When SMARTY dropped 3G in my area my Huawei B311 router stopped receiving phone calls (and I bought a Tenda N300, which receives OTPs as a string of @s). This morning it is receiving calls. The light on the router turns blue which, AIUI, means it's dropped to 3G. What's going on? Anyone any idea?
Anyway, I hope it stays this way.
fuzzy.
PS. Anyone want to buy a Tenda N300 router, going cheap?
Probably best to ignore this thread. I've been checking the status of the network in my area over the past few days. One day it says it's working fine the next that work's being done on it. Sometimes it changes from morning to afternoon! So I've no real idea as to whether 3G's been dropped or not, and wonder if SMARTY know themselves. Having said that, when I make calls the (network status) light on my Huawei B311 changes from cyan (LTE) to blue (3G).
Interesting to hear, but if it is indeed dropping down to 3G (which I think it will be as I don't think the device supports VoLTE), I wouldn't expect it to last long unfortunately, as I believe it is still Three's plan to switch off all of their 3G coverage sooner or later. Maybe they've temporarily switched 3G back on in that area due to coverage issues from their 4G, or maybe it's just a mistake.
Let us know if it lasts!
Yes, I also think it won't last long. But time will tell.
One thing though, is that calls are a lot lot clearer on 3G (the Huawei) than on 3G/voLTE (the Tenda) !
So, as you suggest, maybe they've reverted to 3G.
Hmm, having said that. Looking on the box the Huawei came in it says, "HUAWEI 4G Router", "LTE 150Mbps | Wi-Fi N300 | Gigabit Port"
And in the user manual I downloaded today it says...
"The HUAWEI LTE CPE B311-221 is a Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless gateway for
multiple users in household or small office environments. It enables users to access the
Internet.
The B311-221 supports 3GPP Release 9 with UE downlink/uplink category 4. The supported
service functions are as follows: ..."
Can't make head nor tails of that myself. Might try the Tenda later to see if it drops to 3G or not.
Will report back later.
The plot thickens. Just tried phoning out (using the Huawei) but it didn't drop to 3G. I eventually got the engaged tone. However I then started fiddling with the settings under "Mobile Network > Mobile Network Searches > Preferred network Mode" I changed it from "Auto" to "3G only". The light on the Huawei turned from cyan to blue (3G) and I was able to make a call (to my voice mail and to myself. I didn't want to disturb anyone at this time of day).
One thing. The time it takes before I hear the other end ringing seems longer than when I use the Tenda (which is 4G/VoLTE). Could it simple be that when the Huawei tries to connect to SMARTY/Three Network in 3G mode it insists on 3G (like any other phone that's not yet on 4G/VoLTE) and so the network has to drop to 3G? I mean, SMARTY/Three hasn't cut itself off from all phones that are still on 3G and/or 2G only, right?
I'd be interested in what you think.
One other thing though is I don't get data when in 3G mode. So the browser on my computer seizes up while I make calls. But that doesn't really bother me.
Anyway, I'll see how it goes over the next few weeks (I don't make nor receive many calls).
