Widespread complaints have been circulating over the past month surrounding the iPhone 3G’s reception. Both AT&T and Apple have insisted that nothing unusual is going on, but criticisms have have abounded the blogs and forums.
Even Apple’s own discussion boards have been chalk full of grievances with the on-going issue of not only being able to connect to the 3G network, but to stay connected for any lengthened duration.
Users have been noting that their iPhone 3G’s have had trouble remaining connected to 3G networks and will often revert back to the EDGE networks even while in a 3G-rich environment. One may come to the conclusion that this is a problem from within AT&T’s 3G network, yet users abroad have been experiencing similar problems.
As we are well aware, Apple has advertised the device as being “twice as fast,” as its predecessor. One would naturally assume that this is not sitting well with those that had eagerly awaited the release of the device to take full advantage of the faster speeds. Repeated attempts to get some sort of acknowledgment from both Apple and AT&T have proved to be ineffective. “Apple did not even attempt to answer the questions, deferring inquiries to AT&T, which declared that there were absolutely no widespread problems with the iPhone 3G on its network.” via ZDNetAsia.
“What we’re seeing is that the iPhone 3G is performing very well,” said Mark Siegel, a spokesman for AT&T. “I’m not denying that people are having problems. But we have to deal with these on a case-by-case basis.”
It is difficult to tell wether this is a case of an issue that a small minority are blowing out of proportion, or whether this really is a widespread issue. Yet due to the resounding outcry of those seeking answers, it may be safe to assume that this is a real problem. I can personally attest to this as I am more often connected to the EDGE network, despite the fact that I live in a 3G-heavy area.
“Without detailed testing, it is also difficult to say for sure what is causing the dropped calls or limited access to the network. Most likely, the cause of the problem is not solely an AT&T network issue nor is it an Apple device issue: It is a combination of both.”
We also must understand that the 3G network is not omnipresent. AT&T currently offers 3G service in a mere 300 metropolitan areas. They do however expect to increase service to 350 more areas by the end of the year. AT&T’s EDGE network, however, covers their entire U.S. landscape. Despite the limited areas that do currently have 3G coverage, those users should be able to connect to the 3G network more often than not. Unfortunately the majority of the complaints have been coming from residents of Chicago, San Francisco and New York, three major 3G hubs.
“That suggests either a hand-off issue or a capacity issue. The hand-off between the two networks is supposed to be seamless: 3G calls should automatically switch to EDGE when the 3G signal gets too weak. But the iPhone 3G seems to be hanging when it switches from the 3G network to the EDGE network, dropping service altogether in some cases. Apple technicians who examined Shaw’s phone found that 36 percent of his calls had been dropped.”
AT&T should want to minimize the number of handoffs that they are forced to do. This would require are larger 3G network. Just because AT&T is claiming to have an area covered, apparently does not mean that it truly is.
Independent industry analyst, Andrew Seybold, is suggesting that, “My belief is that because AT&T’s network is not built out to every cell site, people are getting frustrated because they’re finding places where the 3G signal isn’t available or is weak.”
AT&T’s Mark Siegel has noted that the company is fervently working on expanding the portion of its 3G network that is running on the 850MHz band, which allows signals to spread further and more easily penetrate walls than signals on the 1900MHz band. He did, however, go on to add that “this doesn’t mean that you can’t get a good experience on 1900MHZ.”
Network coverage may not be the only possible problem. Users of other handsets have reported similar issues with AT&T’s 3G services. This may indicate that users have to consider whether such problems are inherent exclusively to the iPhone 3G or whether the issues are stemming on AT&T’s behalf. Perhaps it is a combination of the two. Apple’s usual tight-lipped approach to a sticky situationhas been of no help in determining the core problem.
[via ZDNetAsia]
