1. dtourn90's Avatar
    So I switched over to AT&T from US Cellular in November for the iPhone. My service so far has been mediocre. The number of bars I have fluctuates throughout the day. I live in a basement and I usually have 1-2 bars and occasionally I'll have full bars but it only lasts about 10 minutes or so then they'll drop back down to 1 or 2 bars. This wouldn't be that big of a deal but I'm a big texter and the lack of bars will make my message sending fail occasionally. It's quite frustrating since I scarcely had message sending failures with US Cellular (maybe 2 or 3 times the whole time I had them, in the same basement). MMS won't even function with 1-2 bars, it'll just fail automatically. What I'm getting at is I'm not sure what to do. Should I call up AT&T and complain and hope they do something about it or should I call and demand that my service be cancelled? I really don't want to give up the iPhone but if this crappy service continues I won't be able to take it lol.
    12-21-09 01:51 AM
  2. s.hasan546's Avatar
    They can't really do anything about it. First your in a basement. Second they have enough on their hands with trying to upgrade their network to be able to handle the load they have now. Esp. in NY and SF.

    The only thing you can do it return your phone if you within the first month and go to a different carrier. If your within the first month you can return your phone but if its been more than a month than your stuck or else you will have to pay the ETF b.c you already had your month to try their service.
    12-21-09 02:10 AM
  3. dtourn90's Avatar
    With US Cellular I had full bars in the same basement. So I don't think that being in my basement is the problem.

    I'm past my 30 days but this whole 1-2 bar issue didn't happen till after the 30 days. The first few days I had 3-4 bars, then it went downhill.
    12-21-09 02:14 AM
  4. s.hasan546's Avatar
    With US Cellular I had full bars in the same basement. So I don't think that being in my basement is the problem.

    I'm past my 30 days but this whole 1-2 bar issue didn't happen till after the 30 days. The first few days I had 3-4 bars, then it went downhill.
    thats not going to matter. How it goes is that you had 30 days to "test" their service. after that if your service gets bad thats pretty much your problem unless you wanna pay the ETF and leave them.

    Also in the companies point of view its hard to believe the service degraded that much in 4-5 days. Maybe they r having technical difficulties. If your in a area like NY or SF where the service degraded over a good amount of time and its well documented than you have a chance.

    However, i don't see any possibility for you to get out of it since you've had it for approx. 35 days and you had the opportunity to return it 6 days ago.

    Sorry man.
    12-21-09 02:52 AM
  5. sedalia066's Avatar
    Sounds like a real bummer. I have been with ATT for many years. The service is OK in my region but dropped calls and few bars are not rare. Thank goodness I can use WiFi in most instances for all but conversation.

    Good luck resolving your issues. I feel your pain.
    12-21-09 07:13 AM
  6. jahoobob's Avatar
    You should call CS and explain your problem and don't give up with the first rejection. Ask for a supervisor. It certainly won't hurt. Keep insisting that the signal strength has gotten worse since you bought the phone but stay calm.
    12-21-09 08:47 AM
  7. noaim's Avatar
    You should call CS and explain your problem and don't give up with the first rejection. Ask for a supervisor. It certainly won't hurt. Keep insisting that the signal strength has gotten worse since you bought the phone but stay calm.
    +1 to this
    12-21-09 10:32 AM
  8. Mister Xiado's Avatar
    So you live in a basement and you're having trouble with radio reception.
    So you came to AT&T for the iPhone and you're having trouble with radio reception.

    You know, every time you escalate to a supervisor on AT&T, it negatively impacts the value of your account.

    The iPhone is trash. People are too lazy to read consumer reports before coming to AT&T for that piece of garbage, then they wonder why it doesn't work. It has the worst signal reception of any phone ever made, and I don't trust ANY phone that won't let you change the battery. Considering how often the batteries explode.

    And Apple's reputation for blaming engineering mistakes on users, from iPods to Macbooks, from iPhones to desktops. And the fact that Apple considers a SIM swap a warranty-voiding event, and will often NOT help you unless an AT&T representative is present during the call. Why? Apple already has your money. They are not a service provider, and helping you actually costs them money.
    12-21-09 03:32 PM
  9. s.hasan546's Avatar
    So you live in a basement and you're having trouble with radio reception.
    So you came to AT&T for the iPhone and you're having trouble with radio reception.

    You know, every time you escalate to a supervisor on AT&T, it negatively impacts the value of your account.

    The iPhone is trash. People are too lazy to read consumer reports before coming to AT&T for that piece of garbage, then they wonder why it doesn't work. It has the worst signal reception of any phone ever made, and I don't trust ANY phone that won't let you change the battery. Considering how often the batteries explode.

    And Apple's reputation for blaming engineering mistakes on users, from iPods to Macbooks, from iPhones to desktops. And the fact that Apple considers a SIM swap a warranty-voiding event, and will often NOT help you unless an AT&T representative is present during the call. Why? Apple already has your money. They are not a service provider, and helping you actually costs them money.
    The iphone is trash? really do you have any proof that the Iphone has the worst service? Compared to any other smart phone? RIM is so much better? Really b.c i think the problems with the Storm and Tour says it all for RIM. Batteries explode? wtf. ive never heard that for any iphone owner. Sounds like more bs spewing out of a RIM fanboy.

    And btw ATT sucks with service with more than one phone. Ive had plenty of their phones. Bold, Fuze, and N97 had horrible service with ATT also. So unless your gonna tell me all the phones ive had on ATT that had bad service are because the phones are trash?

    Apple does not consider a sim swap a warranty-voiding event. And Apple has one of the highest rated customer services. You walk right into apple and they will help you with everything.

    They have replaced iphones for me when they were physically damaged as a courtesy. Let me see RIM or any other manufacturer do that.
    12-21-09 06:42 PM
  10. Mister Xiado's Avatar
    The common variable with your experiences is the user.

    iphone battery explode - Google Search
    macbook thermal - Google Search

    Take a Samsung A737, which is a basic 3G slider phone that isn't even sold anymore, and keep it alongside an iPhone 3G/3Gs. See which one drops calls more frequently, and which one magically loses data connections more often.

    Oh wait, that's science, and even using a cheapo phone to skew the odds in favor of Apple still won't come out ahead. The vast majority of dropped call/no service complaints on AT&T are from iPhone users. A good 95%. The remainder tend to be resolved with reseating the SIM card in a two year old phone.

    And Apple will not openly tell you the ridiculous things that they will not freely replace a phone for. You have to catch a representative with loose lips. Like how a lot of other not-for-public information hits the general public.
    12-21-09 08:24 PM
  11. dwcok's Avatar
    With US Cellular I had full bars in the same basement. So I don't think that being in my basement is the problem.

    I'm past my 30 days but this whole 1-2 bar issue didn't happen till after the 30 days. The first few days I had 3-4 bars, then it went downhill.
    Yup the old bait and switch. Same exact thing happened to me. Was with US Cellular, perfect service. Made the Iphony mistake about this time last year. I had really good coverage for the first 60-75 days then it all went to crap. I have been told ATT was doing some different things to their system and thats what started it all. I personally think they have a switch they turn off after your 30 days then laugh at you.

    I called customer service at least 2-3 times a week and talked to everyone from the janitor to the supervisor of supervisors. I was nice and calm to irate and everywhere in between. One person would tell me ATT service was horrible in my area while the next would tell me it was the best service they had! We only have 2g in my town. They lied to me almost every time I talked to them. They would tell me they would note my account that if the problem persisted to let me out of my contract without etf's (3 lines). The next person would tell me the notes said there was a tower down or some line of crap and nothing close to what they were supposed to say.

    I did have one lady on a day I called absolutely irate with them that offered to let me out of my iphone line without etf, but not my other 2 lines. That really made a lot of sense! I am sure she was lying but wish I would have jumped all over it now.

    I have since switched back to US Cell with the BB Tour by paying etf's for 3 lines and am much much happier!

    Good luck! And good riddance AT&T!
    12-21-09 09:15 PM
  12. Mister Xiado's Avatar
    If you calmly go through standard troubleshooting methods, and the issue cannot be resolved, you have a very good chance of being release from your contractual obligations without an ETF. It's really up to the department that handles cancellations, and how you speak to representatives has a lot to do with the level of service you get. They're people, and if you cop an attitude, they won't do anything beyond the standard troubleshooting, in order to stop talking to you as swiftly as possible.

    But I don't know, I would never depend on a handheld digital radio transceiver as my sole means of communication.

    I'd also never patronize a business that used iPhones. Overpriced piles of fail that bank on Apple's illusion that premium price = premium quality.
    12-22-09 05:25 PM
  13. dtourn90's Avatar
    I'll probably be giving AT&T a call tomorrow. Thanks everyone for the advice.
    12-22-09 11:08 PM
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