Cellular strength and throughput - Xiaomi Mi A1 Real Life Review

We know how much you like to stream, ahem, "videos", and so cellular data is mega-important. Rate this thread to express how you think the Xiaomi Mi A1's LTE performs. A higher rating indicates that it's fantastic: throughput is excellent and signal strength is top-notch.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add.

Signal strength is not that great...

XDA_RealLifeReview said:
We know how much you like to stream, ahem, "videos", and so cellular data is mega-important. Rate this thread to express how you think the Xiaomi Mi A1's LTE performs. A higher rating indicates that it's fantastic: throughput is excellent and signal strength is top-notch.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not getting 4g at all. I'm on Airtel.

I replaced a lemon Galaxy S5 that died with the Mi A1 and am pleased to see that my signal strength and WiFi signal are both stronger. I live in Thailand and the 4G is excellent.

my signal strength is great here in the uk on 3

Coming from a Nexus 5 I noticed the signal strength in the A1 is slightly weaker especially for 4G connections. I'm in Malaysia.
I suspect it's due to the aluminum body. If I hold it with my fingertips instead of a firm grip the signal is better. Did not have this issue with my Nexus 5.
Still, it's good enough for calls and streaming and I haven't had any issues of connections dropping on this device

excellent signal,no fluctuating on jio 4g in india after september update.

I can't get 4G while my sim card is in slot 1. Preferred network type is set to 4G. But it is only connecting to 3G. No problem in slot 2 with same sim card.
Edit: got an update which fixed this problem

nxferenc said:
I can't get 4G while my sim card is in slot 1. Preferred network type is set to 4G. But it is only connecting to 3G. No problem in slot 2 with same sim card.
Edit: got an update which fixed this problem
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, i have the same problem! Band 20 only works if i put the SIM on the Slot 2 (but i can't use my microSD card...)
The latest update didn't solve the problem.
Any solution?
---EDIT
After a restart, it works.

Red_Man 898 said:
excellent signal,no fluctuating on jio 4g in india after september update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's great! But i have issues with signal fluctuating on my JIO with the same device. I already installed the new update. Is there anything which i missed it out?

XDA_RealLifeReview said:
We know how much you like to stream, ahem, "videos", and so cellular data is mega-important. Rate this thread to express how you think the Xiaomi Mi A1's LTE performs. A higher rating indicates that it's fantastic: throughput is excellent and signal strength is top-notch.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I want to know about 4.5 G perform (cat6 LTE-A) on Xiaomi Mi A1. Does it support 4,5 G as strong as 4G or not? Please explain its perform in detail. Thanks

The signal strength depends a lot on how do you hold a device. It has the same problem as iPhone 4 so far.
If you hold it on top you see that both cellular/Wi-Fi signal bar loosing.

4.5 strength
Good 4.5 strength
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Related

Downloading slow? You're holding it wrong.

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I've noticed that whenever I'm downloading one of the fine ROMs we have for our phone over my data connection, I can get it done more than twice as fast if I set my phone vertically (like in a cup or resting against something) than if I were to either hold it vertically or set it horizontally in a desk.
I'm pretty sure this is just a limitation of how cell phone technology works, but if you're needing to download something quickly you might want to give this a shot.
I'm able to reach roughly 1.2mb/s on the cell tower near my home while doing this. The pic above's just an example, it's difficult to take a screenshot when your phone is resting against a monitor (This speed is twice as fast as my home DSL connection which is capped at 150gb/mo, also through AT&T -_-) If I were to just hold the phone or simply set it on my desk these speeds plummet to around 200-300kb/s, max.
One theory I have though is we have a ton of pine trees in our area, so this may be disrupting the signal and polarizing it vertically, but don't quote me on this as I'm no where near educated enough to make this call.
[size=-5]get it? no? okay I'll leave now.[/size]
Edit: Oh, I've got to note that I'm in the middle of no where when it comes to a cell signal, so getting better download speeds than the only high-speed internet company available at my house is rather awesome. Sprint doesn't get a signal out here, so my brother's using an Airvana system our or DSL making it even slower.
You want fast? Get a Wilson amp for your house.
Yeah, that makes sense - polarization can make quite a big difference. What's best varies from location to location though.
I have been tethering for 5 years (90% which was my main internet) and I found holding it does make a difference.
Don't have a scientific explanation, but I know for a fact it does.
Not sure about the way I point it, never tried that but usually moving it from my stomach to my hand (laying in bed) will double the speeds...sounds crazy I know.
Reminds me of the issues with FM radio Reception.
Every time you touch the antennae, the station came in great.
Let the antennae go and it's back to bad reception.
Kinda defeats the whole adjustment procedure.
Or holding the car Key remote beneath your chin to get more "door lock" distance.
Inquiring minds want to know.
Hah that's crazy you mention the car key thing...someone at work was talking about that today. First time I've heard of it.
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App
Yup - Your body WILL affect the pattern of any nearby antennas! Sometimes for the better, sometimes worse.
Usually worse at cell phone frequencies, sometimes for the better for FM (lower frequency, wavelength longer than humans are tall.)
Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk
I learned something new today, thanks.
Ah, the joys of inductive coupling. Somewhat related to sympathetic resonance (aka sympathetic vibrations).
I will hold my phone in any which manner I please TYVM
tewan said:
One theory I have though is we have a ton of pine trees in our area, so this may be disrupting the signal and polarizing it vertically, but don't quote me on this as I'm no where near educated enough to make this call.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just the idea that you understand RF polarization exists puts you beyond the typical user.
On the other hand, now I'm going nuts with google trying to figure out what polarity GSM signals typically use. My first guess would be vertical, but its only a guess...

Does turning off gps improve the wifi signals on the Primes? It did for mine

Hey guys! First off, let me say that my Asus has had constantly weaker wifi signals than my Xoom or Samsung galaxy tab devices, using the speedtest app my Prime always gets 3mb less than the other devices which is an issue that most of us are having, so I decided to do a few test using all three devices and found something interesting. I ran the speed test on all 3 devices 4 times, one after the other, and noticed of course that my Prime lagged behind by an average of 3mb. I then decided to go into settings, location services and turn off the gps. Now guess what, my Prime is now beating both my Xoom and Galaxy tab by an average of 3-4mbs! I tested this multiple times, moves further from the router, and this was a constant result..
Which made me think, could the weak wifi issue be caused by the interference by the GPS signal trying to obtain a lock, which is being *blocked*by the metal casing on the back of the Primes?? This would make sense as when you use the speed test app, it tries to find your location by using the gps built into the device. I hope Gary will read this and test it himself, to confirm. Guys, please try this out an let me know if your wifi speeds increase once GPS is off?? Please dont reply with rude comments, I am only reporting what has worked for me.
I dont mind sacrificing my GPS for a now faster wifi
I always have my gps off since is was killed in the 1/17 update. That update made it completely useless. Even with gps off, i still have a weak wifi signal compared to my evo 3d. It also drops in and out.
Hate to be a broken record but Wi-Fi will always be weak as long as your prime still has a solid aluminum backplate on it. If you guys haven't noticed yet what other devices with Wi-Fi can you think of had a issue with weak signal where there ended up being a software fix for it? I've been working IT for 20 years it doesn't happen the Wi-Fi adapter in the Prime is perfectly fine it's just being shielded by the aluminum.
jdbaker82 said:
Hate to be a broken record but Wi-Fi will always be weak as long as your prime still has a solid aluminum backplate on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is that the same reason why my GPS and WIFI works so well in my HTC Desire HD with it's aluminum unicover body?
leppie said:
Is that the same reason why my GPS and WIFI works so well in my HTC Desire HD with it's aluminum unicover body?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Big difference is that it has no problem getting out of the front face of your phone Primes Wi-Fi antenna is sandwich in alum
I tried turning GPS off as the OP suggested. My results were mixed at best.
>Is that the same reason why my GPS and WIFI works so well in my HTC Desire HD with it's aluminum unicover body?
The Desire HD doesn't have an all-aluminum back.
e.mote said:
>Is that the same reason why my GPS and WIFI works so well in my HTC Desire HD with it's aluminum unicover body?
The Desire HD doesn't have an all-aluminum back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol good stufff
e.mote said:
>Is that the same reason why my GPS and WIFI works so well in my HTC Desire HD with it's aluminum unicover body?
The Desire HD doesn't have an all-aluminum back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OMG's the grammar!
This image makes a lot more sense now.
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Okay, after reading around on the net for a bit, I did the following.
1) Use Wi-Fi Analyzer to check for any kind of wireless spot that your Prime may pick up at home. Check what channel they use and pick something different for yours. Mine had the same channel as a couple of others so I picked one that is higher.
2) Mine is dual band and had guest on so I disabled both guest and 5GHz, leaving only 2.4Ghz enabled.
Testing results:
Close to the router, the max down went up to 9Mbps compared to 6Mbps from before. Of course, my tablet is pulling an Apple. I had to have the backplate facing the router to get that or else I get about 2Mbps less with it away from the router.
In the living room downstairs, not a big jump. ~6Mbps compared to ~5Mbps from before. Of course the Acer laptop got >13Mbps at the same place last time.
In my bedroom, also downstairs, the max I could achieve was 5Mbps where I could only get less than 3Mbps before.
I ventured down to the basement, just by the stairs and didn't go far. I got like 6Mbps there. I never tested in the basement before since I thought it would be worse so I didn't bother.
So, it definitely did improve for mine. Of course this is temp because you can only make changes to your network and not anywhere else. I have a few things that are only Wireless-G, such as PS3, so I have to use Wireless-G. Maybe I'll try later with Mixed mode or play around with Wireless-N mode only and see. I got about 20Mbps with my bro's D-link Wireless-N only, in the same room.
Okay, stayed up until 3am last night to do some more testing on Wi-Fi. I fed my router Tomato firmware.
Results:
*Max achieved if hit the sweet spot. And somewhat consistent but only if I hit it. Wired speedtest showed ~23Mbps or a bit better consistently.
-G-Only mode:
--By the router, max ~13Mbps consistently (up from 9Mbps before)
--Living room downstairs, max ~16Mbps and >13Mbps consistently (up from ~6Mbps and comparable to the Acer laptop. Then again, I haven't tried with Acer laptop post-Tomato just yet)
--My room downstairs, max ~12Mbps and consistently hit ~ 10Mbps - 12Mpbs (up from 5Mbps previously)
--Basement, max ~3Mbps (down from 6Mbps but it was late and I got tired of finding the sweet spot!)
-N-only mode:
--By the router, max ~2Mbps consistently. WTH!!! (was able to pull ~20Mbps by my bro's twice as cheap D-link router. So I didn't test the rest.)
By the way, Wi-Fi Analyzer showed weaker strength after I slapped on Tomato. Followed some instruction to modify settings to improve the signal strength that proved to work for some, but didn't help with mine. Not sure if it helped with throughput though. I gotta play around some more when I have time.
Now, I also had to use channel 8, one that no other surrounding networks have. That again helped. If I moved it a little bit away from the sweet spot, the speed dropped like mad. Wi-Fi strength didn't really mean much. The sweet spot in my room was where I only got 1 bar. Moved a few inches, not even, to get 2 bars. Thought it should be better? Not a chance. Couldn't get it to > 4Mbps.
Now, my house is 2400 sq ft not including the basement. If map it out in 2D, my computer room is far top right and my room is far bottom left. Each level's separation is pretty big because of high ceilings.
I'm somewhat happy with it because I know what it's capable of but it's just not practical. I may hit great throughput with the sweet spots in my house but not doing much outside of my house since I can't modify those networks. And some sweet spots, not too comfy. In the living room, I have to hold it up and tilt it upward a little. In my bedroom, I just lay it flat on my bed.
Forgot to add that my up speed almost always hit the max of 2.5Mbps no-matter-what.
Oh, and turning off GPS didn't help with mine.

CM2500W Sprint WIMAX repeater/amplifier

Surecall makes a WIMAX amplifier/repeater for Sprint's network that amplifies 70db. This is great for those who have WIMAX in their area, but cant get a strong enough signal indoors.
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Specs
sells for $200 on ebay (link 1)
too bad I cant find it on alibaba. I would love to get it, but dont think its worth it till the 2015 WIMAX cut-off unless I can somehow modify this in the future to amplify/repeat a different frequency.
findthedr said:
Surecall makes a WIMAX amplifier/repeater for Sprint's network that amplifies 70db. This is great for those who have WIMAX in their area, but cant get a strong enough signal indoors.
sells for $200 on ebay
too bad I cant find it on alibaba. I would love to get it, but dont think its worth it till the 2015 WIMAX cut-off unless I can somehow modify this in the future to amplify/repeat a different frequency.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems the spec link is broken. Here are the specs from Surecall's site. Its currently selling for $219 USD.
CM2500W 70dB | 4G WiMax Signal Booster
70dB WiMAX | For buildings up to 6,000 sq. ft.
Frequency 2496 - 2690 MHz
Average Gain 70dB WiMAX
Maximum Gain 75dB
VSWR ≤2:0
Standard Supported WiMAX
AC Power Transformer Input AC110V, 60Hz; Output: DC6V
Maximum RF Output Power 3 Watts EIRP
Noise Figure 5dB
Cable CM400 recommended
RF connectors N Female connectors
Power Consumption <10W
Dimensions 5 1/2” x 4 3/4” x 1 1/4” (1.7m x 1.4m x 0.4m)
Weight 2 lbs. (0.9kg)
VSWR <2:1
thanks for posting the info.
I never got it b/c it is too much for a dead technology.

V30 VS996 Verizon reception on 4G and wifi is meh.

I've been noticing that 4G throughput in various contexts is pretty mediocre. With 1-2 bars, it might as well be no service. 3 bars is okay, 4 is good, and 5 bars... I don't remember seeing 5 bars.
I'd say I pull downloads of about 22-25 Mbps and uploads from 1.5 to 3.5 with at least 3 bars.
With 1-2 bars, speeds drop immensely. Downloads drop to 0.4 to 1.3 Mbps and uploads hover around 1.0 Mbps.
I had much better results on my Droid Turbo--but can't really test it now to compare. It just seemed much more robust in poor signal areas, buffered music and video significantly less --so it was not noticeable.
The V30 seems to be buffering all the time. I can barely stream google play stations with mobile network streaming quality set to "high" (not "always high"). It will play 10 seconds and buffer, then keep doing it until signal improves or I toss the phone out the window.
Wifi reception seems equally wimpy whether I'm on a G, N, or AC network compared to my Turbo. When I'm in the same room as the router, I have no issues with speed.
I'm using Ookla's speedtest app.
Curious what others of you on Verizon with a V30 are seeing.
I'm reading this from a location where I typically had poor reception on my Droid Turbo, lots of Pandora interruptions and extremely slow web page loading, and the V30 is 1 to 2 bars 4G but rock sold performance. No speed test, but not sensing an issue like I had been.
So doing side by side my new LgV30 vs my old Nexus 6P. Wifi only since the 6P is no longer on service. The Nexus is faster, not significantly but it is faster. 6P 4.02 d/4.09 u LG 2.72 D/3.88 up. Both with 5ms ping. I've run the test several times and the 6P wins every time.
Here's one I took yesterday... note the signal bars.
At what point do I visit the verizon store and cry about it?
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Outdoor visibility (max brightness)

Rate this thread to express how well you can see the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+'s display outdoors. In case you've been playing Minecraft for 18 months straight, you might not known how to get outside anymore. Well, find the door and walk through it. A higher rating indicates that it has very high maximum brightness and thus fantastic outdoor visibility in direct sunlight.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!
For a phone of this stature and price, could have tossed in a better refresh rate.
I own this along with an iPhone 11 pro.
The iPhone 11 is much more visible outdoors.
lbreak said:
I own this along with an iPhone 11 pro.
The iPhone 11 is much more visible outdoors.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it's not lol. The note gets 300 Nits brighter
Among the brightest phones, according to the specs. And my experience with it has just confirmed it. I never felt the need to crank it up to max however, as there isn't a huge difference between setting brightness to 70% and to 100%, whether indoors or outdoors. I suppose the brightness increase is not really linear? In any case, more than satisfactory.
pafc66 said:
No it's not lol. The note gets 300 Nits brighter
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try holding them side by side together on a sunny day with the Note set to auto brightness so you can get the max theoretical brightness.
It's night and day, no pun intended. The iPhone is hugely more visible.
Not only is the iPhone greatly more visible, but the Note's battery completely clonks out when the screen is bright while the iPhone just powers on.
I'm not Samsung bashing here. I've had every Note since the Note 2. Just stating what I see.
Well, some other factors may influence here, I use vivid screen mode with coolest tone settings and high performance mode which cranks brightness up 10% more, I have no iphone 11 to make a side by side comparison, but things may be different with the settings I mention, and about battery, well, a brighter screen of course will eat a lot more battery juice
lbreak said:
I own this along with an iPhone 11 pro.
The iPhone 11 is much more visible outdoors.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Turn on vivid verses natural.
That said limit viewing in direct sunlight to seconds not minutes. I limit brightness to a max of 50% (some vids need higher). Used like this* the display will easily last many years and thousands of hours of SOT with no display degradation.
*use dark mode and what icons, wallpaper you use to extent battery and display life.
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