What does signal strength (wifi - 3g - phone etc) mean?
There are two different ways to measure signal strength. The first is the power of the signal received by the antenna. This would include noise, or real signal. The second way is to exchange a pattern of bits that both the sending and receiving end knows, and count the bits that were incorrect. This is generally more accurate, but it only works with digital signals, not analog.
What causes low signal strength, Is it the distance to travel?
Interference and distance cause low signal strength.
And what does low signal strength effect? Does it impact speeds or cause packet loss or something?
Packet loss is not directly affected by signal strength, but it depends on the ratio of signal strength to noise.
Having a low signal strength will affect the speed of your connection.
Normally a poor phone signal means a call is hard to hear and doesn't sound clear. Why is this?
The same thing as packet loss (ratio of signal strength to noise)
What causes packet loss?
There are many reasons for packet loss:
- A lot of WiFi networks
- Bluetooth
- Microwaves
- Phones
- Anything that creates radio waves
- Anything that creates electromagnetic fields