Turns out there may have been some legitimacy to those
nagging feelings that something just wasn't quite right about iPhone firmware 2.0.2 -- a build many initially hoped would be the holy grail to cure the iPhone 3G's reception woes. Here's where it gets a little weird, though: a "source close to AT&T," so RoughlyDrafted claims, says that 2.0 and 2.0.1 are actually the culprits responsible for holding back 2.0.2 from greatness, not lousiness in 2.0.2 itself. The story goes that the older versions have faulty power control software in their radios, forcing base stations to connect to phones at higher powers than they'd normally have to, which in turn leads to base stations running plumb out of power -- and once that happens, you get dropped calls, bad reception, and lousy data rates, among other UMTS ails. Following that logic, the network should improve on its own over time as more and more owners update to 2.0.2, which explains AT&T's uncharacteristic text message to owners urging them to take the plunge. This all sounds plausible, we guess, but if 2.0 and 2.0.1 were really screwing with base stations that badly, wouldn't owners of other 3G phones be affected equally?
[Via
mocoNews]
posted Aug 29th 2008 4:02AM
Can't imagine it would effect other 3G handset users.
Surely the base stations, once they reach their peak power and can go no higer, will dump the connections from the handsets that are using the most? Seems logical to me that the base station would assume these are the ones that are further away and so would be dropped for another cell.
course, i could be wrong.
Actually, I have been having very annoying 3G issues with my Blackjack II. Especially in areas where there's a lot of people (like sporting events, or in particularly crowded events in San Francisco) I sure as hell hope this iPhone issue will fix things for me as well. Update to 2.0.2, you hosers!
Just kidding, I got nothing but love for you iPhone-ers. But seriously, upgrade now please.
Funny you mention big crowds....I was at a Jags game and I couldn't make a phone call to save my life.
My issues are more on the lag on Contacts and the buggyness of Safari.....
Please don't listen to anything RealityDistortion publishes. The author is the biggest mactard on the planet and lies through his teeth to make Apple look good, even when they've messed up.
Damned straight.
Firefox users should add the following line to their userContent.css file:
A[HREF*="roughlydrafted"]:after { content: " [IDIOT WARNING]"!important ; color: red }
It highlights Roughly Drafted links with a suitable warning. Websites like Slashdot and, here, Engadget, have an annoying habit of posting links without actually indicating the source. It's worse than being rickrolled, at least when you're rickrolled you know the poster of the link wasn't as dumb as you feel.
You'll find your userContent.css file in the "chrome" subdirectory of your Mozilla/Firefox profile. The precise location depends on your OS, under GNU/Linux (Ubuntu, etc), you can open a shell, and type "gnome-open ~/.mozilla/firefox/*/chrome" to bring up the folder. If the file is not there, just copy userChome-example.css to userChrome.css, and open the file in Text Editor by right-clicking and selecting "Open file with "Text Editor"".
Awesome. CSS snippet added.
This whole thing is a load of BS. A firmware update that breaks your phone if you apply it but doesn't break your phone if you don't is not a "bug fix" which is how the 2.02 update was treated. If it does need to be universally installed to fix stuff that Apple or ATT broke, they should have treated it as a mandatory service recall, not a patch. It's a nice idea, but honestly, there are people who didn't upgrade to 2.02 BECAUSE THEY KNOW it reduces the performance of their phone. All of this stuff is total BS.
It actually makes sense to me. An iPhone is probably the most intensive data 3G device ATT uses (Blackjack II being no. 2 and probably to be supplanted by the BB Bold when released). The more of them out there the more strain on the system and if the iPhone is actually pulling more power than budgeted for the more likelyhood of system drops. I just hope they fix this because I waiting for the new BB and they may delay the release until this issue is cleared.
This is far from scientific evidence, but I had a day traveling where I was in a car with another iPhone user, and we could not both be on the phone at the same time. I kept saying that made no sense, but as a matter of truth we were taking turns using our phones. I never experienced someone elses phone causing a dropped call, but it was coinciding perfectly. This was on the orig firmware right after the release. Maybe there is some truth to this.
That would explain 2g iphones and other AT&T devices running out of battery life abnormally. As the tower signal gets weaker, the phones would ramp up the receiver power, using more battery. maybe ?
Man, I thought that the whole argument to locking down the apps store was so that phones wouldn't be running apps that would negatively affect the network.
Maybe they should have started with the firmware. . .
Might this cause excessive drain on the 3G iPhone's battery, as well? But wouldn't the instant update to 2.0.2 help with battery life rather than hurt it?
I have that deep feeling that i got jipped by apple with iphone 3g cause all they promise in this phone suxs... at least everything that the other one don't have suxs and plus its more a month too... its mass up.. GPS blows, 3G what 3g that thing can't never find 3g... fast its slower than the original iphone and way more problematic it blows it really does.. i wish i had keeped my old phone at least it wouldn't be as bad and i wouldn't be feeling like im jipped... att should lower the iphone plan since the 3g doesn't work.... what u think?
I was thinking my phones 3G coverage (not an iphone) has been shat lately, I wonder if this is why? Im general annoyed with ATTs data coverage always have been, and there fewest drop calls lie. I think ill go back to sprint.
So what of the people who are going to use XiPhone and WinPwn, etc? Which keeps the baseband downgraded so that it might be more easily unlocked in the future? Will they still be using the old method of connecting to the tower?
I have been reading Engadget for years and never felt the need to post a comment until today. In my experience the iPhone 3G has ABSOLUTELY affected other 3G phones. I work in Boston and live about 15 miles away in the Suburbs. My current phone is an N95-4 (North American 3G capable). Before that I had an N95-3 (North American 3G capable) and an N95-1 (EDGE class 32.) With any of my previous EDGE phones on AT&T's network, I would generally receive download speeds in the 75-200 kb/s. I was actually happy after the launch of the original iPhone because AT&T made some minor upgrades to their EDGE network and my speeds increased slightly. Shortly after the launch of the original iPhone, I began using my N95-3 on AT&T's 3G network. Utilizing their HSDPA (technically 3.5G) I would generally receive download speeds between about 400-800 kb/s. In areas with poor reception it would occasionally go down to 200 kb/s, and in some areas of downtown Boston or New York it would be over 1 mb/s. The point I am getting at is that on AT&T's 3G network, I would receive download speeds about 5 times faster than if I was using the same phone on EDGE. The very first day the 3G iPhone was released, AT&T's 3G network was CRIPPLED. At home, at work, or anywhere in between I was receiving 3G speeds between 20-100 kb/s. In the same exact spots where I received these dismal 3G speeds, I could switch over to EDGE and double or triple my speed! For weeks after the iPhone 3G launch I never once broke 400kb/s using 3G. About a month after "i-day" there was a half hour where I received nearly 2 mb/s, but I can only assume this was due to some kind of ongoing network upgrade/maintenance test, and immediately afterward I was back to 100 kb/s. In the past month or so my problem has improved slightly, but my 3G connection is far less reliable than it use to be. When I sat down at the computer this morning to read Engadget, my speed was under 200 kb/s. Twenty minutes later it was 700 kb/s. Now it's back under 200 kb/s. In over a year of using AT&T's 3G network with several different 3G phones, I never once experienced such variable and unreliable service as I have since the iPhone 3G's release. While my experience may be unique to the areas around where I live and work, I have become convinced that the iPhone 3G is a major contributing factor to these issues. Also, while my download speed tests were not that scientific, I can assure you that any speed tests were done with my phone set to only use EDGE, or only use 3G. Any comparative tests were done in the place at relatively the same time. I have experienced the same problems using several different phones.
And for anyone who has managed to make their way through this, keep in mind: If you paid $30 a month for unlimited internet, you would be ranting too. Thank You.
Thank you very much for the comment. I am currently looking at cellphones, and while I was planning on avoiding the iPhone, I was thinking of getting something through AT&T (HTC or Blackberry). Now that I know that the 3G issues apply to other phones, I will be avoiding AT&T until they fix their service.
Check it:
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/08/blackberry-bo-1.html
As a greedy, power-hungry bastard, I will definitely NOT be upgrading to 2.0.2! So suck it all you other 3G users :)
I will confirm that I have friends using ATT 3G Phones (other than the iPhone) who have seen an increase in connectivity / dropped call issues and delays sending SMS messages over the past month or so. There is probably less attention paid to the data speed issue on other handsets b/c most devices are far less data intensive than the iPhone.
(SF BAY AREA)
Well, that actually explains a lot. At home my reception seems to bounce around randomly. One minute I could have five bars, the next I could have one bar or none at all. I could be talking to someone perfectly, and then suddenly have the call dropped - although more often than not they will start to break up first. It's the most frustrating phenomenon I can think of and it makes it virtually impossible to hold a conversation. It also seems to be worse in the afternoons and evenings - which tends to lend credence to the network load theory (everyone is home disconnecting one another). Sounds like AT&T needs to start installing some new towers to distribute the load a bit. I always knew their network sucked, but I had no idea it was this bad until after I got my iPhone 3G.
I have a sneaking suspicion that there is some overall truth to this allegation. For the past two months, my wife and I have been having a hell of a time keeping calls connected in 3G service areas (which now cover the entire area around and between where we live and work) on our Blackjack II's, whereas we never had any problems before beyond the slightly higher power consumption of 3G mode.
F'king Jesusphones! You Go to Hell! You Go to Hell And You Die!
I use iphone 3G in Dubai, well it is so bad, i have so much problem with 3g signal, drop calls, and weird sound during the calls, on the other side i using the HTC touch diamond and i have no problem with 3G network including UMTS and HSDPA