@richarddumont wrote:
I have been with Fido now for a few years changing from Bell. I changed because of the poor cell reception in cetain areas a was getting around lake nipissing. In the most part i am getting better cell coverage on the rogers network but BUT in Sturgeon fall the reception is horrible. I know of other people that has moved away from the rogers network to bell network to fix this issue.
I have good reception around tonw but when I am driving in town or entering buildings with my phone, I lose signal completely. i have better reception on the lake in a boat then in sturgeon falls. No problem in north bay or sudbury,
So what can I do. I do not want to change network but I need better reception.
Richard Dumont
Hello Richard,
Welcome to the forums!
There are a number of factors which influence cell reception: proximity to cell towers, frequencies (bands) of signals from those towers, frequecies (bands) of your phone, as well as obstructions causing interference.
Unfortunately, most of those factors are beyond your control. For example, Both Rogers and Bell have two cell towers around Sturgeon Falls. I think the reason why people have been getting better reception with Bell is because Bell's second tower closer to town than Rogers' second tower.
Screen captures taken from here. I can't vouch for accuracy, but illustrates the proximity issue.
The benefit of Bell's approach is that Sturgeon Falls might get better reception. The downside though, one might lose signal while travelling west on hwy 17. On the other hand, one is more likely to retain signal on that same road with Rogers. Both Rogers and Bell have more towers in North Bay and Sudbury.
The second and third factors that affect reception would be the frequencies (bands). While you cannot do anything about the frequencies of the towers, you can make sure the frequencies of your phone match. What phone are you using? Is it capable of both 850MHz and 1900MHz on 2G and '3G'?
The other factor is obstructions causing interference. This page gives excellent examples of potential obstructions so I'm just going to quote it:
"While cell signal passes through the air with minimal trouble, every object it meets between the tower and your mobile device causes some degree of interference. Geographical elements, such as hills, mountains, and trees can cause major signal issues, as well as building materials, like metal siding, concrete, and wire mesh. Additionally, the increased use of energy efficient products, such as radiant barriers and window tinting, have contributed to the degree of cell phone reception problems in new homes."
So what can you do? The first thing would be to ensure your phone has the proper frequencies (bands). The next thing to consider would be a signal booster (see link above). I understand signal boosters can be a significant investment but may be necessary in some of the areas with less coverage.
Another thing to consider would be your priorities. You mentioned you switched from Bell because of poor reception around the lake. Getting reception in which area would be more important to you -- Sturgeon Falls or around the lake?
I hope some of this lengthy explanation helps 
Cheers
**Edited to remove personal info in quote from OP**
Hi richarddumont,
the quality gained from the GSM technology that we're using is very sensitive to the environment it travels through - if you're on the move, like driving, compared to staying put in one area with a strong signal, it's harder to guarantee that the phone will remain connected. Same thing can apply to indoor locations; due to the specifics of construction materials, some areas are known for having a weaker digital signals (ex: basements, commercial buildings, etc.), where digital reception can't be guaranteed. On another note as well, the proximity to water or mountains (or other obstacles) as well as even wheather changes can also impact the distance covered by a given coverage site.
This said, I took a quick look at Fido's Coverage Map on Fido.ca & Sturgeon Falls, West Nipissing Ontario - that area is fully covered by our LTE network.
If the issues are limited to times when the phone is constantly moving (in car, train, etc.) or indoors in certain buildings, it may simply be due to the reasons above.
I might suggest to try a different SIM card in your Fido phone, to see if the issue is limited to the SIM card, or to try the SIM card in a different phone, to determine if this could be caused by the phone.
Does anyone else have any suggestions?
