CNN: Is the iPhone hurting AT&T's brand?

[47of74]

I just saw this story on CNN about AT&T having a low satisfaction score.

While people love the iPhone, they're not happy with AT&T according to a survey by the CFI Group. If someone else could offer the iPhone they'd jump ship for that carrier.

I have a Touch and I love it. But AT&T's network sucks here in Iowa. So that's why I don't have an iPhone. As much as I'd like to have one network coverage is really important to me given how much traveling I do for work. So that's why I'm using a RIM device now.

[GrantDem]

1. One could make a good argument that it is the other way around.

It seems that AT&T's network isn't robust enough to accommodate the iPhone. They are supposedly working on beefing up their network's capabilities.

[Touchdown]

2. They (we) are working on it. It just takes a lot of time.

It's a big country, and that's a lot of equipment to upgrade. There's only so many of us that can do the job.

Besides, we have to pay our CEO $13 million in compensation.:eyes:

[Lost-in-FL]

3. I agree.

It seems sometimes that the iphone is just too good for AT&T.

I would drop AT&T in a heartbeat (and pay any fees) if Verizon take the iphone.

[Touchdown]

4. Verizon's unlikely. The tech for the two networks are different.

at&t uses High Speed Downlink Pack Access (HSDPA) in their network, as does T-Mobile. Verizon and Sprint use EV-DO. The iPhone's 3G chipset has an HSDPA card on it. It's incompatible with Sprint or Verizon for anything but voice calls and texting.

Now, what Apple could do is have a separate line of iPhones with EV-DO compatibility, but I think that would confuse the market with 2 different phones that look the same. at&t and Verizon could sell their individual models in their stores, but what would the Apple Store do? Not carry it at all, or force their fanboy for one or the other carrier sales staff to be agnostic on which carrier a customer chooses, which if you've talked to any fanboy, keeping objectivity is next to impossible? Big questions and contract disputes with 2 very rich Bell companies are at stake with this. If one feels slighted, the lawsuits would drop too fast to see.

[FreeState]

8. Verizon Claims Network Ready for iPhone Should Apple Choose to Strike Deal

http://www.macrumors.com/2009/12/18/verizon-claims-network-ready-for-iphone-should-apple-choose-to-strike-deal/

A BusinessWeek report from last night has received significant attention today for its focus on Verizon's claimed readiness should the company and Apple strike a deal to bring the iPhone to the largest U.S. wireless carrier next year.
Verizon Wireless has even made upgrades that would make its network more capable of handling extra traffic that would be generated by the iPhone, Verizon Wireless Chief Technology Officer Anthony Melone says in an interview.

"We have put things in place already," Melone tells Bloomberg BusinessWeek. "We are prepared to support that traffic."

Verizon has been seen by many customers disgruntled with AT&T's network performance as a likely partner for Apple once the iPhone maker's exclusivity agreement with AT&T expires.

The report notes that the iPhone has placed tremendous stress on AT&T's network, causing data traffic to explode by 5,000% over the past few years. Consequently, many have wondered whether any other U.S. mobile provider would have been able to meet the iPhone demand had they been able to offer the device. The BusinessWeek report points to a vague comment from Melone stating that Verizon has similarly seen growth of 1,000% per year, although recent comments from Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg have pegged the growth at substantially closer to 100% per year. Still, Verizon remains confident that it will be able to provide a quality customer experience for iPhone users should the opportunity arise.

Look up 4G and Version to see how the hardware is no longer an issue. There upgrades are going to support both techs.

http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/681210/verizon_starts_building_4g_network.html

Verizon is steadily becoming a much better company. They just announced their intention to completely open their network to any device and now they are building a 4G network.
Verizon is currently a CDMA carrier, which supports 3G, but they are getting ready for the next-generation. This comes when other companies like AT&T and possibly T-Mobile are just now rolling out their 3G networks.
The Long Term Evolution (LTE) tech of 4G runs on GSM, which means that Verizon will have to move away from CDMA.
This, paired with their plans for an open network, will potentially allow all users of GSM (SIM card) devices access to Verizon's network. 4G devices are not available yet.
Verizon hopes that the LTE network will be ready in 2009.


Read more: http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/681210/verizon_starts_building_4g_network.html#ixzz0adYwtDXI

[Deja Q]

5. Seconded.

The iPhone is just fine. Especially with the contracts and higher data-plan costs, there is no reason why AT&T won't improve their facilities.

They HAVE done some improvement in remote areas, which has been great. I just hope it continues. :)

[alfredo]

6. How is the touch for surfing?

[PinkTiger]

7. I Iike it

But you have to have a hotspot.
Sometimes it can be a pain, but usuaIIy it is a breeze. Iove mine.

[Touchdown]

9. Lately it's a matter of not realizing how much streaming is being done.

Geez, this is why there are 64gig versions available. Download the shit and stop putting a strain on the network by streaming!

Two big problem areas in AT&T's network are San Francisco & New York City. Both have recently been beefed up capacity wise. It seems those 2 cities love to stream. Chicago? Eh' not so much. They like their downloads.

[av8rdave]

10. I recently switched from Verizon to ATT

Big mistake. The iPhone is great, the network sucks.