Cellular version vs Wi-Fi w/ 3G Dongle - Nexus 7 (2013) Accessories

Hey guys, couldn't find anything on google.
Could any of you give me some information regarding this?
I'm wondering whether to buy the LTE version or just get the non-LTE and use a 3g Dongle. Which one would have a better signal reception? ( I would most likely buy a huawei 3g dongle)
By the way, I am installing this in my car so having a good signal is paramount. Also, we don't have to worry about the 3g dongle being an obstructive addon as everything will be hidden behind the middle compartment.
I have a Nexus 7 2012 installed atm and GPS loses it's signal when I enter the city with buildings everywhere.
So hence I don't want to experience the same thing with my new nexus upgrade.
Any ideas or suggestions to my new upgrade would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Jim.

You'll lose gps no matter what. Buildings are always an issue. Happens all the time. Better to plan your route turn by turn and look at the list as you go.
Now what you could do is possibly try an external bluetooth gps puck and see if that has any impact?
As far as reception goes it depends on where you're at and what your coverage is like. You'll always have better luck with a mifi and an external antenna. The nexus non lte is much cheaper too. But either choice won't change your GPS troubles.
Sent from my LG-VS985 adorned w/ Illusion ROM

Related

[Q] WiMax repeater?

Folks....
I have read that Radio Shack has some WiMAX repeaters installed before the HTC EVO was rolled out. Anyone here know the make and model number of this repeater? Why is it that we can not buy WiMAX repeaters? You can buy repeaters for 3G. They are all over the place. Some in home units to units that have a big external antenna.
Where I live in Portland Oregon my WiMAX reception in my yard, outside is "fair". If I walk about a block, it quickly turns to good, then excellent. However when I am inside, my WiMAX reception is "poor". I would think by now smart phone WiMAX repeaters would be off the shelf. Is this a legal issue, or has no one developed a repeater for home/business owners?
htc evo owner.
Thanks
jack
+1 on this. But I think they were micro cells and not repeaters.
EVO Sent
The only way this would be necessary is if you think your home network would be to "slow" and you had to use Wimax as the speedier alternative...
as soon as I walk into my house I connect to wifi and have great speeds and save tons of battery life by having a strong consistent signal.
Tuffgong4 said:
The only way this would be necessary is if you think your home network would be to "slow" and you had to use Wimax as the speedier alternative...
as soon as I walk into my house I connect to wifi and have great speeds and save tons of battery life by having a strong consistent signal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe he meant to use his wimax connection for tethering and the like. If you dont have a home connection, thats why you need a repeater.
It doesnt make sense to use a microcell (i.e. your home internet) to generate a wimax signal (wimax uses so much more battery that its crazy) instead of just hooking up to wifi to begin with.
i'd LOVE to stick a wimax repeater in my car... then all that's left is VPN to my home network and cifs mount my music & video library so apps can natively access them... say hello to my new flawless 2TB-music-and-video-filled Evo machine
might as well mount a small tablet-size lcd in the dashboard and play movies through the HDMI and wiring audio to in-car sound
WiMax repeater?
gtkansan said:
I believe he meant to use his wimax connection for tethering and the like. If you dont have a home connection, thats why you need a repeater.
It doesn't make sense to use a microcell (i.e. your home internet) to generate a wimax signal (wimax uses so much more battery that its crazy) instead of just hooking up to wifi to begin with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No Wifi where I am. It is just the htc evo and a laptop. The sprint map says I am in the best area I can be in. But my phone calls it "fair" outside and "poor" inside.
I called it a repeater, but you can use words like booster, microcell, amplifer, etc.
What I am looking for is something that is common and off the shelf in the 3G world. Some of the 3G repeaters (use you own word here) are small self contained units with a built in antenna. And some can take a external antenna mounted on the roof and RG6 running to the repeater. They come in all sizes and ranges and cost.
I can find correct antennas for 802.16e (2100 -2700Mhz - same as 2.5 -2.7Ghz), but I can not find any WiMax repeaters/amps/boosters, etc. Is it a legal thing? I would think that this stuff would be available.
Anyway, if any one can point me to a unit I would appreciate it. If you know why none seem to being available, maybe you can fill me in.
Thanks everyone for the good info and feedback.
jack
http://www.now-tel.com/eng/product/sub_01.asp
http://www.alibaba.com/showroom/wimax-repeater.html
I go into work on Friday and will take a picture of our WiMAX repeater. They aren't really designed for residential use.
repeater
aimbdd said:
http://www.now-tel.com/eng/product/sub_01.asp
http://www.alibaba.com/showroom/wimax-repeater.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What a huge list. All in China or Korea. I have shot off some emails. I'll report back what I find. I hope they do not make me buy 20 of them. I only need one.
jack
mraroid said:
What a huge list. All in China or Korea. I have shot off some emails. I'll report back what I find. I hope they do not make me buy 20 of them. I only need one.
jack
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hopefully they can help out.

[Q] Is anyone finding the wi-fi range on their Galaxy Nexus.. lacklustre?

It seems like the wifi range on my Nexus just doesn't hold up. Here's (attached) a shot I just took of my Galaxy Nexus and another of my iPhone4 in the exact same spot at the exact-ish same time.
The router is on the other side of the house, and while the iPhone4 and my Macbook (which i'm typing this on right now in the same spot, connected) pretty consistently stay at one or two bars at the very least, the Galaxy Nexus has a noticeable/distinct lack of ability to keep a consistent signal, and struggles to do so.
Every Samsung phone I've ever owned has this issue.
My work iPhone 4 works on the 3rd floor of my house (router in basement) with full bars whereas the Samsungs (GNEX included) barely connect.
Very frustrating as I like to use wifi to save carrier data. Oh well. At least I have unlimited data, so I stream away via 3g.
mine doesnt do as well as my motorolas and nokias but it still holds it own. The bars are not as indicative for me because even when showing no bars i have had a reliable connection.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Actually I find it just cuts out continuously. I turned off "avoid poor connections" but that didn't make a noticable difference. It connects and reconnects all the time.
You can watch when i download a game it will hang for a few minutes then start the transfer or continue it again.
ericshmerick said:
Every Samsung phone I've ever owned has this issue.
My work iPhone 4 works on the 3rd floor of my house (router in basement) with full bars whereas the Samsungs (GNEX included) barely connect.
Very frustrating as I like to use wifi to save carrier data. Oh well. At least I have unlimited data, so I stream away via 3g.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Aggravating. Anyone know if the SGSII is the same way?
Do any of you guys know if the wifi strength is an improvement over the nexus s?
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium
Carne_Asada_Fries said:
Do any of you guys know if the wifi strength is an improvement over the nexus s?
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a downgrade from GSII as far as I know.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
I am following this thread with great interest.
I have Motorola Razr and for me the WiFi reception is appalling.
It can only just see my home network.
To compare my three year old HTC Hero is showing seven!
I have a plan that allows my to connect to BT Openzone hotspots around the UK (something that is very important to me)
I went into my nearest town yesterday and it could not find a single WiFi signal!
I want to like my Razr, but I am finding it difficult and I was thinking that the Gnex would be the logical way to go but it seems that you guys are experiencing similar problems.
ive tested both phones as well.
the 4s definitely destroys both the wifi / cell reception on the galaxy nexus.
in my house my iphone is usually around -80 to -89 dbm but the galaxy nexus is -95 to -107. Kind of pathetic if you ask me but I like the phone way to much to go back to the iphone.
Definitely still having issues with this, if anyone is curious. At my girlfriend's house tonight, and despite the router being the next room over, the phone still can't keep a solid signal. It is rather pathetic, honestly. For Google/Samsung's sake, I hope this bug can be fixed via software.
my SGSII has terrible wifi performance also. My captivate had bad wifi performance also, so ill be used to it when I get the Nexus lol. Good thing the router is right next to me
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
Jup it's pretty horrible the signal drops from 20mbps to 6mpbs if I put the nexus on a table just 6 meters away. S2 same prob although it doesn't seem to be as bad as the nexus.
I'm seeing the same thing on my Verizon Galaxy Nexus.
In the same room iPhone 4 and HTC Thunderbolt gets 3 or 4 bars, the nexus gets 1. Go into the next room, or god-forbid go into the basement and there's no wifi connection on the Galaxy Nexus but 3 or 4 bars still on the other phones.
There is certainly an issue.
I called VZW support and got the usual run around : reboot the phone, "we're sending new settings to your phone" etc. Finally he told me that it's probably a problem with the SIM card and they'd send me a new one. I said "no thanks, I want to talk to someone who knows what they are talking about."
After being transferred through to Samsung support I didn't get much further but the lady there at least knew what she was talking about.
They mentioned an upcoming software update, which I've been reading about, but I'm not sure that this is really the issue, since it's not just that it does't show enough bars, it loses the connection.
Tried a different radio?
At the moment there are many different smallband versions. And they all give a different signal. The smallband xxkk6 seems to be the best.
Try upgrading you smallband with the radio.img that can be found here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1374077 This is only for the gsm version.
My HTC Thunderbolt is the same way.
It has at least 25% stronger 4G and Wifi signal at all times.
Seems like Samsung uses weaker antennas to save on power, cost, and/or weight??
It's better than my Captivate was. Can't go by bars anyway.
I returned my Galaxy Nexus for a new one. Probably got a defect one from factory.
Lost connection to my wifi-network when i went around 2-3 meters from my router.
Tried switching channels, 2,4Ghz/5Ghz frequencies and flashing different radios. No go
My GN suffers from the "Avoided, poor network signal"
As many other have said its rather annoying when your trying to conserve your 3G Bandwidth Maybe Samsung will fix this in the coming weeks (Maybe not)
I found out that the WiFI signal icon on the GNex is misleading; on my Optimus 2X it was full and Wifi Analyzer showed -60 dBm. On the GNex it was half yet Wifi Analyzer showed -50 dBm, sometimes -60. The link speed is 65Mbps on GNex, 72Mbps on O2X. Both show Excellent signal strength in network details.

[Q] Gnexus Signal/Wifi Quality?

I purchased a Galaxy Nexus from Verizon shortly after release and I ended up returning it due to connection issues. The signal was very weak in areas where I normally have a good signal strength. This was causing some missed calls. Also, I had troubles staying connected to my wifi from the bedroom when every other wireless device I own had no such issue.
I am not overly impressed with SGS3 and I find the $399 no contract Galaxy Nexus to be very attractive. I am considering giving the GNexus another try but I don't want to go through the hassle if I am going to have the same issues.
Finally, my question is, will I have a better connection with the non-Verizon version of the phone purchased directly from Google either due to it being a different version or due to updates since I last tried it with Verizon shortly after release?
I enjoyed the phone other than the issues I mentioned above. I am currently back with AT&T and off contract since I returned the Verizon phone. Thanks in advance for your opinions.
Kirk
Well I didn't get a response here, but I ordered mine from google yesterday. Hoping for the best and will post what differences I see in case anyone is interested.
Honestly don't think the WiFi will be drastically better. They're pretty much the same, although I've never particularly had issues on my GSM model.
Hope it works out.
The GSM doesn't have cell signal issues like the Verizon one. But wifi will be the same. I've found the wifi range to match my atrix for distance from router. I ignore the bars and just read the signal dBm and its fine.
I've had my GNex for a little over a week now. At home and at work, I get great signal for GSM/3G, and Wifi is excellent, as long as it's 2.4GHz. 5GHz works, but is weaker due to higher frequencies not penetrating walls as well.
Out and about, it's a different story. MANY business that I go to will have ZERO signal indoors, and I will have to go outside to do something as simple as a Yelp check-in. GPS also falters pretty seriously. I upgraded to 4.0.4 as soon as I could. My phone is rooted, but has the stock ROM. My Captivate got a MUCH better signal than the GNex, and was about to ask if anyone knew a way to boost the signal. My battery life is phenomenal, but I would gladly sacrifice some of it to be able to get a usable signal inside a building made of something other than wood.
UPDATE: After I did a bit of research, I determined that the GNex that shipped from Google had the XXLA2 radio on it, which is odd since it's a phone that's only sold in the US. I did a bit of research and changed the radio to UGLC1. If I'm right, the European baseband won't do anything on 850MHz, but the NA Baseband will. I'll test it out and report back here. If I'm right, then shame on Google for shipping a phone with the wrong radio!
Archpope said:
I've had my GNex for a little over a week now. At home and at work, I get great signal for GSM/3G, and Wifi is excellent, as long as it's 2.4GHz. 5GHz works, but is weaker due to higher frequencies not penetrating walls as well.
Out and about, it's a different story. MANY business that I go to will have ZERO signal indoors, and I will have to go outside to do something as simple as a Yelp check-in. GPS also falters pretty seriously. I upgraded to 4.0.4 as soon as I could. My phone is rooted, but has the stock ROM. My Captivate got a MUCH better signal than the GNex, and was about to ask if anyone knew a way to boost the signal. My battery life is phenomenal, but I would gladly sacrifice some of it to be able to get a usable signal inside a building made of something other than wood.
UPDATE: After I did a bit of research, I determined that the GNex that shipped from Google had the XXLA2 radio on it, which is odd since it's a phone that's only sold in the US. I did a bit of research and changed the radio to UGLC1. If I'm right, the European baseband won't do anything on 850MHz, but the NA Baseband will. I'll test it out and report back here. If I'm right, then shame on Google for shipping a phone with the wrong radio!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me know how that goes. Definitely interested!
RogerPodacter said:
The GSM doesn't have cell signal issues like the Verizon one. But wifi will be the same. I've found the wifi range to match my atrix for distance from router. I ignore the bars and just read the signal dBm and its fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually...there are quire a few threads on XDA where GSM users DO have issues
adrynalyne said:
Actually...there are quire a few threads on XDA where GSM users DO have issues
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK then it definitely doesn't seem as wide spread as the cdma one. Solid signal for me personally.
RogerPodacter said:
The GSM doesn't have cell signal issues like the Verizon one. But wifi will be the same. I've found the wifi range to match my atrix for distance from router. I ignore the bars and just read the signal dBm and its fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What would you consider adequate dBm?
OK, I've had my GNex for a little while now and I can definitely say that I'm happier with GSM version. I have none of the signal issues that I had with the Verizon version. Thanks to all that replied!
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA

[Q] Help understanding if radio performance is normal

I have recently upgraded from an old Moto Droid 2 to the Gnex on Verizon. I wanted to upgrade before the new cut went into effect so I could retain my unlimited data. I stream all my music from a music server at home, and stream netflix, and hulu plus alot as well. I have had the phone for about 5 days, and have unlocked, and roote dit but have left the Vanilla 4.0.2 as is for now so I could get a solid baseline for battery life and radio performance before tweaking anything in the future.
Today was the fist time I had to commute to and from work with the phone, and I am very upset with the coverage I got. I take the train and am constantly switching cell towers, and usually experiance spoty coverage because of it, however when using my Droid2 on 3g it was still good enough to stream music throughout my commute.
I have noticed that the majority of the time, the phone shows absolutely no data connection now, and when it does connect it never goes above 1 bar. How is this possible when the Droid 2 had a better signal? I have read that some people get "lemons" and that the Gnex has been known to have radio issues, I apologize in advance if I am spamming the forum, but I wanted to get some feedback from some of the advanced Gnex owners here.
IS this normal? How can I test my phone's radio or know if I have a "lemon". IS this scenario easily remedied through flashing a radio? I still have 11 days to test it out, if I want to return the phone to Verizon.
As much as I really wanted to have a Nexus device, I won't pay for a smartphone that can't maintain a data connection. According to Verizon's coverage maps, much of my commute is LTE territory but yet I can not even maintain a 3g connection.
FWIW, the only thing I have done thus far was toggled the radio to CDMA only in attempts to get a data connection, it did seem to help out, but overall it seemed that my connection was slower than when I was using my Droid2. I will try getting speedtests when I can to compare to ones from my Droid 2 as well, not sure what else to do.
If you need LTE, your best bet is to upgrade to 4.0.4 radios and see if that helps. If it doesn't, return the phone to 4.0.2 and exchange it for a new one.
You have a lemon if the data connection drops out completely, which is what it sounds like it is doing.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
I find that enabling 'Use only 2G networks' helps out with most signal issues, depending on where I am. For example, in central London I leave the option unchecked (ie, use all networks), and the speeds are great. Then when i leave London and the faster networks dissipate, the speeds decrease to little or no cover. Then I enable the 2G only option and streaming/reception is back to good. This is in the UK on GSM though...
ed.j said:
I find that enabling 'Use only 2G networks' helps out with most signal issues, depending on where I am. For example, in central London I leave the option unchecked (ie, use all networks), and the speeds are great. Then when i leave London and the faster networks dissipate, the speeds decrease to little or no cover. Then I enable the 2G only option and streaming/reception is back to good. This is in the UK on GSM though...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Verizon version doesn't have this feature.
I will try my commute home using only female no Ltd and see if any data connections can be made and will keep reading up on radios to flash this week
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Well I must say there was a noticeable difference with the phone on CDMA only, so I am truly hoping I did not get a lemon! I also read this interesting thread here which calmed my nerves:
http://rootzwiki.com/topic/25921-this-is-why-your-verizon-nexus-signal-sucks/
Often times, it is easy to jump to conclusions based on hunches, and I compared data fron a few speedtests while I was tethering on #g and they were indeed comparible to my previous phone.
I also went ahead and manually flashed the IMM76K Android 4.0.4 update before I got it OTA, I have read a few people's comments about 4.0.4 having better LTE performance, SO I will continue to try it out some more. I guess next stop is trying various radios/kernels, but I am a bit rusty. I havent done anything besides a one stop custom rom, since my HTC Dream days.
I have noticed a great improvement with 4.0.4 update.. actually in most cases, LTE has been more consistent than 3g... the handoff between the two seems to be the problem still, once it transitions from 4g to 3g it often craps out, but nothing an airplane mode toggle doesn't fix.
Does any one by chance know if it is possible to try mixing LTE/CDMA radios?

[Q] External antenna experience?

Hi, after a few attempts at searching for info about the external antenna on the nexus, I think I finally found something... has anyone tried this part:
http://www.telcoantennas.com.au/site/patch-lead-samsung-nexus-s
This is by the same company that makes a Galaxy SII patch lead. I've read all the threads about breaking the internal antenna by using an incorrect connector, but a couple of people mentioned towards the end that they tried this brand and it worked perfectly.
I'd like to try this because when I drive through WI I have very poor / no reception, even though I'm driving down the one corridor (I94/I90/I35) that T-Mobile is supposed to completely cover. Most of the time I can't even get enough signal to send a text. Since google maps can't do routing offline I really would like to boost my signal at least up to 2G all the way through the state, and if I got a good enough signal to stream music that would be even better. Also, it seems like I always hit a snow storm when I go through. I'd rather not be stranded w/o signal if something happened.
Hopefully this + a good (5db or greater) car antenna + a second phone back that I can drill a hole in would make the phone usable on road trips...
I think it's a risk of breaking that port. And besides, what kind of antenna are you going to connect? Isn't roaming offered if you were to NEED cell service? Have you tried flashing other radios from josteink's radio dumps collection? Which radio are you on now?
Don't take the risk, just get the Wilson cradle signal booster. And for maps, you can go into settings and download areas to offline cache.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
bodh said:
I think it's a risk of breaking that port. And besides, what kind of antenna are you going to connect? Isn't roaming offered if you were to NEED cell service? Have you tried flashing other radios from josteink's radio dumps collection? Which radio are you on now?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm on T-Mobile pre-paid. They claim they have service but it doesn't come through. I've tried a couple of radios but this has been the case with other phones for the past 5 years. They just don't have much / any service. (T-mobile prepaid shows IA as having 2G service but they don't actually let you connect, even though they own the company that owns the towers).
JPBeard21 said:
Don't take the risk, just get the Wilson cradle signal booster. And for maps, you can go into settings and download areas to offline cache.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I already have the official car dock so I'd rather not dispose of that. I can't download maps to cover the whole route - 400 - 500 miles - but even if I'm in an area I have downloaded I thought it needed networking to actually do the routing...
ChrisAshton84 said:
I already have the official car dock so I'd rather not dispose of that. I can't download maps to cover the whole route - 400 - 500 miles - but even if I'm in an area I have downloaded I thought it needed networking to actually do the routing...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can understand not wanting another dock. I don't have one so its hard to know what kind of solutions would work. Wilson makes many different adapters, antennas and amplifiers, check them out.
With maps, I believe you can download more area depending on level of zoom and I also think navigation would work as long as you start in a coverage area, been a long time since I used it and lost coverage. Not sure about rerouting abilities without coverage or cached maps. I would try to at least cache the areas you know have little to no service. You may be better with an offline solution such as Tom Tom, Navigon, or one of the many other ones. Keep us posted, interested to see what you come up with.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

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