Comments on: AT&T Wireless, terrible service in San Francisco http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/ Eric Cheng's Journal Sat, 11 Feb 2012 13:44:00 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: OahuDreaming http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3145026 OahuDreaming Fri, 04 Dec 2009 06:45:58 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3145026 <p>It’s not the iPhone. It’s the AT&T Wireless network. I live in the Bay area and the phone service here is terrible. At first I thought it was the iPhone. Prior to the iPhone, I had Verizon. So I was in Oahu last week. Got 3G coverage every where I went on the island including some remote places on the North shores. None of my phone calls were dropped. Did not get the “Call Failed” message at all for a whole week. I was able to have an hour long conversation for the first time since I bought the iPhone 2 years ago. So it’s not the iPhone that’s causing all these problems. Verizon is right. It’s the network. This is ridiculous that we’re locked to AT&T in order to use the iPhone.</p> It’s not the iPhone. It’s the AT&T Wireless network. I live in the Bay area and the phone service here is terrible. At first I thought it was the iPhone. Prior to the iPhone, I had Verizon. So I was in Oahu last week. Got 3G coverage every where I went on the island including some remote places on the North shores. None of my phone calls were dropped. Did not get the “Call Failed” message at all for a whole week. I was able to have an hour long conversation for the first time since I bought the iPhone 2 years ago. So it’s not the iPhone that’s causing all these problems. Verizon is right. It’s the network. This is ridiculous that we’re locked to AT&T in order to use the iPhone.

]]> By: echeng http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3119523 echeng Wed, 12 Aug 2009 02:51:55 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3119523 <p>The new towers have done nothing for my call quality. I've only dropped one call on my new, Verizon Blackberry. I am <em>so</em> glad I switched back. It was worth the $175 cancellation fee.</p> The new towers have done nothing for my call quality. I’ve only dropped one call on my new, Verizon Blackberry. I am so glad I switched back. It was worth the $175 cancellation fee.

]]> By: Rob http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3119522 Rob Wed, 12 Aug 2009 02:34:37 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3119522 <p>Its August 11th, 2009 and my service keeps getting worse. I live in the upper Market/Castro district of SF (intersection of Caselli & Clover.)</p> <p>I USED to have great service until 3 weeks ago. Now I can't receive a call from within my house or out front, I have to be on the back deck facing the top of 17th/Clayton and the Randal Hill Rock.</p> <p>I have an original iPhone in pristine condition (at least on the exterior), I've never dropped it and completely shut it down once a week.</p> <p>This "crap service" has happened once before for about a month, then my reception went back to... decent. Enough to not miss calls. Now I tell my friends to send me a txt and I'll try calling them back. Ridiculous. I never had dropped calls with Verizon.</p> <p>Sounds like AT&T doesn't care. Any advice? I'd love to get some money back for all the dropped calls (95%).</p> Its August 11th, 2009 and my service keeps getting worse. I live in the upper Market/Castro district of SF (intersection of Caselli & Clover.)

I USED to have great service until 3 weeks ago. Now I can’t receive a call from within my house or out front, I have to be on the back deck facing the top of 17th/Clayton and the Randal Hill Rock.

I have an original iPhone in pristine condition (at least on the exterior), I’ve never dropped it and completely shut it down once a week.

This “crap service” has happened once before for about a month, then my reception went back to… decent. Enough to not miss calls. Now I tell my friends to send me a txt and I’ll try calling them back. Ridiculous. I never had dropped calls with Verizon.

Sounds like AT&T doesn’t care. Any advice? I’d love to get some money back for all the dropped calls (95%).

]]> By: echeng http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3118579 echeng Wed, 05 Aug 2009 21:09:32 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3118579 <p>Still dropping calls. # bars unchanged, at home. Oh well.</p> Still dropping calls. # bars unchanged, at home. Oh well.

]]> By: Rick http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3118535 Rick Wed, 05 Aug 2009 13:43:12 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3118535 <p>Hi Eric - so, does coverage seem better now that you're back in San Francisco? Hope so.</p> Hi Eric – so, does coverage seem better now that you’re back in San Francisco? Hope so.

]]> By: echeng http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3118114 echeng Sun, 02 Aug 2009 04:35:07 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3118114 <p>I get home tomorrow and will make some calls to see if they go through. I just had 3 calls dropped in a row while taking to someone who lives in the Mission, but I'm in San Diego now. Who knows which side had the problem...</p> I get home tomorrow and will make some calls to see if they go through. I just had 3 calls dropped in a row while taking to someone who lives in the Mission, but I’m in San Diego now. Who knows which side had the problem…

]]> By: Rick http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3118055 Rick Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:24:45 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3118055 <p>Hi Eric. So, it's August 1st. I wonder if AT&T has installed the new tower at 4th and Howard here in San Francisco, as your research discovered. I live about four blocks from that intersection and have "full bars" on my iPhone.....maybe it's true that AT&T installed the new tower? We shall see.....curious to know what you think.</p> <ul> <li>Rick</li> </ul> Hi Eric. So, it’s August 1st. I wonder if AT&T has installed the new tower at 4th and Howard here in San Francisco, as your research discovered. I live about four blocks from that intersection and have “full bars” on my iPhone…..maybe it’s true that AT&T installed the new tower? We shall see…..curious to know what you think.

  • Rick
]]> By: AT&T: Stronger in all the Wrong Places: A "retention specialist" let slip that… http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3117183 AT&T: Stronger in all the Wrong Places: A "retention specialist" let slip that… Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:01:14 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3117183 <p>[...] A “retention specialist” let slip that AT&T expects more cellular hubs to go live la... one at 4th and Howard that broke down awhile back, and a brand new one at 5th and Shipley. That’s a small consolation to all of the exasperated iPhone users in the Haight, or in the Castro, or in parts of the Presidio, where you can’t connect to AT&T’s tin-can signal worth a damn. We’ve had our calls dropped many a time by AT&T — that early termination fee isn’t looking so bad. [Eric Cheng] [...]</p> [...] A “retention specialist” let slip that AT&T expects more cellular hubs to go live la… one at 4th and Howard that broke down awhile back, and a brand new one at 5th and Shipley. That’s a small consolation to all of the exasperated iPhone users in the Haight, or in the Castro, or in parts of the Presidio, where you can’t connect to AT&T’s tin-can signal worth a damn. We’ve had our calls dropped many a time by AT&T — that early termination fee isn’t looking so bad. [Eric Cheng] [...]

]]> By: Andy B. http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3117182 Andy B. Fri, 24 Jul 2009 20:57:34 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3117182 <p>AT&T recently told me that three new towers were coming online in SF by the end of August. I live in the Upper Haight (Waller & Clayton) and usually suffer with constantly varying signal strength between 0-3 bars, which almost always results in dropped calls. Switching off 3G dodesn't seem to help.</p> AT&T recently told me that three new towers were coming online in SF by the end of August. I live in the Upper Haight (Waller & Clayton) and usually suffer with constantly varying signal strength between 0-3 bars, which almost always results in dropped calls. Switching off 3G dodesn’t seem to help.

]]> By: echeng http://echeng.com/journal/2009/07/19/att-wireless-terrible-service-in-san-francisco/comment-page-1/#comment-3116649 echeng Mon, 20 Jul 2009 06:16:17 +0000 http://echeng.com/journal/?p=2940#comment-3116649 <p>More AT&T loveliness. Trying to login to AT&T website gets me:</p> <p>"L115: We're sorry, but we are experiencing a temporary system error that prevents us from retrieving your account information. Please try again later."</p> <p>3rd time in 2 days that I've received an error upon trying to login.</p> <p>AT&T is making this really hard because they lowered their Blackberry plan price to $30. I'm on a family plan, so my total cost is $40. If I switch to Verizon, the cost will be $79.99 (450 minutes + domestic Blackberry) + $5 for 250 text messages. That's $45 more per month, which is pretty serious. I hate AT&T enough to *really* want to pull the trigger on bailing out on them, but it might not be worth $45/month.</p> More AT&T loveliness. Trying to login to AT&T website gets me:

“L115: We’re sorry, but we are experiencing a temporary system error that prevents us from retrieving your account information. Please try again later.”

3rd time in 2 days that I’ve received an error upon trying to login.

AT&T is making this really hard because they lowered their Blackberry plan price to $30. I’m on a family plan, so my total cost is $40. If I switch to Verizon, the cost will be $79.99 (450 minutes + domestic Blackberry) + $5 for 250 text messages. That’s $45 more per month, which is pretty serious. I hate AT&T enough to *really* want to pull the trigger on bailing out on them, but it might not be worth $45/month.

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