You may have noticed that your iPhone displays bars or dots in the status bar. It’s a quick way to check the strength of your cellular signal and Wi-Fi connection.
But what do these bars actually mean? And how do they affect the performance of your phone?
Cellular
If you have an iPhone, you probably know that those bars you see on the status bar are meant to indicate cellular signal strength. But what do they really mean, and can you make decisions about your phone based on those numbers?
One of the most common problems iPhone users have is when they can’t get a reliable signal for cellular data. Sometimes it’s just a matter of poor coverage in your area, and other times it might be an issue with the phone itself or with the SIM card in it.
However, there are a few things you can do to try to fix this problem and restore your cellular data connection to its optimal level. First, you should check to see if your iPhone is properly connected to a WiFi network and isn’t using Airplane Mode. If it is, it may be in need of a software update.
Another option is to use a specialized application that lets you view a more accurate readout of your signal strength. This app, called ‘SignaldBm’, is available for free on jailbroken iPhones and displays a decibel-milliwatt (dBm) reading of your cellular signal.
This is a much more precise reading than the bars on your iPhone, and it’s one you can use to make informed decisions about which carrier to choose or whether you need to boost your cellular signal. This also works on iPads that have Cellular connectivity built in.
In addition, you can change the way you display cellular signal strength on your iPhone by entering Field Test Mode. This process is a bit complex, but it’s well worth the effort.
Besides seeing the actual dBm values, Field Test Mode will also tell you which cellular networks are available for emergency calls when you need them most. It’s a great tool to have on hand for traveling, and it’s even more useful when you’re using your phone as a remote monitoring device.
Wi-Fi
If you’re having trouble connecting to Wi-Fi or cellular data networks, the bars you see on your iPhone may be telling you that there’s a problem. They can also be a handy way to check for signal strength.
However, the bars on your phone don’t tell you what a particular signal’s actual strength is in decibels — they represent a generalized measure of how strong the cellular or Wi-Fi connection is. This isn’t always accurate, as many factors affect the strength of a wireless connection, including how far away the phone is from the router and how much barricades there are in the path between the device and the router.
One possible cause of low Wi-Fi signal strength is a router or modem that’s not operating properly. A simple fix is to restart it; you can do this by unplugging and plugging it back in or using the physical “Reset” button on the device.
Another option is to try resetting your router or modem to factory default settings. This will reset all network-related settings and allow your phone to reconnect to Wi-Fi again.
If resetting your router or modem doesn’t help, try restarting your phone. This resets everything on your iPhone, including the network-related settings.
Lastly, try updating your iOS software. These updates deliver security patches and new features that enhance your iPhone’s performance. They can sometimes introduce bugs that interfere with Wi-Fi connectivity, but they’re rare.
You should back up your data before installing a software update, so you can restore any personal content if the update isn’t compatible with your device.
In addition to resetting your network-related settings, you should try resetting the passwords for your Wi-Fi and cellular networks. This will remove their passwords from your iPhone and re-set them to their original state. This may solve the problem for you.
To get started, tap Settings from your Home screen and then select Reset. Depending on your iPhone, you’ll need to enter your passcode before the reset can be performed. After the reset is complete, your iPhone will reboot automatically and reconnect to Wi-Fi.
Bluetooth
Whenever you connect your iPhone to another device via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or AirPlay, a bar will appear in the status bar at the top of the screen. Those bars will let you know what type of connection your phone has and whether it’s active or not.
If you have a set of speakers that are paired with your iPhone, the bar will be green and indicate that the devices are connected to each other. If the speaker isn’t paired, it will be red and say “No Devices”.
You can pair a Bluetooth-connected speaker with multiple devices to enjoy a synchronized listening experience. However, this option only works on later model iPhones and software-based solutions that enable this technology.
When the two devices are paired, you’ll hear the music play on each speaker. You can adjust the volume of each device individually if needed.
To ensure you have a synced listening experience, the speakers need to be within Bluetooth range of each other. It’s also important to turn off any other wireless devices you may have, such as your TV or streaming media player.
One of the most popular ways to listen to music on your iPhone is to use a pair of headphones. These can be paired with the phone using the same Bluetooth technology, but you’ll need to have both devices in range of each other for that feature to work.
Many headphones come with a number of different Bluetooth profiles, which help you connect them to various devices. You can find out which profile your particular headphones support by checking the product’s manual or user guide.
This profile is what lets the two devices talk to each other over Bluetooth, and it can be found in the Settings app. For example, the Human Interface Device Profile allows a keyboard and mouse to connect to a phone through Bluetooth.
If you’re not sure which profile your Bluetooth-connected device supports, try pairing it with a different device to see if that helps.
Alternatively, you could try switching off Bluetooth and then turning it back on to clear any issues that might be preventing your device from connecting to other devices. This should fix any glitches in the system that are causing your iOS device to hang up on a Bluetooth-connected device.
GPS
The bars on the top left corner of your iPhone’s screen are used to indicate whether an app is accessing your location. They’re a great way to find out which apps are using your location information, but they can also cause some privacy concerns.
When an app requests your location, it’s marked with a hollow arrow icon in the status bar. This arrow only shows up when you’re using an app or a feature that uses location services (e.g., Maps, Find My iPhone).
You can turn off this arrow in Settings to block specific apps from using your location. You can also change how often an app can access your location, which can help reduce battery drain on your device.
The bars in the status bar represent the available signal strength for your device’s GPS. A green bar means that the phone is receiving good satellite signals, while a red one indicates that it’s not.
Getting poor or nonexistent satellite signal reception can affect the performance of your iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. This can impact your location accuracy and affect the performance of any navigation or other apps that require a GPS connection to work properly.
If you’re having issues with your GPS, it’s important to know how to fix them. We recommend checking out GPS Diagnostic, an app that helps diagnose problems with your GPS and suggests ways to improve your signal quality.
It’s a professional GPS test and measurement utility for iPhone and iPad. It’s one of the highest rated apps on the App Store, and it’s designed to supplement your existing navigation apps.
This app allows you to monitor and measure the quality of your GPS satellites in real time, so you can see if they’re working or not. If they’re not working well, you can change the location of your device for better signal reception.
It’s not a permanent fix, but it can help you identify a problem with your GPS and solve it before you lose data. If you continue to experience poor GPS accuracy, you can also consider resetting your GPS.