Verizon website downtime reminiscent of AT&T iPhone preorder troubles
Strong interest in the newly announced Verizon iPhone appears to have caused intermittent outages on the Verizon website Tuesday, resembling AT&T's iPhone 4 preorder woes from last year.
Scattered reports of downtime on the Verizon Wireless website seem to indicate that pent up demand for the Verizon iPhone has overwhelmed the carrier's servers at times throughout the day.
According to one AppleInsider reader, attempts to access the upgrade section of Verizon's website timed out or received the message: "Safari can?t open the page because the server unexpectedly dropped the connection. This sometimes occurs when the server is busy. Wait for a few minutes, and then try again."
Several other readers have also reported being unable to access the Verizon website on Tuesday.
Verizon announced the much-rumored and long-awaited CDMA iPhone earlier Tuesday at a press event in New York City.
The carrier could experience an even greater surge in traffic when the device is available for preorder "on or around February 3rd," in advance of its official Feb. 10 release date. Verizon customers can sign up on the Verizon website to get the iPhone 4 before "they're available to everyone else."
The largest wireless provider in the U.S. also revealed Tuesday that the CDMA iPhone 4 will allow Wi-Fi tethering of up to 5 devices through a built-in feature of a new version of Apple's iOS, called 4.2.5. By comparison, AT&T currently only allows BlueTooth or USB tethering of 1 device for an additional $20 per month. However, a new rumor says that GSM-iPhones could get the Wi-Fi hotspot feature in a future update to iOS.
Verizon has published a frequently asked questions section on its website for customers interested in the iPhone 4.
Last June, AT&T was forced to temporarily suspend iPhone 4 preorders after a ten-fold increase in demand from the previous year threatened to overwhelm the company's servers. AT&T saw record sales on the first day of preorders for the iPhone 4, before the site was overwhelmed by the traffic. Some AT&T stores resorted to using pen and paper to take preorders for the handset.
Apple's own website and 800 number also experienced outages last year because of extraordinary demand for the iPhone 4.
Scattered reports of downtime on the Verizon Wireless website seem to indicate that pent up demand for the Verizon iPhone has overwhelmed the carrier's servers at times throughout the day.
According to one AppleInsider reader, attempts to access the upgrade section of Verizon's website timed out or received the message: "Safari can?t open the page because the server unexpectedly dropped the connection. This sometimes occurs when the server is busy. Wait for a few minutes, and then try again."
Several other readers have also reported being unable to access the Verizon website on Tuesday.
Verizon announced the much-rumored and long-awaited CDMA iPhone earlier Tuesday at a press event in New York City.
The carrier could experience an even greater surge in traffic when the device is available for preorder "on or around February 3rd," in advance of its official Feb. 10 release date. Verizon customers can sign up on the Verizon website to get the iPhone 4 before "they're available to everyone else."
The largest wireless provider in the U.S. also revealed Tuesday that the CDMA iPhone 4 will allow Wi-Fi tethering of up to 5 devices through a built-in feature of a new version of Apple's iOS, called 4.2.5. By comparison, AT&T currently only allows BlueTooth or USB tethering of 1 device for an additional $20 per month. However, a new rumor says that GSM-iPhones could get the Wi-Fi hotspot feature in a future update to iOS.
Verizon has published a frequently asked questions section on its website for customers interested in the iPhone 4.
Last June, AT&T was forced to temporarily suspend iPhone 4 preorders after a ten-fold increase in demand from the previous year threatened to overwhelm the company's servers. AT&T saw record sales on the first day of preorders for the iPhone 4, before the site was overwhelmed by the traffic. Some AT&T stores resorted to using pen and paper to take preorders for the handset.
Apple's own website and 800 number also experienced outages last year because of extraordinary demand for the iPhone 4.
Comments
The largest wireless provider in the U.S. also revealed Tuesday that the CDMA iPhone 4 will allow Wi-Fi tethering of up to 5 devices through a built-in feature of a new version of Apple's iOS, called 4.2.5. By comparison, AT&T currently only allows BlueTooth or USB tethering of 1 device for an additional $20 per month.
What this doesn't discuss is that on Verizon, the iPhone cannot use both the phone and data at the same time. So if you and 4 friends are using wifi and a call comes in, everybody gets dropped.
Epic fail, IMO.
What this doesn't discuss is that on Verizon, the iPhone cannot use both the phone and data at the same time. So if you and 4 friends are using wifi and a call comes in, everybody gets dropped.
Epic fail, IMO.
Is this fact or FUD?
Other posters have reported that in that situation you are presented with the option to answer the call and break Internet connection. I don't really know either way, but it seems unlikely that the dropping is automatic. (If it is, I agree about the fail...)
PS: Doesn?t this happen when a new Droid phone is announced?
What this doesn't discuss is that on Verizon, the iPhone cannot use both the phone and data at the same time. So if you and 4 friends are using wifi and a call comes in, everybody gets dropped.
Epic fail, IMO.
Oh, give it a rest man. This bib-dribbling over limitations that somehow EVERYONE didn't know anything about is tiresome and played out.
PS: Doesn?t this happen when a new Droid phone is announced?
Okay, that made me chuckle.
Is this fact or FUD?
Other posters have reported that in that situation you are presented with the option to answer the call and break Internet connection. I don't really know either way, but it seems unlikely that the dropping is automatic. (If it is, I agree about the fail...)
If I remember correctly the way mobile handset work, you have to accept the call for this to happen. The message to ring the device and tell the carrier?s network where you on the network is all done of the control channel that is always active. SMS are sent and received over this control channel, though MMS does not.
Is this fact or FUD?
Other posters have reported that in that situation you are presented with the option to answer the call and break Internet connection. I don't really know either way, but it seems unlikely that the dropping is automatic. (If it is, I agree about the fail...)
FACT. CDMA doesn't support it. Verizon's current LTE deployment is Data Only.
What this doesn't discuss is that on Verizon, the iPhone cannot use both the phone and data at the same time. So if you and 4 friends are using wifi and a call comes in, everybody gets dropped.
Epic fail, IMO.
Yeah! I'm sticking with AT&T, who doesn't offer this feature at all!
Well, that doesn't give you a warm fuzzy when we are already seeing issues at preorder. I thought VZ had all of this time to make sure there would be no hickups?
"pre-order"? I didn't think we could yet... I, along with a few friends have been waiting for this to get rid of our Blueberrys.
FACT. CDMA doesn't support it. Verizon's current LTE deployment is Data Only.
Neither does my Blueberry. I won't notice a difference other than a better phone.... I can live with that!
"pre-order"? I didn't think we could yet... I, along with a few friends have been waiting for this to get rid of our Blueberrys.
You know what I mean. Before they are being ordered - pre order...
Good for you and your friends.
Is this fact or FUD?
Other posters have reported that in that situation you are presented with the option to answer the call and break Internet connection. I don't really know either way, but it seems unlikely that the dropping is automatic. (If it is, I agree about the fail...)
Oh, give it a rest man. This bib-dribbling over limitations that somehow EVERYONE didn't know anything about is tiresome and played out.
Thank You for saying that! Finally somebody that gets it! What people have to understand is that us Verizon faithfuls who have remained on Verizon for years in hopes of one day having an iPhone, have not ever had simultaneous voice and data on Verizon so it doesn't matter to us. This is not a deal breaker and you are not making us feel bad by beating a dead horse, so just let it rest!
Two things that I do know is that Verizon Executive Brian Higgins already said back in october that simultaneous voice and data would soon be available on Verizon anyway. And, if you've watched any of the internet speed test of the Verizon iPhone vs. the at&t iPhone, you'll see that the V.I.P. Beats the absolute socks off the at&t iphone in terms of speed! I'm not hatin on at&t, I'm just glad that people have more of a choice now. I will also be happy when Sprint and T-Mobile customers can buy one too, but as for me, I'm Verizon all day!
VZW is gonna feel the pain once the iPhone 4 hits their network. AT&T alleviated some of that by taking over all the Starbucks and McDonalds WiFi hotspots but I wonder if they'll freeze out VZW users from using those networks as payback?
Expect some great deals on refurbished iPhone 4 models returned to AT&T and Android units returned to VZW next month.
Is Verizons network ready for all the additional traffic????????????DOUBTFULL
... And, if you've watched any of the internet speed test of the Verizon iPhone vs. the at&t iPhone, you'll see that the V.I.P. Beats the absolute socks off the at&t iphone in terms of speed! ....
Link to the independently certified speed tests please
Thank You for saying that! Finally somebody that gets it! What people have to understand is that us Verizon faithfuls who have remained on Verizon for years in hopes of one day having an iPhone, have not ever had simultaneous voice and data on Verizon so it doesn't matter to us. This is not a deal breaker and you are not making us feel bad by beating a dead horse, so just let it rest!
Two things that I do know is that Verizon Executive Brian Higgins already said back in october that simultaneous voice and data would soon be available on Verizon anyway. And, if you've watched any of the internet speed test of the Verizon iPhone vs. the at&t iPhone, you'll see that the V.I.P. Beats the absolute socks off the at&t iphone in terms of speed! I'm not hatin on at&t, I'm just glad that people have more of a choice now. I will also be happy when Sprint and T-Mobile customers can buy one too, but as for me, I'm Verizon all day!
However, remember your first microwave oven, or your first car with power windows? You said, "How did I live without it?". The same is true for concurrent voice and data. All of you Verizon users have been 'tricked' by your provider into thinking that this feature is just not that important. You'll see (one day when you get LTE).
As far as speed, the latest 3rd party test, administered by Global Wireless Solutions in Nov of 2010, encompassed 950,000 road miles, over several months, in 400 US markets. Guess what? AT&T kicked "the socks off" of Verizon by 60%. So there!
Yes, choice is good. It's just that in this case, there is only 1 good choice.