There may be times when your cell phone service seems a little sluggish, even if you’re in an area that should have quality service. This is because sometimes your carrier will install new cell towers or antennas in areas without your phone connecting to them.
If your phone isn’t connecting to the closest signal source, it may struggle to use data by connecting to something farther off in the distance. Fortunately, there are ways to update cell phone towers on your phone to try and ensure you’re connecting to the closest or strongest possible source.
What Is Updating Cell Phone Towers?
The idea of updating cell phone towers may seem like a peculiar idea that most of us never really consider. However, it makes sense that our phones try to connect to the closest signal, so it would make sense for updates to happen automatically. The truth is that many phones store the nearest signal as memory. This helps reduce power consumption since your phone isn’t constantly searching for the closest signal until it needs to.
While this isn’t a flawed system and helps your phone’s battery life, it is possible that you could have a stronger signal in your home or office space if your provider recently installed a new tower or antenna. Updating your cell towers is a process where you can clear your phone’s memory cache and have it search for nearby signals to connect to and store in the system. It’s a good idea to perform this periodically to ensure your phone remains connected to relevant towers.
Finding Nearby Cell Towers
Before determining if you need to update cell phone towers on your phone, it’s a smart idea to check a few sources and see if you can locate nearby towers and check the current strength of your signal. You may have different results depending on your phone manufacturer and current carrier, but here are a few simple ways to locate nearby cell towers.
Using a Website
Regardless of what type of smartphone you have, you should be able to open a browser and check out different websites. There are several websites that can give you updated information on your current region and what signal spots are available. CellMapper provides some of the most reliable and up-to-date signal information throughout the United States and Canada and can help you locate nearby towers, regardless of your service provider.
Using Your Provider’s Coverage Map
One way to learn more information about nearby towers or antennas is to go right to the source and pull up your provider’s coverage map. Whether you have one of the big three in Canada or one of the main services in the United States, you can find their coverage data. That will help you narrow down your signal points to your area. Coverage maps may not be the most user-friendly options, but they typically provide accurate data. However, this is not the best option when looking for an exact location on nearby towers or antennas. Many service providers do not like to disclose the precise locations of 4G or 5G signals to help prevent people from interfering with them.
Using an App
Several apps are available to help users locate nearby towers depending on their carrier. Certain apps are only available on iOS or Android phones and may not be compatible with your operating system. However, if you’re looking for apps that work on both iPhone and Android devices, we recommend OpenSignal or weBoost.
OpenSignal allows users to check a heatmap and use an in-app compass to help locate and connect to nearby signal sources. weBoost is a straightforward app that uses your current carrier and makes it easy to identify nearby towers. These apps are generally compatible with most major service providers and make it easy to locate nearby signals.
Using Field Test Mode
If you want to find the most intricate but accurate way to check your signal strength and connectivity, you can always use your phone’s field test mode. Field test mode is a built-in feature on virtually all cell phones and displays signal strength and other essential information. Your phone measures this signal in dBm (decibel-milliwatts), and the signal often falls between -50 dBm to -120 dBm, traditionally a dead zone with no signal.
One of the primary advantages of field test mode is that industry experts and engineers use this data to identify weak spots and try to build new towers or antennas to provide better coverage. The method for opening your field test mode varies depending on whether you have an iPhone or Android device.
Android devices are straightforward, and you can generally find the information under your settings. Look for an About Phone option and look for choices that indicate signal, status, or network. The exact phrasing may vary depending on your phone, but you can access the information through that section.
On iPhones, the process is a little more complicated and may vary slightly depending on which version of iOS you have on your phone. However, you can access field test mode on an iPhone by turning off your Wi-Fi and LTE, opening your phone’s keypad, and dialing *3001#12345#* followed by the call button.
This combination pulls up field test mode and provides several pieces of information. Once in this mode, users may check band info and RSRP for more accurate readings.
Locating New Towers
When you want to wipe your phone’s memory cache and locate new towers, the method may vary depending on your phone or service provider. However, the most common method that works with many services is to turn your signal off and on again. When your phone or your signal service reboots, it will try to latch onto the nearest signal source, which may not be where it previously was. Connecting to a closer signal helps strengthen your phone’s connection.
If you want to learn more about enhancing your cell phone and maintaining a steady, reliable signal, SureCall Boosters is here for you. We have a wide range of cell phone booster antennas that latch onto weaker signals and enhance them in your home, workplace, or vehicle. Learn how to get the most out of your phone by consulting our helpful blog posts and seeing what we have to offer. For any additional questions, comments, or concerns, don’t be afraid to reach out to us anytime via email at Sales@SureCallBoosters.ca.
