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

[mikejeep]

fixed itself after i flashed a prl lol.

 

Woohoo! I had downloaded the MD4 source code and was going to start picking it apart tonight.. thanks for the update, you just saved me a lot of time.

 

-Mike

[WiWavelength]

Not sure what you were originally posting, but weren't you seeing -1 for NID/SID/BID before? Did it fix itself? Fingers crossed...

 

gr8nuguy must have flashed the super secret bizzaro world negative PRL.

 

AJ

[Stevero]

Appreciate the app! Use my Play Store money wisely.

 

Is it common for a tower to transmit more than one BSL?

In my short experience I've seen multiples for many towers.

Could each sector have it's own BSL?

If each sector had it's own BSL that would explain why the different BSLs that I've seen that I think are for the same tower have offsets in different directions.

[mikejeep]

your app let me know that NV 3G was activated on my local tower. The address field you keep for 1X is now correct, where the legacy 3G was offset by about a mile.

I'm starting to notice something similar; some of my BSL's have changed slightly, which I'm guessing is the result of different latitude/longitude values being broadcast, hopefully due to new equipment. Unfortunately, these new addresses are still offset in my area. Rats.

 

Appreciate the app! Use my Play Store money wisely.

 

Is it common for a tower to transmit more than one BSL?

In my short experience I've seen multiples for many towers.

Could each sector have it's own BSL?

If each sector had it's own BSL that would explain why the different BSLs that I've seen that I think are for the same tower have offsets in different directions.

Thanks for your support -- I promise I will spend wisely.. LOL

 

Yes, each sector has its own BSL.. so your theory is correct. In my area, all the tower locations are offset; therefore, it looks like there are lots of towers scattered everywhere, when in reality, the towers are not at any of those addresses. Some folks (like Jeff above) get the actual tower address.. lucky them.

 

Each sector should be broadcasting a different BID.. if you are seeing multiple addresses for the same BID, that is most likely an issue with Google's server that converts latitude/longitude into street addresses. It seems to get less-specific with the address occasionally, perhaps when it is overloaded. Nothing any of us can do about that.

 

-Mike

[dcharleyultra]

 

Woohoo! I had downloaded the MD4 source code and was going to start picking it apart tonight.. thanks for the update, you just saved me a lot of time.

 

-Mike

I traced the -1 to the fact that "Use wireless networks" was not ticked:

 

Swyped from my SPH-L710

 

 

[gr8nuguy]

gr8nuguy must have flashed the super secret bizzaro world negative PRL.

 

AJ

LOL , flashed our custom 800prl

[digiblur]

And the weird thing is there is nothing odd or out of the question with that PRL.

[Deval]

Just purchased the Pro version, wanted to give my support, at least for the short time I'll be on Android (just got the One for two weeks).

[gr8nuguy]

dont know if its a bug or not, but i have the sound effect on when i connect to 800smr, and the other day it went off and i got excited for 2 seconds, then saw my phone was roaming.

[mikejeep]

dont know if its a bug or not, but i have the sound effect on when i connect to 800smr, and the other day it went off and i got excited for 2 seconds, then saw my phone was roaming.

 

Do you have something that would play a sound effect when you roam? Unless your phone reported a quick glimpse of 800 right before it went into roaming, I don't think the sound came from SignalCheck..

 

-Mike

[gr8nuguy]

the sound was different then my notification sound, and it hasnt repeated itself. just a fluke i guess. It is fun watching the BID change every few seconds (located between 2 sectors)

[Luuminator]

Hey mike I'm curious if there has been issues with the not locating the bsl on the gs3 because mine just keeps saying locating. Attached is a pic

[chamb]

Hey mike I'm curious if there has been issues with the not locating the bsl on the gs3 because mine just keeps saying locating. Attached is a pic

 

I have a "Stock" GS3. I see this "locating" thing quite often, but in my case I think it is normal. Where I live, as I drive around, I am bouncing between several cell sites. I have a bunch of hills, obstructions, mountains, dips & valleys. I am constantly losing the connection to one cell site but picking up another one from another direction. In some places I will see a bounce between 3 or 4 cell sites and sometimes it only connects to one for less than a second. When I am home, or when I stop moving elsewhere, it generally goes steady on one cell site. When it goes into locating mode, I SUSPECT that it has grabbed co-ordinates from the cell site and might be using Google to look-up a street location for those co-ordinates. Sometimes this takes awhile and I suspect it might be because I switch between cell sites or sectors very quickly and hit more than one within a second or two.

 

I even have a cell site that says one sector is in China. I also have one cell site that tells me one sector is 50 miles away. Apparently somebody has not programmed the correct co-ordinates into the site data.

[mikejeep]

Hey mike I'm curious if there has been issues with the not locating the bsl on the gs3 because mine just keeps saying locating. Attached is a pic

 

There is a well-documented (and very annoying) Android bug that essentially causes the location service to fizzle out sometimes, and the only fix is to reboot your device. Many developers have tried workarounds, but nothing has worked. Google is aware of the issue, but nobody knows why it hasn't been fixed. I should probably document this somewhere so users are aware of the issue.

 

Another theoretical possibility is that it was unable to connect to the Google geocoding server, which could either be a problem on your end or Google's. It attempts to query that server whenever the SID changes or SignalCheck is brought to the foreground. Unless you are unable to access the Internet on your device, I would say this is not the problem.

 

Try a reboot..

 

-Mike

[Luuminator]

Reboot worked. Thanks Mike

Doug

[mikejeep]

When it goes into locating mode, I SUSPECT that it has grabbed co-ordinates from the cell site and might be using Google to look-up a street location for those co-ordinates. Sometimes this takes awhile and I suspect it might be because I switch between cell sites or sectors very quickly and hit more than one within a second or two.

 

You nailed it. Once SignalCheck gets valid coordinates from a site, it queries a Google reverse geocoding server that translates the latitude/longitude into a street address. If you are switching sectors very quickly, you could be switching before the query results are returned. SignalCheck only sends the query if the BID has changed.

 

There is an Android bug that effects all apps on all devices which will randomly cause this to stop working and display "Locating.." forever (see my post from a few minutes ago). If you are experiencing this, the only fix is a reboot.

 

-Mike

[chamb]

You nailed it. Once SignalCheck gets valid coordinates from a site, it queries a Google reverse geocoding server that translates the latitude/longitude into a street address. If you are switching sectors very quickly, you could be switching before the query results are returned. SignalCheck only sends the query if the BID has changed.

 

There is an Android bug that effects all apps on all devices which will randomly cause this to stop working and display "Locating.." forever (see my post from a few minutes ago). If you are experiencing this, the only fix is a reboot.

 

-Mike

 

Great app you have, Mike. I started out with the FREE version. After about a week, I upgraded to your paid version. It was worth every last penny. Anybody that has any interest in how a PCS system works should buy your app.

 

I was really surprised at how often a CDMA 1x call switches between sectors or different sites. I was well aware that it was happening, but it does this more than I ever realized. I happen to live in an area that is difficult to service and therefore it has quite a few sites around. Just a lot of obstructions that make it difficult to receive a signal and hold on. I can sometimes see about 4 different sectors or sites within a few seconds when I go through a questionable spot. I would have expected to see a transfer, but not that many.

 

Really interesting stuff. I like the chimes telling about the available LTE. My area is well covered with LTE but you can lose it occasionally. Nice to hear those chimes when you move and get LTE service again. I have not heard the "800 sound" yet but I have a bunch of "full build" sites in a "800 wait mode". Hope the wait mode soon changes to a active mode.

[WiWavelength]

I was really surprised at how often a CDMA 1x call switches between sectors or different sites. I was well aware that it was happening, but it does this more than I ever realized. I happen to live in an area that is difficult to service and therefore it has quite a few sites around. Just a lot of obstructions that make it difficult to receive a signal and hold on. I can sometimes see about 4 different sectors or sites within a few seconds when I go through a questionable spot. I would have expected to see a transfer, but not that many.

 

I have long used Mike's app but have never observed it while on a CDMA1X call, so he may have to confirm how it behaves. But CDMA1X calls are frequently subject to soft and/or softer handoff, which means that the call is connected through multiple sites and/or sectors simultaneously. Now, one site and sector does remain the primary PN, and I suspect that is what Mike's app always shows while on a CDMA1X call. But the entire active set can consist of up to six PNs. And in your case, chamb, chances are good that the same four sites or sectors that you mention remain in the active set with just the primary PN toggling because of Ec/Io fluctuations among the sites and sectors.

 

AJ

[mikejeep]

I have long used Mike's app but have never observed it while on a CDMA1X call, so he may have to confirm how it behaves. But CDMA1X calls are frequently subject to soft and/or softer handoff, which means that the call is connected through multiple sites and/or sectors simultaneously. Now, one site and sector does remain the primary PN, and I suspect that is what Mike's app always shows while on a CDMA1X call. But the entire active set can consist of up to six PNs. And in your case, chamb, chances are good that the same four sites or sectors that you mention remain in the active set with just the primary PN toggling because of Ec/Io fluctuations among the sites and sectors.

 

SignalCheck shows you whatever the device is considering to be the currently active CDMA cell. It doesn't do anything fancy with the information.. just displays what Android thinks it is connected to.

 

It's funny, I had never watched the app while I was on a call either.. so I just tried it. The 1X cell never changed, which is a little odd considering that when I am at home, I usually see it fluctuating fairly often when I am watching the app. I am on top of a large hill with a big window facing a tower that is not usually the one I am connected to; however, walking over to the window almost always forces it to switch to that site. Very handy for testing my app! While on a call, it didn't do that, it stayed with the site it was on when I made the call. Shortly after I hung up, it casually flipped between a few different sites. It certainly could just be a coincidence though.

 

-Mike

[Bob Newhart]

You nailed it. Once SignalCheck gets valid coordinates from a site, it queries a Google reverse geocoding server that translates the latitude/longitude into a street address. If you are switching sectors very quickly, you could be switching before the query results are returned. SignalCheck only sends the query if the BID has changed.

 

Is this why the street address is sometimes way off in your app, as some rural sites might not have a real street address?

I have seen it where the app reports an address of the tower location about half a mile away of where it really is.

[digiblur]

Is this why the street address is sometimes way off in your app, as some rural sites might not have a real street address?

I have seen it where the app reports an address of the tower location about half a mile away of where it really is.

 

Not really, that's the location Sprint has the sector set to for the lat/long it is sending.

[mikejeep]

Update time!! SignalCheck Pro 3.09 is ready for the masses, and should be available on Google Play shortly. I was hoping to include more new features, but I haven't had much free time lately and I wanted to release the few things that were finished. Here are the changes:

• Resolved issue with “null” appearing after the LTE SNR reading on some devices.
  
• Resolved issue with SignalCheck not launching automatically at boot in certain situations. (Pro)
  
• Resolved issue with widget appearing as 2×2 instead of 1×1 on some devices. (Pro)
  
• Added support for Samsung’s Multi Window (aka multi-view) feature.
  
• Added option to allow SignalCheck to display in portrait or landscape mode according to how the user rotates the device. (Pro)
  
• Added address text to BSL marker in Google Maps. (Pro)
  

The Multi Window feature is pretty neat, and I'm glad some of you brought it to my attention. I will work on getting the free (Lite) version updated and published soon.

 

On another note, I know many of you have Samsung devices, and getting extra features to work in the app for those devices has been challenging because I was essentially working blind, since I have an HTC. Well, I want to take a moment to give a huge shout-out to Robert for going the extra mile (which he seems to do for all of us a lot) and helping solve that problem. Last week, he shipped me his spare Samsung Galaxy Victory so I could borrow it for development purposes. Considering how much he already does for everyone, it was quite a gesture.. digiblur deserves credit for making it happen too. Having a Samsung device in my hand should help me figure out how to pull more information out of those devices, and make this app even more useful. Thanks Robert!! I'll be focusing my efforts on tackling Samsung-specific stuff for the next release.

 

-Mike

[kg4icg]

Got it and doing good.

[dedub]

Big thanks for the landscape and multi view support!

[jefbal99]

Hey Mike, with the new Play Store supporting beta testing, will S4GRU members get early access to app upgrades?