AT&T Optimizing EDGE Network Ahead Of iPhone

here hoping they do the equivilent in canada!

Of course, this EDGE enhancement also means that other EDGE compatible phones will see the enhancement as well. But we don't care about them here unless they are comparable to the iPhone

looks like no 3G for the iphone in 1st gen...

I call BS on not going with the 3G as a technology in the phone.

Is it because of unit size, or limiting which carrier you can hack the phone to use?

My 3G on T-Mobile is OK, but I imagine using a K800i for mobile internet is silly anyways.

Ah well there you go then all the 3g moaners But somehow I still think they are going to continue moaning

I know a lot of people criticize the iPhone with the lack of 3G, but I'm one of the few who wouldn't think it'll matter. I'm a student so my situation is a little different, but everywhere at my house and everywhere where I "work" (school) has wireless, and that'll surely continue to grow as more and more people and businesses go wireless.

So for the few minutes a day I actually use the EDGE server, I think the speed's will be more than fine. AT&T improving their speeds is good news, but I think their earlier speeds will be "fast" enough for me.

miketcool said:

I call BS on not going with the 3G as a technology in the phone.

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I only quote what Apple's arguments were. I made no assertation as to whether I felt those arguments were valid

longofest said:

I only quote what Apple's arguments were. I made no assertation as to whether I felt those arguments were valid

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I won't be puting the blame solely on Apple either. This seems likely to be one of those negotiated things. ATT wanted the iPhone locked up for 2 years, gotta make Apple play the game a bit. Knowing Jobs and control issues, it will be interesting to see how the control comes back to center on Apple Inc.

sure looks like At&t is getting behind the iPhone in a BIG way - they seem to have decided that the amount of hype and buzz around the iPhone launch is going to be huge for them and their brand.

With their sped-up tranistion to the At&t brand, so that it's the one under discussion for all iPhone launch reports, and a moderately serious network upgrade, it's really looking like they want to be the 'iPhone network'...

What I would like to know is, can I buy the iPhone with no "data" contract at all, and simply use the Internet features at 802.11 hotspots, as I would with a laptop?

$30 a month over-and-above a voice contract is a lot of money to use features which will be widely available for free at higher speeds.

I also want the phone but would love just the ipod and internet without the phone. I will wait a little while to see if a new ipod is in the works for 2007. In the mean time I await what at&t's setup on how the current iphone will be used and for how much. I know the people that are 'chomping at the bit' will be taken advantage of but sometimes you just want to have the new toy in your hand right from the get-go. I will control my urge.

It's been rumoured elsewhere that the iPhone will have a different form factor in Europe. That could mean it will have a slightly larger case to accommodate 3G. Let's hope so.

If Motorola can stuff HSDPA in to a Razr, Apple can stuff it in an iPhone. A new PDA/Smartphone launch with anything less than 3G is idiotic.

Mac-Addict said:

Ah well there you go then all the 3g moaners But somehow I still think they are going to continue moaning

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Of course. AT&T's big upgrade will be to ensure 80Kbps. This isn't close to EDGE's top speed, and it is insignificant compared with real-world performance numbers for today's 3G networks (both GSM and CDMA.)

The iPhone's UI is great and wonderful, but without sufficient bandwidth to back it up, a lot of those features won't be nearly as useful.

Tara Davis said:

What I would like to know is, can I buy the iPhone with no "data" contract at all, and simply use the Internet features at 802.11 hotspots, as I would with a laptop?

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I haven't heard anything that says otherwise, but we'll find out for certain when they start selling these phones.

Gizmodo said:

hoping to get that paltry 40kbps performance to a new minimum of 80kpbs. (EDGE's real world max is about 200kbps.)

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Great, so they'll go from SLOWER than dialup to barely faster?

miketcool said:

Is it because of unit size, or limiting which carrier you can hack the phone to use?

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How does not including 3G in any way limit carrier compatibility?

So I guess this ruins the hope that Apple was going to surprise us all with 3G come June 29...

Yes, with these blazing speeds, you too will be able to enjoy the tubes of the internet with Netscape 2.0!

Maybe you'll be able to hook it up to a 56k modem to upgrade the speed....

sounds good but i'd mainly use wifi with my iPhone when i can

apfhex said:

How does not including 3G in any way limit carrier compatibility?

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From my understanding, even though EDGE is a technology every wireless carrier can cover, ATT is the only one in North America really promoting it. It is possible to access the internet from WiFi but if the iPhone is only compatable with EDGE in the USA, ATT could have better assurance over who used the phone and on what network. I'm not claiming this is a bulletproof argument, but that could be the reason Apple only included EDGE; to satisfy ATT.

It's not too bad.

I got my MPB online this weekend using my Blackberry Pearl (ATT/Edge) as a bluetooth modem. I was surprised that it pretty useable. I wouldn't try video, but nytimes.com was not painful to navigate.

Sweet 80kpbs! I think I'll stick with my Treo and my EVDO.

The amazing thing is that AT&T is jumping through hoops to make this successful!

Tara Davis said:

What I would like to know is, can I buy the iPhone with no "data" contract at all, and simply use the Internet features at 802.11 hotspots, as I would with a laptop?

$30 a month over-and-above a voice contract is a lot of money to use features which will be widely available for free at higher speeds.

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AT&T's Glenn Lurie said in an interview that "people are going to be asked to have an unlimited package — people are going to have to have a package with us to browse (on iPhone)."

This could be interpreted in several ways, so perhaps Wi-Fi browsing will indeed be possible without an AT&T data contract. (Would it even be technologically possible for AT&T to somehow "block" the Wi-Fi capability of iPhones not on their data contract?) Still, Lurie's comments seem to imply that AT&T might be roping us into a data contract... we may need to sign-up with AT&T for calling AND browsing, not just calling.

Sandfleaz said:

The amazing thing is that AT&T is jumping through hoops to make this successful!

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I wouldnt necessarily view anyone jumping through hoops in this relationship. I think it is nice that ATT and Apple are working together on this to make it as succesful as possible. Corporate relationships are so important, and I like to see these, as it improves customer experience signifigantly.