Wifi searching but not finding

Noz2 · Feb 20, 2012

I just bought a secondhand iPhone 3g and for some reason it's not finding any and wifi networks. It says searching but doesnt find anything, exactly as if there were none in range. I have an iPod touch 1g that finds 4 available networks.

Is the iPhone broken or is there something I'm not doing??

elitegamer767 · Feb 20, 2012

Try a restore via iTunes

Sent from my  iPhone 4S using Tapatalk ☠

Noz2 · Feb 21, 2012

Just did, updated to 4.2 and still same problem

Just shows searching for a few seconds but then no networks found. Also tried adding the network manually but also didnt work.

Please help! Im actually leaving the country I bought it in about 7 hours from now so if I need to return it to the shop it needs to be soon.

Primetime · Feb 21, 2012

Never heard of that problem ever. In my opinion, Get rid of it. Get another one.

Noz2 · Feb 24, 2012

Getting rid of it is not really a great solution to the problem, actually i can not even return it to the shop any more as i already left the country....

Anyway it is updated to version 4.2.1 now, the problem is the same. Actually it only says it is searching for about 1 second or less then acts as if there were no wifi in range. Could the wifi hardware be damaged or is this a software problem? If anyone has any idea or any suggestions that can help I would REALLY appreciate it.

Mr.Mischief · Feb 24, 2012

Sounds like a damaged wifi chip. I had a 3G like that, couldn't ever get a wifi signal.

Noz2 · Feb 24, 2012

If the chip is damaged is it possible to replace or fix?

Btw I found a youtube video of this exact same problem, seems a lot of people have it : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpaoqcdA3Vc

So far I have tried:
-reset network settings
-restore iphone and update to 4.2.1 (jailbroken with redsnow)
-turning bluetooth on
-putting outside to chill the phone (some people said that works haha)

Anything else I can do before I get a screwdriver and open the damn thing up?

Mr.Mischief · Feb 24, 2012

Opening it up won't fix it. I suggest either getting a service plan with plenty of fast data or sell it.

Noz2 · Feb 24, 2012

If its a damaged chip can I not replace it? Im sure there are some chinese made replacement parts for iphones even if apple wont sell the original spares.

xrayeyes · Feb 24, 2012

So, are you jailbroken? Did you restore as new? Maybe an issue with how you restored?

Mr.Mischief · Feb 24, 2012

Noz2 said:
If its a damaged chip can I not replace it? Im sure there are some chinese made replacement parts for iphones even if apple wont sell the original spares.

You might be able to find the chip, but at the very least it will require soldering to replace.

Noz2 · Feb 29, 2012

Sorry for late reply, my ISP also went offline, not having much luck with tech stuff lately....

Yes it is jailbroken, actually there is another problem I noticed... it takes over 60 seconds to boot and many of the apps are running very slowly, could this be related?

The strange thing is, if the chip was damaged I think the wifi settings menu would be greyed out, but I can still click on it, just not finding any networks.

xrayeyes · Feb 29, 2012

Before going the route of opening up the back, I would think it would be wise to restore your phone and get back to stock. If you are still having the issue, then you could try other avenues.