Last week, Google finally pushed the Android 4.0.4 update to its flagship Galaxy Nexus device. It seems that users are already facing problems after the OTA update. This often happens after an update, users are happy they finally have the newest version of whatever OS they’re running and it has brought along bug fixes and several improvements overall. It seems to be inevitable though that for every couple of issues solved, a new one arises. In the Galaxy Nexus case, several unfortunate (mostly GSM) users have reported signal issues.
The long-awaited Android 4.0.4 brings with it user interface optimization, several bug patches, faster multitasking and supposedly improves camera performance too. The catch is that phones lose signal reception once they go into standby mode. And since a phone, at its most basic, is needed to make and receive calls, or send text messages etc, this is a pretty big problem. It’s not being faced by a small number of people either. There have been a lot of complaints regarding this, but only by GSM users.
In areas that normally have strong signal strength, signals drop to zero bars when the device is in standby mode. Reports of this issue first started on the XDA developer’s page and have now progressed to a specific Google support page. Users have reported a complete loss in signals 40 percent of the time the phone is in standby, which is rather embarrassing for Google. The reason for the loss in signal strength appears to be an improved battery saving feature which is part of the latest ROM. It causes the processor to be pushed below the minimum limit that is needed to keep the signal up, when the device is in standby mode. When the phone is taken out of standby, the processor returns back to speed, and signal strength is recovered.
The entire issue goes away as soon as the device is flashed back to the Android 4.0.3 factory mode. If you try upgrading to Android 4.0.4 again, the problem returns.
So far, a Google team member has responded to members who have been vocal about the issue and asked for bug reports, as Google look into the matter. It’s pretty awkward that people have had to wait so long for Android 4.0.4 on their devices; even now only 3% of all Android smartphones have been upgraded, and then have to face what is Google’s iteration of the famous Apple Antenna Gate case. . Maybe we’ll see a 4.0.5 update in the coming days that corrects this issue. Hopefully it won’t bring another unexpected bug with it.
If you are experiencing signal issues on your Galaxy Nexus, report it by clicking the link below:
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