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Bad Connection: Inside the iPhone Network Meltdown

50 points by jesseendahl 16y ago

YooLi 16y ago
I thought I would throw this out there because I am sure someone here knows this. The article said Qualcomm is working with Apple to make a chip that would allow the iPhone to operate on both AT&T and Verizon networks. Does that mean the chip would also work with Sprint by virtue of it also using CDMA or is there more to it than that?
- jesseendahl 16y ago
  I think there might be more to it than that. I think Sprint uses 1.9 GHz and 800 MHz frequencies, whereas Verizon uses 1.9 GHz and 850 Mhz. But they both use EV-DO (specifically CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev. A), which is a standard... On the other hand, it looks like Verizon is fast moving towards LTE. See: http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/18/verizons-lte-rollout-is-imminent-computers-updated-for-4g-sim/ http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/18/verizons-lte-rollout-is-i... and http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/19/verizons-4g-lte-sim-in-the-wild/ http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/19/verizons-4g-lte-sim-in-th... My guess is that the next iPhone supports LTE and is available on either AT&T or Verizon. Sprint, on the other hand, is only now thinking about using LTE: http://gigaom.com/2010/07/13/sprint-going-lte-makes-sense-but-not-a-t-mobile-merger/ http://gigaom.com/2010/07/13/sprint-going-lte-makes-sense-bu...
  - wmf 16y ago
    I doubt that a single iPhone design will work on AT&T and Verizon any time soon. AT&T would need GSM+UMTS+LTE while Verizon would need CDMA2000+LTE. An omni-protocol super-chipset is possible but unlikely.
dkarl 16y ago
When an AT&T representative suggested to one of Jobs’ deputies that the Apple CEO wear a suit to meet with AT&T’s board of directors, he was told, “We’re Apple. We don’t wear suits. We don’t even own suits.” That's the joke, jackass. It's easy to make someone look stupid by reporting a joke as a serious suggestion. If you get called on it, you flaunt your low opinion of their intelligence by saying, "Whatever, they say so much bizarre and retarded stuff it's impossible to tell when they're joking." None of that is unusual, but why did Wired decide to include itself and its readership inside this junior high put-down instead of reporting it straight?
- CamperBob 16y ago
  Of course, there's always the possibility that this is basic factual reporting, and not a joke. This is a real issue at larger tech companies who must interface with older, established players. Even back at Dell in the early 1990s there was some friction between sales/marketing managers and engineers, with the former arguing that the latter should dress a little sharper in case they inadvertently got on an elevator with a customer.
  - protomyth 16y ago
    I worked at a company that I shall not name that had a shirt / tie / coat dress code. They even had a dress code committee. The excuse was that we might bump into a client. The joke was that if a client was ever in our area, it would have been a violation of policy and federal law. They probably wouldn't care how I was dressed when I called security.
  - bitwize 16y ago
    It's worth linking to Don Burleson's famous dress code for Oracle consultants: http://www.dba-oracle.com/dress_code.htm http://www.dba-oracle.com/dress_code.htm The idea being that banks and that expect "professional appearance and behavior".
    - protomyth 16y ago
      from that link: "If you have been working all night and have an early morning meeting, you can use an anti-inflammatory hemorrhoid cream (e.g. Preparation H) to quickly shrink those unsightly puffy bags under your eyes. Just carefully dab the roid cream on your lower eyelids (being careful not to get any in your eyes) and you will look fresh and well-rested." well, I guess you learn something new everyday.
    - bosch 16y ago
      He has some really interesting points. However, Oracle has a high corporate culture and is usually dealing with Fortune 500 companies with similar values. I think the dress code would be a lot different for hacker startups. I do agree with his point about first impressions. It's better to wear a suit and have them tell you jeans and a t-shirt are ok than show up in jeans and a t-shirt and everyone else is wearing suits!
brainsik 16y ago
This is a nice overview of the iPhone vs AT&T debacle, but the conclusion is sensationalized. It may be that Apple and Google are helping the wireless carriers reach new levels of poor service, but the reality is the carriers have never been that good. In the 10 years I've had a mobile phone, I can't think of any time when people weren't complaining about their carrier and wondering if any of the others were better. It didn't seem to matter who you were with. Like the Mutt motto: "All mobile carriers suck. This one just sucks less."
- hga 16y ago
  It's worth pointing out the one major relevant fact they didn't cover, that Fake Steve Jobs pointed out at the end of last year: every quarter after the first "iPhone Christmas" (4Q07, the first Christmas after the release of the first iPhone), AT&T's had lower wireless capital expenditures (capex): http://www.fakesteve.net/2009/12/att-by-the-numbers.html http://www.fakesteve.net/2009/12/att-by-the-numbers.html (through 3Q09 at least). AT&T made a conscious choice to maintain its operating and net earnings at the expense of its quality of service (something we've heard detailed bits and pieces about, e.g. insufficient backhaul, like this article's comments on the not much used in the US market chip Apple used/uses). We'll see if that was a good choice as Verizon et. al. converge on LTE along with AT&T.
bosch 16y ago
Interesting point about the Infineon chips and the cell tower distances. I wonder what advantages the Infineon chips had/
kierank 16y ago
I expected a serious article from Wired about how 3G networks promise so much but can never realistically could deliver the bandwidth consumers want along with an explanation of the reasons why. Instead I got a puff piece about twitter and people complaining with hashtags (yet again(!)) and about meetings with managers who most likely don't know or understand the issues with the network. Nobody has approached the topic of 3G network saturation in a serious manner yet. I hope someone does one day.

50 points by jesseendahl 16y ago

YooLi 16y ago

I thought I would throw this out there because I am sure someone here knows this. The article said Qualcomm is working with Apple to make a chip that would allow the iPhone to operate on both AT&T and Verizon networks. Does that mean the chip would also work with Sprint by virtue of it also using CDMA or is there more to it than that?

jesseendahl 16y ago
I think there might be more to it than that. I think Sprint uses 1.9 GHz and 800 MHz frequencies, whereas Verizon uses 1.9 GHz and 850 Mhz. But they both use EV-DO (specifically CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev. A), which is a standard... On the other hand, it looks like Verizon is fast moving towards LTE. See: http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/18/verizons-lte-rollout-is-imminent-computers-updated-for-4g-sim/ http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/18/verizons-lte-rollout-is-i... and http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/19/verizons-4g-lte-sim-in-the-wild/ http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/19/verizons-4g-lte-sim-in-th... My guess is that the next iPhone supports LTE and is available on either AT&T or Verizon. Sprint, on the other hand, is only now thinking about using LTE: http://gigaom.com/2010/07/13/sprint-going-lte-makes-sense-but-not-a-t-mobile-merger/ http://gigaom.com/2010/07/13/sprint-going-lte-makes-sense-bu...
- wmf 16y ago
  I doubt that a single iPhone design will work on AT&T and Verizon any time soon. AT&T would need GSM+UMTS+LTE while Verizon would need CDMA2000+LTE. An omni-protocol super-chipset is possible but unlikely.

dkarl 16y ago

When an AT&T representative suggested to one of Jobs’ deputies that the Apple CEO wear a suit to meet with AT&T’s board of directors, he was told, “We’re Apple. We don’t wear suits. We don’t even own suits.” That's the joke, jackass. It's easy to make someone look stupid by reporting a joke as a serious suggestion. If you get called on it, you flaunt your low opinion of their intelligence by saying, "Whatever, they say so much bizarre and retarded stuff it's impossible to tell when they're joking." None of that is unusual, but why did Wired decide to include itself and its readership inside this junior high put-down instead of reporting it straight?

CamperBob 16y ago
Of course, there's always the possibility that this is basic factual reporting, and not a joke. This is a real issue at larger tech companies who must interface with older, established players. Even back at Dell in the early 1990s there was some friction between sales/marketing managers and engineers, with the former arguing that the latter should dress a little sharper in case they inadvertently got on an elevator with a customer.
- protomyth 16y ago
  I worked at a company that I shall not name that had a shirt / tie / coat dress code. They even had a dress code committee. The excuse was that we might bump into a client. The joke was that if a client was ever in our area, it would have been a violation of policy and federal law. They probably wouldn't care how I was dressed when I called security.
- bitwize 16y ago
  It's worth linking to Don Burleson's famous dress code for Oracle consultants: http://www.dba-oracle.com/dress_code.htm http://www.dba-oracle.com/dress_code.htm The idea being that banks and that expect "professional appearance and behavior".
  - protomyth 16y ago
    from that link: "If you have been working all night and have an early morning meeting, you can use an anti-inflammatory hemorrhoid cream (e.g. Preparation H) to quickly shrink those unsightly puffy bags under your eyes. Just carefully dab the roid cream on your lower eyelids (being careful not to get any in your eyes) and you will look fresh and well-rested." well, I guess you learn something new everyday.
  - bosch 16y ago
    He has some really interesting points. However, Oracle has a high corporate culture and is usually dealing with Fortune 500 companies with similar values. I think the dress code would be a lot different for hacker startups. I do agree with his point about first impressions. It's better to wear a suit and have them tell you jeans and a t-shirt are ok than show up in jeans and a t-shirt and everyone else is wearing suits!

brainsik 16y ago

This is a nice overview of the iPhone vs AT&T debacle, but the conclusion is sensationalized. It may be that Apple and Google are helping the wireless carriers reach new levels of poor service, but the reality is the carriers have never been that good. In the 10 years I've had a mobile phone, I can't think of any time when people weren't complaining about their carrier and wondering if any of the others were better. It didn't seem to matter who you were with. Like the Mutt motto: "All mobile carriers suck. This one just sucks less."

hga 16y ago
It's worth pointing out the one major relevant fact they didn't cover, that Fake Steve Jobs pointed out at the end of last year: every quarter after the first "iPhone Christmas" (4Q07, the first Christmas after the release of the first iPhone), AT&T's had lower wireless capital expenditures (capex): http://www.fakesteve.net/2009/12/att-by-the-numbers.html http://www.fakesteve.net/2009/12/att-by-the-numbers.html (through 3Q09 at least). AT&T made a conscious choice to maintain its operating and net earnings at the expense of its quality of service (something we've heard detailed bits and pieces about, e.g. insufficient backhaul, like this article's comments on the not much used in the US market chip Apple used/uses). We'll see if that was a good choice as Verizon et. al. converge on LTE along with AT&T.

bosch 16y ago

Interesting point about the Infineon chips and the cell tower distances. I wonder what advantages the Infineon chips had/

kierank 16y ago

I expected a serious article from Wired about how 3G networks promise so much but can never realistically could deliver the bandwidth consumers want along with an explanation of the reasons why. Instead I got a puff piece about twitter and people complaining with hashtags (yet again(!)) and about meetings with managers who most likely don't know or understand the issues with the network. Nobody has approached the topic of 3G network saturation in a serious manner yet. I hope someone does one day.