I was shocked to discover that you can no longer have the iPhone on edge only, the phone does it for you automatically!!! Am I missing something here because if this is really the case, i'm most definitely returning my 4s back where it came from and reverting to my 4! No wonder so many people are complaining about batter life!
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No manual switch between 3G and Edge???
- Thread starter prism
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I too am wondering where these battery issues are. My 4S gets very good battery life:
Not always.
Not always.
Apple officially says you can't do it
The 4 also switched automatically, but you could switch 3G off to force it to only use Edge, which I DO miss. Apple specs for the iPhone 4 show DOUBLE the batter life using 2G (or Edge).
I like my 4S, but if you are on a weak 3G signal for voice on the ATT model, you can't force it off to 2G like you can with the 3G, the 3GS, and the 4 (ATT model only).
There is already an extensive thread on this subject on Apple's forums here: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3389295?start=0&tstart=0
The 4 also switched automatically, but you could switch 3G off to force it to only use Edge, which I DO miss. Apple specs for the iPhone 4 show DOUBLE the batter life using 2G (or Edge).
I like my 4S, but if you are on a weak 3G signal for voice on the ATT model, you can't force it off to 2G like you can with the 3G, the 3GS, and the 4 (ATT model only).
There is already an extensive thread on this subject on Apple's forums here: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3389295?start=0&tstart=0
(Internet sarcasm is hard to detect sometimes)
While on Safari, wouldn't you use more battery having to wait longer for the information to load?
Wouldn't streaming audio or video have to buffer more, emails take longer to download/push?
Wouldn't downloading apps from the App Store or music/podcast from iTunes over EDGE take longer to download?
Where is the benefit of using only EDGE?
The benefit of Edge is when making phone calls, the battery will last a lot longer than on a 3G connection
There is basically no excuse, it was a feature that was removed. Now a feature is not something that everyone would want to use but for those of us who live in areas where 3G is not reliable, having this feature was great!
Maybe they will come to their sense and reintroduce it in a future software update but I wont be waiting to find out.
Maybe they will come to their sense and reintroduce it in a future software update but I wont be waiting to find out.
I always use that feature. It seems like if I have 3G on then half the time I don't get my calls or texts when they are sent. I turn off 3G and get them just fine. I'm using iphone 4 so I still have the option but my husband's 4s does not. You can turn off cellular data though on the 4s and it functions the same way at least as far as receiving texts or calls when you are supposed to. Kind of a pain to go into settings and change it back when you want to use imessage or the web but it does work.
Oh, I see.
So why didn't we all have these problems last year when we used the iPhone 4 on the the 3G network?
Do tell.
I would like to point out that using 3G normally decrease battery life, it happens to every mobile phone in the world smartphone and non smartphone alike.
Most mobile I know has the option to use 3G or only use 2G.
I haven't seen the Iphone 4s so I can't say anything.
But it great having the option to turn 3G on or off, since 3G also cost more the calls and internet.
I'm surprised that so many people don't understand why anyone would want this.
While it is indeed a fact that turning off 3G saves battery life it's more than that. In a fringe 3G area, but with a good EDGE signal, the iPhone 4S will almost always try to stay on 3G--even if it is barely adequate. Actually it will do so when it is inadequate: there are reports of calls going straight to voicemail now whereas on prior iPhones, with 3G manually turned off, the calls came through fine.
In addition to 3G using more power it is even worse in the above scenario as it constantly switches from 3G and EDGE.
Also, while the 4S's antenna is improved it has nothing to do with being able to turn off 3G manually and why someone might want--or need--to do that.
Unfortunately, there have been reports that the 4S's baseband is incapable of manually shutting off 3G. I find that hard to accept as the 4S can certainly handle EDGE and even GPRS. So hopefully a software change can restore it.
Michael
While it is indeed a fact that turning off 3G saves battery life it's more than that. In a fringe 3G area, but with a good EDGE signal, the iPhone 4S will almost always try to stay on 3G--even if it is barely adequate. Actually it will do so when it is inadequate: there are reports of calls going straight to voicemail now whereas on prior iPhones, with 3G manually turned off, the calls came through fine.
In addition to 3G using more power it is even worse in the above scenario as it constantly switches from 3G and EDGE.
Also, while the 4S's antenna is improved it has nothing to do with being able to turn off 3G manually and why someone might want--or need--to do that.
Unfortunately, there have been reports that the 4S's baseband is incapable of manually shutting off 3G. I find that hard to accept as the 4S can certainly handle EDGE and even GPRS. So hopefully a software change can restore it.
Michael
Yes... but the comment made was that 3G life on the 4S is worse than 3G life was on the 4.
I still have no understanding of what they meant by that.
I have no understanding what you mean by "the comment made was that 3G life on the 4S is worse than 3G life was on the 4." I have not seen anyone here make that comment, so what are you referring to?
Michael
You nailed it spot on! The iphone 4 was hurt by the "death" grip and I was looking forward to a better antenna on the 4s. As 3g is not very reliable where I live, the phone keeps juggling between 2g and 3g, so, in the end I get no real improvement!
The anandtech in depth review of the 4s mentions this problem and the fact that it will affect battery life.
The anandtech in depth review of the 4s mentions this problem and the fact that it will affect battery life.
It's the juggle between the two that is definitely draining your battery, in addition to a few more software issues within iOS 5 that are leading to shorter battery lives.
If the baseband theory for the 4S is true, hopefully a software workaround can be achieved, whether that is by Apple or the Dev team, I would take it either way.
If the baseband theory for the 4S is true, hopefully a software workaround can be achieved, whether that is by Apple or the Dev team, I would take it either way.
It's annoying, but tolerable. AT&T's 3G network is much better than it used to be, but I'd still like to have the option to turn 3G off. For example, I was staying at a hotel on the edge of 3G, and my Android phones was getting 1 bar of 3G, but when I forced EDGE (it had a custom ROM), it got 5, since an EDGE-only tower was much closer. Wish I could still do that with the 4S. It might also save enough power to run with GSM and Wifi on for the same amount of battery instead of 3G when roaming around campus...
It's a BIG feature I used to use everyday.
At my work, my signal constantly switches between weak 3G and edge.
Your phone is constantly searching for the best signal, and if your on edge, your phone is straining, and I mean straining, to achieve a 3G signal.
By turning off 3G on my old iPhone while at work, I could use it all day, if rather crudely on a slow but constant edge connection.
Now I dont have this, and my phone is burning a whole in my pocket straining for that 3G signal which doesn't really exsist in my office.
I barely make it home with any charge, and my phone it hot all day.
One day a week I am in college, where I get a full 3G connection and my battery is fine and phone cool to touch.
So in my case, that on off switch was VERY useful.
I know i'm in the minority, and one less switch for the user to think about is a win in Apple's mind, but I do miss that one.
At my work, my signal constantly switches between weak 3G and edge.
Your phone is constantly searching for the best signal, and if your on edge, your phone is straining, and I mean straining, to achieve a 3G signal.
By turning off 3G on my old iPhone while at work, I could use it all day, if rather crudely on a slow but constant edge connection.
Now I dont have this, and my phone is burning a whole in my pocket straining for that 3G signal which doesn't really exsist in my office.
I barely make it home with any charge, and my phone it hot all day.
One day a week I am in college, where I get a full 3G connection and my battery is fine and phone cool to touch.
So in my case, that on off switch was VERY useful.
I know i'm in the minority, and one less switch for the user to think about is a win in Apple's mind, but I do miss that one.
The OP said:
and
So he's clearly saying that all the recent complaints about battery life issues with the 4S are being caused because people can't switch to EDGE.
When people asked him to clarify, someone else chimed in with:
So both Prism and Travis are saying that all the recent hoopla about battery life would be solved if people could just turn off 3G.
And I say that's a weird position to take that's easily contradicted by many facts.
That has absolutely nothing to do with what I quoted--from you.
You wrote:
Again, no one commented that "3G life" is worse on the 4S than on the 4. They stated that switching off 3G when they needed or wanted to allowed them better battery life on their iPhone 4 Vs 4S. I don't see why that is so confusing since 3G for sure uses more battery life. Other reasons have been noted above.
Michael
So return it then. No one is forcing you to keep it. The battery life on my 4S is much better than it was on my 4. And I live in an area that switches between E and 3G all the time. I have 0 battery life issues.