Early Verizon iPhone Reviews

[0815]

What did the tortoise say to the hare? "Slow and steady wins the race?"

Well, Verizon must be betting on that.

True - I guess most people don't need 'high speed mobile' - I don't know yet if Verizon is too slow, but a friend of mine pre-ordered tonight at 3am and once he has it, I will compare it to my ip4 on AT&T - at least that will be fair since we will be in the same city next to each other.

 

[cyndikdb]

Not EVERYONE is on 3G

Too many reviews are from people in cities who have 3G all the time whereever they go. There are many people who live/work where there STILL isn't 3G on AT&T (and won't anytime in the near future), so the Verizon iPhone is a good upgrade because we will finally get 3G. We've never been able to do data and phone calls because we are always on edge - so we aren't losing anything with Verizon. We are gaining a hotspot - which is WAAAY better. I really enjoy the iPhone, but AT&T has crippled it for those who are not city dwellers, especially those west of the Mississippi and east of California. Reception just plain sucks here on AT&T. I can't wait to get on Verizon so the iPhone actually works where I live/work.

 

[MacVixen]

I'm not Ad campaign manager, but I see AT&T playing the "we have simultaneous voice and data" angle. They've briefly touch on that in previous adverts, but I think it's gonna be their main points now. That and faster G3, which they have been trumpeting for a while now.

they will definitely be trumpteting that for awhile. I just got an email from AT&T a few days ago playing up that very fact. I think the ad also talked about the 4G network and whatever new Android phone that they will be getting that uses it. But still I had to laugh... the voice vs. data wars begin...

 

[bushido]

Hurray for not dropping voice calls.

welcome dropping internet

 

[louis Fashion]

Usa today rept.

I don't get any dropped calls in Atlanta on my AT&T iPhone4, but occasionally data will switch from 3G to Edge.

I'd like to see the speeds benchmarked in locations other than SF.

USA Today, on iPad, said that they tested the VZ iPhone in New York. One VZ phone and one ATT phone in the same location and ATT dropped calls while VZ did not. Not exactly a comprehensive test but.....

 

[louis Fashion]

Oh No Its Boxing Time.

ummmmm....MY ORDER IS PROCESSING ON THE EAST COAST.

Can't wait for those lame photos of the peep unboxing their new phones.

 

[3282868]

There is no 4G.

If you haven't already read:
http://www.techgoesstrong.com/why-4g-isnt-4g

Interesting. Thanks for the article. It seemed to me that 4G/WiMax/LTE aren't considered "4G" due to semantics. As 4G is still being rolled out, time will tell how it compares speed wise. My question was in relation to VZW's lack of simultaneous voice and data capability on their CDMA network. From what I understand, LTE will/does allow simultaneous voice and data and this is important to me. If this is offered I would switch to VZW but I'm planning on waiting it out for the new iPhone this June/July and to determine if AT&T's voice network improves from the customers who leave for VZW.

 

[fahadqureshi]

for fun I would like to see a video of a verizon and att iphone load the same page at the same time and see who wins the race...

it would mean absolutely nothing since it is almost certain that one provider will have better service then the other in a given area.

 

[NKT]

Interesting. Thanks for the article. It seemed to me that 4G/WiMax/LTE aren't considered "4G" due to semantics. As 4G is still being rolled out, time will tell how it compares speed wise. My question was in relation to VZW's lack of simultaneous voice and data capability on their CDMA network. From what I understand, LTE will/does allow simultaneous voice and data and this is important to me. If this is offered I would switch to VZW but I'm planning on waiting it out for the new iPhone this June/July and to determine if AT&T's voice network improves from the customers who leave for VZW.

The reason VZW's implementation of LTE will allow voice/data simultaneously is because the modem chips it uses. It's able to set up separate sessions for each. Voice on 3G and data on LTE. But that only operates (obviously) in LTE coverage areas. Once you leave LTE, you still have the same constraints of no voice/data. This is because no devices are using the Qualcomm chip that supports SVDO.

 

[thegman1234]

Considering I don't use my iPhone for making phone calls, it seems like AT&T was the right choice. I really do use it as a mobile computing platform. Sounds corny, but I'm in Apps all day, not on the phone.

In general, I don't have complaints with the phone reception. I always liked Sprint's service much better for that-- but Sprint doesn't carry an iPhone.

I'm on a family plan with 3 people and 400 minutes between us. I so very rarely make a phone call, it's ridiculous. And if I do, it's usually to my mother (who's on the plan) or my brother (who has AT&T) so those calls don't even use the allotted minutes per month.

On the other hand, if I we didn't have unlimited texting, our overages would be astronomical.

For me it's a no brainer. Faster data speeds and a 2 month old contract will keep me at AT&T. Plus, I left Verizon years ago and swore to never return.

 

[dba7dba]

I'm on a family plan with 3 people and 400 minutes between us. I so very rarely make a phone call, it's ridiculous. And if I do, it's usually to my mother (who's on the plan) or my brother (who has AT&T) so those calls don't even use the allotted minutes per month.

On the other hand, if I we didn't have unlimited texting, our overages would be astronomical.

For me it's a no brainer. Faster data speeds and a 2 month old contract will keep me at AT&T. Plus, I left Verizon years ago and swore to never return.

Why pay for unlimited texting when you have KIK messenger (iphone and android)?

 

[thegman1234]

Why pay for unlimited texting when you have KIK messenger (iphone and android)?

I'm the only iPhone on the family plan. The other two phones are "dumb phones".

 

[ckurt25]

In my area, the northern suburbs of Detroit, AT&T is fine. I find the test of the data speeds very interesting. How much more traffic will there be on VZW in a few weeks once those on the bleeding edge jump over? I would imagine that will negatively impact performance.

I'm sure in some markets the voice performance will be enough to get people to switch and I'm just glad I don't have any problems where I'm at.

Wouldn't people leaving AT&T for VZW also free up some bandwith on AT&T? Maybe not noticible in many areas but on Saturdays in the fall when me and 113,000 people are in Michigan Stadium, it'd be nice to have less people on AT&T's network.

 

[j-a-x]

I'd rather have slower data (but not too slow) that works consistently than fast data that is unreliable in the center of the 4th largest city in the USA and often drops to EDGE and GPRS only a few miles outside downtown. That's my gripe with AT&T. The top speeds are good but it's not reliable.

 

[ckurt25]

I'm the only iPhone on the family plan. The other two phones are "dumb phones".

Try Text Now. My ex and I each had a 200 text plan and texted back and forth all day long (for free) with Text Now. I've got it installed on my daughter's iPod Touch and text with her all the time too.

You've got to give all your friends your text now address but if you're only texting a small handful of people then it's a no brainer.

 

[Minimoose 360]

Who has the best data depends on so many factors. Ask anyone in NYC and they will go for Verizon for data speed. I had an iPhone 3G and switched to Verizon and got the Incredible. I did side by side speed tests with iPhone users around me (since we mostly work together). In my area (central MD) the Incredible was generally a bit ahead in speed, but far better in latency. I noticed this effect with my own iPhone. So, when we did side by side browser tests I always won. Hopefully more people can use Apple's hardware as intended now (sans that whole can't talk and surf the web part...that's a bit of a bummer I suppose if you care about that).

I was in the city literally this weekend and got 3+Mbps easy.


I'll keep my speed. It's faster than anything my Verizon friends had.

EDIT Number

 

[ast03]

I just like to use wifi

 

[John.B]

"if you're using the Internet and your phone rings, your Internet connection immediately drops"

That's enough for me NOT to change right there.

I HAVE TO ABLE TO DO THIS. I literally use the net on my phone WHILE ON THE PHONE almost every day.

I have a few apps (Twitter for iPhone comes to mind) that basically panic when they can't get a data signal in places like elevators, etc. Those may have to be updated to recover from network events like that in a more graceful way.

Gruber said today that, in his experience with a test Verizon iPhone, the data connection was paused during the phone call, but wasn't dropped:

CDMA’s limitation only works one way: when you are on a call, you can’t use data. But when you are using data, calls come through. If you decline the call, data continues, almost uninterrupted. When you’re using the hotspot feature, if you accept a call, Wi-Fi clients receive no data for the duration of the call, but the Wi-Fi connection is not dropped. As soon as the call is ended, data resumes.

Source: The Verizon iPhone 4 (daringfireball.net)

 

[OtherJesus]

It's hilarious watching (most of) you guys arguing over which phone company is cooler.

Fact: Some areas are better for ATT, some better for Verizon.

Fact: In the Napa Valley, California where I live, I switched to ATT because I had to go outside to use my Verizon phone.

Fact: I've never had a dropped call on my iPhone with ATT.

Fact: ATT has the faster network.

Bottom line: If you want an iPhone, just go with the company that works best for you in your area. I take calls from friends on any network.

 

[Vizin]

It's hilarious watching (most of) you guys arguing over which phone company is cooler.

Fact: Some areas are better for ATT, some better for Verizon.

Fact: In the Napa Valley, California where I live, I switched to ATT because I had to go outside to use my Verizon phone.

Fact: I've never had a dropped call on my iPhone with ATT.

Fact: ATT has the faster network.

Bottom line: If you want an iPhone, just go with the company that works best for you in your area. I take calls from friends on any network.

This is what it boils down to. Even if Verizon gets better coverage in some areas, the networks are going to be equal in a lot of places (and in your case AT&T does better in some places too). The VZW iPhone has cons too, such as no simultaneous voice and data, and no roaming in many countries, and lower bandwidth in good conditions. For some people these are dealbreakers, for others they're not.

Regardless of which network you prefer, the Verizon iPhone is a good thing because it provides choice. Choice is almost never a bad thing for consumers. Having Verizon to compete with means AT&T can't afford to be complacent with the iPhone.

 

[JGowan]

Too many reviews are from people in cities who have 3G all the time whereever they go. There are many people who live/work where there STILL isn't 3G on AT&T (and won't anytime in the near future), so the Verizon iPhone is a good upgrade because we will finally get 3G. We've never been able to do data and phone calls because we are always on edge - so we aren't losing anything with Verizon. We are gaining a hotspot - which is WAAAY better. I really enjoy the iPhone, but AT&T has crippled it for those who are not city dwellers, especially those west of the Mississippi and east of California. Reception just plain sucks here on AT&T. I can't wait to get on Verizon so the iPhone actually works where I live/work.

Amen, brotha! Been on EDGE since the June 2007 -- AWFUL! Glad to finally have an option. I cannot wait to tell AT&T to suck it and that I'm leaving them!

 

[diamond.g]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)

What stinks is paying for 3G but not being able to get it.

 

[madmax_2069]

for fun I would like to see a video of a verizon and att iphone load the same page at the same time and see who wins the race...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9FDLt_DKxs

i am a bit skeptical about those tests in that video, i am with most tests like that unless two people that do not know each other (one has a AT&T iPhone the other has a Verizon iPhone that they bought from the store) got together and did the test in person, that is the only way that i would truly believe it. many times the video cam be doctored, i am not saying that this was, its just no way of telling if something was just to make one seem or look better then the other.