[JackG058]

My current Pre shows fewer bars in more places than any other phone I've owned (including other Pres). I can be 20 feet way from my Airave in the next room and the phone will mysteriously drop down to 2 bars.

However, I have not had any dropped calls recently and the call quality even when showing just 1 bar is good. So I don't stress over over the number of bars; the phone is working well enough.

I don't stress over the bars from a standpoint of call quality, because it doesn't seem to affect that. I do stress over it though from a battery life standpoint. It most definitely impacts how much drain there is on the battery. With a good strong signal, the Pre battery performs exceptionally well. With 1 or two bars, the battery life is noticeably shorter.

[Impulsebuyer]

Airave def does help but has its drawbacks...One of which can be a signal fluctuation from 1-2 bars to all of a sudden 5 bars and with the airave locked on your pre you almost always don't have evdo ...

Also one noticable issue is that when you come in from the outside on a sprint tower and your Pre is reconnecting to the airave in your place or where ever it is placed you will def lose the call for it to reconnect ... thankfully it does not do this when you do the opposite and connect to an outside tower ..

Will all this being said my Pre has been alot better since the addition to the airave but I will say the Pre while traveling around (which i do alot of for buisness) does have noticabably worse signal in areas i have always had service ...

Lastly I too have had more than enough drop calls lately and the signal has been somewhat worse since the 1.1 update ... I am also on my 2nd Pre and Sprint 800 says since the phone is working but occasional drop calls and no call notification happens I should take it back to my local tech and see if they can run a diagnostic on it ... I hope there is some kind of sprint cell tower update sooner rather than later ...network and prl updates do nothing ...

[deceptacon]

I called Palm about the dropped calls and they wanted me to do an update on the network settings. People just know that this DOESN'T work..repeat DOESN'T work!!! I still get plenty of dropped calls! WE NEED TO PUT PRESSURE ON PALM AND SPRINT TO COME OUT WITH AN UPDATE TO FIX THE PROBLEM!!!!

[ChemEngr]

I've only read your last post. Out of the many Sprint phones I EVER had (>10 yrs), I had one that dropped calls constantly. I complained to Sprint as you did, I would assume, until a rep offered to replace the phone. No more dropped calls ever since. I have yet to own a smartphone that dropped several calls in GOOD signal areas. So your phone might need a replacement. I went back and read the whole thread and it seems you have replaced it a few times. This would lead me to conclude that the Pre has a radio that is marginally weaker than other makes. However, it is also obvious to ME that some Pres do have better radios as mine gets better reception than my 755. Can an update fix reception issues or is this mainly a hardware variability problem?

[nmoreman]

First, all of you need to call Sprint, talk to Second Tier Support and draw it to their attention so it becomes an issue that needs fixed.

Second, my first Pre had worst reception/dropped calls I have ever experienced since I switched from Nextel. Kept complaining, tried PRL's, had techs asses it (passed), changed towers thru 2nd Tier Support, who finally suggested it be tested for antenna.

By the way, battery sucked, bars bounced all over while setting and watching the phone.

Switched out after antenna test failed and have seen nothing but improvements since then. This, combined with updates (maybe), have eliminated dropped calls, greatly improved battery life, up to 2 days.

Yes, I feel poor reception accentuates battery drain, but if hardware issues are there and resolved, great improvement can be had.

P.S. Summer home is at worst reception area on map - Pre gets slightly worse reception (finally) than previous various Palm's, worst than dumb phones but with above fixes, I can walk around for signal and live with it.

I also put my phone, via Preferences, on Automatic and Data Roam. This has improved reception. If you are in good area, try Sprint Only to prevent any searches for other providers.

[JackG058]

I've only read your last post. Out of the many Sprint phones I EVER had (>10 yrs), I had one that dropped calls constantly. I complained to Sprint as you did, I would assume, until a rep offered to replace the phone. No more dropped calls ever since. I have yet to own a smartphone that dropped several calls in GOOD signal areas. So your phone might need a replacement. I went back and read the whole thread and it seems you have replaced it a few times. This would lead me to conclude that the Pre has a radio that is marginally weaker than other makes. However, it is also obvious to ME that some Pres do have better radios as mine gets better reception than my 755. Can an update fix reception issues or is this mainly a hardware variability problem?

The much ballyhooed iPhone 3G (2nd generation mind you) had numerous complaints about call drops and signal quality when it first came out. People were skeptical when Apple said it would be fixed with a software update. It took them quite awhile, but reception issue complaints have died down dramatically I believe. So yes, I'd think a software update could resolve this. After all, firmware is just software that drives and governs the hardware components.

Kept complaining, tried PRL's, had techs asses it (passed), changed towers thru 2nd Tier Support, who finally suggested it be tested for antenna.

LOL, a typo or misspell here perhaps?

[jbrowland]

The pre (imho) has been worse than any phone I have owned in the reception department.

What good is a "cloud phone" that gets bad reception??? Heck what good is a phone that gets bad reception period. I mine as well buy a palm pilot sometimes.

When it works though, it is the best ever.