'Mark the Spot' iPhone app aims to find AT&T trouble areas
AT&T has released an iPhone application that gives customers the ability to notify the carrier of their location when they experience poor service.
"AT&T Mark the Spot" was released in the iPhone App Store Monday. The 0.3MB free application, version 1.0.1, requires iPhone OS version 3.0 or later.
"AT&T Mark the Spot is an application that provides customers a means to provide feedback on network user experience to AT&T," the application's description reads. The nation's second-largest wireless carrier also listed the following features for its new software:
Simlicity of operation
Submit a real time report capturing local GPS coordinates at time and place of event
Submit a report after the fact when a customer is not at the place of event
Submit a report of dropped call, failed call, lack of coverage, data service failure, or poor voice quality
Submit optional specific comments about an event
Receive an SMS acknowledgement that the reported event was sent and received successfully.
Following the launch of the iPhone 3GS, network struggles on AT&T caused the carrier to be the subject of serious criticism that continued to grow. More recently, competitor Verizon has attacked AT&T's 3G coverage in a series of advertisements, to which AT&T has since publicly fought back.
AT&T has also taken numerous steps in 2009 to improve its coverage. Still, studies have found that the network is users' least-liked aspect of the iPhone 3GS.
"AT&T Mark the Spot" was released in the iPhone App Store Monday. The 0.3MB free application, version 1.0.1, requires iPhone OS version 3.0 or later.
"AT&T Mark the Spot is an application that provides customers a means to provide feedback on network user experience to AT&T," the application's description reads. The nation's second-largest wireless carrier also listed the following features for its new software:
Simlicity of operation
Submit a real time report capturing local GPS coordinates at time and place of event
Submit a report after the fact when a customer is not at the place of event
Submit a report of dropped call, failed call, lack of coverage, data service failure, or poor voice quality
Submit optional specific comments about an event
Receive an SMS acknowledgement that the reported event was sent and received successfully.
Following the launch of the iPhone 3GS, network struggles on AT&T caused the carrier to be the subject of serious criticism that continued to grow. More recently, competitor Verizon has attacked AT&T's 3G coverage in a series of advertisements, to which AT&T has since publicly fought back.
AT&T has also taken numerous steps in 2009 to improve its coverage. Still, studies have found that the network is users' least-liked aspect of the iPhone 3GS.
Comments
Simplicity of operation
Submit a real time report capturing local GPS coordinates at time and place of event
Submit a report after the fact when a customer is not at the place of event
Submit a report of dropped call, failed call, lack of coverage, data service failure, or poor voice quality
Submit optional specific comments about an event
Receive an SMS acknowledgement that the reported event was sent and received successfully.
Failing to see the item "Be rewarded for doing AT&T's job"
Can their network handle the extra load of reporting all these problems?
We are talking about the company that needed several months to get ready for MMS.
I guess it will mentally buy them a year since people will buy in after reporting the problem and wait to see if anything gets done about it.
It would also be funny to see what percentage of reports are for data problems when they can't use data and voice at the same time when outside of a 3G area. (But the commercial said...)
If you don't have service, how are you going to tell ATT about it?
"Submit a report after the fact when a customer is not at the place of event"
"Submit a report after the fact when a customer is not at the place of event"
I dont know, maybe its just me but couldnt someone do this if they are not getting coverage in a particular area?
No Wireless Carrier can identify all of their weak spots. To do so, it would require an army of engineers to literally walk over every square meter of this country with listening devices/probes. And then once a new building is erected, that local data is obsolete.
This will pinpoint the troubles and allow AT&T to focus on those areas to an accuracy far greater than anyone else can provide.
"Submit a report after the fact when a customer is not at the place of event"
But then how are they going to get the location that is lacking in coverage?
"Submit a report after the fact when a customer is not at the place of event"
I dont know, maybe its just me but couldnt someone do this if they are not getting coverage in a particular area?
The iPhone has GPS, so even though you have no network, the phone knows where it is. It can simply log this location at the time the user notifies it, and then send in the log once a connection becomes available.
I'm sure the Verizon fanboys on this forum (aka employees) will find a way.
No Wireless Carrier can identify all of their weak spots. To do so, it would require an army of engineers to literally walk over every square meter of this country with listening devices/probes. And then once a new building is erected, that local data is obsolete.
This will pinpoint the troubles and allow AT&T to focus on those areas to an accuracy far greater than anyone else can provide.
Can you hear me now?
...and there will be a Map for That! Should be interesting to see if they do anything about it.
I image a map of the USA and one BIG spot! Or I could see Verizon getting wind of this app and making a commercial of similar suggestion stating, "We were Right!"
With regards to a "Mark the Spot" app to find AT&T trouble areas, does AT&T inform the respondent about their corrective actions to eliminate the problem? Otherwise it is just a "vent release" type app that allows people to quietly bitch, all the while allowing AT&T showing their customer base that they are in tune with the problem and that, with the introduction of this app, show that AT&T cares! Kind of like Obama holding a jobs summit, that will result in squat, a year after spending nearly $1,000,000,000,000.00 on a stimulus bill that supposedly would hold the unemployment rate at 8 to 8 1/2%...
'Mark the Spot' app and a 'Jobs Summit' - BIGGEST LOSERS for those that know not what else to do! and I thought 'biggest losers' was only a tv show!
I'm sure the Verizon fanboys on this forum (aka employees) will find a way.
No Wireless Carrier can identify all of their weak spots. To do so, it would require an army of engineers to literally walk over every square meter of this country with listening devices/probes. And then once a new building is erected, that local data is obsolete.
This will pinpoint the troubles and allow AT&T to focus on those areas to an accuracy far greater than anyone else can provide.
It's AT&T responsibilty to figure out where and why their network craps out not its customers. They should have people in the field doing tests of their signals etc. This is really pathetic. I'm surprised this app made it through the Apple censorship board. It should be automatic and require no app per se. This is frkn ridiculous.
But then how are they going to get the location that is lacking in coverage?
It's all smoke and mirrors. PR designed to make you think they're on it.