Strange symbol in status bar: AT&T network

zerozal said:

have any of you seen this symbol in the status bar, or know what it means? I'm on at&t and have seen "e" for edge, 3g, 4g, and lte, but today was the first time i've seen this--looks like an "o". Any ideas?

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gprs

It's a step below the Edge network, basically, you have no data connection that is worthwhile.

That is sad. Where was that at?

Zerozal said:

Ah, GPRS. Thanks, that makes sense. Something must be wonky today, because normally it's 4G. Philly suburbs (Montgomery County PA).

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Yep. 2G symbol.

GPRS delivers something like 2kbps. It's useless.

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xraydoc said:

Yep. 2G symbol.

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Nope, it's actually the G symbol. The 2G symbol is E (for EDGE).

Zerozal said:

Ah, GPRS. Thanks, that makes sense. Something must be wonky today, because normally it's 4G. Philly suburbs (Montgomery County PA).

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I was in Harleysville, and my girlfriend had the same problem this morning (on Verizon), and I noticed that FioS was slow as... high speed cable!

I just chalked it up to Sandy's effects still reverberating in the area. One of my friends down the road didn't get power back until the night of the 4th, so I wouldn't be surprised if some cell towers are still out too.

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AlphaDogg said:

GPRS delivers something like 2kbps. It's useless.

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Nope, it's actually the G symbol. The 2G symbol is E (for EDGE).

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Edge is also quite capable for playing World of Warcraft on

thejadedmonkey said:

Edge is also quite capable for playing World of Warcraft on

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EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution) is pretty good. I used it for a while before I got my 3GS. It was a good day if I was getting 150kbps on that phone

AlphaDogg said:

GPRS delivers something like 2kbps. It's useless.

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Nope, it's actually the G symbol. The 2G symbol is E (for EDGE).

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Edge is a "2.5G" technology. 1G would be voice-only; no data. You can get data on GPRS, though barely at dial-up speeds. At least this is how I understand it.

xraydoc said:

Edge is a "2.5G" technology. 1G would be voice-only; no data. You can get data on GPRS, though barely at dial-up speeds. At least this is how I understand it.

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Hmmm my understanding is different than yours. Wikipedia agrees with you. I'd put more energy into researching this if it wasn't 10pm and I still had stuff to do.

i dont know why apple decided to us the "o" symbol for 2G. why not just use a "G" or "1X" like every other phone since 2001 has done.

Nermal said:

1xRTT is different from GPRS. Does it use "o" for 1x as well? I can't test it myself; 1x has been eradicated here

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It does use "o" for 1xRTT (CDMA). And like GPRS, you can get data on 1xRTT but it's painfully slow.

A very familiar symbol when I am inside with cruddy O2 (UK).

I get the same thing 24/7 on my 4S on Verizon while I am at home. I basically have to use my 3GS on AT&T to make a call while I am here. 90% of calls drop here on Verizon.

If I don't turn on airplane mode on the 4S while I am at home, the battery will drain in half a day while I have that o.

GPRS, fastest of the fast