquired their pre-paid deals
>> didn't quite stack up.
>
> When this was last discussed I seem to recall the deal was that even the
> least expensive prepaid plans had you ponying up >=$10/mo... whereas
> you're currently paying $5/mo, is it?
>

$15 every 90 days to be exact. That includes any and all fees, taxes and
whatnot. This amount buys 83.3 airtime minutes. Which I typically do not
use up so they have piled up over the years. They don't expire if you
keep the account active.


>> How's that for ditching the landline: A neighbor signed on the dotted
>> line, IIRC that locked him in for two years, then found out that GSM at
>> his house is between zero bars and one bar. Like what I have now. He had
>> to mount a yagi on his roof so now he has a cell phone with a cord.
>
> Most carriers at least give you a week or so grace period -- that's
> pretty poor that he was locked in immediately.
>

I think that was in the days before CA mandated a 30-day back-out. Most
business people then keep the service anyhow because it ties into all
sorts of other features they need, or think they need.


> I was in a comparable situation when I moved from Albany to Corvallis
> some years ago, but since I was already something around a year into a
> two-year contract, there was no grace for me.
>
> Although I ended up being OK with just a dipole rather than needing a
> Yagi -- a lot of the problem apparently was just foil insulation in the
> walls. (It was a rental.)
>

We have the same problem. Foil-backed insulation even in inner walls.


>> I wonder, for voice-dialing does the phone then switch between Kiwi
>> accent and north-western? :-)
>
> No, but the voicemail systems do! :-)
>

In Europe I had a bilingual answering system. Had to. The voice in
English had a distinct accent where a German-speaker could immediately
pinpoint the originator to be from the city of Duesseldorf.

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

"gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
Use another domain or send PM.
From: Joerg on 12 Jul 2010 12:20
mpm wrote:
> On Jul 11, 7:52 pm, Joerg <inva...(a)invalid.invalid> wrote:
>> mpm wrote:
>>> On Jul 11, 9:57 am, Joerg <inva...(a)invalid.invalid> wrote:
>>>> Gents,
>>>> My trusty old Nokia 2115i only gets one and very occasionally two bars.
>>>> It does connect but calls fail. Can't get a new one before the next trip
>>>> because it needs to be sent from VirginMobile and the local stores don't
>>>> have any that would work. Is there some "typical" problem that happens
>>>> with such phones, like bad solder joints?
>>>> Or are there any issues with the Sprint network these days? That's what
>>>> it uses.
>>>> --
>>>> Regards, Joerg
>>>> http://www.analogconsultants.com/
>>>> "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
>>>> Use another domain or send PM.
>>> Couple ideas to try:
>>> Can you put the phone in "test mode"?
>>> http://www.wpsantennas.com/pdf/testmode/FieldTestModes.pdf
>> Thanks, cool! I always wanted a real signal strength indicator instead
>> of those stupid bars. But I am going to try that after a slew of
>> upcoming biz trips are over. Don't want to brick the phone a day before
>> leaving town :-)
>>
>>> Maybe you can reset it, or find the RSSI (signal strength) screen and
>>> do some experiments.
>>> Go outside, find a nearby Sprint tower, etc... See if it's really the
>>> phone, or maybe Sprint has made some recent changes to the network,
>>> and now you're sitting in a coverage black hole.?
>>> If the latter, the phone should still operate normally at other
>>> locations (i.e., where Sprint has not made any network changes).
>> Well, I did that today. Turns out south of Hwy 50 I can get a signal and
>> can call out on the cell phone. Not sure if the same signal strength
>> though, can't remember how it was before.
>>
>>> Now of course, I have no idea if Sprint did any cell splitting, or any
>>> other maintenance work (i.e., antenna downtilts, replacement of
>>> defective antennas, water in the coax, etc., etc..,) that may have led
>>> to your troubles...
>>> There are many things that can go wrong. (Even bad passive
>>> intermodulation as things on the tower vibrate in the wind!)...
>> Coincidentally we did get a smart-meter installed right around the time
>> this happened. Didn't want it but PG&E foists them onto people around
>> here. It's either take it or lose power. But AFAIK those work on 900MHz.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>> The point is, most (if not all) of those things will be localized to a
>>> given tower, not the whole network. Move, and the problem should NOT
>>> move with you, if the culprit is a particular tower in the network.
>>> And of course, we're just talking the RF path here, but that seems
>>> reasonable since you mentioned an apparent reduction in the number of
>>> bars you see.
>>> An actual RSSI reading from the phone would prove much more
>>> informative, but I'm not familiar with your particular handset.
>>> If you happen to live in one of the areas where Sprint is rolling out
>>> its 4G network, you can bet workers were on the towers recently.
>>> Perhaps something got damaged or dislodged. Happens all the time.
>>> Or, hey, it's an old phone. It's certainly possible its receiver is
>>> kaput.
>>> Good luck!!
>> Thanks. At least it seems to work when far away from home. But old? One
>> of my radios here is older than I am and still works. So does a fridge
>> that's well over half a century old.
>>
>> --
>> Regards, Joerg
>>
>> http://www.analogconsultants.com/
>>
>> "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
>> Use another domain or send PM.- Hide quoted text -
>>
>> - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -
>>
>> - Show quoted text -
>
> I would wager a fridge doesn't fall out of your pocket as
> often.... :)
>

This fridge made a rather rough Atlantic crossing, lots of stuff in the
container got crushed. My cell phone never fell out of the pocket
either, I use a small and sturdy tool pouch to hold it :-)


> Back in the 20's (maybe the early 30's?), my grandfather had this
> brilliant idea to open a Frigidaire store in rural Mississippi.
> Unfortunatly, he soon discovered most of his would-be customers didn't
> have electricity!!!
>

Whoops, minor problem there ...


> Still, he sold quite a few to be used as (better insulated?) ice
> boxes.
>

That's the American spirit, to make the best out of it!

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

"gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
Use another domain or send PM.
From: Joerg on 12 Jul 2010 12:36
Spehro Pefhany wrote:
> On Sun, 11 Jul 2010 07:57:20 -0700, the renowned Joerg
> <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote:
>
>> Gents,
>>
>> My trusty old Nokia 2115i only gets one and very occasionally two bars.
>> It does connect but calls fail. Can't get a new one before the next trip
>> because it needs to be sent from VirginMobile and the local stores don't
>> have any that would work. Is there some "typical" problem that happens
>> with such phones, like bad solder joints?
>
> Is there an antenna connector you could try an external antenna on?
>

Yeah, but I don't really want to go that far. Looks like one or more
towers are out or have somehow deteriorated. I am going to call them,
some time, but no high hopes there. The web site says "no problems"
(like usual ...) and their feedback form bounces (very typical with
utilities of any kind).

>
> I like their chutzpah with this:
> https://www.mobilizenow.com/catalog/Nokia_2115i_Antennas_694519.htm
>
> So the question is, do these things really work? Well, they do in fact
> help in areas where the signal is existent but weak. Not recommended
> in areas where no signal at all exists.
>
> ;-)
>

If they'd work in areas where no signal exists, now that would be a
major Nobel prize type of achievement :-)

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

"gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
Use another domain or send PM.
From: Charlie E. on 12 Jul 2010 14:22
On Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:57:39 -0700, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid>
wrote:

>Joel Koltner wrote:
>> "Joerg" <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote in message
>> news:89v6osFn4pU1(a)mid.individual.net...
>>> Joel Koltner wrote:
>>>> Joerg wrote:
>>>>> Ok, I don't know the cell phone carriers in Canada but what would you
>>>>> do with an unlocked phone in the US?
>>>> 1: Take it to other countries with you, swap the SIM card...
>>> If you have a pricey tri-band phone.
>>
>> Yes, although "pricey" is kinda relative... you can get some very nice
>> tri- or quad-bnad phones in the $100-$300 range used, for instance --
>> and for people already paying, e.g., $50-$100/mo for fancy "all you can
>> eat" voice/text/data/etc. plans, the handset isn't a particularly
>> significant cost.
>>
>
>Ok, in that cost range it really doesn't matter. For this kind of money
>you can even buy a new one:
>
>http://www.amazon.com/LG-KF350-Unlocked-Tri-Band-Bluetooth-International/dp/B002C73XJY
>
>
>>> Mine is CDMA-only. In the US low-minute users like me don't have much of
>>> a choice. AFAIK when you need voice-only there are only T-Mobile and
>>> AT&T with major GSM networks and when I inquired their pre-paid deals
>>> didn't quite stack up.
>>
>> When this was last discussed I seem to recall the deal was that even the
>> least expensive prepaid plans had you ponying up >=$10/mo... whereas
>> you're currently paying $5/mo, is it?
>>
>
>$15 every 90 days to be exact. That includes any and all fees, taxes and
>whatnot. This amount buys 83.3 airtime minutes. Which I typically do not
>use up so they have piled up over the years. They don't expire if you
>keep the account active.
>
>
>>> How's that for ditching the landline: A neighbor signed on the dotted
>>> line, IIRC that locked him in for two years, then found out that GSM at
>>> his house is between zero bars and one bar. Like what I have now. He had
>>> to mount a yagi on his roof so now he has a cell phone with a cord.
>>
>> Most carriers at least give you a week or so grace period -- that's
>> pretty poor that he was locked in immediately.
>>
>
>I think that was in the days before CA mandated a 30-day back-out. Most
>business people then keep the service anyhow because it ties into all
>sorts of other features they need, or think they need.
>
>
>> I was in a comparable situation when I moved from Albany to Corvallis
>> some years ago, but since I was already something around a year into a
>> two-year contract, there was no grace for me.
>>
>> Although I ended up being OK with just a dipole rather than needing a
>> Yagi -- a lot of the problem apparently was just foil insulation in the
>> walls. (It was a rental.)
>>
>
>We have the same problem. Foil-backed insulation even in inner walls.
>
>
>>> I wonder, for voice-dialing does the phone then switch between Kiwi
>>> accent and north-western? :-)
>>
>> No, but the voicemail systems do! :-)
>>
>
>In Europe I had a bilingual answering system. Had to. The voice in
>English had a distinct accent where a German-speaker could immediately
>pinpoint the originator to be from the city of Duesseldorf.

Joerg,
Don't you have a Radio Shack within driving distance? You should be
able to get a new phone there for $20 and have it added to your old
account immediately?

Ok, they have a bare bones for just $10!

Charlie
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