Sorry, but I just can't think of a decent search term to use to find the answer.

My old phone didn't show signal strength on the MID, but my latest phone, Blackerry 7520, does. I've only used it for 2 days so far, but the meter seems static. By that I mean, once it goes on, it doesn't seem to change. I talked for about 20 minutes straight yesterday and it stayed on 1 bar the whole way. Today when I placed my call, I had 2 bars. I wasn't connected as long, but it stayed at 2 the whole way.

So my question obviously is, is the meter static or is it supposed to change as your signal changes while you're connected?

 

The MID meter should change if cell reception varies. My MID's signal strength meter changes with reception strength on phone- 4-5 bars usually, lower in certain areas, and one or no bars just before my phone reception drops off.
Try different routes to see if reception strength varies (or in your case, gets stronger).

 

Some phones don't support signal strenght display. Mine Sprint LG-325 is on of them.

 

As far as I can tell the battery meter & signal strength readings in the MID are dynamic and reflect the readings sent from the phone. Both my Razr V3C and Blackberry 7100g, 7510 & 8700C support full info on the MID.

Most likely the signal strength was low due to your location, or even the location of the BB in the car. To improve signal strength, try leaving the phone in the open, like the cup holder. Also compare the signal strength readings on the phone and MID.

Additionally, you may want to make sure the Blackberry OS is up to date. There have been a few improvements by Nextel with version 4.0.2. You can check your version by going to the options->about screen on the blackberry.

Stuart

 

I have software version 4.0.0.249 on mine, but it's controlled by the corporate IT guys.

Short term I will try re-locatings and see if it changes. Long term, I like just getting into the car and driving without even thinking about the phone. I don't see that changing.

 

Midas,

I'm one of those Corporate IT guys lol. I manage our company's blackberry servers and have found the updated software has fixed alot of our issues. Especially bluetooth compatibility issues.

The version upgrade will still be compatible with your corporate blackberry server. So maybe your IT guys can get your device updated. Sure won't hurt, and should take care of any issues you're experiencing.

 

Actually, I'm one of those corporate IT guys myself. But the BES is managed by our Notes team. Since this is the only problem I'm seeing, and I'm not sure I'm even seeing it, I won't bother them.

I saw an email that there was supposed to be some type of update last night, but I don't know if it was server-side only or if it also for the handhelds.

 

Turns out the upgrade is scheduled for March 11th. We'll see if that helps.

 

Well it turned out that it was the location of the phone itself. I usually carry it on my back hip, so when in the car it's sort of buried into the seat. Took it off the holster and put it on the seat and the meter worked fine.

That's too bad. The best part of the BT is not having to touch the phone when I get into the car. I'll probably continue to just leave it holstered. But it's good to know that was the problem.

Odd though, reception through the BT is fine and I didn't notice any difference with the sound quality either way.

 

I've had excellent bluetooth signal quality regardless of the phone location in the car. Bluetooth range is about 30 feet. I have noticed wearing it on the belt sometimes affects the cell strength like you mentioned.

Other than real fringe areas, it hasn't really affected usage. For long drives, I'll normally hook the phone to a charger and place it in the front console. That way I get bit better cell strength and keep the battery charged, cause bluetooth tends to drain it more quickly.

 

With my Treo 650 the signal strength in the MID does not seem to update as frequenty as the phone does. It seems like only send the data every so often, like every 10sec or something like that. I do see mine change as I drive. I've never seen my dispay in the mid hit 5 bars though, it seems to max out at 4 bars, but that's probably because my phones signal strength is only measured in 4 bar and not a scale of 5.