Imagine you’re standing on top of a mountain, next to a cell phone tower, with full bars, but you’re still dropping calls. Sounds frustrating, right? Keeping reading to find out the answer to the question, “Why is my phone dropping calls with full bars?”

Cell Tower Overloaded

Sometimes, the signal drops, and it has nothing to do with you, but rather with the cell phone tower. If the tower becomes overloaded with too many devices at once, it will slow down. For example, have you ever noticed how your phone works slower at sporting events or concerts?

There can be a tower every few hundred meters in densely populated cities, but in rural areas, there might only be one every few miles. So, if it is receiving a high influx of calls, it might not be able to handle every connection.

Damaged Sim Card

If you don’t properly insert a sim card into a phone, it won’t function as it should and will likely be responsible for any dropped calls. Double-check that it is installed right side up, in the correct slot. Also, the card can be damaged if you’ve dropped your phone or gotten it wet.

Low Battery

A low battery phone often drops calls to stay charged longer, so the battery life could be the cause of your problem. If your phone is below ten percent, this might be the cause, especially when video calling.

Too Many Apps Open

If you forget to close out your apps, they won’t stop running in the background of your phone. As the open apps pile up, your phone will become slower as it struggles to keep everything functioning. Make sure that you are closing your apps once done using them.

Blocking Internal Antenna

Even though you can’t see it, modern cell phones still have antennas. If your hand is covering it, that could be blocking the antenna’s ability to transmit. Also, if you have a thick cell phone case made of material that is known to interfere with signals, that may also be inhibited by the antenna’s ability to transmit. So, just move your hand or take off the case to see if that improves the issue.

Damaged EMI Shield

An EMI shield protects cell phones from nearby electromagnetic fields by blocking the field with barriers made of conductive or magnetic materials. If your phone becomes damaged or wet, that could damage the shield, causing it to become ineffective. The cell could then drop calls or generate garbled sound, and in the worst cases, it can erase data and cause system failures.

Now that you know why your phone drops calls with full bars, you can hopefully remedy the situation without getting a new device.