SignalCheck - Android app to monitor your Wi-Fi/2G/3G/4G LTE/5G-NR signal strengths

[davidtm]

Working well on my new HTC U11. Small glitch noticed: the notification said "N/A" until I toggled airplane mode. Seems perfectly fine now.

 

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[Tengen31]

I'm still getting this after the update. When I first hit a Clearwire site it did say B41, then changed to this.

 

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[dkyeager]

You see the same type of plmn flattening with freedompop in former nTelos areas, which is reported as Sprint which then conflicts with NE Sprint GCI. Likely need to put these special GCI areas with different base plmns in geographic boxes to be converted back to typical plmn.

 

Of course what is the real plmn? Neither Boost or Freedompop maintain the network so they likely don't care / used for billing purposes.

 

Then you have the issue that for regular Sprint users as mismatched plmn is a sign of questionable data, so converting the plmn for them is likely a bad choice.

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Edited June 29, 2017 by dkyeager

[ericdabbs]

Drum roll.. a SignalCheck Pro update is finally rolling out today! Lots of bug fixes, new features, behind the scenes improvements.. good stuff. My apologies for taking over a year to get this out. There will (hopefully) be more timely updates moving forward.

-Mike

 

Fantastic update to the SignalCheck Pro app.  I know there has been a lot of changes between the different Android revisions which probably led to setbacks and just in the wireless industry in general with the addition of small cells, DAS, and mini macros and I appreciate all the time you have put in on your busy schedule to still carve out time to help us wireless enthusiasts discover LTE.

 

Looking forward to seeing future updates especially with the upcoming addition of B71 (600 MHz) and curious to see if there is a way to track LTE-U updates on Tmobile with the engineering screens.   

[kg4icg]

Fantastic update to the SignalCheck Pro app. I know there has been a lot of changes between the different Android revisions which probably led to setbacks and just in the wireless industry in general with the addition of small cells, DAS, and mini macros and I appreciate all the time you have put in on your busy schedule to still carve out time to help us wireless enthusiasts discover LTE.

 

Looking forward to seeing future updates especially with the upcoming addition of B71 (600 MHz) and curious to see if there is a way to track LTE-U updates on Tmobile with the engineering screens.

Guess you didn't read where it says T-Mobile is hit and miss with the app.

 

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[nowerlater]

Mike, in the status bar it shows just the 2 dashes when connected to WiFi calling. Could that be change somehow to reflect it saying WiFi calling or something like that?

 

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[Flompholph]

I'm still getting this after the update. When I first hit a Clearwire site it did say B41, then changed to this.

 

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Does your phone use 310120 PLMN for Boost Mobile when on B25/B26/Sprint B41?

[nexgencpu]

Noticed NYC small cells coming up as mini macro.

 

[Flompholph]

I thought the clearwire small cells were replaced by nokia gear.

 

Small cells can be mini macros. Air harmony 4000 are mini macros. They have a different GCI ending though.

[mikejeep]

FYI.. I am receiving a lot of questions regarding T-Mobile LTE band identification and wanted to provide some more technical information about why the app is no longer displaying it for some sites. A section has been added to the "Known Issues" page here: http://www.bluelinepc.com/signalcheck/known-issues#tmobile

 

-Mike

[mikejeep]

Working well on my new HTC U11. Small glitch noticed: the notification said "N/A" until I toggled airplane mode. Seems perfectly fine now.

 

Notifications (and on a more noticeable delay, widgets) seem to update a little slower sometimes, especially when the device is sitting still. These routines were not changed; I'm wondering if it's related to OS-controlled battery optimization or something similar. I've been watching it on my Pixel and hopefully can figure out what might be going on.

 

 

I'm still getting this after the update. When I first hit a Clearwire site it did say B41, then changed to this.

 

I connect to Clearwire sites often and haven't seen an issue. Are you a Boost Mobile subscriber? The app should show Clearwire on 311870 *unless* the device is reporting it is registered to Boost. Send a diagnostic report (About > Send Diagnostics) next time you see it happening and include your username and a brief description and I'll see what is going on.

 

 

Looking forward to seeing future updates especially with the upcoming addition of B71 (600 MHz) and curious to see if there is a way to track LTE-U updates on Tmobile with the engineering screens.   

 

It all depends on how T-Mobile is deploying LTE-U.. if you have any details, please send me a PM. Always interested in adding new features, but T-Mobile is proving to be a little complicated (see here).

 

 

Mike, in the status bar it shows just the 2 dashes when connected to WiFi calling. Could that be change somehow to reflect it saying WiFi calling or something like that?

 

Send a diagnostic report (About > Send Diagnostics) next time you see it, include your username and a brief description and I'll take a look to see how I can tackle this. To date, I have not seen enough information to identify Wi-Fi Calling consistently, but maybe you can help with that.

 

-Mike

[imex99]

Awesome! Damn Mike, you should consider setting up a Donation link on your site or something.

 

Signal check is my third most used app, after the browser and messengers, and I'm pretty sure most of us here share the same feeling.

Agreed, I would like to send you some $$ for your beverage of choice....

 

Still trying for the airave but I think my contacts are on vacation....

 

Sent from my LG-LS993 using Tapatalk

[nexgencpu]

I thought the clearwire small cells were replaced by nokia gear.

Small cells can be mini macros. Air harmony 4000 are mini macros. They have a different GCI ending though.

Can't tell since all small cell equipment is encased on light poles in NYC.

[mikejeep]

Really appreciate the update Mike! It actually makes me sad my current provider is not Sprint anymore as it seems they benefit the most from these changes. Will definitely keep using this on my phone though and may look into tracking more Sprint again since this seems to make it far easier to do so!

 

Sprint tends to get the most goodies because the S4GRU crowd gives me the most information. I'm more than happy to add anything I can, but I need to know where to find the info. Feel free to let me know if you have anything for whoever your current provider is!

 

 

Patreon!

Agreed, I would like to send you some $$ for your beverage of choice....

 

Still trying for the airave but I think my contacts are on vacation....

 

I had never heard of Patreon, that's interesting. But that highlights one of my biggest concerns.. I already feel that I have an obligation to continue improving the app indefinitely because so many people have purchased it. Establishing a voluntary fee structure or soliciting donations increases my anxiety/guilt when I don't have enough time to get timely updates out. I understand where you are all coming from but I get more angry e-mails than you would expect from people expecting instant 24/7/365 personalized support and daily app updates because I got $1.39 from them three years ago.

 

imex99, you get me that Airave 3 and I'll buy YOU a beer..

 

 

Can't tell since all small cell equipment is encased on light poles in NYC.

 

Could a Mini-Macro fit in the enclosures you believe are small cells? The GCI you shared matches the MM pattern that has been identified, which is why SCP handles it that way. But that doesn't necessarily mean something hasn't changed. Things are constantly evolving.

 

-Mike

[Joski1624]

[snip]Could a Mini-Macro fit in the enclosures you believe are small cells? The GCI you shared matches the MM pattern that has been identified, which is why SCP handles it that way. But that doesn't necessarily mean something hasn't changed. Things are constantly evolving.

 

-Mike

 

Mini macros and small cells share the same GCI pool here. They all are intermixed. All of our small cells have a GCI ending of 01 only. All of them are relay backhaul, so fiber or other backhaul may yield different results if the small cell supports multiple carriers. All our mini macro Gci suffixes have been 31, 32, 33/39, 3A, 3B depending on the carrier.

[dkyeager]

Sprint tends to get the most goodies because the S4GRU crowd gives me the most information. I'm more than happy to add anything I can, but I need to know where to find the info. Feel free to let me know if you have anything for whoever your current provider is!

 

 

 

I had never heard of Patreon, that's interesting. But that highlights one of my biggest concerns.. I already feel that I have an obligation to continue improving the app indefinitely because so many people have purchased it. Establishing a voluntary fee structure or soliciting donations increases my anxiety/guilt when I don't have enough time to get timely updates out. I understand where you are all coming from but I get more angry e-mails than you would expect from people expecting instant 24/7/365 personalized support and daily app updates because I got $1.39 from them three years ago.

 

imex99, you get me that Airave 3 and I'll buy YOU a beer..

 

 

 

Could a Mini-Macro fit in the enclosures you believe are small cells? The GCI you shared matches the MM pattern that has been identified, which is why SCP handles it that way. But that doesn't necessarily mean something hasn't changed. Things are constantly evolving.

 

-Mike

The Nokia Mini Macros are smaller than the Airspan Air Harmony 1000 and 4000s. The Mini Macros are believed to be fiber fed and do have CA. We have only seen the Air Harmonies using Band 41 for backhaul and transmitting on another B41 single carrier.

 

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[Flompholph]

Mini macros and small cells share the same GCI pool here. They all are intermixed. All of our small cells have a GCI ending of 01 only. All of them are relay backhaul, so fiber or other backhaul may yield different results if the small cell supports multiple carriers. All our mini macro Gci suffixes have been 31, 32, 33/39, 3A, 3B depending on the carrier.

That is how the app is set up now.

nexgencpu issuse is NYC small cell is showing 0129xx3x. Which would show MM nexgencpu was expecting SC.

 

NYC small cells I beleive someone mentioned they were clearwire small cells converted to sprint. At the same time they were going live sprint was replacing clearwire sites with nokia mini macros. So it is my belief that the nyc small cells are fiber fed nokia MM. But we won't know until we see inside the box. Just to mention it looks like there were also 3 sector MM in NYC.

[lilotimz]

That is how the app is set up now.

nexgencpu issuse is NYC small cell is showing 0129xx3x. Which would show MM nexgencpu was expecting SC.

 

NYC small cells I beleive someone mentioned they were clearwire small cells converted to sprint. At the same time they were going live sprint was replacing clearwire sites with nokia mini macros. So it is my belief that the nyc small cells are fiber fed nokia MM. But we won't know until we see inside the box. Just to mention it looks like there were also 3 sector MM in NYC.

NYC has organic sprint Nokia Flexi and mini macros in addition to clearwire conversions. There is no way to tell if it's a Flexi Zone or mini macro in those enclosures.

 

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[TheForce627]

Not sure if this is intentional or not but band 66 is showing up as band 4.

[Trip]

Not sure if this is intentional or not but band 66 is showing up as band 4.

 

Those two pictures appear to be different cells.  What's really weird is that the EARFCN being shown in the picture on the right is PCS, but the GCI sector ID matches AWS.  And in the picture on the left, the frequency shown is within the AWS-1 band.

 

- Trip

[lilotimz]

Those two pictures appear to be different cells. What's really weird is that the EARFCN being shown in the picture on the right is PCS, but the GCI sector ID matches AWS. And in the picture on the left, the frequency shown is within the AWS-1 band.

 

- Trip

B66 superset with Mfbi B4 for non B66 capable devices?

 

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[TheForce627]

Those two pictures appear to be different cells.  What's really weird is that the EARFCN being shown in the picture on the right is PCS, but the GCI sector ID matches AWS.  And in the picture on the left, the frequency shown is within the AWS-1 band.

 

- Trip

hey Trip. I locked my phone to band 66. Look at this screenshot. Same pci

[mikejeep]

Those two pictures appear to be different cells.  What's really weird is that the EARFCN being shown in the picture on the right is PCS, but the GCI sector ID matches AWS.  And in the picture on the left, the frequency shown is within the AWS-1 band.

 

And all the neighbor cells in the SCP screenshot are reporting Band 2, leading me to believe that is most likely what the true connection was at that moment, since Nougat doesn't seem to show neighbor cells on other bands. But definitely weird across the board there. SCP shows B4 because the app prioritizes hard-coded band patterns over EARFCN calculations (mostly so that "special" indicators like additional carriers or small cells can be shown).

 

-Mike

[Trip]

B66 superset with Mfbi B4 for non B66 capable devices?

 

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That would explain the output of NSG, but not what's going on in SCP.

 

hey Trip. I locked my phone to band 66. Look at this screenshot. Same pci

 

Interesting.  What does SCP show?

 

And, of course, send a diagnostic to Mike, if you haven't already.

 

- Trip

[TheForce627]

Interesting.  What does SCP show?

 

And, of course, send a diagnostic to Mike, if you haven't already.

 

- Trip all 3 screenshots were taken at the same time. Do I need to be connected to that site to send a diagnostic?