VegasRooted

I was under the impression that the OP wanted to get consensus opinion on the best smartphones for basic RF performance, such as holding voice signal in weak areas for the purpose of effectively making and receiving calls, and for sending and receiving SMS & MMS in equally weak spots...so I assumed that he was referring to basic 1x, 3G, etc., and not necessarily the speed & strength of 4G LTE data. As we don't have 4G LTE fully deployed here in Las Vegas yet, and the discussion seems to be directed more and more toward 4G LTE speed and strength, I will respectfully bow out of the conversation, because unfortunately I have no useful information to contribute in that regard. So in parting, please keep in mind that the RF performance & signal strength comparisons that I made in my posts within this thread were specifically focused on basic RF performance, exclusive of 4G LTE. Cheers to all! :-) VegasRooted

** THIS IS AN UPDATE TO MY PREVIOUS POST, NOW INCLUDING THE HTC ONE ** NOTES: 4G LTE is not fully deployed in Las Vegas yet, so this testing does not include it in the equation...also, for reference, I am using Network Signal Info as my go-to app for compare the phones side-by-side. I also verify with Net Monitor and some others... So...the way I would rank the best Sprint CDMA smartphones that I have tested at work for RF signal reception: 1. Motorola Photon (original version, not the Q) - Hands down the best, so far...but too damn old! 2. HTC One (My current favorite; even running CyanogenMod 10.1 Nightly, I still get about 5-10% better signal than Optimus G.) 3. LG Optimus G (performs better than most others at holding onto weaker 3G & 1x.) 4. Samsung Galaxy Victory (On par with Optimus G, though slightly less stable; weaker 3G performance is poor in comparison.) 5. Samsung Galaxy S3 (Decent, but inconsistent; weak 3G is pretty unusable.) 6. Samsung Galaxy S4 (Similar to S3 in performance, but seems slightly weaker at holding signal in weaker fringe areas.) PS- I LOVE the Samsung Galaxy phones more than any others for their speed, expandable memory, removable batteries, awesome screens, call (sound) quality, etc...but their damn RF antennas (at least their Sprint variety CDMA antennas) are so weak! Such a shame... Anyways, hope this list helps some of you that live or work in fringe coverage areas! (At least for voice reception and basic data, text, MMS, etc...) Cheers! :-) VegasRooted

I work in a very weak signal area, so I am always searching for the best Android on Sprint for RF signal strength. I've had a lot of phones and experience in regards to weak signal area testing. I've tried the original Motorola Photon, Motorola Admiral, HTC Evo 4G (original), HTC Evo 4G LTE, Samsung Galaxy S2, S3, and S4, and the LG Optimus G, among others. I always have roaming turned off, so this is strictly using Sprint... The way I would rank the best ones that I have tested here at work for RF signal reception: 1. Motorola Photon (original version, not the Q) - Hands down the best, so far...but too damn old! 2. LG Optimus G (performs much better than any other when on weak 3G & 1x, this is my phone of choice right now. Very consistent.) 3. Samsung Galaxy Victory (On par with the Optimus G for average strength, though slightly less stable; weak 3G performance is poor in comparison, however.) 4. Samsung Galaxy S3 (Decent, but inconsistent; weak 3G is pretty unusable.) Anyways, that's what I've come up with so far! I'm gonna try a couple of mid-range LG's (The Viper & the Optimus F3) and see how they perform, since I like the RF performance of the Optimus G so much; maybe these two would have similar or even stronger strength. We'll see! :-) Cheers, VegasRooted PS-- As others have mentioned, I have also heard that the Samsung Galaxy Note II is extremely good for RF signal, though I've not tried it for myself. It is just a little too big for my taste...Also, the Galaxy S4 actually performed weaker than the S3 for me in the same weak signal locations...too bad, I love the hardware. :-(

Yes indeed! The Post Office parking lot too, and that place is already crowded enough as it is! Hahaha :-D

Here is the intersection you are looking for...

No, but if you follow Jones heading north from the spot marked on your map, it will be where Jones intersects with the 215 North beltway. (Past Ann Road)

Sitting under 4G LTE in the parking lot of the Crossroads Station Post Office at Jones and the North 215 this morning... Outstanding! (4G LTE signal started showing up by the time I passed Rainbow while heading East on the 215.) Screenshots taken from a Galaxy S3, stock rooted & stripped (MB1) ROM. SpeedTest downloads in excess of 21.5Mb/s, uploads in excess of 6.5Mb/s, ping averaging 65ms. Sweet! :-) Cheers, VegasRooted

Ironically, we moved last year (March) from basically exactly next to the tower at the North 215 and Jones intersection to up near Hualapai and Farm road...would be nice to be sitting under that LTE signal right now! :-)

Thank you, great to be here! :-)

Samsung Victory, eh? Intriguing... Thanks for the info! :-)

I heard that about the Photon Q... disappointing indeed. :-(

I live up near Hualapai and Farm, far NW edge of the valley; 3G & 4G Wimax signals are strong here, 3G speed is usually between 750 kbps and 1.5 Mbs using the Switch Communications server through Speedtest.net on my Motorola Photon 4G. My work location on the other end of the valley (South Decatur & 215) has sketchy 3G data reception (due apparently to interference in a very small area) but I get good 4G Wimax in the spot that I am at. I can tether to my laptop using 4G Wimax and get consistent 6-9 Mb/s using the Photon. In the past year, I actually bought and then sold a pair of (OG) Epic 4G's, 3 Epic Touch 4G's, and a Galaxy S3, returning every time to my Photon 4G. I really like the Samsung phones except for their somewhat weaker radio & data reception. When you work in a spot that is right on the verge of not having Sprint voice or data at all, you really notice the difference when comparing reception across different brands and models. The S3 had stronger reception than the E4GT and the OG Epic 4G, but still suffered from abysmal 3G data speeds compared to my old Photon 4G in the same spot. Can't wait for 4G LTE, it will basically re-open the entire Sprint catalog of phones to me again! :-)