So when I'm on 2G, i'm on GPRS? It's too slow. I have the Power Control widget that came with CyanogenMod 7 and have set it to toggle between 2G and 3G whenever I want. The options I have are as follows:
2G/3G+2G
2G/3G Only
2G/3G Only/3G+2G
What would you recommend?
Is 3G+2G meant to represent HSDPA?
2G is GPRS or EDGE depending on your carrier and the station you're connected to (whether they support EDGE). If it's available it'll use EDGE, if not it'll use the old school GPRS.
3G is either UMTS or HSDPA depending on same things as above - if it's possible to use HSDPA your phone will use it automatically, if not it'll switch to slower UMTS/3G.
3G/2G setting means basically using HSDPA/3G if available. If it's not available or 3G reception is poor EDGE/2G will kick in.
It's important to remember that 2G reception is usually far better than 3G and 3G uses much more energy, it uses even more when it's struggling to find 3G signal or switches between 2G and 3G often. Also switching between 3G and 2G might result in dropped calls.
2G is almost always better for calls since reception is better and it's also better for battery. 3G is better for data speeds only, especially when it uses the HSDPA protocol.
What I do is this - Most of the time I'm on 2G , when I need fast data transfer I switch to 2G/3G and when I'm done I switch back to 2G. That's why the switch is there actually. 3G is inefficient in stand by and inefficient (and more risky) for phone calls.
Take a look at this while also analyzing the battery drain in different phases when the 2G/3G mode is on:
1. Standby on 3G, 50mA
2. Call is set up on 3G, current drain increases to approx. 220mA
3. Screen dims, current drain falls to 200mA
4. Radio conditions start to deteriorate (3G)
5. Switch to 2G while maintaining the phone call in tact, current drain goes down to 80mA (which as a matter of fact is closer to 3G on stand by)
Between 4. and 5. you run the risk of dropping the call. If you'd used the "3g only" switch the call would have dropped at the end of 4. and you'd have no reception. If you were on "2G only" the whole phone call would be like 5. with no issues whatsoverer and far lower energy drain.