iPhone problems: Not just for AT&T
I first reported this problem weeks ago. My friend Frank Cioffi of AppleInvestorNews has also written about it. And now, the All Things Digital blog seems to have figured it out as well.
COpyright Apple 2009
All of the reported problems that iPhone owners have with dropped calls and missing wireless signal strength is not just a problem for AT&T customers here in the New York area (and other big cities). The same thing is happening with iPhone users in London on the the U.K.’s O2 network.
Big cities. Lots of cutting-edge users. Completely different frequency bands. But – the same problem.
Maybe it’s time to admit that this is not centered with the cellular networks involved – but with the iPhone itself.
iPhone users in less crowded areas seem to have fewer problems. People using different 3G phones on those same networks have fewer problems. But in large urban areas – big problems.
A few weeks ago AT&T apologized to users and announced they were adding new cell towers in congested Manhattan areas. For the most part I haven’t heard many iPhone users say their service has improved.
As a matter of fact, my friend Robin, a super user, has given-up on his iPhone and switched to a Verizon Droid. At least we can now complete a phone call in one try. Other iPhone users I know also carry second phones (a Palm Pre, Android, etc.) to use while they’re in Manhattan.
Yesterday, O2 apologized to users and announced they were adding new cell towers in London. I hope they have better luck with this emergency fix. Not sure they will though.
The fault appears to lie with the iPhone itself. It seems like iPhones put an overly-huge demand on cellular systems compared to all other smartphones. It’s something that was lees of a problem when iPhones used more robust 2G and 2.5G data frequencies. 3G iPhones put a huge strain on the system. In large urban areas – the strain is palpable.
Should AT&T, O2 and others spend hundreds of millions on new 3G cell towers to solve the problem? Or should they focus their efforts/money on constructing new, faster 4G networks for smartphone devices of the future?
Maybe Apple could figure out exactly where the problem lies – and help fix it – before the next generation of iPhone is announced in 2010.
Or, based on the idea that most young people don’t make voice calls anymore and have little need for monthly cellular contracts (except for data) Apple should continue to improve their iPod Touch and the buying public should begin realizing that the Touch will be the basis for Apple’s future communications/portable computing devices.