Any Android/T-mobile Gurus Here?

[O4L]

To make a long story short...I switched carriers and phones this week for what seemed like an upgrade all around but my data speed is almost nonexistent.

I'm on Metro by T-Mobile using a Samsung Galaxy A20. I went to the local store today and thought they helped until I got home and still had the same problem. I made four calls to tech support and none of their "fixes" helped.

(No, I don't want to change to your favorite provider or an iPhone, at least for now. [emoji846])

Any help will be appreciated. Thanks!

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[TwoForFlinching]

Doesn't seem to be a hardware problem. Looks like a T-Mobile problem.

If you're not over your data limit, could just be in a neighborhood where T-Mobile is king. The more phones on that network, the smaller the broadband slice you get. Test it periodically as you move around town. Might just be your hood.

 

[O4L]

I'm two days into my unlimited plan and I certainly haven't used enough data to be throttled back. I checked the speed several times around town and it didn't get much better except near I-40 and 177.

Tech moved me to different towers, had me tweak settings on my phone, refreshed my connection, and of course had me restart my phone several times. Nothing has made even a slight difference. I guess I'll just keep bugging them until it is fixed or I give up and change providers again.

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[rc508pir]

Any idea how far you are from a tower?

 

[O4L]

Any idea how far you are from a tower?

No. My phone shows that I have four bars of 4G LTE signal at my house.

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[Glock 40]

So sounds like you have a couple different issues. If it just sucked at home it could easily be a coverage problem. If it sucks all around town you got another issue. I40 and 177 ain't town though either. Also Metro by T-Mobile isn't going to be best provider if you are looking for performance or service. While companies can make your phone have 4 bars and still have piss poor signal cough (sprint) cough. If your on Tmobile you can try voice over wifi if you have home internet and that should help with phone calls.

When you changed companies did you keep your old number? Does the new phone have a new sim card in it? Is the old phone turned completely off?

 

[O4L]

So sounds like you have a couple different issues. If it just sucked at home it could easily be a coverage problem. If it sucks all around town you got another issue. I40 and 177 ain't town though either. Also Metro by T-Mobile isn't going to be best provider if you are looking for performance or service. While companies can make your phone have 4 bars and still have piss poor signal cough (sprint) cough. If your on Tmobile you can try voice over wifi if you have home internet and that should help with phone calls.

When you changed companies did you keep your old number? Does the new phone have a new sim card in it? Is the old phone turned completely off?

My old provider was part of Sprint and I had better signal then although not great. I usually had at least 2-3mbps download then.

Yes, I kept my old number and the new phone does have a new sim card. The old phone is still powered up because I'm trying to figure out how to transfer some files to my new phone. I'll turn it off and see if it makes any difference but I don't see why it would.

I have no problem making phone calls. I don't have internet/wifi at home. I use my phone for all my internet activity including Prime video so this is very frustrating. Ironically, Prime is included in my plan and I can't view videos.

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[Glock 40]

Not sure how Tmobile works as far as tech support. If you were just talking to front line associates you need to push and ask if there is a second level or tech support. Since you have a 4g phone it reports its stats back to them. You just have to to get high enough in the food chain to get someone that knows how to look at the stats. Its the old squeaky wheel thing. They can see if you have good signal or not. There are a ton of things that affect your actual throughput. Do you just have the one phone at your location or others using them also? If so similar or different device brand/model?

If you bought it at a T-mobile store I would be tempted to take it back to their location. They should theoretically have a tower near by with good coverage. If you were in town (OKC) its as easy as drive a mile in about any direction and you will change towers. If your remote your options will be less. Also Indoor vs outdoor signal is something that is measured. So you have indoor, outdoor and in vehicle. Outside should be your best signal. If you have a metal roof, or metal buildings near by, in a valley, next to a lake. It all affects signal differently. Does signal improve when you got outside?

If your really wanting to know what the phone sees you can download a tool called G-Net Track Lite https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.gyokovsolutions.gnettracklite&hl=en

it will show you what tower your attached to. What towers it sees and signal levels. Its gonna be way more info that the normal person cares for or understands but it will easily let you tell when you changed towers. I would imagine you either have a poor signal or a device issue.

 

[rc508pir]

Get your money back

 

[DrewS]

I would request a 4G LTE CellSpot from TMobile to boost your signal at home. From your original post it sounds like the problem is mostly when at home. The 4G LTE CellSpot is a mini cell tower in your home or small office, which connects through your Internet. It creates a 3G/4G and 4G LTE signal to create better indoor coverage, more dependable voice calls, and consistent data speeds.

https://www.t-mobile.com/support/coverage/4g-lte-cellspot

Blake711 you sound very knowledgeable on this subject.