No dial tone when making calls on my mobile

[Roseyhue]

I have a Nokia 222 mobile phone and have used a Virgin SIM for years.  I just use it as a phone.  It isn't smart!  I assume that it is a 2G phone as I can't find anywhere that tells me what G it is!!!  The signal strength at home had been very poor but it worked.  Then, early this year (2022) I received a new SIM (I had not asked for it) and the signal strength was really good.  Fantastic.  A few weeks back I received another new SIM (I had not asked for it) and it seemed OK except that when I ring anyone I don't hear their phone ringing at all.  You think that you haven't connected.  Something might be wrong?  Then they answer their phone and it had been ringing at their end!!!  I have reported this to Virgin and was told to use manual network selection and to pick O2 (Only O2 and EE appear as choices)  EE doesn't work and O2 gave a dial tone for a day then went back to silence.

I have been reading the posts about new SIMS and network providers on the Forum and if I have it right, the first SIM I received early this year switched me from EE to Vodaphone, and the latest SIM has switched me from Vodaphone to O2!!!

It would have been good if Virgin had explained what they were doing properly each time they sent these SIMs instead of just giving me the big hype and a pat on the head.  I sometimes lose the phone signal with the 4/5 bars dimming down (but not dissappearing) and then I don't get calls or SMS messages.  I'm quite nervous about missing calls etc now.

I am aware that 2G is due to be phased out in 2025.  Is that the problem, or is it a problem with my local mast?

On a landline the dial/ring tone a caller hears is generated at the called number exchange.  Where is the dial/ring tone generated for mobile phones?

The lesson I have learned is that Vodaphone provide the best signal here!!!

[Roseyhue]

Hi Nat,

Sorry about not replying till now.  It seems that I get the ringing tone in my handset when I ring mobile numbers but not when ringing landlines!!!

I am told that the various destination landline exchanges generate the ring tone for me to hear in my handset.  But they can't all have a problem unless they can't recognise some sort of signal from my mobile.  The destination I am ringing does hear their phone ring, and they answer, and I can hear them.  Its just that making a call and not hearing it ringing my end is disconcerting and makes me think that the call hasn't gone through.

[Roseyhue]

Sorry about being slow to reply.  It seems that I get a ringing tone in my mobile handset when I ring another mobile on an EE network, but I don't get a ring tone when I ring a landline!!

I would also mention that when I put in the Vodaphone SIM when you changed from EE an R appeared next to my signal strength indicator on my mobile.  Its been there through all the subsequent SIM changes.  I have just looked up what this R means and it appears to mean that I have Roaming enabled, but I haven't enabled it.  Is this likely to affect the passage of my phone call to a landline exchange?  Although everything worked fine before your change to O2.

[Ryan_N]

It would affect it, no - don't worry. 

What I will do is pop you over a private message so we can confirm some details. 

Cheers, 

Ryan.