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Does Anyone Else Feel AT&T Lied About 3G?

TXCraig

TXCraig

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 2, 2007
507
6
Houston, TX
This might just be a local thing, but I got to say I feel like I have been swindled by AT&T on this whole 3G thing.

I live in the Houston area and I checked to see if my area had 3G on AT&T's map BEFORE purchasing my new iPhone. After purchasing the phone at Bay Brook Mall I noticed the big E on the phone when I got in the car. I thought, well there might be a setting that is wrong on the phone, I will look at it when I get home.

When I got home, still the big E. I looked again at the 3G coverage map, my house has at least a 50 mile RADIUS around my house that is all blue (so I don't live on the fringes on their 3G service area).

I called AT&T and asked what the problem was. They told me there are towers in Houston that have not been upgraded yet. I told them... but I read your press release a few weeks ago about how your DONE with your roll out of 3G all over the country. They really had nothing to say nor could they tell me when the 3G would be upgraded on the tower that my phone finds when I am at my house.

I fell like their coverage maps lie as they say where service IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE, not where it will be available at some time in the future.

Anyone else have this problem? Is this just me? I paid extra for the new service plan, extra for a new phone- and no "twice as fast". I almost feel that Apple knew that 3G was a load of BS and that is why the 1st one only did edge. People have been brainwashed to think 3G is better but its just slightly better at best.. when you can get a signal....
 
TXCraig said:
This might just be a local thing, but I got to say I feel like I have been swindled by AT&T on this whole 3G thing.

I live in the Houston area and I checked to see if my area had 3G on AT&T's map BEFORE purchasing my new iPhone. After purchasing the phone at Bay Brook Mall I noticed the big E on the phone when I got in the car. I thought, well there might be a setting that is wrong on the phone, I will look at it when I get home.

When I got home, still the big E. I looked again at the 3G coverage map, my house has at least a 50 mile RADIUS around my house that is all blue (so I don't live on the fringes on their service area).

I called AT&T and asked what the problem was. They told me there are towers in Houston that have not been upgraded yet. I told them... but I read your press release a few weeks ago about how your DONE with your roll out of 3G all over the country. They really had nothing to say nor could they tell me when the 3G would be upgraded on the tower that my phone finds when I am at my house.

I fell like their coverage maps lie as they say where service IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE, not where it will be available at some time in the future.

Anyone else have this problem? Is this just me? I paid extra for the new service plan, extra for a new phone- and no "twice as fast". I almost feel that Apple knew that 3G was a load of BS and that is why the 1st one only did edge. People have been brainwashed to think 3G is better but its just slightly better at best.. when you can get a signal....
Click to expand...
You have 30 days to return it. If you don't like the service just return it.
 
I'm in the McAllen area and have perfect 3G. I'm surprised the Houston area is having troubles--that sucks!
 
Same here. I get about 1/2 the signal strength of 3G and down to 1 bar during roadtrips around town. (Naperville IL). 2G gave me 5 bars most of the time.

end result, more choppy calls and more drops.
 
Return it if you don't believe that you are getting your money's worth.

Remember when you buy early you have to live with growing pains.

I did that with Sprint in by area in early 2000. I gave up some local coverage for the first real national plan. It took time to come up. I never forget in the summer of 2001 having coverage at our vacation home for the first time. Today that home has EVO coverage.

ATT is suppose to have 3G coverage soon for our vacation home. Thus I am sticking with Sprint until that happens.

By point is what is more important to you today, what the iPhone can currently do or what it can do with 3G? Make your decision on that alone.

If you choose to keep it, be patient it will be worth the wait.

For me, I can live with the iTouch and be patient and wait for coverage.
 
man, for once I'm glad I live in Europe. Swisscom has more than 90% of the population / 80% of the country covered with their 3G network. You can use 3G on the top of the Matterhorn, for crying out loud...
 
I've got the opposite situation. Coverage near my house looks bad on the map for 3g, but in reality, it's very solid with tons of bars everywhere.
 
philipk said:
Remember when you buy early you have to live with growing pains.
Click to expand...

I think that's a bit unnecessarily harsh. The iPhone 3G is not AT&T's first 3G phone to market, and unless I'm missing something obvious, the fact that the iPhone is new doesn't affect whether or not it would be able to connect to the HSPA network ... it should either be there or not there.

Secondly, it's pretty customary for these coverage maps to indicate current and future planned coverage, and so there's no excuse for indicating an area as covered when it isn't.
 
Opposite experience here too. According to the AT&T map I'm 30 miles from 3G. In reality it works in my entire area. They are filling in holes but I have to second that you should return it and try again later if it's that big of a deal. That was my plan, anyway.
 
Look, that coverage map is just a good esitmation of service at best.

Call AT&T and see that your house is fully in, and surrounded by 3G. You know damn well in that 50 mile radius there might be dead spots.
 
I MEAN HOW CAN THEY DO THAT?

That really is shocking, false advertising.. Just so people can buy an iPhone 3G. Maybe they sell it so people unlock it and use it abroad on 3G networks
 
I should be swimming in 3G, but I have to go 1/2 a mile away from my house to get it.
 
Do a network reset and if that does not work do a restore. I will help the signal. I am in DC with great coverage, however there were choppy calls. Did that and it worked fine. Call quality is amazing and no 3 G buzz, what happed to that
 
I called Customer Service yesterday to check on 3g, since I dropped a call on it at home. They confirmed I should have good reception here, but they said there were three nearby towers down being repaired at the moment. We'll see how it is in a week.
 
Check coverage here:
http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/popUp_3g.jsp

AT&T's 3G has been very good for me in the past, and I'm happy to say that my iPhone is pulling data at just about 1.1mbps with only 2 bars. Just short of the 1.4mbps max in my area. AT&T will be upgrading the 3G network through out the next 6 to 18 months, reaching rates of 3.6 to 7.2.

Hang in there, if you aren't covered now, you should be soon.
 
TXCraig said:
This might just be a local thing, but I got to say I feel like I have been swindled by AT&T on this whole 3G thing.

I live in the Houston area and I checked to see if my area had 3G on AT&T's map BEFORE purchasing my new iPhone. After purchasing the phone at Bay Brook Mall I noticed the big E on the phone when I got in the car. I thought, well there might be a setting that is wrong on the phone, I will look at it when I get home.

When I got home, still the big E. I looked again at the 3G coverage map, my house has at least a 50 mile RADIUS around my house that is all blue (so I don't live on the fringes on their 3G service area).

I called AT&T and asked what the problem was. They told me there are towers in Houston that have not been upgraded yet. I told them... but I read your press release a few weeks ago about how your DONE with your roll out of 3G all over the country. They really had nothing to say nor could they tell me when the 3G would be upgraded on the tower that my phone finds when I am at my house.

I fell like their coverage maps lie as they say where service IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE, not where it will be available at some time in the future.

Anyone else have this problem? Is this just me? I paid extra for the new service plan, extra for a new phone- and no "twice as fast". I almost feel that Apple knew that 3G was a load of BS and that is why the 1st one only did edge. People have been brainwashed to think 3G is better but its just slightly better at best.. when you can get a signal....
Click to expand...

It's spotty here in Chicago too ... Edge at my house, 3G one block away. Fortunately, I have wifi at home so I don't need home 3G and it seems like most places I roam around the city I do pick up 3G ... but the OP is correct, AT&T wasn't completely honest about this.
 
I'm getting decent 3g coverage, but the speeds suck! Edge is faster!
 

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I am only getting 1-2 bars in my house of 3G even though I am well inside the blue. Even though to load a webpage completely on 3G is only 3 seconds faster then EDGE at 5 bars, the webpage is navigable much quicker then EDGE.
 
BackFocus said:
I'm getting decent 3g coverage, but the speeds suck! Edge is faster!
Click to expand...

Sooo i just went to testmyiphone.com and it froze safari and restarted my phone. Anyone else have that??? Not to hijack this thread or anything...

EDIT: It worked the second time.... and i got 1Mb/s on my cable's 15Mb/s connection
 
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