How to Resolve T-Mobile Network Problems
Nothing is perfect in this world.
That saying goes hand-in-hand with T-Mobile because there are several issues that plague the customers. T-Mobile is without a doubt one of the best networks around, but sometimes it can also be a total pain.
While we can’t resolve T-Mobile network problems completely, we can provide a few solutions that may work. Many of the network problems stem from hardware and physical issues and sometimes they are impossible to solve without changing your device or physical location.
Thankfully, some of the other issues can be resolved without that much effort. This article aims to deliver some easy-to-follow solutions to different problems T-Mobile customers face.
Related: Fixes for Not Registered on Network in T-Mobile and Samsung Phones
Problem 1: Video Quality
Whenever you are using mobile data, the video quality on your smartphone looks downright ugly. A lot of people have this exact problem and are not happy with the streaming capabilities of the network. Thankfully, this is an intentional restriction T-Mobile puts on your streaming services and can be rectified easily.
Solution:
T-Mobile has a feature called Binge On that allows specific streaming services to play videos without counting towards your monthly data plan. This is a nifty little feature that helps you watch a lot of videos without worrying about your data. However, the streams are limited to 480p resolution, which may look downright ancient on your high resolution smartphone display. So, in order to make the videos show up in high resolution, you need to disable that feature.
- Head over to the T-Mobile website and log into your account.
- Alternatively you can use the T-Mobile app on your smartphone.
- Now head over to your profile from the menu located on the upper right corner.
- Now select Media Settings.
- Locate the Binge On option and turn it off.
You can also follow this simple method to turn Binge On, on or off.
- Bring up your phone dialer.
- Dial #263# to turn the Binge On off.
- Dial #266# to turn it back on.
- Dial #264# to simply check the status.
Problem 2: Texts over Wi-Fi
A lot of T-Mobile customers have faced this problem at least once and there are several factors that contribute to it. You sometimes suddenly lose the ability to send or receive text messages until you shut off your Wi-Fi.
Solution:
- Sometimes Wi-Fi networks use a proxy that is unable to forward the small data packets of a regular text message. If this is a new issue, you can talk to the network administrator about it and try to find a solution. However, most places don’t actually cater to questions regarding their Wi-Fi networks, so you’ll have to turn off your Wi-Fi while texting.
- Some smartphones come with a default messaging application that doesn’t work well with Wi-Fi. While this problem has been rare these days, there is still a chance that a new smartphone messaging app won’t work well with the T-Mobile network. For that we recommend the best messaging apps for Android, you can download an alternative app to avoid this problem.
Problem 3: Wi-Fi Calling
Calling over Wi-Fi is an amazing feature that makes everything simplified. Whether you’re talking domestically or making long calls internationally, Wi-Fi calling doesn’t come with the worry of hefty charges. It is a great feature to remain in contact with your friends and family abroad or in the next room. A few years back, Wi-Fi calling had a lot of problems but these days T-Mobile has upped their infrastructure game and it mostly works perfectly for all people.
Solution:
- If you just got your smartphone with a new T-Mobile number, there is a chance that there will be a 24 hour wait before Wi-Fi calling can work perfectly. So all you need to do is to wait a day for your smartphone to be fully registered on the network. The process starts as soon as you insert the SIM card into your smartphone.
- If you’re seeing the Wi-Fi calling are in your status bar, there are several reasons why this can happen. Thankfully, you can easily solve that without much fuss by simply reestablishing the Wi-Fi connection. Turn off your Wi-Fi and wait a few seconds before turning it back on. If that doesn’t work, restart your smartphone, and even if that fails, you need to restart the Wi-Fi network router.
Problem 4: VPN Woes
T-Mobile has a beef with some VPN services and may not play well with them. This is because T-Mobile uses IPv6 by default for many Android smartphones and it can lead to issues with some VPN apps.
Solution:
The main solution would be to edit your APN settings and add a new IPv4 APN.
- Head over to the Settings > Mobile Networks > Access Point Names.
- Now you can create a new APN, you can name it anything you want I usually go with banana.
- Now you need to enter the same settings as your current T-Mobile APN. You can practically ignore the secondary APN used for T-Mobile MMS.
- From there change the sections that are marked APN roaming protocol and APN protocol to IPV4.
- Select the new APN you made as default.
This should solve any problems your VPN app is having with T-Mobile.
Problem 5: Duplicate Messages
A lot of people have reported duplicate or render messages being sent from your device to someone else. Some have reported this happening with an alarming frequency and some say messages sent months ago were received again.
Solution:
T-Mobile says that it’s because you have too many messages in your threads and you may need to do a soft reset. Thankfully, following their instructions actually solves the issue. However, it is not a complete solution because you don’t want to delete complete threads simply because there is an error on their end. For this we recommend using another messaging app that comes with cloud-based backup.
Closing Thoughts
While this is not a comprehensive guide on how to resolve T-Mobile network problems, it does address the 5 major ones that a lot of people reported having. Many people would suggest that you move away from T-Mobile and start using another network, but each network has its own problems.
Thankfully, networks are improving their infrastructure and services, so we may see less and less problems going forward. If we have missed any T-Mobile problem that needs to be addressed, do inform us in the comments below and we’ll try to resolve it as well.
Okay, I am one of the many that have T Mobile or Metro PCS in this apartment complex. About 4 weeks or five weeks ago when the storm came through the Greens Parkway and Fall Lake Area. Mine and Many other customers have no service but I think on the edge as Wi Fi wont pick up without messing with. I have called about every week and put on hold for five hours before talking to someone, I to point the I hate your message because I not happy. And couple have changed away from T Mobile. I about to tell my son to remove from his plan, so I can go somewhere else. I tired of being told it my phone or sim card. I have some people that did change their phone and sim card and come to their home and it does the same thing. My daughter moved back in and she has Metro PBS and it doing the same thing. I have been here for over five years and never had this kind of issue. One person at a one store said during the storm it knocked one tower out and damaged 3 others, Well, still same old shit.. My daughter uses hers for work and has missed a lot of calls and texts, her work trying to get hold of her. After me talking to TMobile for hours or rather on hold for hours. And end up with the same issue. Well, she called hers and and maybe held for 2o minutes at the most and he worked with her and listened to me. Then I think he has been with phone company for a long time. As it looked at the towers that would we pull from and they are only 5 G and a lot of people in the complex have 4 g which don’t work I know of least 12 people that live in this complex have the same issue and people that come over to visit end up having the same issue. I thinking about which I cam keeping a copy of this to send to FCC. You know the commercial about the grandma that takes the tire back to Discount and throws thru window. I about to that point as the people in the stores can’t do anything except act they fix. But like I said the gentleman at Metro PCS I believe more than anyone or one of the towers that if really did go down per one of your store people said one was knocked out. I know the storm was really bad. Please come to area and checked it out. I don’t know if you can do anything. As this is really getting stupid and if we have power goes out and I have no phone, not even 911
I could understand why you are upset. Unfortunately, this problem can only be handled by the company itself since they are the only ones who have access to the towers. I hope your problem has been fixed by now Deborah.