10 ways to a better connectivity experience

By Alok Kiran Divatia, V.P. Marketing, 5BARz India

In an era of ersatz communication and connectivity it can be frustrating when you cannot send a message, receive a call or struggle even to get a halfway decent cellular signal!

First and foremost it is important to be cognizant of the causes for your phone’s inability to latch on to the carrier’s cellular signal.

1. Attribute Right Cause for poor signal: Often it can be your wireless carrier’s network, your location in a remote place or at other times the mobile handset itself. Poor quality handsets tend to use low end antennas.

2. The Materials your Home or Office is made of: Old houses and large structures with thick brick or concrete walls make the cellular signal hard to penetrate inside the building, especially in the 2100 and 2300 MHz bands which are used predominantly for 3G and 4G. Try switching over your smartphone manually to the 2G mode for enabling the voice calls.

3. Be Cognizant of what your Signal Strength is: In most smartphones you can find out what the signal strength is in the setting section. For iPhones dial Dial *3001#12345#* and press the Call button. For Android, in the settings section, access ‘About the phone’ section. In addition there are apps you can download that will show you the phone’s signal strength in decibels along with other information. A decibel level below 80 dBm is good. Anything above 110 dBm is poor.

4. Make a Signal Map: Once the cause for poor signal is identified it is easier to improve the signal. Using your phone’s signal strength, walk around to identify the areas with the strongest signal. This can help you identify the areas that give the best reception. The 5BARz mobile signal app helps in determining the best signal strength at your home and office.

5. Install a Network Extender / Repeater: Network extenders such as 5BARz are now available with tier 1 cellular operators, and will be soon available in the market, which are simple plug and play units that aid in amplifying signal strength in poor and low coverage areas.

6. Use Handsfree option as much as possible: Keep your smartphone in an area where the cellular signal strength is high and you can still converse freely over a Bluetooth headset.

7. Make sure your Battery is Charged: Searching for a cellular signal consumes a significant amount of your phone’s battery and is, more often than not, a major contributor to your phone’s depleted battery. To ensure a strong signal and searching capability make sure your battery is charged optimally.

8. Switch to Wifi: Most smartphones now allow users to send and receive messages & emails and also make calls over Wi-Fi.

9. Signal Refresh: Sometimes, when you are traveling, the phone cannot find the nearest cell tower while switching between one cell site and the next. Put your phone on airplane mode or switch it on and off to reset the trajectory of your handsets.

10. Minimize Obstructions: Open a window, step outside or try changing your handset case. Sometimes even a thick cover case for your phone can be an impediment to getting good quality signal strength.