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Personally, or they dump all the carriers altogether and resell their own service.

The last is, to me, the most interesting option, because frankly, there is no way that Apple could do a worse job than the current cell carriers and would almost certainly do a much better job in every respect, on top of which they would offer true innovation in the services they offered instead of true innovation in how to screw customers, which is all existing cell providers seem to be able to do.

Now that, sounds about right to me. Apple should definitely do something like this. I think it would be the perfect step for Apple as they would have complete control over all they do from start to finish. Also they do and always have made quality products and have looked out for the customer first and foremost. I think that they would be extremely fair with regards to pricing plans if they were to take your suggestion up. :cool:
 
The market is not right for Apple to now start their own cell service, either as a MVNO or their own true service. Save the cash, do it later if desired.

Maybe so, but they definitely need to sometime. I really see them in that arena, it just makes sense.
 
should be interesting to see what apple does here... at this point i think it's clear at&t needs apple much more than apple needs at&t-

and yeh, i've been less than impressed with at&t's service-
 
It would be easy to read this long thread and come away with the impression that all the wireless carriers have problems, so what's the big deal? Folks, I can't emphasize this enough...AT&T's network is like really, really, bad (compared to Verizon). I not only base this on my 1-1/2 year experience with AT&T here in Columbus, but also my sister who lived in Louisville, KY, but moved to Washington DC. Same spotty 3G coverage and dropped calls in both places. My brother-in-law in Denver travels for his job and actually needs wireless. He dropped AT&T after a few months. I honestly cannot remember the last dropped call I've had on Verizon. Seriously...it's that rare.

I suspect this whole issue will go away on its own in a year or two. the iPhone will not be king-of-the-hill forever, and there will be some viable (or even superior) alternatives coming our way, but on a better network. When this happens, will we actually hear the whooshing sound of AT&T wireless customers jumping ship?
 
I would, but I like AT&T too much to see that smug Verizon guy with the nerd glasses holding an iPhone.

Ditto on that. As an ex-Verizon customer of almost a decade, I can honestly state Verizon is NOT the best mobile phone service provider. In fact, I lost count of how many times Verizon screwed me on my bills. The last straw was Verizon inability to modify my plan after I phoned and spoke with customer service representatives who assured me that the changes would take effect on my next bill. The next bill came and my charges were close to $500. After phoning Verizon they claimed no one had been informed of any changes. The last time I recorded the conversation with the representative, and when accused (politely) Verizon denied it and claimed "I" had no right to phone the conversation without informing the other party. Nice eh. After the third time in a row, I broke my contract and never looked back.

Also, does anyone recall the Motorola v710 fiasco? Yeah, I do. Verizon sold the new Motorola phone as advertised with full functionality. When asked about Bluetooth, I was assured numerous times that full Bluetooth support would be implemented. Well, I got the phone home only to discover that Verizon crippled ObEx on the phone in order to charge customers use of their "Get it Now" service. When asked about this move, Verizon stated it was in their interest to utilize this service as first, they claimed it was because bluetooth was not a secure feature and secondly as "Get it Now" would be easier for customers to utilize. The result: Verizon faced dozens of lawsuits, one large one in California, resulting in them having to pay millions in court settlements. I switched to then Cingular years ago as they did not cripple any of their phones. I has the Motorola RAZR for years and loved it. Plus, with rollover I NEVER go over my monthly plan, and have thousands of any time minutes left if I were to exceed my monthly limit.

Lastly, Verizon doesn't even offer a full GSM network. Sure, they have a few dual band phones, but their rates are even more exorbitant that AT&T's. So Again, why do people love Verizon so much?
 
Never had Verizon, but was on Sprint before the switch to the iPhone....

In my area (DC/MD/VA) I think I would be better served by maybe Verizon in the end.

But in the end I think that having the ability to choose between ATT, Verizon, TMobile, and Sprint could lead to lower pricing for services....

Everywhere I go between Baltimore and DC I rarely have less than 3 bars (except this one small stretch near I95 for about 1/4 mile). Most places, including my house, is full 3G signal all the time. T-Mobile was horrendous when I had them here. Can't compare Verizon or Sprint, but I am VERY happy with AT&T coverage here.
 
Given that AT&T has never issued an OS update to the iPhone, or any kind of update for that matter, I don't think that will be an issue.

The only thing AT&T does with the iPhone is give it service and tell customers what they can't do with their phones. I know that any other carrier that may carry the iPhone will be doing the same thing.

There won't be some Windows Mobile looking crap os on the iPhone, EVER.

And that is something Verizon will never agree upon, I fear. I could see them trying to get a CDMA version with less functionality. From a Verizon user perspective, the iPhone-AT&T concept is revitalizing.
 
And again, east coast bias. Verizon sucks in most other parts of the country.

I live in Northern New England, and Verizon in my area is horrible. AT&T gives me 5 Bars and 3G all the time.

I always chuckle at the Verizon commercial when the Verizon guy says "You have 3G here" and waves his arm around. I know the map isn't in my area, but if it were, he'd have to say "You have 3G here, but not here, or here, kinda spotty there, definitely not here, but ok here..." :D
 
It would be easy to read this long thread and come away with the impression that all the wireless carriers have problems, so what's the big deal? Folks, I can't emphasize this enough...AT&T's network is like really, really, bad (compared to Verizon).

I do not agree. I had Verizon (see my post below) for over a decade, and then switched to Cingular/At&t. Both were good in NYC (were I lived) and both were good in upstate NY. However, I had terrible service experiences with Verizon when traveling to others parts of the country (and of course Verizon did not offer international services capabilities with their phones, and only does now with a few select dual band handsets). I have had little to no issues with At&t's service, neither with the 2G or 3G iPhone. With At&t's rollover minutes, I have never gone over my monthly plan. I also find their customer service representatives to be much friendlier and knowledgeable. With the exception of Apple's insistence on crippling the iPhone's Bluetooth ObEx, At&t doesn't cripple their handsets as Verizon does in order to charge customers extra fees. Sorry, my friends and family will never return to Verizon.
 
Finally the rest of the US can get an iPhone?

AT&T will not sell a plan in much of the middle of the country. I would have switched in a heartbeat to get an iphone but they refused to let me buy one. Maybe this will be my opportunity?

All I ask is that Apple allow carriers in all corners of the US to carry an iphone. It's been terrible to deny this device to all of us out of reach of AT&T's corporate cell towers.
 
I have no problems with AT&T. They all suck equally for what its worth.

Exactly

All the iPhone being exclusive to AT&T is doing is making other companies pay out to get hi-end exclusive phones. It is not forcing manufacturers to produce a better phone. That will happen even if the iPhone is offered by every single wireless company.

Exactly. Besides that, you'd think plan rates would come down as well if iPhone spread to other carriers. Now that they all have "an iPhone" maybe not.


Now that Apple has become an established player in the mobile field, they no longer need AT&T. They could become their own cell provider in the US by buying bandwidth from other cell companies (and eventually building out their own cell tower infrastructure).

Being a 3G or 4G Internet & Phone service provider could be a very powerful tool for Apple. It would allow all their mobile Mac's to access the internet anywhere without worrying about WiFi, and would allow Apple to finally grab a share of the TV pie with AppleTV providing live television (news/sports) to compliment iTunes purchased TV shows and Movies.

MobileMe could be extended to function as a control panel for all your Internet, Phone and TV needs. Apple also already has the brick and mortar infrastructure nationwide to begin offering this type of service.

I'm sure this has come up as an option and if I were Apple, I would be considering it seriously.


I don't doubt for a second that this is how they are wanting to play. They're just getting their cards in order.
 
While I hate all cellphone companies because of their support for the right-wing, I hate Verizon the worst. They give the most money to Republicans.

Hey, AT&T gave Apple a shot while Verizon said 'screw you!' (probably because their tech guys are the usual anti-Apple zealots). I'm all for keeping it exclusive to AT&T.
 
Not necessarily...

yeah but even if AT&T contract does expire verizon customers still wouldn't be able to utilize because of the sim card situation Verizon Wireless uses CDMA which does not use SIM Cards. GSM like AT&T and T-Mobile are the only ones that use SIM Cards. wouldn't verizon have to go to a GSM setup

I'm sure the potential profit margins from selling to Verizon and Sprint customers will spur Apple to develop a CDMA-based iPhone; that's assuming Apple doesn't have the designs in place either from its earlier prototyping or from preparation to use other carriers in 2010. :D
 
...The last straw was Verizon inability to modify my plan after I phoned and spoke with customer service representatives ...

It's a lot easier to just change your plan on the web. Verizon lets you do that (and register phones) as much as you'd like.

Also, does anyone recall the Motorola v710 fiasco? Yeah, I do.

Wait. So you are one of those still pulling up the time that Verizon left out OBEX in one of their dumbphones... and yet you bought an iPhone in which Apple had crippled Bluetooth FAR, FAR MORE than anything Verizon ever did ?

Sorry, but these old anti-Verizon stories are getting worn out. Especially ones where people bring up the common Verizon dumbphone UI (which they don't apply to smartphones).

You can tell who's had smartphones for years, and who's only had dumbphones.
 
While I hate all cellphone companies because of their support for the right-wing, I hate Verizon the worst. They give the most money to Republicans.

Hey, AT&T gave Apple a shot while Verizon said 'screw you!' (probably because their tech guys are the usual anti-Apple zealots). I'm all for keeping it exclusive to AT&T.

I do my best to conduct business with companies that stay out of politics, especially after so many that donated millions to defeat equal rights by supporting Prop 8 in California (and other similar measures in Arizona and Florida). I was extremely disappointed to learn that more multi-million/billion dollar companies such as The Home Depot, Dominos (owned by a right wing conservative), Urban Outfitters, etc. have donated the most money towards politics and the most money towards the RNC. I do not believe that publicly traded companies should be placing earnings towards politics, however it's their company. As such, they will not have my business (and before any one jumps/assumes, I am a moderate and I also do not approve of companies funding Democratic causes).
 
I hope Apple realizes that there are a lot of us who would like to have an iPhone but find the monthly data plan prohibitive. I really hope they negotiate some plan flexibility so that I can finally carry one item instead of an iPod Touch and a crappy AT&T phone.

I know I am dreaming, so please no responses to that effect... :)

Actually you are not dreaming my friend. ATT will be lowering the data plans sometime between June - August,
This is to attract more subscribers as well as keep consumers happy.
Allot of Carriers have been said to be "lowering" their plans a wee bit ,
the biggest complaint most have is that the iphone's data plan has gone up and for those who do not live in 3G coverage area (Like myself) are paying for a service that they cannot use.
That being said, From a few reports from a few good friends that are up on the totem pole within the ATT organization have said that there will be some sort of plan pricing adjustment here in the near future.
 
Wait. So you are one of those still pulling up the time that Verizon left out OBEX in one of their dumbphones... and yet you bought an iPhone in which Apple had crippled Bluetooth FAR, FAR MORE than anything Verizon ever did ?

Sorry, but these old anti-Verizon stories are getting worn out. Especially ones where people bring up the common Verizon dumbphone UI (which they don't apply to smartphones).

You can tell who's had smartphones for years, and who's only had dumbphones.

Sorry, no. When I purchased the Motorola v710 from Verizon in 2005, I was informed numerous times that ObEx would not be crippled. Selling a device with false advertising was NOT my fault. It was not advertised as a Smartphone so what do smart phones have to do with this? I have had Palm devices so no, I am not "knew" to smart phones. As other mobile phone providers sold the same phone with full Bluetooth support it was obviously a business decision with Verizon. As such, if it truly was not Verizon's fault, then why did they lose dozens of court cases and millions in settlements? I knew the iPhone did not support ObEx when I purchased it, however I also knew iTunes would allow music and photo's on the device so I would not need ObEx.

Why the acerbic tone? Is this a personal issue for you?
 
While I hate all cellphone companies because of their support for the right-wing, I hate Verizon the worst. They give the most money to Republicans.

Hey, AT&T gave Apple a shot while Verizon said 'screw you!' (probably because their tech guys are the usual anti-Apple zealots). I'm all for keeping it exclusive to AT&T.

I didn't realize Verizon was pro-Bush :mad:. In spite of their political affiliations and crappy attitudes, they do have the best network hands-down. i travel all over the country for work, and when I'm in the most remote places, my co-workers have no service with their networks while I'm at least roaming like a champ on my Verizon Crackberry.

So, my work phone is Verizon while my personal phone is an iPhone. i would personally love Verizon to get the iPhone so that I can have just one device and get all my work and personal communication in one device.
 
1st time posting here.

I had Verizon for the longest time. That's all my family ever used to rely on. That was when I was 16. I never had a 3G phone but I loved the call quality of it. I also loved the fact that I had bars in most basements and could actually hear the calls decently (not perfectly).

I'm now 23, and about 2 months ago, went into a Mac store, played with an iPhone and fell in love with it. Now I'm with AT&T.

I had a tough decision to make, I WAS a Verizon fanboy before. I still like them, but I loved the iPhone more, and I've also heard MANY bad stories about AT&T before. But again, love of the phone just made me switch.

The funny thing is that, I don't regret it. AT&T service isn't bad at all for me. I don't get the most number of bars as I used to with Verizon BUT they are there and I can communicate if I need to.

Would I still prefer Verizon? YES!!! But as of right now, I'm happy with AT&T.
 
It would be easy to read this long thread and come away with the impression that all the wireless carriers have problems, so what's the big deal? Folks, I can't emphasize this enough...AT&T's network is like really, really, bad (compared to Verizon). I not only base this on my 1-1/2 year experience with AT&T here in Columbus, but also my sister who lived in Louisville, KY, but moved to Washington DC. Same spotty 3G coverage and dropped calls in both places. My brother-in-law in Denver travels for his job and actually needs wireless. He dropped AT&T after a few months. I honestly cannot remember the last dropped call I've had on Verizon. Seriously...it's that rare.

I suspect this whole issue will go away on its own in a year or two. the iPhone will not be king-of-the-hill forever, and there will be some viable (or even superior) alternatives coming our way, but on a better network. When this happens, will we actually hear the whooshing sound of AT&T wireless customers jumping ship?


The above poster signed on today to make a couple anti-AT&T comments, which at the moment equals a couple anti-iPhone comments. Why do these people bother. These attacks are way too coordinated.
 
I didn't realize Verizon was pro-Bush :mad:. In spite of their political affiliations and crappy attitudes, they do have the best network hands-down. i travel all over the country for work, and when I'm in the most remote places, my co-workers have no service with their networks while I'm at least roaming like a champ on my Verizon Crackberry.

So, my work phone is Verizon while my personal phone is an iPhone. i would personally love Verizon to get the iPhone so that I can have just one device and get all my work and personal communication in one device.

How can anyone say this carrier is the best, handsdown, or that carrier is the best, handsdown? It's such a global statement, with absolutely no way to back that up, other than "This one is the best, because I use it/like it". Maybe they're the best, handsdown for you, in your location. However, I think Verizon is horrible. They have little to coverage where I live. Their plans are outrageously high [compare a BB Verizon, unlimited data plan to say T-Mobile BB unlimited data] compared some carriers.

Get the phone/carrier that best suits your needs/location. But saying any of these are the best is crazy. Unless someone has traveled across the country, using all carriers, with different phones, then a comment like that is bogus...
 
Verizon has CDMA and they are never going to let Apple tell them what they can do. Please stop the talk about the iPhone on Verizon. It's never going to happen.
 
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