All Articles Tagged AT&T

Boy Genius has heard some rumblings that AT&T is ready to launch an 8GB iPhone 3GS in preparation of Verizon releasing the highly anticipated Motorola Droid. While this is not confirmed this would be a good way for Apple to pick up quite a bit more sales just in time for the holiday season, especially in the $99 price range. Black Friday anyone?

Back in August rumors were flying that Rogers was about to release their own iPhone 8GB 3GS but that has yet to take place. This will be interesting to see how this unfolds.

What are you thoughts on the release of an 8GB iPhone 3GS? Fact or fiction?

[Via BGR]

Verizon’s “Map for That” ad was witty and kicked AT&T right where it hurt most — right in the network. AT&T, naturally, didn’t find it so amusing and has now decided to take Verizon to court. Engadget has been covering (and updating the coverage) today, and here’s where it stands:

• AT&T complained that the original ad was misleading, saying customers could still use iPhones outside of 3G coverage (on EDGE).
• Verizon has apparently already changed the ad once, adding some small print to disclaim the above.
• AT&T still isn’t happy, thinks Verizon is confusing customers, and thus is sicking the lawyers on them.

What do you think? Were you confused, or were you too busy laughing (or crying, if you live in SF or NYC).

AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega stated that his carrier’s exclusive agreement to sell Apple’s iPhone in the US… will end one day. Of course, we knew this. You knew this. AT&T and Apple knew this. Everybody knew this, because they’ve said it before. Still, on the eve of a highly successful quarterly results report, where the iPhone once again carried the day for AT&T earnings, they obviously felt the need to say it again:

“We have a legacy of having a great portfolio…that will continue after the iPhone is no longer exclusive to us. We think we will continue after the iPhone…to drive [results]….” [...] “we feel really good about our non-iPhone [subscriber] adds and net adds…. We feel really strong about our portfolio in quick messaging devices, including BlackBerry and all the smartphones.” [...] “Even if we lose exclusivity [of the iPhone], we will be the only carrier with HSPA 7.2 [a network specification being deployed at AT&T] and [new devices] will work on our network faster. I feel as strongly as ever [about] the capability of devices in our lineup and [am] super-excited about the deals with e-readers and personal navigation devices.”

Apparently, like Verizon, AT&T will seek post-iPhone solace in much more carrier-control friendly Android…

[Via Macworld]

Hot on the heels of Apple’s Q4 results come AT&T’s Q3 report, and the iPhone-related news keeps getting better and better, including a record 3.2 million activations, 40% of which went to new customers.

And the records didn’t stop there. Highest Q3 net subscriber gain, best ever Q3 churn rate, largest quarterly increase of integrated devices (like iPhone) in history, and 33.6% increase in data revenue.

What’s astonishing is this growth persists despite widespread, ongoing — almost farcical at this point — reports of poor network experience for iPhone users. Imagine if AT&T could build out infrastructure to meet demand in areas like San Francisco and New York?

And how happy are they Verizon appears to be out of the iPhone picture, at least for now?

Gizmodo is reporting that AT&T sent out a letter to employees encouraging them, along with their families, to protest the FCC’s net neutrality rules. It was said the letter even encouraged the use of the employees private email instead of their company email. For them to stoop this low makes it pretty obvious they are not hip to the idea of net neutrality. Gizmodo later updated their post with the following:

AT&T says that the letter was sent to “U.S. managers only” and that they “were providing important information to our employees, and it was up to them to respond personally. If they use their company email that is fine, too.”

Their reply is pretty laughable as if sending this letter to “U.S. managers only” makes it any better. While I don’t have issues here in Chicago with AT&T’s service, some of their antics really are mind boggling.

Have thoughts regarding this news? Please share in the comments below!

[Via Gizmodo]

Unlike the recently redeemed VoIP, streaming TV over 3G to an iPhone is still a no-no according to AT&T’s terms of service, but has an error (or “error”) on the part of EyeTV [$4.99 - iTunes link] developer Elgato allowed them to go where SlingPlayer is still forbidden to tread?

Apparently so, if instead of tapping okay to dismiss the warning, you tap the message text instead. Then it’s 3G away you go.

Of course, AT&T lets other devices use SlingPlayer over 3G, and of course Apple’s YouTube app, and apps from Ustream and Stickam stream non-TV over 3G, so who while the whole policy makes the kind of sense that doesn’t, it will be interesting to what reaction, if any, AT&T and Apple have to this little workaround…

UPDATE: Apple has pulled EyeTV off the App Store. Elgato has issued the following statement to TotalApps:

“Some test code that enabled live TV streaming over the cellular network was accidentally left in the the EyeTV App. Apple requested that we remove the code since their agreement with AT&T does not allow redirecting TV signals over the cellular network. The code was removed and a 1.0.1 version of the EyeTV app was submitted.”

[Via AppAdvice - Thanks Tyler!]

Could it be we won’t see iPhone tethering on AT&T’s network until 2010? 9to5mac recently posted a saying to expect tethering on the network before the end of the year. An AT&T spokesman responded with the following statement:

Just reading again – where did anyone promise tethering by EOY? Where did you see that? We promised MMS by end of summer and ended up being a few days late for that…

More bad news for all of us waiting patiently for the official service, but it’s hard to be optimistic after comments like that, isn’t it? Of course, international iPhone users such as Rene have had this feature for quite some time now making a lot of us AT&T users a bit jealous.

Feel free to vent your frustration in the comments below!

[Via 9to5mac]

Ross Miller of Engadget is giving more credibility to some of the reports of iPhone MMS on AT&T’s network being a little wonky. It seems as if some users sending MMS messages are having their pictures delivered, but with the message on the recipients end displaying an incorrect phone number for the sender.

We’ve done some research on the issue and at the moment there is no viable explanation from AT&T, and no resolution (including the recently released AT&T 5.6 carrier file). Have any of our readers experienced this MMS behavior?

Sound off in the comments!

[Via Engadget]

Along with iPhone 3.1.2, AT&T users received a 5.6 carrier file update, but the reason(s) for it weren’t clear. MMS was already enabled, and tethering was nowhere in site, so what was it for? Well, iPhone Savior sat on the phone with Apple support long enough to find out! Turns out, it fixed an MMS bug:

When sending photos or videos in an MMS message, the progress bar would stall at about 90% then result in an error ending with a (!) red exclamation point next to the MMS message. The associated message failed to be properly sent, though standard text messages worked as normal. The 5.6 patch addressed that particular MMS issue.

Anyone out these have that problem prior to Carrier File 5.6? And if so, did it fix it for you? Let us know!

[iPhone Savior via Gizmodo]

PCWorld has an article up saying that, based on AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega’s comments during yesterday’s CTIA Keynote, AT&T was laying the groundwork to “manage” or “throttle” iPhone users’ data.

de la Vega did use most of his time, after announcing VoIP over 3G for iPhone, to rail against the FCC’s net neutrality push. He claimed a small percentage of heavy data users (i.e. iPhone users) were hogging most of the limited data resources, and “crowding” out regular (i.e. non-iPhone users). He also stated that AT&T would need to “manage” the network so that the few couldn’t crowd out the many.

This is what makes PC World think:

In the face of exploding data service demand and scarce wireless spectrum, does AT&T intend to quietly begin rationing the data usage of bandwidth hogs like the iPhone? Will AT&T begin to quietly “manage” the duration and speed of my 3G connection based on how much data I’ve used in a given day, or on the type of content or services I’m using the bandwidth to access?

Aside from “AT&T should spend some of their billions making a better network and getting 4G here faster”, it’s hard to argue that the iPhone hits the network like a freight train, and when you multiply that by tens of millions of users, it’s a huge load (something RIM emphasizes to carriers when pitching their highly compressed, proxied BlackBerrys as “better network citizens”).

That’s an immediate problem for the iPhone on AT&T, but arguably if another device with a great internet experience ever succeeds enough to reach those numbers on a single network — Android or webOS for example — it will become an everyone problem everywhere.

Dieter Bohn, editor-in-chief of our Smartphone Expert network was live at AT&T’s keynote yesterday, but his takeaway was a little different:

It’s pretty clear from [de la Vega's] complaints about the top percentage that he would want tiered data prices instead of unlimited for everybody. That seems more likely what was meant by ‘managing.’ I think that rather than rationing, ATT would just like to charge that top percentage more.

What do you think? Do you want AT&T “managing” your iPhone usage? Does it sound fair to charge heavy users more for that heavy use?