ATT 3G Network Review Part 2

In a previous post I went through some of the noticeable problems with ATT's 3G service for the new iPhones. My initial review wasn't very good and unfortunately, this one is going to be worse.

Since the first review, I've gotten feedback from more users in more cities that are experiencing the same problems. During peak usage hours (5-10pm) users are experiencing "Failed Calls" which is what is displayed on the iPhone when a call is dropped, over 10% of the time within the first 2 minutes of a conversation. The updated cities list which I've tested and gotten feedback from are as follows: St. Louis, Kansas City, Chicago, New York, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Richmond, and Austin. That's 10 cities in 9 states.

The iPhone users love all the applications, ipod, GPS, and internet features. BUT IT IS TERRIBLE AT MAKING AND ACCEPTING PHONE CALLS, which is arguable the most simple, but most important feature of a cell phone. I continue to check the web and company website to look for updates on their network. I've gotten my phone looked at twice to make sure I didn't have a defective phone before I bashed the company, and it checked out perfectly fine. I encourage all feedback and testimonials on this problem. Hopefully as time goes by, ATT can straighten out these issues.

Not So Hot 3G Network

The 3G network that ATT and Apple have been boasting about is not stacking up to the hype. Any user of the new 3G iPhone can tell you that they are experiencing more than just dropped calls. Often, iPhone users are unable to place calls, along with having their current conversations “fail.” The current speculation is that there are not enough satellites to hold the larger than anticipated 3G network of users. At times, it can be so bad that iPhone 3G users are not able to place calls for periods of up to 30 minutes. At first I thought it might be a regional issue. However, I experienced the problems initially in St. Louis, my friends in Chicago are having the same problems, and during my trip to the San Francisco Bay area and Phoenix, the issues were still present. I’ve had my phone looked at by the Genius Bar, and completed all necessary updates. Hopefully this problem will be addressed soon. Otherwise, I would expect ATT and Apple to get a lot of angry customers most likely resulting in discounted monthly statements. I was unable to find any sources discussing ATT’s plans to beef-up the 3G network. Hopefully they have a plan to address the recent problems. I’ll continue to look for reliable information about the current issues and hopefully get some insight as to when the problems will be fixed and we can continue to use our 3G iPhones without major service interruption.

If any readers feel these statements are false, or exaggerated, please comment on your experience.

iPhone 3g Charger Problems

Last Friday, Apple announced that the "ultracompact" charger that came with the new iPhone 3g's is causing some problems. Apparently they are breaking off in outlets which can be dangerous. iPhone owners have 2 options to exchange their existing ultracompact power adapter.

1. Bring your existing power adapter to an Apple store and exchange it for a new one.
2. Go to Apple's website and fill out a request to have a new charger mailed to you. (you'll need your iphone serial number and will have to mail back your existing ultracompact power adapter)

I'm a current iPhone 3g user and have not had this problem, but I will be going online and requesting the new power adapter to be mailed to my house. I hope this solves any problems people are having with the product.

iPhone 3G GPS

One great feature of the new iPhone 3G is GPS. It didn't take me too long to figure it out. The feature is used through the Maps application. You simply identify where you are going by typing in the address, then select, "Get Directions" which it will map out the shortest distance. When you are ready to go, select "Start" and the 3G network will locate you on the map using a pulsing blue dot. As you move, so will the dot. It's definitely pretty cool.

I did notice a couple fixes that would make it better. One would be a voice command to prompt the user to turn or when a turn is coming. Another would be to have the map rotate to that you are always traveling up on the screen. Currently, you have to turn your iPhone after you make a direcitonal change if you want to be moving in the same direction as the blue dot.

The commercial for the Instinct says that it has voice command GPS. At this point I would say that is its biggest competitve advantage over the iPhone 3G. It wouldn't take much for the Instinct's GPS to be more responsive than the iPhone's. I noticed that sometimes I would be passing streets that the iPhone GPS displayed I hadn't yet. I would say the feature is definitely useful, however, if I were planning a long road trip I definitely wouldn't trust it to get me there without a few mistakes along the way.

iPhone 3G 8gig

I recently made the change to the new iPhone 3g 8gig. I previously had the Palm Treo with Sprint. I have to say that I'm extremely impressed with the iPhone. Sprint tried to talk the company I work for into keeping Sprint and getting the new Blackberry. Sprint said that if you use your phone for business you MUST have a Blackberry. I couldn't disagree more. Here are the key features I'd say are necessary for a cell phone for business use.
1. Email
2. Internet
3. Storage

The iPhone 3g dominates all of the categories listed above. You can add just about any email account to your phone and be updated in real time when you receive a new email. The internet is so much faster than Sprint's that it's not even arguable. And I'm a previous customer so I know from experience. And my last point is storage which is no contest. I have the smaller memory iPhone which is quite a bit more storage that any other phone offered by Spring other than the Instinct.

Anyone who cares about the stock market would be better off with the new iPhone as well. The iPhone starts you with an icon for "stocks" but I would recommend the Bloomberg Application which is FREE! If you haven't checked it out you really should. The main page shows you all of the markets in the world along with recent news, plus you can add any stock you want to your own portfolio page.

Now just about anyone who buys an iPhone is interested in music. With 2 options you can hold around 2,000 or 4,000 songs. There are a ton of music applications you can add for free as well. Verizon boasts of their system where you can hold your phone to the radio and you will sent a message of what the song is. The iPhone has a really cool application call Shazam which does the same thing. I absolutely love Pandora radio and listen to it on my laptop all the time. Now you can have it on your iPhone. And thanks to the super fast 3g network, you can listen to Pandora without download interuptions. I'd have to say this is my favorite application I've used so far.

There are tons of available applications for your iPhone that I would encourage any user to check out. Even one that turns your phone into a flashlight in case you find yourself in the dark.

For now thats all on the new Apple iPhone 3g. I'll add more as I learn more about the phone and what else is out there.