Why your fancy new smartphone is worse at making calls than your crappy old featurephone

[qubit]

I'm sticking to my smartphone!

Ever suspected that your £600, top-of-the-range smartphone is not as good for basic communications as the mobile you used a decade ago? Now there is official confirmation you are probably right.

A study commissioned by the industry regulator Ofcom has found that for all the technology packed into flagship devices by Apple, Samsung and others, a handset costing a fraction of the price typically provides better signal performance for voice calls and texts.

The research, conducted in controlled lab conditions on a selection of popular smartphones and non-smart phones currently on the market, found that on a 2G network the cheaper handsets were much better at picking up weak signals. Some smartphones require a minimum signal 10 times stronger than the best non-smart phone before they can make or receive a call, according to Ofcom’s research.

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/why-600-smartphone-probably-not-225648625.html

 

[Frick]

You don't say.

Old style smartphones where good though. I had a bunch of Windows Mobile phones and they functioned quite well as phones too.

 

[Ferrum Master]

What a rubbish article... they are saying the obvious?

Anyways... 2G are phasing out... some networks only have GSM1800, the sensitivity and power values are exactly same as on a modern smart phone if you run it on a proper radio tester.. If you buy a rubbish MTK based "smartphone" and expect a top notch radio part... you are on drugs... Like expecting to have intel celeron to have full quad core with HT and overclocking capabilities lol. Yes flagship handsets have a better radio part, and is normal and should be like that. You are paying extra for the used patents and tech in those phones. The MTK china cocktail ones even does not support proper voice codec, and use the free open one, that is utter crap. You can also pick up an old... so called dumbphone from that era that was utter rubbish in network sensitivity they also had good and and even more good specs... they are not bad, they work well in crowded areas and are designed to have such performance.

The OS and platform has no connection to radio power and sensitivity. The radio DSP IC is... and antenna is. You judge by the quality of the signal... by bars? LoL. Of course the wooden phone utilizing only two bands will have a LARGE antenna calculated for their spectrum and not a multi mimo one...

 

[AsRock]

HAHA, mine isn't as the last thing i would buy to be a phone is a smartphone. As long as a phone can do that one feature i don't care about any thing else.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Antenna lengths are cut to size ("tuned") based on the frequency of the RF. So I don't think antenna size on cheaper phones vs more expensive phones is a factor.

The number of antenna elements and their orientation matters however, and larger, bulkier (read: older) phones may allow for more elements and better "omni" reception and propagation.

Another factor may be speaker size. Good fidelity out of tiny speakers is expensive. Older phones can support larger and less expensive speakers that provide better sound.

Older technologies consume more bandwidth. This means newer technologies require greater compression to put the same amount of data into smaller bandwidth allowed for each phone. This compression can affect fidelity too. As can the quality of the DACs.

 

[Frick]

HAHA, mine isn't as the last thing i would buy to be a phone is a smartphone. As long as a phone can do that one feature i don't care about any thing else.

Everyone says that until they actually own a smartphone. Then when they get a good smartphone their worlds change even more.

 

[AsRock]

Everyone says that until they actually own a smartphone. Then when they get a good smartphone their worlds change even more.

I don't need or even want a smartphone, i just need a phone without all the crap, just don't have any need for all that crap on a device.

I phone people hang up, answer a call and that's all i need, some thing wrong with people thinking they "need" a smartphone, omg how did we survive so long without like o please.

 

[Mr.Scott]

I don't need or even want a smartphone, i just need a phone without all the crap, just don't have any need for all that crap on a device.

I phone people hang up, answer a call and that's all i need, some thing wrong with people thinking they "need" a smartphone, omg how did we survive so long without like o please.

I used to be just like you. Said the exact same thing.
One day I got handed a new company phone (smartphone). There was a learning curve, yes.
Now......there are so many things I use on that phone to make my life easier, I can't see going back to the stone age again.
Don't poo poo it until you try it.

 

[95Viper]

One day I got handed a new company phone (smartphone).

That is exactly how I got hooked indoctrinated.

 

[thebluebumblebee]

I have been amazed at the poor voice quality that people accept today. The 2 companies that focused on voice quality, Uniden and Motorola, didn't make it.

 

[Mr.Scott]

I'm not a young guy either.
Do I use everything that it's capable of?, no, not even close, but what I do use I don't think I could give up easily.
I know guys that were fired because they refused to adapt to todays tech. You actually need it to survive in todays workforce. Don't make a mistake my man. Seriously.

 

[Nosada]

some thing wrong with people thinking they "need" a smartphone

I don't "need" a smartphone, just like I don't "need" the internet, "need" a computer, "need" a car, "need" sliced bread or "need" running water.

All of those combined make my life a whole lot more enjoyable than that of someone who doesn't have any of them though.

 

[MIRTAZAPINE]

I agree with this though. Not even old phone. I mean even the modern basic dumbphones I find they have a better call quality, longer battery life and better signal than a smartphone. I got to stick to old phones like my trusty sony ericson for a long time as I broke my first HTC smartphone by cracking its screen. The advantages of old basic phone is that, you find yourself easier to focus on things and not have to be distracted by the internet or social media on a smartphone. I am late for the smartphone adoption. I was also more disciplined with less distraction. I was an advocate of dedicated devices. A dedicated mp3, a phone and compact camera.

But boy do my life really change after getting smartphone. I have to relearn things again and feel so "dumb" using a new device. I ask where is the manual lol? Soon after using a smartphone I was online alot more after getting a 3G service. Without a 3G service, you can be more focus without online distraction eventhough its a smartphone. Right now I habitually always check the smartphone for updates haha. It does open myself to meet more people and even younger people as well as older people with twitter. Things are just so much better and convenient in alot of ways with smartphone. No longer I have to draw a map on a paper and plan my route with a PC at home in the old days. I look at street directories book just to get around then! Right now just use google maps don't need to worry about which bus or train to take and you are off. Much, much easier than the old ways I do of drawing a map and asking alot of people.

Smartphone like any technology like Carl Sagan says are "keys" and they are neutral. It is up to user which turn it into a positive or negative. There is clearly alot of negatives with smartphones nowadays. I know some of you would say something like "look at kids nowadays, with their iphones and such, not like us last time where where we spend time (fill blanks here)!" I feel the same way to as my age pile on. Our just say the old ways despite some of its benefits is not better. I would still have a smartphone but with a dose of self control.

I still encourage dumbphones or old phones to be bought for emergency purposes or disaster preparedness. They can last for days to even week with a single charge with the technology now. I suggest people you with too much "technology drain" to use a dumbphone to relax and simplify life maybe for a few days. I did that for months because of a broken smartphone.

 

[AsRock]

I don't "need" a smartphone, just like I don't "need" the internet, "need" a computer, "need" a car, "need" sliced bread or "need" running water.

All of those combined make my life a whole lot more enjoyable than that of someone who doesn't have any of them though.

I need a phone and i need the internet which are both work and school related, i don't need a smart phone i have no use for one as whats the point in having a smart phone if your just making and receiving calls as i would not use it for any thing else.

 

[RejZoR]

Bullshit, every single American movie I watch they NEVER get any signal no matter what kind of phone they have. I've seen movies with Nokia 3310 from freaking 15+ years ago up to latest smartphones and they always had NO SERVICE on display.

 

[XSI]

i was working in communication company and what i learned, is: old phones get better signal, no matter how you look at it. the reason why is a different story. there are now numbers of regulations (EU) which limit some technical stuff. they say it health related etc. but, it is true some older phones can catch up to 10 times weaker signal. tested with at lest 20 phones myself.

 

[remixedcat]

ppl can blame the fcc for shit regs on this shite tho. lack of spectrum and lack of ease of acquiring said spectrum forces this crap

 

[silentbogo]

Also you need to remember the coverage. Older phones needed much stronger reception because there was no extensive coverage like today.
Right now the majority of users can "get by" with weaker but comparatively faster signal due to the fact that right now almost every third-world village has a cell tower.

 

[Mr.Scott]

I need a phone and i need the internet which are both work and school related, i don't need a smart phone i have no use for one as whats the point in having a smart phone if your just making and receiving calls as i would not use it for any thing else.

I can tell you right now, you would if you had one.
You don't know because you've never had one, therefore you are not qualified to comment.

 

[AsRock]

I can tell you right now, you would if you had one.
You don't know because you've never had one, therefore you are not qualified to comment.

Because i have not owned one i i don't know ?, WTF eldest has one parents have the things and my brother has one and i don't need one, used their's before i don't like them or have any need for one.

 

[manofthem]

I can say that I need my smartphone. If I didn't have one, 95% of my TPU activity would be nonexistent, and that would make me sad

I can sacrifice a little voice quality for all the awesome things I get out of it otherwise.

 

[Frick]

I don't need or even want a smartphone, i just need a phone without all the crap, just don't have any need for all that crap on a device.

I phone people hang up, answer a call and that's all i need, some thing wrong with people thinking they "need" a smartphone, omg how did we survive so long without like o please.

You're just proving my point dude.

 

[silentbogo]

Because i have not owned one i i don't know ?, WTF eldest has one parents have the things and my brother has one and i don't need one, used their's before i don't like them or have any need for one.

Check eBay on the subject of rugged phones if you are really want something simple but not 10 years old. I've been considering to get Samsung Rugby 4 as a backup/roadtrip phone.

My personal all-time favorites are: Motorola L7 as a monoblock, and Nokia N95 as a slider. Nokia still qualifies as a smartphone, but I only bought it for Carl Zeiss optics, and quad-band GSM. Served me well for over 4 years and I think my stepdad still uses it. Also had an N75, but it died not too long ago.

I still like my smartphone, no matter what. I keep most of my work notes and photos on it.

 

[Mr.Scott]

Because i have not owned one i i don't know ?, WTF eldest has one parents have the things and my brother has one and i don't need one, used their's before i don't like them or have any need for one.

Eh, ok.
Enjoy your tin can and string.

 

[newconroer]

I'm sticking to my smartphone!

Ever suspected that your £600, top-of-the-range smartphone is not as good for basic communications as the mobile you used a decade ago? Now there is official confirmation you are probably right.

A study commissioned by the industry regulator Ofcom has found that for all the technology packed into flagship devices by Apple, Samsung and others, a handset costing a fraction of the price typically provides better signal performance for voice calls and texts.

The research, conducted in controlled lab conditions on a selection of popular smartphones and non-smart phones currently on the market, found that on a 2G network the cheaper handsets were much better at picking up weak signals. Some smartphones require a minimum signal 10 times stronger than the best non-smart phone before they can make or receive a call, according to Ofcom’s research.

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/why-600-smartphone-probably-not-225648625.html

I've long suspected that. Often a single purpose built device needs to be improved upon, but when it can't get any better or the features aren't keeping up with the trends of the times, they look to evolve it into something more hip. This often means making it multi-purposed.
Subsequently, a jack of all trades is a master of none.

Thing is, you could prove this to people and they'd be OK with it. Why? Because their smart phone/mini tablet/hand held computer is just that. It's a device that lets them 'do everything,' to enough of a satisfactory level, that it meets the level of narcissism(a.k.a. their needs) that society has reached.

I still carry a couple of Nokia phones from circa early/mid 2000s in my vehicle glove boxes, with pre pay minutes on them - used only for emergencies.
They always work and the battery lasts for a month at a time before needing a quick charge.

I used to be just like you. Said the exact same thing.
One day I got handed a new company phone (smartphone). There was a learning curve, yes.
Now......there are so many things I use on that phone to make my life easier, I can't see going back to the stone age again.
Don't poo poo it until you try it.

The majority of people that 'poo poo' it are those that have lived in the world before and after smart phones. I think we should change the date format - no disrespect to Jesus. It should now be the year 2015 AS (after smartphones or after stupidity).