What’s happening when your phone is showing four bars but in actuality the data is not working?
In: 7
network congestion (think like too many cars on the road, you have gridlock where nothing moves), interference, or the pages you are accessing are down.
The bars on your phone really mean… nothing of usefulness. Android and iOS use totally different things for the metrics used to get this information, so you can’t even compare them. Even then, it depends on stuff like the GSM/GPRS/HDPE/4G/5G/6G chip your device has as to how well it deals with the signal.
Your best indicator is running a speed test or using the little network speed indicator on android.
Also, tip. Next time you are in a 5G or 4G area with “full bars” but nothing is working, try setting your mobile settings to make it not use 5G/4G/whatever is being used and let it drop down to an older band like 3G (if you still have coverage for it; in the UK we still have 3G everywhere mostly, in addition to 4G in most places and 5G increasingly in built up places… I know the US has began decomissioning 3G masts though). You’ll often find you get faster speeds on a lower band because fewer people are using it so there is less congestion. I regularly do this in London when stuff loads slowly. 75% of cases, I get a faster speed on 3G vs 4G or 4G vs 5G.
Latest Answers