Some Customers with iPhone 3G Connection Issues

[Zombie Flanders]

I'm afraid I'm a potential switcher waiting here on the sidelines for Apple/AT&T to offer a solution to these reception problems.

We spend a lot of time camping and in the RV world one just expects poor or no reception in some of the beautiful places we go. But that does not mean we don't try. Directional antennas, amplifiers, careful attention to altitude and orientation are all tricks we try to capture some extra bars.

I don't know about others, but my 1st gen phone worked just fine on EDGE everywhere I took it, and so does the 3G phone using the EDGE antenna. I suspect anywhere you'd be camping/RV'ing wouldn't have 3G coverage anyway, so you'd default to the EDGE antenna, which is fine. ...or at least should be.

 

[danvanman]

I don't know about others, but my 1st gen phone worked just fine on EDGE everywhere I took it, and so does the 3G phone using the EDGE antenna. I suspect anywhere you'd be camping/RV'ing wouldn't have 3G coverage anyway, so you'd default to the EDGE antenna, which is fine. ...or at least should be.

Sorry to not make clear that I have no expectation of 3G service in the boonies.

The point is that we're so used to dealing with minimal signal strength. Perhaps some corresponding strategy for urban 3G reception might exist.

 

[barefootman]

Reception is crap in Sydney too!

I use my iPhone 3G with Vodafone in Sydney and I am constantly getting the "No Network" message. It seems to always happen when it switches from 3G to GPRS and then tried to switch back to 3G.
If I'm in an area where there is strong 3G - so the phone doesn't try and switch to GPRS - then it's fine.
I just have 3G turned off now and stay with GPRS. Not so good when you want to use the interenet but at least I don't have to reset the phone twice a day like before!

 

[snarton]

After I placed my direct fulfillment order on launch day, I nervously read all the threads about dropped calls, debating whether or not to cancel my order. I decided to go through with buying the phone when it arrived. I've been pleased with it overall, and have not yet experienced a dropped call.

I've happened to be traveling a bit since I got the phone and one thing I was surprised about was the locations where it has trouble getting a signal. I had more problems in large metro areas than in small cities. At the Bronx Zoo and National Airport (DCA), I sometimes got the "No Service" message and sometimes could make a call but could not receive data (Edge or 3G). But I've had no problems with the 3G signal in Albany, NY; Wellfleet, MA; or Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

In the brief times when there was no service (in New York and DC), I couldn't transmit data or make a call. But so far whenever I can make a call (all but those rare "no service" moments), I have not experienced a dropped call.

--Jeremy

 

[riversky]

News Flash

Apple releases MacBook's tomorrow that can control your mind.....Makes headlines around the world!!

People forget about the iPhone 3G....

 

[Woz Beard]

I've had to replace my phone 7x.

I've noticed each phone had different reception ranges. For example, the first phone had a weak 3g signal (1-2 bars max) and average EDGE signal (2-4 bars max). The few that followed had improved 3G signal (3-4 bars max) and excellent EDGE signal (4-5 bars max). My current phone now has weak 3g/EDGE signals (1-2 bars max) with "NO SERVICE" showing up at least 5x per day.

My old iPhone always had 3-5 bars on EDGE, so I'm starting to wonder if it's the phone since there is a big disparity between the exchanged phones.

I'm getting annoyed and considering getting a regular phone and an iPod touch.

 

[Zombie Flanders]

Sorry to not make clear that I have no expectation of 3G service in the boonies.

The point is that we're so used to dealing with minimal signal strength. Perhaps some corresponding strategy for urban 3G reception might exist.

Right on.

Hmm. That would be sweet if such a signal boosting device existed, because then it wouldn't take 4 button presses to have a clear signal every time I go into and out of my home!

 

[edward-k]

Iphone 3g Experience

My iphone experience has not been positive. I only made a handful of calls on the iphone, all of which were either dropped or had other parties tell me the connection was poor. What frustrated me more than anything was the inconsistent email service and battery life. THe email was a sporadic problem, one day it would be fine, the next day message delivery was painfully slow - sometimes taking several hours to get an email. Finally had enough and took the iphone back and cancelled service with ATT ~ that alone was a frustrating experience but that is for another thread. Ed

 

[JonKReynolds]

Same Problem in Washington

I work in Washington, DC and have been having this issue for a few weeks since I got my phone. Where I live, the only network available is EDGE, but in DC, 3G is constantly dropping calls and making me retry calls several times before finally connecting.
I took it to a MAC Genius, and he ran some behavioral tests on the phone, and said that he definitely saw that it had dropped 25 of the last 70 calls I had made. All he could offer was a new phone, and I may be going in in the next few days to get that taken care of.
I really do believe that this is a problem others are having and that it is being looked into, but I hope it gets taken care of soon.
For those saying to switch 3G off permanently, then what is the use in having bought the new iPhone? I bought it for the speed.

 

[28monkeys]

Seem like this may be reasons why 3G was not included initially

 

[bdorpetzl]

I have had no problems with my 3G iPhone. I have had multiple ranges of bars 2-full on 3G in NYC, Brooklyn, Milwaukee, Madison, and Waukesha. I have had no dropped calls at all and data speeds have been easily used. My Edge reception on the 3G iPhone is much better and more consistent than that of my 2.5G iPhone. I have noticed some difficulty once and a while with the phones ability to switch between Edge and 3G, but this is very infrequent.

 

[optophobia]

A couple of times people have tried to call me and I can't hear them. They can hear me but I hear nothing. I call them back and its fine....

 

[jayducharme]

Isn't it supposed to fall back onto Edge automatically if the 3G signal isn't strong enough?

This is exactly what seems to be happening with my iPhone. Most of the time I have it on EDGE only and never have a problem. But when I turn on the 3G network, the phone seems to switch back and forth, as if it can't lock onto the 3G signal for any length of time.

I really haven't seen much of a dramatic speed increase with 3G anyway, so EDGE is fine with me. And for those saying that a 3G phone shouldn't be forced to solely use EDGE -- remember that for my 3G iPhone I paid half the price of the original 2G. I can live with it until the software fix comes.

 

[manhattanboy]

This is just great. Can Apple and/or ATT get any more bad news and publicity over the next month?

They would not get bad publicity if they made the 3G iPhone exactly what it needs to be... 3G!!!

The major issue is that when your 3G coverage drops down to 1 bar (which is pretty frequent for ATT)... the iPhone's reception goes crazy and calls get dropped.

I still believe that the original solution was to give more power to the antenna and prevent low signal in the first place... but everybody whines whines about the battery life. An iPhone without the internet and 3G is no better than an iPod touch... so I could give a rat's *ss about the battery if it means my iPhone becomes crap to me.

 

[emccus01]

Pleeeease

I'm praying this can be fixed with a software update. I have a week 30 phone and it has great 3g reception and great EDGE reception but while on 3g and driving the phone can't switch from 3g to EDGE on the fly. I have done numerous test on my 30 min ride home from work. I have 3-5 bars of EDGE when 3g is off. I have talked the whole way home for 7 days and no problem. I tried it with 3g for 5 days and I dropped 2 calls per each trip home. It would always lose it in a spot that had spotty 3g reception. This ticks me off because I know other people with 3g phones and they have seamless reception. I really don't care if 3g is lower in some areas, it is relatively new, but my phone should be able to switch in call to the better reception signal. I am sick and tired of turning 3g on and off.

 

[manhattanboy]

T-Mobile in Europe is reporting it is the device!

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10015661-37.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-5

If it was AT&T you would not have the large numbers in Europe/Canada/Australia with this issue as well!!!

Come on Apple step up and quit with the silence on this issue!

AGREED!!!!!!!

 

[WindowsGuy]

Port Washington WI shows no 3g Coverage

I have had no problems with my 3G iPhone. I have had multiple ranges of bars 2-full on 3G in NYC, Brooklyn, Milwaukee, Madison, and Waukesha. I have had no dropped calls at all and data speeds have been easily used. My Edge reception on the 3G iPhone is much better and more consistent than that of my 2.5G iPhone. I have noticed some difficulty once and a while with the phones ability to switch between Edge and 3G, but this is very infrequent.

Your bio says you're from Port Washington WI.

I did an ATT Coverage View Map of the area and you're area is outside of the AT&T's 3G coverage Map.

I don't understand how you can have no problems when you live in an area with no 3G coverage?

 

[jsdoyle]

WiFi is an issue too!

Since the 2.0 update (including the 2.0.1) WiFi is flaky too.

I have a wireless access point here at home and my 1st Gen iPhone will not connect or will have serious problems connecting or have serious issues staying connected to my access point.

My WAP shows up in the WiFi settings but the phone will not connect.

Right now my phone is sitting next to the router and I've had to put the phone in "airplane" mode and turned WiFi back on to connect to the WAP.

I have iTunes running on the system and my iPhone remote app will not connect to the library via WiFi as it should.

Something is really screwed up with the 2 version of the software.

 

[WindowsGuy]

Since the 2.0 update (including the 2.0.1) WiFi is flaky too.

I have a wireless access point here at home and my 1st Gen iPhone will not connect or will have serious problems connecting or have serious issues staying connected to my access point.

My WAP shows up in the WiFi settings but the phone will not connect.

Right now my phone is sitting next to the router and I've had to put the phone in "airplane" mode and turned WiFi back on to connect to the WAP.

I have iTunes running on the system and my iPhone remote app will not connect to the library via WiFi as it should.

Something is really screwed up with the 2 version of the software.

Try setting a static IP address for your phone. It solved my problems on both 2g & 3G iPhone. Hope it works for you.

 

[ScottFitz]

My i3G drops daily no matter whether I'm home or traveling, big city or small town. Just drops out a lot. It's frustrating as my former tmobile account never rarely, if ever, dropped a call.

 

[manhattanboy]

From another forum... but it seems to explain a little of what is going on... hopefully Apple can fix this issue.

Back in the days when AT&T and Cingular were separate companies, AT&T usually did not limit what users could do with phones on their network (other companies disabled some features). With various phones, one could set the frequency with which they would scan for and switch to the base station with the strongest signal. Increasing the frequency led to a shorter battery life but reduced the amount of dropped calls (especially, when driving). However, continually switching from base station to base staion puts a bit more of a burden on the wireless operator. Similar to establishing a hundred outbound connections to download a web page quickly, this works well when one is the only person doing it but does not work well if everyone is doing it. So, these days, the ability to change the frequency with which a phone will scan for and switch to the base station(s) with the strongest signal can usually not be changed by the user.

With the iPhone 3G, this pre-set frequency for 3G currently appears to be very low and ill suited for driving. When briefly entering an area with low or nonexistant 3G reception (e.g., the core of a large building) and heading back to a window, the phone will start to show 1 bar or "no service" and can take upwards of a minute to show 5 bars of 3G reception. The low pre-set frequency may be Apple's attempt to maximize battery life in areas where all 3G base stations are far away and where the phone might be inclined to keep switching between base stations due to slight fluctuations in reception.

 

[WindowsGuy]

From another forum... but it seems to explain a little of what is going on... hopefully Apple can fix this issue.

Back in the days when AT&T and Cingular were separate companies, AT&T usually did not limit what users could do with phones on their network (other companies disabled some features). With various phones, one could set the frequency with which they would scan for and switch to the base station with the strongest signal. Increasing the frequency led to a shorter battery life but reduced the amount of dropped calls (especially, when driving). However, continually switching from base station to base staion puts a bit more of a burden on the wireless operator. Similar to establishing a hundred outbound connections to download a web page quickly, this works well when one is the only person doing it but does not work well if everyone is doing it. So, these days, the ability to change the frequency with which a phone will scan for and switch to the base station(s) with the strongest signal can usually not be changed by the user.

With the iPhone 3G, this pre-set frequency for 3G currently appears to be very low and ill suited for driving. When briefly entering an area with low or nonexistant 3G reception (e.g., the core of a large building) and heading back to a window, the phone will start to show 1 bar or "no service" and can take upwards of a minute to show 5 bars of 3G reception. The low pre-set frequency may be Apple's attempt to maximize battery life in areas where all 3G base stations are far away and where the phone might be inclined to keep switching between base stations due to slight fluctuations in reception.

You're accounting for AT&T but 3G iPhone users all over the world are having the problem.

Apple Hardware/Software problem and carrier shouldn't be held responsible.

I see total recall if no software solution comes to light very soon.

 

[lhotka]

doesnt explain why i can put 3x3G phones side by side, a moto v3x and nokia 6110 get FULL coverage/bars and perform well, and an iPhone drops back to 2G or has "no service."

i now expect a lecture regarding how "bars" are a bad way to compare, but i havnt found a way to get the moto or nokia to give -db values.

iPhone = iPhail

Yep, bars aren't valid.

But the point of the post is that CDMA is far superior to GSM, not focused on differences between GSM providers. Verizon skipped GSM and is adopting LTE specifically because of these issues. I tried a half-dozen GSM phones on multiple networks before settling on Verizon and CDMA - the coverage simply doesn't compare.

As far as the iPhone, if you couple a poor network, a lousy provider and a marginal phone, the call failure rate is much higher than if any one of the three was of decent quality. Apple had to make too many design tradeoffs in the iPhone to get decent performance, and focused on aesthetics at the expense of performance.

 

[deggs37]

My girlfriend and I are both having dropped call problems. Even problems receiving calls and texts.

 

[xray]

Dropped calls a lot more frequent

We were ATT customers pre-iPhone and waited patiently for the 3G version.

We have noticed a significant increase in the number of dropped calls and failed calls. We get them nearly daily from inside the house. We've called ATT to report the issue. We were told that someone would get back to us in 5 days, but no return phone call as of yet. Bummer.

Not sure if its a hardware or software issue, but it is real and very annoying!