Phone shows strong 4G connection but doesn't have internet connection

[Doge]

Over the last 12 months, my mobile has suffered a lack of data and getting worse every week.  I used to be able to get 5 bars in our town, now I get 1 bar and I cannot use data at all. Last night I was in a retail park that used to have great coverage but I could not get a signal, I had to use my daughter's phone as a hotspot to get online.  She was on Three and had a full signal whilst I could barely send texts. The old excuse of rebooting and factory resetting a phone is just rubbish, I work with Android devices and have never had to reset them to fix network issues. I have been recording speed tests in OpenSignal and found that the coverage data they provide does not match what EE claims.  Also, EE coverage is based on computer-generated data and does not account for terrain or buildings, if you use the coverage checker to complain about being mis-sold a service they point to this text at the bottom of the map. Most of my family have moved of EE due to signal issues in our area.

"These results are only a guide and not a guarantee of service availability in a particular location. Coverage may be affected by a number of factors, such as building materials, tree cover and weather conditions and how many other people are using the network too. Results are based on computer prediction to a high confidence but are not error free."

[bristolian]

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@Doge wrote:

Also, EE coverage is based on computer-generated data

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This is true of all radio networks, EE is no exception to an industry-standard.

If you experience poor coverage in locations where service wasn't previously an issue, you can report those for further checks - there may be a service issue. Again, every network operator experiences those and far too many people "report" their issues on Facebook and suchlike, without going through the correct process.

[Doge]

This last year my phone has struggled to get a decent signal in areas I used to have great reception. From places that had 4-5 bars I now get 0-1 bars. I can no longer rely on my data connection and have found being on EE is like going back to the days of browsing the internet using WAP and 2g. I have been relying on family and friends' hotspots at times to do the most basic of things online. Last night it took me 20 minutes to order on the Mcdonalds' app due to having 1 bar, in the end, I gave up and had to go in and order face-to-face. I am counting the days down to when I can lave my contract, they massive increases they have applied each year means I am paying even more for less.

I am interested to see if this is just me or if others have noticed a decline in EEs coverage, have you noticed a steady drop in signal and data speeds this year whilst remaining on the same phone and contract?

[bristolian]

Your duplicate posts have been merged into the same place.

There can be a user perception that "more bars" are better when sometimes, the opposite can be true depending on rollout of high-band techs meaning more capacity is available on a perceptibly poorer signal. There will always be local differences in the nature of radio networks, but nationally, EE's performance metrics are consistently reliable and outperform other operators.

As per previous replies, have you reported your specific issues for further checks? My observations are that many users post on various social media sites and consider that "reporting their issues. I have also experienced very similar issues to yours, and traced them to device faults - replacing said device then had the user experience of changing networks, such were the symptoms.

[Doge]

True but EE also states that you should use the coverage checker before starting a contract to be sure you will get a good signal. So they use a flawed system as part of the contract enforcement.

[Doge]

Bars are not the issue, masts being over-subscribed is the problem. More users on the network and lack of investment to increase mast capacity. They built a few new warehouses near our town so the mast near me has a few thousand new phones to handle so the connection is crap

[bristolian]

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@Doge wrote:

Bars are not the issue

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One of your previous posts mentioned "Last night it took me 20 minutes to order on the Mcdonalds' app due to having 1 bar". Strength of coverage & available capacity are indeed two different concepts.

As per previous replies, have you reported your specific issues for further checks? My observations are that many users post on various social media sites and consider that "reporting their issues. I have also experienced very similar issues to yours, and traced them to device faults - replacing said device then had the user experience of changing networks, such were the symptoms.