Personal anecdote - if such things don't interest you, read no further:
I think if one's calls are dropped consistently, in different locations and times, over a long period of time, then it's the same thing as taking a cross-section survey of multiple users. Identical equipment on the same network should have identical experience.
I've had about a 30 percent dropped call rate since I got my iPhone 3G last spring. Worst in NYC, where I live, but also bad in Portland Oregon, where I travel frequently. I just assumed that everyone here has the same problem due to call volume and the physics of tall buildings everyone is carping about. In Portland maybe it's the hills on the west side? Excuses, excuses...
Recently the phone froze up - didn't receive any calls for about 8 hours and I didn't realize it until I tried unsuccessfully 4 times to make a call (all the while getting internet just fine). Then powered-down, restarted and got 5 voicemails & texts all at once that had been sent over the previous several hours (and I missed a last-minute business appt. because of it). Then it happened again several days later. Called AT&T and the cordial representative had obviously dealt with my experience many times before - she said that the phone needs to power down and restart every few days "to receive service upgrades from the network" otherwise it will stop functioning as a phone. Nice to know, if it's true. She didn't even mention a possibility of the phone itself being the culprit.
Interesting. I also travel a lot, mainly to Chicago but sometimes to Boston and SF. Chicago doesn't seem to have the problems NY does, despite a very similar skyline, tall building etc. In fact in Downtown, my 3G service was excellent. Boston is the same story, no issues, but SF is even worse than NY (at least worse than Brooklyn Heights where I live, and Downtown Manhattan where I work).
On a side note, my comment about 'location' was more about the quality of a place to live being about more than the quality of the 3G signal. Meaning, even if NY had no cellphone reception whatsoever on any network, it'd still have many other reasons to live here. But I don't need to tell you that...
Well, my friends in those areas and here in Houston with competing phones don't complain about issues. Granted my friends are an extremely small amount in those areas, so it's hardly a scientific poll.
Granted, this entire article isn't exactly scientific. A customer complains that their phone drops calls a third of the time (doesn't anyone with a similar complaint use a third? nobody says they drop a sixth, an eighth of their calls....) and an employee says it's functioning normally.
At least they verified the number of dropped calls as being 22% (somewhere between a fourth and a fifth). Besides that, the entire article is anecdotal.
The SITUATION is messed up in the first place. The Genius was only trying to help.
If you look at the work authorization and the date of purchase, the guy is out of warranty. In the end his only option through the Genius Bar would have been to purchase an out of warranty replacement for $200.
But the Genius tried to help him (which many people do not grasp or wish to look past). He didn't necessarily give that guy that option as the only thing they could do. They marked the person's warranty status as CR (Customer relations/Appeasement) and put in his case notes what they observed so AT&T can remedy the situation. If not, then at least the warranty status was temporarily changed. If AT&T shows there's nothing wrong with the network and says that 22% IS a high amount of dropped calls, then a Genius can replace it under that CR.
The guy in this situation failed to grasp that the Genius was only trying to help. As such, he's an ungrateful a-hole who does not deserve a free replacement.
Not to take away from the crap service it sounds like people have been getting in NY and SF, but I don't think this is news worthy per say. Nothing against Apple Genius people, most of them are great, but some are more Geek Squad material.
I wish this were a joke...but you would probably love the story of when an Apple Genius sent me to an AT&T store to get a new SIM card because my iPhone refused to sync/back-up. I got a weird look from the AT&T guy when I told him why I needed a new one.
OK, even I admit: I feel bad for teckstud. This is unacceptable.
I wonder how many of these people have crappy cases that are blocking signal?
A friend was constant complaining about her iPhone having bad reception - I have one too and we live and work in the same are! Had her take off her case and - shock - the phone worked perfectly.
Now, there are some areas of the country that definitely have issues, but I wonder how many are user-created?
30%? Wow. Never thought I's say this - because I've been grumbling about ATT's abysmal network here in coastal Los Angeles for a long time - but if that's really the case, you guys in NYC might have it even worse than we LA folks do.
Here in Denver I bet I have almost half my calls drop. If I get even close to a signal I have to stop and hold as still as I can to try and hold it and even that doesn't work too well. AT$T says it was my phone, trees where I'm at or even Apple's fault. I can't tell you how many times I heard them say "their network wasn't at fault." Apple even replaced my phone to prove it wasn't them or the phone.
Yup, 50% dropped calls here in Denver. Now let the payroll trolls come on and say I'm smokin' crack.
Not to take away from the crap service it sounds like people have been getting in NY and SF, but I don't think this is news worthy per say. Nothing against Apple Genius people, most of them are great, but some are more Geek Squad material.
I wish this were a joke...but you would probably love the story of when an Apple Genius sent me to an AT&T store to get a new SIM card because my iPhone refused to sync/back-up. I got a weird look from the AT&T guy when I told him why I needed a new one.
Or how about the time a phone AT$T rep told me I needed to go into an AT$T store to get my sim replaced and the guy in the store mumbled something like he was swamped and didn't have time to do it and I should take the card home and do it myself (instructions were online). I refused and he grumpily did it in about 2 minutes. Nice service!
I'm glad I don't live in NY: my friends there had such a terrible dropped call rate with Sprint that it scared me off of cell phones! Sounds like AT&T is just as bad or worse. You'd think a major city would be a top priority for quality infrastructure, yet my medium-sized city seems to fare much better.
Verizon in NYC is Absolutely Excellent as far as reception goes. Unfortunately, there actual phone selection leaves something to be desired but there service is the best.
Comments
Personal anecdote - if such things don't interest you, read no further:
I think if one's calls are dropped consistently, in different locations and times, over a long period of time, then it's the same thing as taking a cross-section survey of multiple users. Identical equipment on the same network should have identical experience.
I've had about a 30 percent dropped call rate since I got my iPhone 3G last spring. Worst in NYC, where I live, but also bad in Portland Oregon, where I travel frequently. I just assumed that everyone here has the same problem due to call volume and the physics of tall buildings everyone is carping about. In Portland maybe it's the hills on the west side? Excuses, excuses...
Recently the phone froze up - didn't receive any calls for about 8 hours and I didn't realize it until I tried unsuccessfully 4 times to make a call (all the while getting internet just fine). Then powered-down, restarted and got 5 voicemails & texts all at once that had been sent over the previous several hours (and I missed a last-minute business appt. because of it). Then it happened again several days later. Called AT&T and the cordial representative had obviously dealt with my experience many times before - she said that the phone needs to power down and restart every few days "to receive service upgrades from the network" otherwise it will stop functioning as a phone. Nice to know, if it's true. She didn't even mention a possibility of the phone itself being the culprit.
Interesting. I also travel a lot, mainly to Chicago but sometimes to Boston and SF. Chicago doesn't seem to have the problems NY does, despite a very similar skyline, tall building etc. In fact in Downtown, my 3G service was excellent. Boston is the same story, no issues, but SF is even worse than NY (at least worse than Brooklyn Heights where I live, and Downtown Manhattan where I work).
On a side note, my comment about 'location' was more about the quality of a place to live being about more than the quality of the 3G signal. Meaning, even if NY had no cellphone reception whatsoever on any network, it'd still have many other reasons to live here. But I don't need to tell you that...
Well, my friends in those areas and here in Houston with competing phones don't complain about issues. Granted my friends are an extremely small amount in those areas, so it's hardly a scientific poll.
Granted, this entire article isn't exactly scientific. A customer complains that their phone drops calls a third of the time (doesn't anyone with a similar complaint use a third? nobody says they drop a sixth, an eighth of their calls....) and an employee says it's functioning normally.
At least they verified the number of dropped calls as being 22% (somewhere between a fourth and a fifth). Besides that, the entire article is anecdotal.
just a concern about the quality of the article.
The SITUATION is messed up in the first place. The Genius was only trying to help.
If you look at the work authorization and the date of purchase, the guy is out of warranty. In the end his only option through the Genius Bar would have been to purchase an out of warranty replacement for $200.
But the Genius tried to help him (which many people do not grasp or wish to look past). He didn't necessarily give that guy that option as the only thing they could do. They marked the person's warranty status as CR (Customer relations/Appeasement) and put in his case notes what they observed so AT&T can remedy the situation. If not, then at least the warranty status was temporarily changed. If AT&T shows there's nothing wrong with the network and says that 22% IS a high amount of dropped calls, then a Genius can replace it under that CR.
The guy in this situation failed to grasp that the Genius was only trying to help. As such, he's an ungrateful a-hole who does not deserve a free replacement.
now that's a compelling analysis. thanks.
I wish this were a joke...but you would probably love the story of when an Apple Genius sent me to an AT&T store to get a new SIM card because my iPhone refused to sync/back-up. I got a weird look from the AT&T guy when I told him why I needed a new one.
OK, even I admit: I feel bad for teckstud. This is unacceptable.
I wonder how many of these people have crappy cases that are blocking signal?
A friend was constant complaining about her iPhone having bad reception - I have one too and we live and work in the same are! Had her take off her case and - shock - the phone worked perfectly.
Now, there are some areas of the country that definitely have issues, but I wonder how many are user-created?
I mean really....who out there DOESN'T know how horrible AT&T is?
Yup, 50% dropped calls here in Denver. Now let the payroll trolls come on and say I'm smokin' crack.
Not to take away from the crap service it sounds like people have been getting in NY and SF, but I don't think this is news worthy per say. Nothing against Apple Genius people, most of them are great, but some are more Geek Squad material.
I wish this were a joke...but you would probably love the story of when an Apple Genius sent me to an AT&T store to get a new SIM card because my iPhone refused to sync/back-up. I got a weird look from the AT&T guy when I told him why I needed a new one.
Or how about the time a phone AT$T rep told me I needed to go into an AT$T store to get my sim replaced and the guy in the store mumbled something like he was swamped and didn't have time to do it and I should take the card home and do it myself (instructions were online). I refused and he grumpily did it in about 2 minutes. Nice service!
I'm glad I don't live in NY: my friends there had such a terrible dropped call rate with Sprint that it scared me off of cell phones! Sounds like AT&T is just as bad or worse. You'd think a major city would be a top priority for quality infrastructure, yet my medium-sized city seems to fare much better.
Verizon in NYC is Absolutely Excellent as far as reception goes. Unfortunately, there actual phone selection leaves something to be desired but there service is the best.
This article is full of win and laughs.
I mean really....who out there DOESN'T know how horrible AT&T is?
Solipism. Read all his posts and defensives of AT&T for the last 2 years.