Samsung Galaxy S2 – I9100: Which modem is best (part 2)

This is a continuation from an earlier post. I’ve updated my phone to cm-9-20120611-NIGHTLY-galaxys2 ROM and restarted my testing on the modems. So far, I’m on my third modem and have quite a few more to go. The following is my test environment and results. Do note that all results are my own opinions under my own circumstances. Results may vary from person to person, region to region, phone to phone and even network to network. The environment is as listed below and we’ll get into the results after that.

Test environment
Phone: Samsung Galaxy S2 I9100
ROM: cm-9-20120611-NIGHTLY-galaxys2
Area: Mostly around Bayan Lepas, Penang
Network: DiGi

Results

Modem: XXLPH
This modem has been my usual modem for quite some time now. Currently, it still ranks quite high on my list as one of the most stable modems I’ve used. The battery drain is nothing excessive for me and reception is good in most places. In certain areas of my office building, I am unable to get a HSDPA or 3G connection though. The signal will remain on an EDGE connection which is fine for voice but does not work when I try to load Google Play Store or Facebook. I think it is due to the low quality or speeds of the DiGi EDGE network.
Major issues: None.
Minor issues: On rare occasions, my phone will lose connectivity to Google servers (indicated by the signal logo turning grey instead of the normal blue) but usually it restores connection in less than 30 seconds.

Modem: XXLPX
The first time I tested this modem, I was having lots of issues with it. However, this time around, I saw a much better stability in terms of signal strength and connection speeds. It is able to get the same connections as XXLPH most of the time under similar situations, including the EDGE connection in certain areas. However, on two separate occasions, I have noticed that my mobile network gets dropped in the middle of a call. This hasn’t happened before on XXLPH. This gives it a lower score than XXLPH.
Major issues: Dropped calls while on HSDPA/3G network.
Minor issues: On rare occasions, my phone will lose connectivity to Google servers (indicated by the signal logo turning grey instead of the normal blue) but usually it restores connection in less than 30 seconds.

Modem: DXKL9
This is the modem that ships with the official Samsung ICS ROM for Galaxy S2 I9100 in Malaysia. During my previous trials, I reported that this modem showed a very high battery drain when left overnight. However, I have not been able to reproduce that same scenario this time around. I will still give this modem another day or two of trials so I’ll see if I can reproduce it during these last 2 days. In areas that XXLPH and XXLPX was showing a steady EDGE connection, DXKL9 attempted to do better by showing a very weak 3G connection. In actual fact, the very weak 3G connection was no better than EDGE as I was unable to browse the Google Play Store or Facebook. There is also a slightly more frequent occurrence of disconnection from Google servers and I’ve noticed this happening especially after ending a call. I do not recall seeing this on XXLPH or XXLPX modems (correct me if I’m mistaken).
Major issues: None.
Minor issues: On occasions, my phone will lose connectivity to Google servers (indicated by the signal logo turning grey instead of the normal blue) but usually it restores connection in less than 30 seconds.

Well, that’s the roundup for the three modems I’ve tested over the past 9-10 days. I still have quite a number of modems left to test and those will be covered in part 3 and maybe part 4. In no particular order, they are:
XXKE7, XXKI4, NEKF2, XXKDH, XXLPR, XXLPS, XXLPW

Any of them that I should prioritize?

Part1  |  Part2  |  Part3  |  Part4