If you want to perform a diagnostic check for poor cell phone reception or if you want to know the strength of your cell phone's signal accurately, then you must set phone for dB reading because you need to be able to check the DB (decibel) strength of the signal dBm rating.
Sure, you can look at the bars and get an indicator as to how strong or weak your input and output will be, but this visual indicator is not very specific and is prone to change with the slightest shifts of the phones position. In addition, it does not update in realtime.
Therefore, you may notice 2, 3, 4, and even 5 bars but you cannot make a call. Or you may see 1 bar, or even no bar / no service message, but still you can make a call just fine. Being within your Carrier's coverage map is also no guarantee for cellular connectivity.
This quick guide will show you how to check your phone’s signal strength on both an Apple and an Android phone with more accuracy, considering inaccurate and finicky nature of antenna bars on cell phones.
This will also help you figure out whether the cell phone signal booster you installed is working or not? Please check signal strength by putting your phone in field test mode or make and receive calls to know if there has been improvement, before returning your installed kit on assumption that it does not work! It may be working fine, but your signal bars may not be reflecting improvement in signal strength.
The methods we will provide below only shows you signal strength of the service carrier providing service to your phone. If you need to know signal strength hitting your phone from all carriers, you will need a signal meter .
A negative number as in cellular signal signifies the strength of the signal in decibels.
If you think of the decibels on the phone as the detailed information to gain the best signal, then you will understand how the bars are really superfluous to understanding how your phone works. For example: If you purchase a cell phone signal booster that claims that it can boost your phones decibels up to 50 points, but your signal strength is reading at -157, your signal will still be pretty weak. However, if your phone is reading at -100 and you get the same booster, you will get a very strong signal (besides, the phone will never show you anything above a -50 on a phone).
Please note that above 3G signal strength chart is close, but not the same for 4G/ LTE. See the differences shown below based on whether measuring signal strength in dBm on a 3G network or 4G network due to comparatively better quality of the newer 4G LTE network signals in comparison to older 3G network signals:
It is important to state that you should not jailbreak your phone to find the signal strength. Yes, you will need to go into the hidden files on your phone, but such can be done without having to tamper with important files or actual framework of the phone. You will need to have administrator permissions on the phone (which just basically means that you know the password to access secure apps if you have that security measure activated on your iPhone). To find the decibels on your phone, follow the following steps:
Understanding the decibel reading is really simple. The closer your signal is to zero the stronger the signal will be. The further or higher that the number is, the weaker your signal will be. Much like golf, you want to have the lowest score in this case.
Similar to iPhones, some Android phones allow access to test mode by punching in a few numbers or punctuations in the numerical keypad as follows:
However, even if those don't work, finding the decibel strength on an Android phone is still a very quick process. However, it may vary slightly based on the software layer used by Android phone manufacturer Samsung, HTC, LG, Huawei, Google Pixel, OnePlus, Sony, etc.
Do not worry, there is nothing wrong with your phone if you see that there is a – sign in front of the decibel reading. This is just the way in which the information is presented. In other words if the phone is receiving a signal of 107 it will read -107 (which is really weak for a phone). Ideally, you want to have your phone reading between -50 and -80. The further you go from zero, the weaker your signal will be.
What is the minimum signal strength needed for holding a conversation and data exchange over a cell network? While not as much required as needed for holding a cellular conversation (-100dB), atleast -100 dB is still required for data transfer to occur while maintaining the 4G or LTE speeds. As the strength deteriorates past that point on to -105 dB, -110 dB, -115 dB, and even -120 dB - The wireless data transfer speed will slowly come to a grinding halt.
If you want to boost your cell phone signal strength, then it is important that you first check to see if the signal is weakened by the structure of the building (such as construction materials like concrete, metal, other wires and such), the region in which you reside/work (which may have antennas, boosters, and interference from adjacent buildings and such), or if the phone is corrupted in the .net or framework. To check the structure of the building, see if your signal increases when you are in your home or office. Should you find that the signal is greater on the exterior then the interior, then a cell phone signal booster may be appropriate for your home/office to boost the decibels on the phone. However, if you find that the signal does not fluctuate when you are inside or outside of the building it may be that you are too far from a tower/network in order to get a signal. If this is the case, check your phone at various locations to see if the signal changes at all. Should you find that the signal does not change regardless of your position, it may be that your phone’s software has a glitch and the phone may need to be reset to manufacturer factory settings. If that does not work, the circuitry may be damaged in which case you will want to, and need to, replace the phone in order to get the best signal.
Keep in mind that your signal strength is not your WI-FI strength. Yes, you can boost your upload and the download speeds on your phone by eliminating the dropped calls and optimizing the performance of the phone, but if the wi-fi is lacking you will need to either use a wi-fi booster or get an all in one booster for your phone. Additionally, you will need to calculate the space in which you need to boost. Should your space be lower than 5,000 feet, a personal home booster is appropriate. Anything over 7,500 sq. ft. may require multiple boosters or amplifiers or will need to have a commercial booster.
There's a tool called " Signal Meter " that can make it easy to check dB in any spot easily. Or see the video below to see how it works. Knowing the inside and outside functions of your phone is important to have the phone working at its best. However, we understand that you may have questions in how to boost your cell phone signal. SignalBooster.com would like to help you address these questions. You can reach us by either going to our website and sending us an email, or you can reach us directly through our phone line. Should you need to purchase a cell phone signal booster, our team of professionals can help you find a cell phone signal booster that meets your needs such as your space requirements, your phone’s compatibility, and the best model to keep your phone working (regardless of whether it is an IOS Apple phone or an Android phone) with the strongest possible decibels.
Signal strength is represented in -dBm format in the chart below from -60 to -110. This is the power ratio in decibels (dB) of the measured power referenced to one milliwatt. That means the closer the value is to 0, the stronger the signal. For example, -60dBm is better signal strength than -110dBm.
| Signal Strength in dBm | Practical Signal Strength |
|---|---|
| Greater Than -60 or 5 Bars. | Excellent signal. No chance of dropped calls. Optimal voice quality and data transmission speed. |
| -60 to -75 or 4 Bars. | Very good signal. Unlikely to experience dropped calls or quality issues that affect performance. This is usually the best available signal unless you're directly next to a cell tower or a signal booster interior antenna. |
| -76 to -90 or 3 Bars. | Good signal. While reliability and quality are generally adequate, interruption by building materials or other obstructions while moving could quickly deteriorate signal. |
| -91 to -100 or 2 Bars. | Fair signal. However, voice quality and data transfer speed may be noticeably affected. Dropped calls are more common. |
| -101 to -110 or 1 Bar. | Poor signal. Dropped calls and extremely slow wireless data transfer speed are constant problems. |
| Less Than -110 or No Bars / No Service. | No signal. There's no wireless connectivity possible without a custom solution. |
Since cell phone boosters require some signal in order to boost it or multiply it many times, there needs to be atleast "poor" or "weak" signal outside where donor antenna can be placed. Therefore, you can deduce from chart above that the minimal amount needed must be atleast within -101 to -109 dBm if on 3G network, and within -111 to -119 dBm on 4G / LTE network. However, the best estimate would be the median of those two which is approx. -105 dBm on 3G and -115 dBm on 4G LTE. This is absolute minimal signal strength in decibel milliwatts that is needed outdoor for any cell phone signal booster to help improve reception indoor to any minimum extent.
If you cannot garner minimal signal strength as stated using your directional antenna ( survey kit ), a cellular booster, bi-directional amplifier (BDA) or RF repeater will not work. In such instances, you may submit location details for a custom signal enhancing solution that would include a Small Cell, Microcell, Femtocell or active distributed antenna system (Active DAS). A site survey by SignalBooster.com team will be required to suggest the most effective solution that will resolve your wireless connectivity issues permanently.
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