The Secret: How to Improve Your Coverage
Written: Oct 15 '01
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Pros: I'll tell you how to get clear reception and no dropped calls TODAY.
Cons: It takes some work.
The Bottom Line: Since I found the secret of Sprint PCS phones, I love the service.
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| DanCallaway's Full Review: Sprint Mobile Phone Service in San Francisco/San J... |
Sprint PCS won't tell you why its coverage is spotty. This company has plagued its users for the past 3 years with dropouts, intermittent service, and spotty coverage in areas they advertise as broadly serviced. When questioned, they will hem and haw with talk of new towers, high call loads, unsupported areas, etc. They even state in their fine print that they "do not guarantee operation of our phones inside of buildings." What are we all supposed to do? Huddle on the sidewalk? Conduct our business from a KOA campground? A cellular provider denying indoor support for their phones is the most bewilderingly disingenuous piece of PR since Nixon's "Checkers" speech.
After two and a half years with Sprint and a frustrating history of 7 phones, I have finally cracked the case. I suffered at the hands of the single-band Samsung 6100 for about a year. This is one of their smallest phones, and it's a single-band model. I have been frustrated with it frequently, particularly by the fact that other Sprint users get service where I don't. I took it in to the Spint Store for testing, obviously hoping that it would fail and that they would present me with a shiny new model to replace it. The friendly Sprint girl (I find that most Sprint Store employees are either attractive women or belligerent men; these must be the demographics least susceptible to customer outrage) took my phone in the back and returned with a chipper smile, assuring me that 'it passed with flying colors.' They never seem to understand . . . I don't take hours and miles out of my day and way to have them proudly extol my crappy phone. With an angry exhale of breath, I snatched the 'report' from her hands.
The phone Test Report consists of a series of specific transmission/distortion tests that are performed with special equipment in the back of the store. Each specification of the phone's transmitter is tested and compared to pass/fail limits. Most of the document is completely indigestible if you're not versed in radio communications, but my phone's Achilles heel was clearly evident as I analyzed the report. There is a test towards the end of the series called 'Peak Output Power,' which determines the strength of the phone's output. The minimum acceptable passing value for this test is 21dBm, and the maximum acceptable value is 30dBm. My phone 'passed' with 21.28 dBm. I was outraged by this; out of an enormous range of variance for performance, my phone was at the absolute bottom. I called the wretched Customer Support line (which the store has a no-wait-time hotline to) and complained. They issued me a $75 'dissatisfaction credit,' and encouraged me to pick out a dual-band phone. I moved with the momentum and assuredness of a preying lion as I stormed back into the store.
"Here are 3 phones," I blared to the store manager, with a broad gesture that indicated 3 current models. "I want you to test each of these and give me the results. I want to see the output power before I buy them." He obliged me with a scowl, and went in the back to open 3 boxes and test the new phones. He returned about 25 minutes later with the 3 reports, which are titled with the model of the phone tested. The 3 phones registered 24.2dBm, 26.1dBm and 23.9dBm. The Samsung Uproar model was the highest. I smiled wickedly, hatching a plot to expose Sprint's whole shabby service record as I issued the next of my demands to the mopey store manager. "Now take 3 new Uproars," I began, "and test them all. I'll buy the one with the highest output power." He was really resistant to this, but there weren't many people in the store, so he eventually disappeared again. He returned presently with 3 more reports, representing 3 more Uproars. Two of the results were unimpressive, in the neighborhood of 25dBm. (remember, my existing phone registered 21.2dBm)
The third Uproar registered a warhammer 28.5 dBm. I spanked down my credit card, and the rest is history. I now enjoy very reliable Sprint PCS service in the San Francisco Bay Area. I can use my phone in places other Sprint users can't. I drop less calls. I get less dropouts. I highly recommend that if you are a dissatisfied Sprint PCS customer, you take similar steps to get your hands on a 'good' handset. It's preposterous that they sell such widely varying phones, but it's a sad reality. Sprint offers the best bargains for minutes and service, but this dirty little secret about their phones is typical of their penny-pinching attitude and "see no evil" customer support tactics.
If you have the patience to go on this most time-consuming of Sprint crusades, you will be rewarded with service that is admittedly quite good. The power of your phone obviously has a huge effect on your coverage and performance, and the only way to guarantee that you're getting a powerful phone is to demand that they test it. The fact is that an output power of 28.5dBm is far, far higher than a 21.2dBm, because these measurements are on a logarithmic scale, not a linear one. Shoot for as close to the maximum of 30dBm peak output power as you can get. One other thing I've discovered about output power: Dual-Band phones register and deliver higher output power when they are NOT in 'roaming' mode. You'll get better service if you put your phone in 'Sprint PCS Only' mode.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 35.99
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Epinions.com ID:
DanCallaway
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Member: Daniel Callaway
Location: Baltimore, MD
Reviews written: 63
Trusted by: 76 members
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