[gnirkatto]

Got my Keyone today. It's a very lovable device, and having a KB and an RGB LED back is just great. Performance is OK, screen is good and big enough, build quality very good. Not even the SIM & SD tray appears to be overly flimsy to me, as some others remarked. I want to keep it.

However, signal drops constantly in my home. It is basically not possible to start a new call nor to send or receive text messages, as the signal always drops just a few seconds after it recovered.

I do have weak signal at my home. My last phone, an iPhone 7, showed 2 (sometimes 1) out or 5 dots for signal strength. But it ALWAYS allowed for calls to be made, and the signal never dropped entirely.

My previous phones, and all others that I used (or at least tried out) at exactly the same location with the same SIM card, a DTEK50, DTEK60, PRIV, Passport SE, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 plus, BB Classic, BB Q5, and even an old Nokia E72, and of course a BB Bold 9900, they all allowed for calling and texting with no issues at all. My son's Galaxy S6 never drops its signal.

Can it be that the Keyone's reception is much weaker than on all these other phones? I can't keep it, if I can't make phone calls at home.

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

What version and carrier?

Seen a few people that imported the UK version that weren't happy....

If you got a US version, I'd return it and try another... just to be sure it's the design and not just one phone.

[judeh]

Try to play around with type of network CDMA/GSM/LTE selection etc...

[gnirkatto]

Will return it tomorrow if nobody here comes up with a good idea or solution. The risk is too big for me.
I hope the upload of the picture of the sticker on the box worked.

Oh man, typing on this thing is really a pleasure.

[gnirkatto]

Try to play around with type of network CDMA/GSM/LTE selection etc...

Here GSM and LTE only

[gnirkatto]

Tried g2 then g3 then g4 only then 2&3&4.
Same story. Signal for ~20 or so seconds, then drop.

[John Vieira]

Whatever it's got a weak antenna. It's not made by BlackBerry anymore, it's made by TCL who is used to making budget devices.

There is nothing wrong with budget devices, there are some out there that are better than flagships.

But you always sacrifice something with them, often it's build quality, or memory speed, or indeed, signal strength.

There is no fix. If you can't use your phone, then it's not useful.

You can try a replacement, it could just be a bad unit, but probably hetter off just returning it and getting something else.

[gnirkatto]

The DTEK60 is also TCL made and a very good phone imho with no signal issues at all, and very good build quality. So they can, if they just want. I just wonder, how can they release a phone that is obviously weaker than all other phones that I tried out, in terms of reception quality? Even with the comparably cheap budget phone DTEK50, I faced no issue at all.

I will return it and go for a refund. Although my nerdish soul asks for a replacement to continue trying, I'm not gonna do that for now, too much hassle.

Time (and more reports, as more people will buy a K1) will tell if it is a design issue, or if I just had a faulty device (which I don't believe, but...).

[Bay 13]

Not good to hear. I read others complain about the same thing. Heck...this is making the Huawei Mate 9 sound good. Mostly positive reviews for that device with great call quality and signal strength, a big screen, 4000 mAh battery with 2 days of battery life, very good camera and a powerful Kirin processor that keeps the phone from slowing down over time. Price slightly above K1 at $599.00 USD . You lose the keyboard. Hmm...we will see.

P.S. I can walk into Best Buy today and grab a Mate 9.

[DetritalGeo]

Perhaps I will just wait 6-8 months for a possible HW revision..

[thurask]

Here GSM and LTE only

Are you using this one in Europe?

[Lobwedgephil]

Looks like you have the European version, and let me guess, you are on T-Mobile?

[gnirkatto]

Are you using this one in Europe?

Yes

[gnirkatto]

Looks like you have the European version, and let me guess, you are on T-Mobile?

No, but a similar carrier with the most complete coverage in my country

[gnirkatto]

Returned it, got a refund. Dealer convinced me to order another one for me. As they were out of stock already, and a new shipment was announced for the 2nd half of june only, I agreed, hoping for a newer batch with different/better reception quality.

I will report on the situation as soon as the new device has arrived.

[SeanSolo]

Is this happening on any US versions? My company just moved offices and my signal is all over the place. Not sure if that's the sole reason.

[John Vieira]

It's happening on all versions, I'm sure.

But like most reception issues, only the people unlucky enough to have spotty reception to begin with will notice.

[wx_junkie]

Just received my KeyOne from Rogers today, and I must say, reception is very poor. Keeps dropping. I had zero issues with any previous BlackBerry phone, most recently my Passport.

This is very disappointing. I love this phone otherwise. May be a deal breaker.

[JOHNGAETANO]

I wonder if it's a software issue or the more likely culprit, hardware. Could be a deal breaker for sure. I was in my basement at work and lost signal today. Have never lost signal ever in basement with Passport, Priv or iPhone.

[gnirkatto]

#+*% this seems to become serious. Hope somebody @BB or @bbmobile is watching, and I hope they will be able to fix something SW-wise, soon.

I still want this phone. But it just needs to work in weaker signal areas too, like most others do.

[JOHNGAETANO]

Don't get me wrong.... The weak signal in difficult spots is an issue, but this phone is sick!! Really a sweet phone.

#+*% this seems to become serious. Hope somebody @BB or @bbmobile is watching, and I hope they will be able to fix something SW-wise, soon.

I still want this phone. But it just needs to work in weaker signal areas too, like most others do.

[gnirkatto]

Don't get me wrong.... The weak signal in difficult spots is an issue, but this phone is sick!! Really a sweet phone.

Therefore I said: I still want it. Typing on it is awesome. Love having a KB and RGB LED back.
But all of that doesn't help if I can't make phone calls in certain areas. I hope they can fix it.

[h16]

So far my K1 (Europe version) is more than ok with signal reception.
I've made a test on a known weak spot, and, on 4G/LTE data, the K1 is noticeably better than Classic, Sony X Compact, Iphone SE.
Same for GSM calls.
Maybe it depends on the bands, I dont know.

[hpjrt]

My keyone is working perfectly. The signal at my house is what I expect. Reception in our house is spotty but it was the same on my PP and husband's Z30. No complaints here!

[bighap]

The signal strength is noticeably weak. I am 7-10 less dBm compared to my Pixel XL. Really enjoy the keyboard and it was a worthy effort, but this is a deal breaker for me. Gone are the days of crazy good reception.