Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 4G Constantly Stuck/Fall Back into 3G/HSPA+ on Telstra, No Internet

aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 15:23
Last edited 03/09/2019 - 15:26

Got my new Note 10+ from Amazon preorder sale, so it is Australia stock.
I use it with my Telstra SIM.

From the 2nd day I noticed this phone's data connection would constantly fall back into 3G/HSPA+, multiple times every hour,
it usually stucks in 3G/HSPA+ for several minutes then shows LTE again. Sometime it will just stay in the low and won't back to LTE at all.

When this happens, speed test shows it has 1 ~ 7 Mbps down, 1 Mbps up, most of the time it is much like 1Mbps and I can't
even open a webpage or complete the speedtest.

Sometimes even the signal shows it is LTE, the network speed is still very slow.

The same sim works very good in my old oneplus 5.

Has anyone noticed the same problem?
Or maybe I got a faulty unit?

Mobile Mobile Phone Samsung Android

Comments

  • boomramada on 03/09/2019 - 15:25

    Contact Telstra first, then Contact Samsung if all fails, contact Ozb

    • bdl on 03/09/2019 - 15:39
      -1

      If still fails, PEBCAK

  • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 15:28

    Thanks.

    After I took the SIM card out , put into Oneplus 5 for testing, then put back into Note 10+ and rebooted the phone, now it seems to be stable on 4G LTE.

    I'm not sure if the sim pull out push in solved it, or the reboot solved this, or it will come back later. I'll watch to see.

    I'll need to know who's problem before contacting them.

  • Fysh on 03/09/2019 - 15:28

    Chuck a coverage app on your phone see what its connecting too

    • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 15:31

      Yes had a look of that, it is always connected to some LTE tower nearby, Band 1, Band 3, Band 28 and once on Band 7

      My Oneplus 5 has never had this kind of problem for years.

      I took the SIM card out and put back in Oneplus 5 for an hour, there's no internet drop, it is always on 4G+

    • chrisie on 03/09/2019 - 20:33

      Which Coverage app would you suggest for an Android phone ?

  • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 15:29
    Merged from The Samsung Note 10+ 4G Does Not Support 4G+ (LTE Advanced) ? Slow than My Old Phone?

    I'm with Telstra

    It seems this phone does not support 4G+ (LTE Advanced)?

    I have note seen 4G+ showing up on the status bar, and Ookla Speed Test single connection average 58.4 Mbps downwards.
    ( 21 tests at the same location ).

    While the same sim card on my Oneplus 5 will show as 4G+, Ookla Speed Test single connection average downwards is 86.33 Mbps
    ( 12 tests at the same location as above)

    • bdl on 03/09/2019 - 15:38

      No

      • chrisie on 03/09/2019 - 20:50

        Great - Thanks

  • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 15:29

    I found that this phone doesn't seem to support 4G+ / LTE Advanced?

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/481239

    • boomramada on 03/09/2019 - 15:34

      double posting? :|

      • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 15:35
        -3

        I'd say not, one is signal problem, one is specs

  • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 15:52
    -1

    Well, to OZBargain admin:

    The other post is about the phone's hardware specs on the network support.

    I do not think that post is duplicate or should merge into this post which is about signal / network problem, possible faulty unit or carrier problem.

    That's why I made two posts. The hardware specs post is to remind people about the issue.

    This signal post is post here to get some suggestions to help solve my own problem.

    Keep them separately would be useful to people, merge them would only make it buried into comments.

  • AdosHouse on 03/09/2019 - 16:22

    First thing I always try when this sort of thing happens is go in-store and get a new SIM card.

    • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 16:33

      Will go get one try the luck.

      But the same SIM card works perfectly fine in the old oneplus 5. have tried again.

      So SIM card problem possibility is low.

      • AdosHouse on 03/09/2019 - 17:21

        Possibility might be low, but it is a very easy thing to try. Easier than trying to return the phone.

  • aboutconfig on 03/09/2019 - 16:33

    Here's the result from the service mode menu:

    https://i.ibb.co/FqBkc3v/1.jpg
    https://i.ibb.co/P4gdQnR/2.jpg
    https://i.ibb.co/BLBxYg6/3.jpg

    Well, as I'm typing the previous reply, this phone went to 3G/HSPA+ again for like 1 minute or 2.

    So sim card pull push does not solve the problem, nor does the reboot.

    Hopefully this is a faulty unit, not all Note 10+ 4G work like this?

    https://i.ibb.co/L8hSKSK/4.jpg
    https://i.ibb.co/5krhPLx/5.jpg
    https://i.ibb.co/4J35ZVR/6.jpg
    https://i.ibb.co/5MhFVSG/7.jpg
    https://i.ibb.co/ZgNyC3P/8.jpg

  • aboutconfig on 05/09/2019 - 19:45

    Sent Samsung email for support, but only response was copied answer, does not even create a reference or case number for me.
    Directed me to visit the Samsung support center.

    Called the support center's phone number, it is not the actual support center, it is Samsung Australia service , first is asking where I bought my phone.
    Amazon. Amazon? They are not authorized reseller of Samsung phones. Told the shit to check the IMEI.
    Then I was asked to go through the steps as usual, after half an hour of time wasting (same steps as the email has mentioned) , they helped me booked an appointment at the near by support center, but was told it has all been booked out till 12th Sep. Kidding me, I spend nearly $2K got this not working phone, and have to wait for a week just to see someone in the support center? And no, there's no tech works in there, you visit them, after deemed there's problem with the phone, the phone needs to be sent away to check.

    Then I found I can just make the appointment online taking just one minute, don't have to waste that half an hour going through the diagnostic steps.

    ridiculous service! Told its normal and they can't do anything about the waiting time. Bullshit. If you are selling $1700 phones, and your support center is lined up for a week, you probably want to improve that shit center?

    No you can not make complaint on the support phone. They have no such procedures in place, even I make complaint, there will be no one response or process it.

  • Imoz on 20/09/2019 - 20:30

    Hi

    I have a similar problem with my Note 10+. Unstable 4g on Telstra.
    Any solution or progress aboutconfig?

  • profaner on 21/09/2019 - 01:33
    +1

    Have had the same issue as well. Had to boot to safe mode to test my phone. It somehow magical started to work. Note i had to go on Samsung chat 2 times before getting a resolution. If you still have issues that might be resolution. Hit me up for more details on my steps. I am on Optus. Its working so far…..

    • aboutconfig on 21/09/2019 - 05:59

      Hi mate,

      Could you tell me the steps to solve this? I'm going to return this phone if this problem can't solved. Called Samsung several times and visited their serivce center, they don't have a valid service.

  • profaner on 21/09/2019 - 11:11

    These are the steps i took

    • I did a Reset network settings on the phone. Which resets all the connection settings.
    • Did a Wipe Cache, Hold down Bixby and Up Button when phone is off. And Wipe Cache
    • Reset to Factory Settings
    • Swap the sim Card slots, sim 2 take the card vertical. I have the hybrid version Note 10 +
    • Boot into Safe Mode. Down and Bixby button once phone is off. You will know you are in safe mode as the symbol on the left hand side of the screen that indicates
      In each steps test if your phone still has the issue
      In mode 5, if your reception is working fine, it is a possibility that one of your apps is causing the issue.
      My case it seem the widgets was causing the issue. Which is quite bizarre. I have 160apps on my phone. It was suggested by the Samsung technician on live chat, the network issue is caused by third party apps. Seems the safe mode. Only boots native apps. Which means you should do a fresh install and install apps one by one to see if the issue persists. I was switching from S8 to Note 10+ already took me 4hrs ++. I cannot imagine how long a fresh install will take.
      I will have to take that route if my phone starts acting up
      I am currently getting 110mps on Speed test on Optus. Down is bad as its Floptus.
      Also note the Samsung has a remote access app called Smart Tutor which you can download and they can assist.
      Hope one of these steps can resolve your issue
    • Imoz on 21/09/2019 - 14:13

      The issue still persists.
      I also did a factory reset and tested many apps such as ForceLTE. This might force the phone to go into 4G mode constantly. But either with a very slow and irregular download speed or no upload at all.

    • aboutconfig on 03/10/2019 - 10:39

      Thanks for the steps.

      Third party apps are not running, I can hardly imaging third party apps that are not running could cause phone reception issues like the 'Samsung live chat' suggests.

      Even they are running, they could consume the network link but not cause the reception problem, or force connect/reconnect or manually select 3G/4G.

      My unit's problem solved via replacing the motherboard. After this has been done, I hardly have a network problem (2 drops in 5 days, instead of 30 drops in a day), and the downlink tests reach 320Mbps at the off peak time at my location.

      But, Samsung's service is horrible horrible.

  • Imoz on 21/09/2019 - 14:16
    +1

    I imagine this is a widespread problem but not many people notice that since it does not happen all the time. But could be particularly annoying in some locations where at least my previous Note 9 had no issues at all. The amount of switching between 4G and 3G within only one week of use has been more than 6 years of using other phones. LOL. And Samsung support is horrible.

    • profaner on 21/09/2019 - 20:48

      Not everyone will notice like you said. The issues seems to be related to the phone itself. Mine was so bad. Literally had no reception or data. Hope some firmware updates fixes it.

  • [Deactivated] on 03/10/2019 - 09:17

    Note10+ purchased from Vodafone sep 9th 2019. Phone call drops are a permanent feature. Exchanged to new note10+ last week, problem is exactly same. Support says reset network settings and switch mobile network to 3g. But if network is switched to 3g internet connection is not working, email reports no connection.

    But phone call are fine.

    Not sure if it's firmware or hardware issue.

    Reading this forum, finding its a common problem. Anyone was able to fix ~

  • [Deactivated] on 03/10/2019 - 09:18

    If anyone have solution please share it please.

  • aboutconfig on 03/10/2019 - 10:23

    The problem for my Note 10+ 4G got solved via replacing the motherboard, but Samsung's service is so shity

    I'm Returning My Samsung Galaxy Note10+ 4G Because of Phone Problem and Their Low Standard Customer Service

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/485589

  • dinga on 05/10/2019 - 21:08

    I'm having the same issue with my note10+ 5g on optus network, received on 22nd september and been doing it til now. I generally have to toggle flight mode on & off for 4g speeds goes back up slowly. Contacted Optus and tried resetting Network settings and still same. It happens anytime of day doesn't matter where i am even though I know their is good 4g signal my speeds are under 8Mbps. Im assuming its a device or hardware issue even when im connected to wireless bluetooth headsets they tend to drop and frequencies isn't as good as my old note 8.

    Going to send it back to optus and get them to do a assessment, i mean what good is 5g when 4g is not even working?

  • mango-pudding on 29/10/2019 - 14:24

    I have a Samsung Galaxy Note10+ Hybrid SIM model, bought from Woolworths Mobile on lanuch. I am having lots of network issue with this phone for over 6 weeks now.

    The problem I have been facing are when someone calls me, they will intermittently get an engaged signal even though I was available, they would dial 5-6 times and it's all engaged, SMS wouldn't come through whenever that happens, delay SMS that arrived half a day after it was sent, or even next day, 4G completely stopped working, would indicated H+ signal and nothing would load but restarting the phone always solved the issue. (Can happen anywhere from Melbourne CBD, South Yarra, Prahran etc).

    Tried 3 SIM card from Woolworths Mobile, even tried an Optus SIM, still no luck, even tried factory reset but still getting engaged signal, anyone else have multiple issues with this phone like mine?

    Taken my phone to Samsung 3 times for repair, they reflashed the software but problem still exists, they can't find any fault on it but claiming it's network issue but cannot explain why the exact SIM card works on my old Sony phone without problem.

    Woolworths Mobile is simply saying I just have to accept no network is perfect but can't explain why problem doesn't occurs on a old Sony phone. To be honest, constant dropping to 3G or even H+ no internet available I can put up with it but not being able to receive call & SMS and not knowing it for who know how long it has been is not acceptable for what they called "no network is perfect".

    We have ran test in the terminal on the phone that simply ping the Google DNS server every 5 second, we see packet loss on both different service provider SIM's on this Note 10+ however when we put the SIM on an old Sony phone, zero packet loss. My husband uses his own Optus SIM to ran the same test on his S8+ and received zero packet loss aswell. So error only shows on this phone, anyone have any idea or have similar problem to all those above?

    • posthex on 13/11/2019 - 14:16

      I have the same problem as you on my Note 10+ Hybrid SIM, the issues happen on both my Telstra SIM and Vodafone SIM.

      Samsung took it in for service and returned it with no fault found showing that it passed all tests. It took about 3 days to log into all my apps and get everything organised the way it was before they wiped the software. Now the same data connection issues have cropped up where it falls back to an unusable H+ signal. Restarting the phone will always temporarily fix the issue.

      I had the Note 9 phone prior to this and never had these issues with my data connections using the same SIM cards.

      I wonder how why wide spread this issue really is on this model and what I should be doing next?

    • profaner on 23/12/2019 - 20:17

      My issue from before has gotten a bit better.
      I cleraed my phone third time, took out all the Apps i dont use, and stuck with default Launcher.
      But still have issues with the reception and data when in buildings particularly.
      Tested on S8 which did not have any issues.
      Put an Optus Sim card in the Note 10 + and the reception issue is there but not as bad.
      I am quite certain there is an issue with Note 10 + in general.

  • Imoz on 20/11/2019 - 11:07

    Finally found a solution with the 4G/3G switching problem and the intermittent internet connection. This worked with my Samsung Note 10+ which had problem with Telstra network. But the method should work for other networks on which note 10+ struggles to stay on 4G. I downloaded the network specific official firmware (in my case the latest Telstra firmware for Note 10+) from Sammobile website and flashed the phone with that. Refer to the instructions in their website for how to flash. Note that you need to use CSC for clean flash (will also factory reset your phone so make a back up from your info beforehand). Don't use HOME_CSC_ as it will not solve the 4G/3G issue.
    This method will not void the warranty as this is an official firmware.

    • profaner on 23/12/2019 - 20:08

      Did that solve the problem? It seems worse with Telstra.

  • supersabroso on 17/12/2019 - 01:40

    I have the same problem with my Note 8 recently (past few months on Telstra)! Constantly reverting to 3G randomly and when it reverts to 3G, phone us unusable in terms of data/phone calls. I have to toggle airplane mode to cut all connections, then toggle it back off to restore 4G. Shame there's no option to prevent connection to 3G. I just bought a Note 10+ thinking that my Note 8 has gotten too old and that I dropped it too many times lol. Hopefully this is not the case, that would be horrible if it's a Telstra/Samsung problem!

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