Just about everyone has had the frustration of using the cell phone for an important call, and having the signal suddenly drop. While dropped phone calls are nothing new, it does seem as if we experience them much more often with cellular service than with landlines. Actually, it is true that current cellular technology has a few technical issues that do allow the potential for dropped cell phone calls, regardless of the service provider. Here are some scenarios that can lead to dropped calls during cell phone usage.

Unlike wired phone services, which rely primarily on fiber optic cable and physical switches to provide service within a given geographic area, cell services function with the use of towers that link to and from phones to the switching software located at the towers. When a tower is rendered temporarily inoperable for any reason, such as inclement weather, a software glitch, or a momentary overload of signals to switch, calls that are in progress may disconnect and the user may find their phones flashing a “no reception available” or “dropped call” message. If a software glitch or a temporary overload of switching caused the dropped call, chances are the situation will be corrected in seconds. Persons can simply re-dial and resume their dropped calls with a new session. If weather conditions have taken the tower off line, it may take a longer period to restore service.

Many cell service providers establish what are called "service areas" with each of their plans. There will be a local calling area, an extended calling area and then roaming service areas. For persons who do not opt for extended and roaming services as part of their package, they may experience a dropped call as they get near the boundary of the local service area. Often, they will see a message display to the effect that they cannot send or receive calls, such as “no reception” or “service not available”. Once the user moves back into the calling area, the message will disappear and calls can be made once again.

Just about every service area has locations where hilly terrain, trees or other obstacles can interfere with the integrity of the connection. This creates what are called “dead spots” in the service area. The dead spots tend to be the major cause of dropped calls experienced by persons making calls while driving. Once out of the dead spot, the user can once again call out or receive calls, and not have to worry about any more dropped calls until the next dead spot comes along.

Of course, there is one reason for dropped calls that has nothing to do with the service, the towers and software, or the calling area. Sometimes those of us that own a cell phone forget to recharge the unit in a timely manner. A cell phone operating with little power left is much more susceptible to dropped calls. Making sure your phone is carrying at least a half charge will ensure your calls are not dropped due to lack of power to sustain the signal.

As most of us will attest, dropped calls are a nuisance. At the same time, it is important to remember that as the technology continues to advance, the incidence of dropped calls has decreased. In time, we will no doubt be able to enjoy long stretches of time where we do not have to be concerned with dropped calls while using our cell phones, either due to technical issues, geographic obstacles, or running out of battery power. For now, we just have to exercise some patience, take a deep breath, recharge, and re-dial.