Number of Bars - WASSUP?

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs,alt.cellular,alt.cellular.verizon (More info?)

I had a Sanyo 4500 that would usually get three to five bars of signal
strength in my home and other locations. It is an excellent phone, however,
it lacked advanced voice dialing features and also had a very slow web
browser. I returned the phone and obtained the latest model Sanyo 7400. The
7400 has an excellent browser and advanced voice dialing, but displays a
lower number of bars in the same locations within my home. There is nothing
wrong with the 7400 because a friend of mine has the exact same 7400 phone
and it displays the same number of bars as my phone when it is in the same
locations within my home.

Why is there this variance regarding the number of signal strength bars that
are displayed from one Sanyo model to another Sanyo model? I could
understand that the bars may be calibrated differently between different
brands of phones, however I would expect the same number of bars to be
displayed on all of the Sanyo phone models.

Is this discrepancy simply a difference in the calibration of the signal bar
meter or does it indicate that the older model Sanyo 4500 has a much more
sensitive receiver and better RF performance than the newer Sanyo 7400
model?

What does everyone think?

Regards,

-mij

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs,alt.cellular,alt.cellular.verizon (More info?)

OK a "bar" is not a standardized unit of measure.

It would be like if you got a new radio and you were pissed off becuase
the volume knob only went up to number 10 instead of number 12.



Mij Adyaw wrote:
> I had a Sanyo 4500 that would usually get three to five bars of signal
> strength in my home and other locations. It is an excellent phone, however,
> it lacked advanced voice dialing features and also had a very slow web
> browser. I returned the phone and obtained the latest model Sanyo 7400. The
> 7400 has an excellent browser and advanced voice dialing, but displays a
> lower number of bars in the same locations within my home. There is nothing
> wrong with the 7400 because a friend of mine has the exact same 7400 phone
> and it displays the same number of bars as my phone when it is in the same
> locations within my home.
>
> Why is there this variance regarding the number of signal strength bars that
> are displayed from one Sanyo model to another Sanyo model? I could
> understand that the bars may be calibrated differently between different
> brands of phones, however I would expect the same number of bars to be
> displayed on all of the Sanyo phone models.
>
> Is this discrepancy simply a difference in the calibration of the signal bar
> meter or does it indicate that the older model Sanyo 4500 has a much more
> sensitive receiver and better RF performance than the newer Sanyo 7400
> model?
>
> What does everyone think?
>
> Regards,
>
> -mij
>
>

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs,alt.cellular,alt.cellular.verizon (More info?)

On Sun, 30 Jan 2005 18:07:04 GMT, "Carl."
<usenetcarl@JUNKMAILhotmail.com> wrote:

>12? Damn, and I paid extra for 11.
>
>"Rob Merkle" <robmerkle1981@yahoo.com> wrote in message
>newsk8Ld.47734$%I2.343@fe09.lga...
>> OK a "bar" is not a standardized unit of measure.
>>
>> It would be like if you got a new radio and you were pissed off becuase
>> the volume knob only went up to number 10 instead of number 12.
>>
LOL! Reminds me of the movie "Spinal Tap" where the guitarist claims
his amp is "one louder" because the numbers on the volume knob go to
11 instead of 10.

Seriously though, I never trust the bars. I use the field test screen
from the hidden menu. Much more useful numbers there.

RX level displayed as a negative value from -105 (barely usable) to
-32 (standing directly under the cell tower).

Also remember signal to noise ratio. You may have a strong signal,
yet interference from other sources may keep you from getting decent
reception. On the LG phones (Ec/Io), this is also a negative number,
-31 to -15 (extremly high noise) to -14 to 0 (normal). The closer to
0 the better the ratio. Values from -6 to 0 are considered very good.

- Sandy

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs,alt.cellular,alt.cellular.verizon (More info?)

Hah! My radio goes to 35!


Rob Merkle wrote:
> OK a "bar" is not a standardized unit of measure.
>
> It would be like if you got a new radio and you were pissed off
> becuase the volume knob only went up to number 10 instead of number
> 12.
>
>
> Mij Adyaw wrote:
>> I had a Sanyo 4500 that would usually get three to five bars of
>> signal strength in my home and other locations. It is an excellent
>> phone, however, it lacked advanced voice dialing features and also
>> had a very slow web browser. I returned the phone and obtained the
>> latest model Sanyo 7400. The 7400 has an excellent browser and
>> advanced voice dialing, but displays a lower number of bars in the
>> same locations within my home. There is nothing wrong with the 7400
>> because a friend of mine has the exact same 7400 phone and it
>> displays the same number of bars as my phone when it is in the same
>> locations within my home. Why is there this variance regarding the number
>> of signal strength
>> bars that are displayed from one Sanyo model to another Sanyo model?
>> I could understand that the bars may be calibrated differently
>> between different brands of phones, however I would expect the same
>> number of bars to be displayed on all of the Sanyo phone models.
>>
>> Is this discrepancy simply a difference in the calibration of the
>> signal bar meter or does it indicate that the older model Sanyo 4500
>> has a much more sensitive receiver and better RF performance than
>> the newer Sanyo 7400 model?
>>
>> What does everyone think?
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> -mij

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs,alt.cellular,alt.cellular.verizon (More info?)

On Sun, 30 Jan 2005 10:56:49 -0800, "Mij Adyaw"
<mijadyaw@nospamforme.com> wrote:

>Sandy,
>
>Thanks for the information. How do I get to the field test screen menu on my
>Sanyo 7400?
>
>regards,
>
>-mij
I've been suggesting someone create a FAQ about the hidden menus for
some time now. I don't know the key sequence for Sanyo phones.

For LG phones, it is "Menu", then "0", when prompted with "??????"
just enter all zeros. Proceed from there.

Howard Forums maybe? Sorry, I don't have any other info. (shrug)

- Sandy

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs (More info?)

When I first joined sprint, I had the mistaken belief that if I had one
or two bars, it meant that the phone was in contact with a tower and
that I could place and receive calls. I quickly learned that I need
three or four bars to place and receive calls. I also learned that in
most locations, I need to stand still because moving one or two feet
will cause the signal to drop. The only reason I have kept sprint as
long as I have is because I was able to obtain a very reasonable
monthly rate.

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs (More info?)

I guess that's the difference between sprint service where you are and
sprint service in the Washington DC area.

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs (More info?)

On Mon, 31 Jan 2005 02:07:15 GMT, Jerome Zelinske
<jeromez1@earthlink.net> wrote:

> And I make calls with no bars only the antenna symbol.

The number of bars, whether it's five or none or anything in between,
doesn't determine your ability to make calls. It only indicates an
approximate relative signal strength.

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.sprintpcs (More info?)

No, it is just that you could have two copies of the same make/model
phone in the same place and the bars would not match.