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No Data at the Chiefs Game

C

cl601amt

macrumors member
Original poster
Aug 4, 2010
40
0
Went to the Chiefs game last night (sat under the overhang so I was dry) and did not have a data connection the entire night on my iP4; no internet, no text message, nothing from 6:30 until we were about 5+ miles away.

Had 4 bars of 3G, and could call, but no data.

I could understand the network being overloaded, but the guy next to me had a 3G and in front of me has a 3GS, both on ATT, were sending text msgs.

I have only had it about 2 weeks, and it was frustrating that I could not connect when older iphones were.

Is this an iP4 problem or my phone problem, or just the way it is?
 
Maybe he is still on 4.0.0 and doesn't have the newly updated bar algorithm. Or since you were in a very crowded stadium, the signal was probably very poor and you might have been holding your phone wrong :p

EDIT - I just wanted to ask you a question, that stadium was PACKED at the beginning of the game but after halftime it seemed that no one was there. Did everyone just leave or did they just go inside to get out of the rain?
 
First off, and not to be a smart a$$, I'd of been paying attention to the game and not worried about a phone. But thats just me.

As for your phone, if it gets data fine but just not where you were at, then its not the phone. I'd suspect the bandwidth saturation more so than anything else. There were thousands at the game, and AT&T isn't known for its large bandwidth opportunities at stadiums.
 
I'd be pissed if I had to go to a Chiefs game and could not play on my phone because of lack of data. It's not as though it's worth watching anyway. :p
 
I've had a 3G and currently have an iP4 and neither *ever* works when I'm amidst a large gathering. No voice calls, text messages or data.
 
jessica. said:
I'd be pissed if I had to go to a Chiefs game and could not play on my phone because of lack of data. It's not as though it's worth watching anyway. :p
Click to expand...

I disagree. I don't see much logic in going to a sporting event just to play with your smartphone. But again, I'd go to the game..to see the game.
Either way, I do understand.
I thought the game was pretty good from what I saw.

I went to the Cowboys vs Dolphins game here in Dallas and was sitting at row 1 field level. I regularly switched from 3G to EDGE, back and forth, during the game. Before hand, I had a solid 2 bars 3G. So it was my thought that the bandwidth had just been used up.
After the game, things went back to normal outside.
 
cl601amt said:
Went to the Chiefs game last night (sat under the overhang so I was dry) and did not have a data connection the entire night on my iP4; no internet, no text message, nothing from 6:30 until we were about 5+ miles away.

Had 4 bars of 3G, and could call, but no data.

I could understand the network being overloaded, but the guy next to me had a 3G and in front of me has a 3GS, both on ATT, were sending text msgs.

I have only had it about 2 weeks, and it was frustrating that I could not connect when older iphones were.

Is this an iP4 problem or my phone problem, or just the way it is?
Click to expand...

Text messages don't use data.
 
As a season ticket holder and Hall of Fame Superfan of the Arizona Cardinals, I've taken my iPhones to many different venues. On both by original and 3G, I always had all bars, but could NEVER get any data while inside the stadium. I would never get any text messages during the game. But as soon as I got about a mile away from the stadium, open the floodgates baby.....All of the txts that I got during the game would pour in......

When I upgraded to the iPhone 4 at release day, I went to our preseason opener, and I was AMAZED that the phone actually worked inside the stadium. I could check scores from other games, and got txt messages as they were sent. I was shocked! Not sure if University of Phoenix Stadium made improvements in the offseason or not, but I was happy. Our fist home game, I'm going to put an earpiece in, and stream the live broadcast over I Hear radio. Where I sit, Field Level South Endzone......You can't make out ANYTHING they say over the PA system.
 
Maverick1337 said:
EDIT - I just wanted to ask you a question, that stadium was PACKED at the beginning of the game but after halftime it seemed that no one was there. Did everyone just leave or did they just go inside to get out of the rain?
Click to expand...

The concourses were full, everyone was getting out of the rain. I felt bad for the halftime band playing in the rain to an empty stadium.


iceterminal said:
First off, and not to be a smart a$$, I'd of been paying attention to the game and not worried about a phone. But thats just me.
.
Click to expand...

It started in the parking lot during the 2.5 hours we tailgated, and I was trying to send a message to my wife to see if the power was out at the house.

grantsdale said:
Text messages don't use data.
Click to expand...

when I tried to send a text message I got "data network unavailable" message.

I could put my conspiracy hat on and say that Sprint, the "official wireless provider for the KC Chiefs" is blocking everyone elses signal :D
 
I had the same problem a few weeks back at the Broncos/Lions game in Denver. I had 4-5 bars + 3G service showing on my 3GS, but couldn't use the phone for anything. No voice, no text, no data - it just sat there, useless as far as connectivity goes (you know... the real reason you have a phone...).

Typically this isn't a big deal, but my wife and I had gone to the game and left our kids with a sitter at home, over an hour away. That's pretty irritating to be misled by the phone like that. If there's no service, tell me there's no service. Don't give me false hope that it might work, only to find out nothing happens.
 
For Obama's inauguration, I was on the Mall with my original iPhone and couldn't do anything - no voice, texts or data - until I walked at least 10 blocks away - actually ended up not being able to meet up with friends because our text messages were taking at least an hour to go through, and voice calls wouldn't connect. This year, with my iPhone 4, I've been able to get texts and data at a Penn State football game and a Nationals game - not sure if it's because the inauguration had about a million people and even the Penn State game had fewer than 100,000 or if things have just improved since then, though they claim to have brought in portable cell towers for the inauguration.
 
Mudbug said:
I had the same problem a few weeks back at the Broncos/Lions game in Denver. I had 4-5 bars + 3G service showing on my 3GS, but couldn't use the phone for anything. No voice, no text, no data - it just sat there, useless as far as connectivity goes (you know... the real reason you have a phone...).

Typically this isn't a big deal, but my wife and I had gone to the game and left our kids with a sitter at home, over an hour away. That's pretty irritating to be misled by the phone like that. If there's no service, tell me there's no service. Don't give me false hope that it might work, only to find out nothing happens.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure if you were misled by the phone. You were picking up an AT&T signal just fine. The problem was that every other AT&T phone in your area was fighting with yours for the right to send & receive, which if I'm not mistaken, is independent of the signal strength.

I was at a college football game last weekend and had 3 bars of service the entire time, but could not send or receive any data until the stadium started clearing out near the end of the third quarter (we were winning big). At that point, I could check other scores and text my wife without any problems.
 
This same thing happened to me at the Red Bull Flugtag in Long Beach a few weeks back. There were 110,000 people there, so I figured the network was overloaded.

I'm scared for the day we have no more land lines and we have an actual emergency.
 
cl601amt said:
Went to the Chiefs game last night (sat under the overhang so I was dry) and did not have a data connection the entire night on my iP4; no internet, no text message, nothing from 6:30 until we were about 5+ miles away.

Had 4 bars of 3G, and could call, but no data.

I could understand the network being overloaded, but the guy next to me had a 3G and in front of me has a 3GS, both on ATT, were sending text msgs.

I have only had it about 2 weeks, and it was frustrating that I could not connect when older iphones were.

Is this an iP4 problem or my phone problem, or just the way it is?
Click to expand...

That's interesting, because just last year I had my iPhone 3G at the K-State/Iowa State game at Arrowhead and was able to use data the entire time (had to tweet every time the cats got a TD). I wish I could go again this year (which is this weekend), but sadly I have to work on Saturday. Anyway, the crowd for the Chiefs/Chargers game might have been a bit bigger, or maybe smart phones have just taken off so much in the past year that it makes a big difference on what level of data access you can get there now.
 
I was at the Jaguars game Sunday (a sell-out) and had 4 full bars and no issues with connectivity. A big change over previous seasons.

Also, my iPhone 4 battery only last 28% of its charge on a busy day at the stadium.
 
At LP stadium in Nashville, AT&T service is usually unusable during games. Verizon Wireless works fine.
 
I think its an ATT problem. I have the same issue when I go to Nats games and there is a decent crowd. I can't even get an MMS out. It was like this w/ my 3GS and now with my 4 as well. Never a prob w/ voice though.
 
same problem, went to the dallas game on sunday and had full bars, wanted to call my friend and tell him to come to the tunnel to meet the players and couldnt get a hold of him
 
I was at the chiefs game and experienced the same issues as the op. Was not able to text, call, or use any data the whole evening. Did not regain a signal till I was a couple miles from the stadium had to been the significant # of people in one area loading the towers.
 
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