alexsch8
10th June 2006, 01:01 AM
I am trying to find out if there is a limit on how many phones can establish a data connection to the same cell tower at the same time.
Here is why: 4 users in the same room on Cingular's network. Two can connect to Edge network and get service and two can't. Sometimes all have Edge and sometimes only one. It seems random. The office complex where this happens is full of other people also having cell phones, not all the same provider but probably many also use Cingular... we don't necessarily have that much choice ;-)... The office also happens to be near a very busy shopping mall.
I've been doing some reading about the channels (on HowStuffWorks) and it talks about a certain amount of channels being available. So I figure the reason why sometimes some of us lose connectivity is due to the tower being overloaded - too many people accessing the tower at the same time.
Does anyone have some data on how this all works, or where I can go to find out about it? Does someone work with this stuff, like putting up towers for one of these cell phone companies, who has experience with this? I think it would be of interest to others, too.
Sadly Cingular isn't much help... "Maybe you sweat too much and got your phone wet and that's why..." can you believe he actually suggested that? We even had Cingular replace one phone which was particularly prone to this phenomena, only to find that it didn't change.
Food for thought....
Here is why: 4 users in the same room on Cingular's network. Two can connect to Edge network and get service and two can't. Sometimes all have Edge and sometimes only one. It seems random. The office complex where this happens is full of other people also having cell phones, not all the same provider but probably many also use Cingular... we don't necessarily have that much choice ;-)... The office also happens to be near a very busy shopping mall.
I've been doing some reading about the channels (on HowStuffWorks) and it talks about a certain amount of channels being available. So I figure the reason why sometimes some of us lose connectivity is due to the tower being overloaded - too many people accessing the tower at the same time.
Does anyone have some data on how this all works, or where I can go to find out about it? Does someone work with this stuff, like putting up towers for one of these cell phone companies, who has experience with this? I think it would be of interest to others, too.
Sadly Cingular isn't much help... "Maybe you sweat too much and got your phone wet and that's why..." can you believe he actually suggested that? We even had Cingular replace one phone which was particularly prone to this phenomena, only to find that it didn't change.
Food for thought....