AT&T 3G Upgrades Degrade 2G Signal Strength

Timothy R. Butler writes "Much to the chagrin of owners of various 2G cell phones on AT&T Mobility's network, including the highly visible (and originally highly expensive) first-generation iPhone, we have discovered that AT&T has been quietly adjusting its network in ways that degrade 2G network performance as it has sought to build out its next-generation 3G network. Many of the phones affected, including BlackBerry devices, are still well within their two-year contract period."

Comments

Policy makes sense...

[Smidge207]

Listen peeps: AT&T subsidizes the price of every phone it carries, by about $200. So that phone you got a few months ago for free was actually about $200. Youâ(TM)ve probably seen these un-subsidized prices if youâ(TM)ve ever damaged a phone and had to purchase a new one at full price.

The idea is that AT&T will make up that $200 over the course of your two-year contract. So about $8.33 per month goes toward paying down that subsidy. When you get toward the end of two years, youâ(TM)ll be eligible for an upgrade, which is essentially the ability to purchase a new phone at the subsidized price, as long as you commit to another two-year contract.

Maybe not the most ideal plan in the world, but it keeps the apparent cost of mobile phones low, and gets people in the door.

When the original iPhone came out, the arrangement was unique: AT&T wasnâ(TM)t going to subsidize a cent of it in exchange for some flexibilities they allowed to Apple (such as at-home activation). Since there was no subsidy, AT&T lifted the âoeupgradeâ policy for existing AT&T account holders, and allowed them to purchase the iPhone at the standard retail price everyone else paid.

But the iPhone 3G is indeed subsidized, and so the upgrade plan is back in effect. If you currently use a phone subsidized by AT&T, and you arenâ(TM)t currently eligible for an upgrade (you arenâ(TM)t nearing your contactâ(TM)s two-year anniversary), you will need to pay the full, un-subsidized price for the iPhone 3G. In this case, that works out to either $199+200 or $299+200, hence the $399 and $499 prices.

If you already own an iPhone, AT&T doesnâ(TM)t need to get back their lost subsidy, so you get to pay the standard $199/$299 price.

Hopefully, this clarifies things a bit.

=Smidge=

Sent from rentmej's iPhone

[rentmej]

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