Stronger 3G service?

[CHiRS]

Anybody else notice stronger 3G reception? Usually when I'm inside at work, my signal reverts to Edge. But for the past week I've noticed that it's been with full bars and 3G service. Same thing with other areas around Portland. Are any of you noticing the same thing?

 

[shwy]

yes. right outside of oklahoma city.

 

[CoachFreak]

No, I just got my 3G phone but it is still reverting to EDGE in the house and in some spots of my city.

 

[Reaktor5]

Definitely stronger around here. I left for college at the end of August and had absolutely no 3G anywhere near me and had 3 bars at best in my room. Sometimes I'd even get kicked off Edge and it would take 3-4 minutes to reconnect.

Now, I'm getting almost full 3G service. Even all the way up at my college in Maine there's parts where I'll have 3G.

 

[Jeremy]

With this news, I'd hope people are starting to get better 3G service.

 

[jcjdoss]

Potentially, I have a solid 5 bars in the house, but the power of suggestion is an amazing thing. I will hold my opinion for a few more posts confirming the increase

 

[Dalekkiller]

Since the latest update, I've have 5 bars most of the time at home whereas I'd be lucky to get 2 before.

 

[paulcb]

I just noticed yesterday that I can now get a couple of bars of 3G in my office whereas before I could only get a couple bars of E. I'm in the north Dallas area.

 

[Dalekkiller]

I have noticed that 3G takes a while to get going. If I try to access the app store too soon after turning on my phone, I get a "cannot connect to store" message.

 

[texags08]

I am getting it better at work as well, i have had full 3g at home for a while, but now i have full bars at work too, while sometimes toing back and forth on edge...

College Station, TX

 

[joeya7x]

Same here, getting 3G reception (between 3-5 bars) where I only had 3-4 bars of edge. Hey I aint complaining =]

 

[Stevie No-Wonder]

I wouldn't know.

My 3G is turned off so my iPhone will ring.

 

[cjvitek]

I was always getting edge right around my house (and very little signal inside). It's annoying because if I drive about 1/2 mile down the road, I have a strong 3G signal.

As of today, I am still getting little to no Edge signal, and no 3G.

 

[jamesus]

No real difference that I have noticed in Chicago...then again my condo is a black hole for reception.

@Bad Ash - you notice any difference?

 

[gludington]

I have actually noticed the reverse. I live in an area right on the edge (no pun intended) of a 3G area, so my signal has never been stellar at home. However, where it used to be 1-2 bars, now the phone will frequently drop to "Searching..." for 30 or 40 seconds, before coming up with "No Service." Sometimes, even when I switch to Edge only, it still occurs, though not as often. Strangely, rebooting (or sometimes just going to airplane mode) will "fix" the signal. I could have "No Service", and, without moving, shut the phone off, turn it back on, and see 3 bars. Not sure if it is Apple problem or an AT&T problem, but my iPhone experience has definitely taken a sharp turn for the worse in the past month.

 

[Dalekkiller]

I've had to use the "airplane" fix a few times. It's certainly easier than rebooting the phone. I'd imagine it's a carrier problem.

 

[xpunksbeendeadx]

I've been getting better 3G reception for a week now. Before I would have to endure being at school all day surfing with EDGE during class. Now about most of the day I get 3G which has been a godsend.

 

[whmurray]

My service at home has improved from 1 bar to 3 bars out of 5.

I like the new WiFi service, particularly with the one-button logon tool.

That said, I have been very disappointed with AT&T's 3G strategy. The old AT&T was first to market in a number of major markets. However, after they were acquired by Cingular roll-out stalled and 3G coverage has lagged Verizon and even Sprint.

I do not know any other carrier that has rolled out 3G at the expense of 2G. As a 3G iPhone owner, I would rather have 3G at the expense of EDGE rather than not to have it at all. However, I do not think that the broader market will like any such strategy.

 

[junovela]

Better 3G for sure

I'm glad I read this article, because I thought I was going crazy. I have NEVER had good 3G anywhere, and yesterday, I switched it back on because I wanted to try downloading a song without WiFi. I then noticed that I had as good 3G reception everywhere as I've had with E. I'm leaving 3G on now to see if it wasn't a fluke, but I just checked it in the dead zone of my office and I'm still getting full service, even in the interior, away from windows and surrounded by all sorts of dampening devices.

SCORE.

 

[whmurray]

I'm glad I read this article, because I thought I was going crazy. I have NEVER had good 3G anywhere, and yesterday, I switched it back on because I wanted to try downloading a song without WiFi. I then noticed that I had as good 3G reception everywhere as I've had with E. I'm leaving 3G on now to see if it wasn't a fluke, but I just checked it in the dead zone of my office and I'm still getting full service, even in the interior, away from windows and surrounded by all sorts of dampening devices.

SCORE.

Remember why you turned it off. Battery! I do leave 3G on but I turn GPS off except when an application requests it. I never go anywhere without a spare battery.

Improvement in battery techonology appears to be steady but slow. I have more hope for more efficient radios, perhaps one chip for all four radios. That said, there is a limit to what can be achieved through efficiency improvements.