Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
63,278
30,339



consumer_reports_wordmark.jpg



Consumer Reports today announced the results of its consumer satisfaction survey of mobile phone companies in the United States for 2011, with Verizon topping the list and AT&T once again ranking at the bottom.
Of the four major U.S. national cell-phone standard service providers, Verizon again scored the highest in this year's Ratings, followed closely by Sprint. Survey respondents gave very good scores to Verizon for texting and data service satisfaction, as well for staff knowledge.

T-Mobile was below Verizon and Sprint but continued to rate significantly better than the higher-priced AT&T, which recently withdrew its application to the FCC to merge with its better rival.
Consumer Reports' survey included 66,000 customers, and the magazine's January issue includes both full rankings of nationwide performance and more localized rankings from 22 major metropolitan areas.

AT&T also ranked last in last year's survey, but was the exclusive iPhone carrier in the United States at that time. With Verizon having added the iPhone in February and Sprint coming on board in October, U.S. consumers now have a number of options for iPhone service.

Article Link: Verizon and Sprint Top 'Consumer Reports' Carrier Ratings, AT&T Lowest
 

martinmartin

macrumors 6502
Jun 5, 2007
435
1
I've had more service problems with my iPhone 4S than any of its predecessors (I've had them all, on AT&T).

I have a MicroCell in my home and every time I make an outgoing call, the "Call Fails" 3 times in a row before it finally goes through. My iPhone 4 did not do this.

Also, on countless occasions, I have had incoming calls go directly to voicemail without ringing. In areas where service is 5 bars.

Hopefully some of these things can be cleared up with software updates, but I'm not holding my breath.
 

darbus69

macrumors regular
Mar 3, 2009
228
36
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

AT&T from the beginning, hardly a glitch, only occasional failed/dropped calls-haters hate, there is no perfect world where everything works perfectly.
 

MordechaiCarver

macrumors member
Nov 3, 2011
42
5
Denver, CO
Not surprised with the report. It's why I switched to Verizon from Sprint 3 years ago and waited and waited until the 2nd Verizon iPhone (4s) came out. Friends/family who have AT&T have had nothing but problems (dropped calls, poor customer service). I had same problems with Sprint, but the best coverage/service ever with Verizon.
 

jbachandouris

macrumors 603
Aug 18, 2009
5,775
2,900
Upstate NY
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

I also have had no major issues and I had Verizon before.
 

Super_T

macrumors newbie
Nov 3, 2011
5
0
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

I have service from AT&T since 1993 and every iPhone too. The 4s may be the problem this time but I think most of it is AT&Ts crappy network and the 4s is amplifying it somehow. I used to have pretty good service but even before the 4s it was slowly getting worse: more dropped called, static, echo, phone doesn't ring when someone calls. I am ready to switch! When the 5 comes out I'll be paying the etf selling the 4s and getting a 5 with another carrier.

Edit: 5/6 whatever you want to call the next iPhone.
 

jayducharme

macrumors 601
Jun 22, 2006
4,516
5,935
The thick of it
I too have never had a problem with AT&T. Their customer service has always been friendly and efficient. In my experience, Verizon, on the other hand, has been a PITA to deal with.
 

eNcrypTioN

macrumors 6502
Nov 4, 2009
393
1
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

I've been with Sprint since 2000 maybe even a little before and I never have any issues. No complaints with my 4S on Sprint although your mileage may very.
 

*LTD*

macrumors G4
Feb 5, 2009
10,703
1
Canada
Wasn't there a report just the other week about AT&T's positive consumer ratings?

LOL dumb pipes exchanging places every month. Six of one, half dozen of the other.
 

interrobang

macrumors 6502
May 25, 2011
369
0
I love how these always degenerate into everyone sharing their personal anecdotes. "I have zero problems with Carrier X. I know a dude who has nothing but problems with Carrier Y."

Look, we don't care. Really. Your experience is not representative. My experience is not representative. No one person's experience is representative.

Maybe this is a good survey, maybe it's a flawed survey, but your personal experience is not useful information.
 

nagromme

macrumors G5
May 2, 2002
12,546
1,196
I’m torn by AT&T.

For starters, I love simultaneous voice and data. The goofy ads don’t show why that’s so vital. It’s vital because I can make plans WITH someone on the other line. Movie times, mapping restaurant locations, looking at reviews, etc.

AT&T coverage, reliability, and speeds have been great for me (iPhone 4) in medium-sized US cities. Dropped calls have been close to non-existent even in weak areas. There are places I sometimes go (rarely) without coverage—frustrating, but my friends/family on other carriers experience the same gaps I do. In addition, AT&T’s customer service via dialing 6-1-1 has been surprisingly very good.

BUT... their customer service at their main 800 number, and every branch off of it (including their abominable DSL department) has been ATROCIOUS! I know now to call 6-1-1 every time, but I still have to deal with the DSL people sometimes. Sometimes they’re OK, but in general, every time you talk to AT&T about an issue (technical, pricing, anything) you get a DIFFERENT answer! Always with confidence, always with lots of detail to back it up. So you’re sure you’ve gotten the right info. Then talk to someone else to follow up, and it’s a whole different story (yes, even re pricing).

I hold a HUGE grudge against AT&T for how they’ve treated me (mainly re DSL) and I would love to jump ship with my next iPhone. At the same time, I couldn’t give up simultaneous voice and data. Here’s hoping for some good options come next fall.

I love how these always degenerate into everyone sharing their personal anecdotes. "I have zero problems with Carrier X. I know a dude who has nothing but problems with Carrier Y."

Look, we don't care. Really. Your experience is not representative. My experience is not representative. No one person's experience is representative.

Maybe this is a good survey, maybe it's a flawed survey, but your personal experience is not useful information.

I agree. Keep the personal experiences out of the professional studies! That kind of thing belongs in forums.

Luckily, your experience is not representative. Some people like to hear how similar/different other people’s issues have been.
 

NoExpectations

macrumors 6502a
Sep 23, 2008
672
3
I don't trust surveys

Another unscientific survey from Consumer Reports where unconfirmed participants compare apples to oranges. AT&T has far more iPhone users than the rest of the providers combined (many on this survey do not even support the iPhone).

Apple customers are probably the most demanding. How can they compare an iPhone user on one network to a dumb phone user on the other?

The following studies are much more scientific. It compares the same iPhone 4s across all carriers. They reach a completely different conclusion based on facts, not opinion.


http://www.appleinsider.com/articles...on.html&page=1


http://m.minyanville.com/?guid=4714&catid=5
 

Wild-Bill

macrumors 68030
Jan 10, 2007
2,539
617
bleep
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

So glad I switched to VZW with the iPhone 4s. AT$T SUCKS.

I prefer reliable call quality over ATT's simultaneous fail.
 

Levent

macrumors newbie
Oct 19, 2011
7
0
Cincinnati, OH
I love how these always degenerate into everyone sharing their personal anecdotes. "I have zero problems with Carrier X. I know a dude who has nothing but problems with Carrier Y."

Look, we don't care. Really. Your experience is not representative. My experience is not representative. No one person's experience is representative.

Maybe this is a good survey, maybe it's a flawed survey, but your personal experience is not useful information.

Another unscientific survey from Consumer Reports where unconfirmed participants compare apples to oranges. AT&T has far more iPhone users than the rest of the providers combined (many on this survey do not even support the iPhone).

Apple customers are probably the most demanding. How can they compare an iPhone user on one network to a dumb phone user on the other?

The following studies are much more scientific. It compares the same iPhone 4s across all carriers. They reach a completely different conclusion based on facts, not opinion.


http://www.appleinsider.com/articles...on.html&page=1


http://m.minyanville.com/?guid=4714&catid=5

This.
These gentlemen know what they're talking about.
 

TsMkLg068426

macrumors 65816
Mar 31, 2009
1,498
343
Ehhh Consumer Reports' what do they really know? I got AT&T and yeah there are some problems here and there but what others are complaining about are mostly about coverage in their area.


Sorry but whenever I hear ratings from Consumer Reports' it makes me wonder where they got their information. I remember one time they gave Bose Sound systems bad rating and got sued for such BS in their report why Bose was bad.
 

davidgrimm

macrumors regular
Nov 29, 2006
196
0
North Texas
I'm a recovering ATT victim. I got tired of their very poor customer service and attitude that they were doing me a favor letting me pay them every month. I really got tired of going to their stores and having to effing wait 30 mintues to be rudely treated. I had decided to leave and had to go in and resolve a few things. The last couple of visits were much better, but it was too little, too late. I went month to month on t-mobile and then moved to Verizon the day they got the iPhone. My one ever call to customer service was great. No waiting on hold, no run-a-round. Added tethering for my new iPad 2.

All cellular companies have weak signal spots, but I found Verizon's customer service vastly superior to ATT's.

Also, I didn't get ATT service in my house. I do get Verizon here.
 

WatchTheThrone

macrumors regular
Aug 2, 2011
239
137
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

Lol @ At&t fanboys!!!!
We all get screwed by these companies yet we still defend them!!
Never had AT&T or Verizon so I can't comment on service from them but tmobile is good and I have sprint now and it's good too!! (data speeds above 1.5 down now instead of the .4 I was averaging in October) looks like sprint got there **** together after that horrible 4S launch Lol
 

RyanG

macrumors 6502a
Sep 18, 2007
502
40
I love how these always degenerate into everyone sharing their personal anecdotes. "I have zero problems with Carrier X. I know a dude who has nothing but problems with Carrier Y."

Look, we don't care. Really. Your experience is not representative. My experience is not representative. No one person's experience is representative.

Maybe this is a good survey, maybe it's a flawed survey, but your personal experience is not useful information.

The only worthwhile post in this thread. +1
 

brogwalkerh

macrumors newbie
Apr 22, 2008
12
0
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

I don't know who they are surveying but I live AT&T. I never have dropped calls, always have several bars, the network speed is great, and I have at least 3G everywhere I go.
 

AllieNeko

macrumors 65816
Sep 25, 2003
1,004
57
These are the results of a SURVEY. Surveys, at BEST, mesure perception, not reality. BBB complaints - a much better (but not perfect) measure of reality - are lowest on AT&T.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.