The cellular network is crucial because it enables users to call or text or even browse the web on the go. However, weak signal or lost network issue can hamper the said services which is something I as a phone user wouldn’t like and neither anyone else. As said, there are a number of hardware components that work homogeneously with the software components on a smartphone that enables it to register to a network and work accordingly. Although wifi can actually replace all these features, wifi is not available everywhere while there are some limitations of wifi over the cellular network which makes the latter a pioneer and must-have. Without wasting any time, let’s see how we can use troubleshooting methods to curb weak signal or lost network issue.

How to fix a Vertex weak signal or lost network issue?

Check for any intermittent issues

In the era of ever expanding and ever-changing, it is plausible that the carrier you have signed up for is undergoing upgrade or maintenance or even a power outage due to system failure or malfunctioned or natural calamity, etc. This can disrupt the network strength in worse cases, it can hamper the network as a whole leading to no or lost network issue. Take a different phone or use the dual SIM if you have, call the carrier and inquire to get notified about it.

Toggle Dual SIM

If you have two SIM cards which have become a common thing in smartphones, you know that you have a dedicated button or virtual interface to toggle SIM cards when needed. This trick works in some smartphones wherein if you are facing network issues such as there are no bars on the status bar for SIM 1, simply switch to SIM 2 and switch back to SIM 1 and do thing a couple of times. This must resolve the problem right there.

Turn on & turn off airplane mode

Now we are unleashing the big guns here. Airplane mode is known to discontinue any incoming or outgoing network including cellular and wifi (temporarily). However, you can use this feature to fix the Vertex weak signal or lost network issue. You’ll need to drag down the notification panel and tap on the airplane mode that will activate it and disconnect with any and every cellular network. Now, wait for a second before disabling it and check if the phone gauges the network or not.

Reboot the device

Another easy solution is to reboot the phone and hope for the best. Actually, rebooting the device relieves it from constant resource intake as consumed by apps and processes running in both background and foreground and believe me, there are many processes running that we usually aren’t informed about. Also, it includes minor technical glitch and system failure and app crashes, etc, for which, the processor is already prepared for, however, infiltrating bugs and viruses can render the measures taken by the SoC useless. Thus, to fix everything I just mentioned above, a quick reboot is a powerful troubleshooting method you can opt for.

Set up the network manually

Basically, your phone has two network selection mode. I would suggest anyone who is traveling within the city or between cities, villages, etc and facing weak signal or lost network issue, to toggle to manual selection. This is where the phone will manually search for an available network such as ‘Verizon’. Once found, you can select it to register and voila, the network is manually registered to Verizon or any other partnered network.

Set up network automatically

If you are facing network issues, go to Settings » SIM » Mobile Networks » Network Selection and check if it is on manual or automatic. Although manual mode is helpful in most cases as aforementioned, automatic mode works best in cities, towns, and villages with full network coverage. To simplify it, once activated, the phone will automatically register to a network while a manual mode will cause issues since the phone will prompt to register to an available network whenever the SIM disconnects from a network.

Use the ‘Preferred Network’ feature

As opposed to ‘Network Selection’ which revolves around manual and automatic, ‘Preferred Network’ deals with the frequency bands and network types you use. Almost all smartphones are compliant to 4G nowadays which covers 3G and 2G as well. However, if you have set the preferred network to 4G, the phone will look for 4G networks only and when no 4G is available, there won’t be any network on the device. On the contrary, you can set the preferred network to ‘3G/2G’ or ‘4G/3G/2G (auto)’ so that the phone can look for networks in these frequency bands allowing users to call or text and even browse the web although at a slower pace.

Verify if the SIM card or SIM tray is damaged or not

Amidst all this, you forgot that the SIM card itself could be damaged due to wear and tear it is subjected to or due to physical damage or liquid damage it faced. If the SIM card is damaged, you can verify it by inserting in a different SIM slot or a different phone to verify the network coverage. If the SIM card is okay, you need to verify the SIM tray as well. Simply take a different but working SIM, put it in the tray in question and check for an available network. If there’s no network, it is easy to deduce that the problem is the tray after all.

Clear cache storage

Cache is the temporary storage created by the system on the use of any app or process or website, etc. This enables the user to retrieve the app or process faster since the system has already stored the required data to access the said app. However, cache files are susceptible to bugged or corrupt and this is why experts recommend users to clean cache files every other day to keep the system’s performance at peak.

Update the device

To simplify, a firmware handles both hardware components and software pieces on a smartphone enabling it to do what it can. However, when the firmware of Android OS get outdated, it loses that edge needed to keep up with the processes and apps running on the system. Also, it is susceptible to viruses, malware, bugs which are three of the many issues that an outdated firmware can attract. Thus, an update to the latest OS version or an upgrade to a custom ROM can resolve any issues including the weak signal or lost network issue. Also, you can roll back to a previous version if your phone isn’t compatible to handle further updates.

Restore factory

This is an extreme measure to take but if the weak signal or lost network issue on your device is severe, you need to yank the keys and boot into the recovery mode to restore the device and get rid of the problem subjected that the problem is software-related.

  • At first, you need to attain a backup of all the data you want to save before proceeding.
  • To proceed, turn off the device and wait for a second.
  • Next, press power + volume up + down button together simultaneously and keep it pressed for few seconds.
  • An Android repair logo will appear on the screen or a different screen prompting to enter different modes where you release the keys and select ‘recovery mode’.
  • To restore the phone to its factory settings, you need to tap on ‘wipe data/factory reset’ and then, ‘yes — delete all user data’ to confirm.
  • Now, reboot the system to get the actions effective and start afresh.

Finally, get help!!!

If you have come to this particular method after following all others in this guide but the weak signal or lost network issue is still prominent, you need to get help from a technician at an authorized service center. A caution here is the fact that showing up to a third party service center can do the same too, however, you’ll risk the warranty of the device as well so think before you leap on it.