[hazarjast]

Read through most of the Priv reviews this morning and found they varied greatly on conclusions. However, one thing that stuck out across many of them, and especially detailed in the Phone Arena review, was that there were troubling issues with cellular/bluetooth/GPS reception and call quality. Phone Arena specifically stated that the bluetooth/GPS would cut out when they had the keyboard out. As terrible as the Gizmodo review was, he also mentioned terrible cellular reception and having trouble maintaining a signal.

The Wall Street Journal review indicated the phone 'had a mini meltdown' when trying to run Spotify and Google Maps (using GPS) simultaneously. I am not easily put off by 'bad' reviews but I am coming from a phone with cellular signal issues (Xperia Z3 Compact) and would like my next phone to work well as a 'phone' first and foremost. I've read though a lot of the 'AMA' threads on here with those who already have a Priv and I can't seem to find anything that would agree with the aforementioned reviews in that the Priv has radio/antenna design issues, but I did already pre-order it so it makes me a bit nervous.

If anyone with a Priv could speak to this issue and confirm/deny whether cellular/bluetooth/GPS connectivity has issues and/or bad call quality (static etc.), I would be grateful. Thank you!

[zocster]

Most of those are software related, I think, let's hope it is the case of 'incompatible service provider with demo units supplied' scenario.

[nokia4life]

agree and just posted about this it seems in every review the reception bars are very low one or two bars i find that crazy when it should be at least all or 4 bars especially on ATT, unless they are in some crazy building blocking full signals but with so many bands this shouldn't be a problem yet it seems they all have barely any bars just go back and watch.

[hazarjast]

Just tweeted JT over at N4BB (seemed to be a balanced/favorable review) and he states his AT&T unit had no noticeable issues with radio reception:

[erwinfr]

It's android, get used to melt downs and bad reception

Posted via CB10

[rolojr1]

The bad part of it all is where the reviews are coming from. They act as if it's a hardware issue instead of something they are all to well accustomed to. Send poor reviews in efforts to bring BlackBerry down.

Posted via CB10

[Lobwedgephil]

At my office now, iPhone has 4 bars, Priv has two. Need to test more though one location doesn't mean anything.

[tickerguy]

"Bars" is not consistently defined.

You need to know what the signal level is that the phone sees in dbM.

[DavideaNY]

This is another pretty unbiased and in depth (I really thing these guys actually USED the Priv before writing about it) review of the Priv.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2494378,00.asp


They have a specific section for Voice Quality and Networking. Below the extract

"Voice Quality and Networking
The Priv is one of the best voice phones I've used all year. On AT&T's network, the Priv delivers very loud maximum speakerphone and earpiece volume with zero distortion or wobble. General transmissions through the mic are also very clear. Noise cancellation took care of strong background noise, but there was some computerization of my voice when it had to deal with it. The speakerphone also transmits well, although some wind noise came through. As a giant slab to make voice calls on, the Priv is top-notch.

I'm also happy*that the Priv's cellular radio takes best advantage of both the AT&T and T-Mobile networks. It has quad-band GSM, five-band HSPA+ (including 1700MHz), and LTE bands 1/2/3/4/5/6/12/17/20/29/30. That includes every band AT&T and T-Mobile currently use, every band used by Canadian carriers, and the most popular international roaming bands. Reception on AT&T's network was excellent. The phone also supports Bluetooth 4.1 and dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11ac.

See How We Test Cell Phones
Battery life is excellent. I used the phone for an entire weekend without charging it and still had 25 percent of the battery left. On our LTE video streaming test, the Priv got 8 hours, 17 minutes on its 3,410mAh battery, which is very good, but doesn't show its fantastic standby time. The Priv is simply much better than devices like the Samsung Galaxy S6 when it comes to keeping background activity to a minimum when the screen is off."

They actually praise both reception and voice clarity...



Posted via CB10

[tpmjb]

I've been on Android for at least 6 years and I never had signal issues on my phones. I'm sure some of these reviewers are complaining about things they don't understand, though. Have they actually run into a scenario where they were unable to use their data/voice, or something?

[hazarjast]

It's android, get used to melt downs and bad reception

Posted via CB10

Replies like this aren't helpful. Reception is only somewhat related to OS/software, a larger part of it is in radio firmware and antenna design. There are many Android handsets that have great radio reception. Please educate yourself before making silly, generalized statements about a specific OS.

[Mdbills484]

I've had Android phones for years and never had melt downs or bad reception.

[hazarjast]

I've been on Android for at least 6 years and I never had signal issues on my phones. I'm sure some of these reviewers are complaining about things they don't understand, though. Have they actually run into a scenario where they were unable to use their data/voice, or something?

Agreed. I've had mostly fine reception until my Xperia Z3 Compact, but it was imported to the US as well so may not have been as optimized for US bands. A few reviews specifically mention the Priv dropping signal along with bluetooth/GPS issues. Hoping it's isolated to test units or something a radio firmware update can resolve. Been tweeting a few folks who have picked up the Priv today asking about their experiences. I will post back if they reply.

[hazarjast]

This is another pretty unbiased and in depth (I really thing these guys actually USED the Priv before writing about it) review of the Priv.

BlackBerry Priv (Unlocked) Review & Rating | PCMag.com


They have a specific section for Voice Quality and Networking. Below the extract

"Voice Quality and Networking
The Priv is one of the best voice phones I've used all year. On AT&T's network, the Priv delivers very loud maximum speakerphone and earpiece volume with zero distortion or wobble. General transmissions through the mic are also very clear. Noise cancellation took care of strong background noise, but there was some computerization of my voice when it had to deal with it. The speakerphone also transmits well, although some wind noise came through. As a giant slab to make voice calls on, the Priv is top-notch.

I'm also happy*that the Priv's cellular radio takes best advantage of both the AT&T and T-Mobile networks. It has quad-band GSM, five-band HSPA+ (including 1700MHz), and LTE bands 1/2/3/4/5/6/12/17/20/29/30. That includes every band AT&T and T-Mobile currently use, every band used by Canadian carriers, and the most popular international roaming bands. Reception on AT&T's network was excellent. The phone also supports Bluetooth 4.1 and dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11ac.

See How We Test Cell Phones
Battery life is excellent. I used the phone for an entire weekend without charging it and still had 25 percent of the battery left. On our LTE video streaming test, the Priv got 8 hours, 17 minutes on its 3,410mAh battery, which is very good, but doesn't show its fantastic standby time. The Priv is simply much better than devices like the Samsung Galaxy S6 when it comes to keeping background activity to a minimum when the screen is off."

They actually praise both reception and voice clarity...



Posted via CB10

That is great to hear, thanks for posting this! Just need to find more info on people's experience with the bluetooth now as I use a Plantronics one every day for work.

[hazarjast]

At my office now, iPhone has 4 bars, Priv has two. Need to test more though one location doesn't mean anything.

Thank you for posting! Appreciate someone with a Priv testing. I'm not as concerned about signal strength in 'bars', just more that it consistently stays connected without cutting out during a call etc. That and confirming if bluetooth/GPS have issues when the keyboard is out or not.

[cbreze]

I've had Android phones for years and never had melt downs or bad reception.

This^.
Android works very well. A proper marriage between the two can be nothing short of awesome. The proof will be forthcoming after more reports from actual users are in. I just hope the diehard BB users don't skew the results due to simple android biases on their part. Gotta get past the learning curve.

[draconis123]

Mine is very bad. I manage the network at a hotel that has at&t signal boosters all over. I just don't have signal anymore.

Calls are dropping out and call quality is low.

At home I never had an issue with at&t but now I find myself with bad quality calls. Hopefully this gets a fix soon or I'm going to have to return this. A phone that does everything but make calls is useless.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[canook]

Mine has been great. Sometimes I lose a bar or two but it has never affected anything (call, gps, Bluetooth, etc)

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[giper54]

I checked out a Priv at a corporate AT&T store on Saturday. I out a Nexus 6p next to the Priv both on the left and right side and where the Priv was set up. The dBM for the 6p ranged from -103 dBM to -105 dBM. The dBm on the Priv ranged from -110 dBM to -112 dBM.

[Jsolts]

My reception in my home is brutal. Call quality isn't bad. But as soon as I get home my battery drains hard lookin for signal.

It'll drop 20% in 30 mins.

My z30 had great reception in my home.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[ce71]

I don't have any issues.

[John Gee]

My experience is nothing like this. my Z10 has similar battery life and this PRIV is constantly getting very hot. the screen seems to randomly change brightness. I sincerely hope these things will be resolved. but I don't want to wait a year like I did with the Z10.

as far. as software goes I really don't like how messaging is being handled especially with group messages. why doesn't the hub work with hangouts ?

Proudly PRIVateering since 2015.

[Pinot2015]

I have had zero issues with call reception or quality. The bars always seems at lowest for some odd reason but no matter where I go , basement, underground parking, I always have great reception on Priv.
Bluetooth and WiFi are outstanding as well.
Sometimes it seems people are looking for something to complain about. This is not one of them. Call quality is great and just as good or better than my Z-30. Despite "bars" showing low. Ignore that as bars are meaningless and just for show.

posted from my Priv!

[fattyacid]

Load the 2790 radio version. Its the best.

[kbrant64]

i have 1 question about the antenna in the priv, is it the same paratek antenna system thats in the z30 or does it use another antenna system ?