AT&T Is Said to Have Exposed iPad Owners’ E-Mail Addresses
– New York Times totally non-commital headline (said to have exposed), referring to what may be a very serious story. Why cover it at all if you have no clue as to its true import?
Tag Archives: AT&T
Engadget reports original iPhone exclusivity deal was 5 years
Engadget is reporting today that the orignal 2007 deal granting AT&T exclusivity to the iPhone was indeed five years.
The question is whether that deal has been amended.
Bad (or no) video on iPad using 3G
iLounge is reporting that streaming video over 3G on the newly released iPad 3G is very down-sampled (i.e., crappy) over 3G. Even worse, some apps (like ABC’s otherwise excellent app) simply will not work over 3G.
To me, this is a very big drawback of the device or, more properly, a horrible limitation on data use imposed by AT&T. No wonder AT&T doesn’t require a plan and only charges $30/month for this limited plan. With my wi-fi iPad, and my Sprint 3G mi-fi card, I can stream full resolution video. Yes, it costs $60/month for the data plan but I get full use of the iPad. The iPad is, at its core, a media consumption device. If streaming media only works acceptably via wi-fi, then Steve Job’s “magical and revolutionary” device is neither magical or revolutionary. Why wasn’t this limitation clearly disclosed before the device went on sale?
Apple simply must move to a provider in the United States capable of delivering the data services necessary to fully support the iPad platform.
Tech quote of the day
What’s Apple doing? Why did Apple do this deal with these stumblebums in the first place? And, surely, such flagrantly vile service is enough to call it quits on any deal. So what gives over there at Apple? Why aren’t they suing AT&T and making the iPhone an open network device? Steve Jobs is famously unsympathetic to human weakness and heartache, but AT&T is beyond normal sadism. I suppose, the great iPhone accomplishment, the test of its virtuosity, is that so many people believe they need to have one even if that means dealing with AT&T.
But enough. Come on. Please, God.
– Michael Wolf, pleading for a change on the iPhone’s US carrier (via Fake Steve Jobs)
AT&T stops iPhone sales in NYC (updated)
The Consumerist is reporting that AT&T has ceased selling iPhones on their website to NYC residents. When contacted by The Consumerist, AT&T spokesperson “Daphne” said:
Yes, this is correct the phone is not offered to you because New York is not ready for the iPhone. You don’t have enough towers to handle the phone.
Oh my. Is this an admission that AT&T’s data network is not up to the task of supporting iPhones? Who knows, but AT&T quickly changed their story. They now claim they are doing this because of “fraudulent activity” in the NYC area.
New York. The biggest city in the United States, a place where I’m told many business and finance and media type people are living, cannot have the iPhone anymore? Does it say that somewhere in AT&T’s ads? Somehow I must have missed the little asterisk after the “We’ve got the fastest 3G network” phrase — the asterisk that takes you to a little disclaimer that says, “Except your phone won’t work for shit in the largest city in the United States.”
Update: Apparently the rash of fraudsters has been quelled. New Yorkers can now buy iPhone online again.
Time for Apple to say good-bye to AT&T
When the iPhone is subject to this type of joke, a move to at least one additional carrier in the US is well overdue.
Operation Chokehold: FCC statement
Operation Chokehold has drawn the attention of the FCC. The FCC chief of public safety and homeland security:
Threats of this nature are serious and we caution the public to use common sense and good judgment when accessing the Internet from their commercial mobile devices… To purposely try to disrupt or negatively impact a network with ill-intent is irresponsible and presents a significant public safety concern.
Operation Chokehold: AT&T response
In an earlier post, I described Fake Steve Jobs call to protest AT&T’s crappy data network at 12 noon, PST, this Friday, aka Operation Chokehold. Now AT&T has responded.
We understand that fakesteve.net is primarily a satirical forum, but there is nothing amusing about advocating that customers attempt to deliberately degrade service on a network that provides critical communications services for more than 80 million customers. We know that the vast majority of customers will see this action for what it is: an irresponsible and pointless scheme to draw attention to a blog.
Fake Steve has responded to their response.
As for Chokehold, people keep asking me if I think it will succeed. My answer is that it already has. Have you seen the coverage of this thing? It’s all over Twitter. Tonight it hit the Wall Street Journal. Who knew there was so much anger out there? As far as I’m concerned, it’s mission accomplished.
I think the reason people are so angry goes beyond AT&T and the iPhone. I think the anger stems from the fact that we’re living in the United States, which used to be considered a First World country, and yet we’re dealing with a wireless system that feels like something you’d find in Port-au-Prince during hurricane season. In fact the developing world is racing past us, building out new wireless networks while we’re stuck with this POS legacy infrastructure run by POS legacy behemoths that either can’t or won’t bring it up to snuff.
I mean, consider this fact:
AT&T, a huge wireless provider in the United States, cannot reliably connect calls in New York City.
Have an iPhone? Hate AT&T?
Well, then you may want to join the party this Friday.
Fake Steve Jobs is calling for a flash mob of iPhone users to protest both AT&T’s crappy network and talk from their marketers about “incentivizing” iPhone users to use less data to protest this Friday in an attempt to bring down the AT&T data network. Check it out. Nuff said.
BTW, negative reaction is spreading already.
I am advocating no particular action. I’m just sayin’.
But I personally am not satisfied with the AT&T network and would love Apple to open up the iPhone to additional carriers in the US.
Full details at Mashable.
Apple joins the AT&T/Verizon advertising battle
Apple, as usual, prepares their own ads in response to fight going on between Verizon and AT&T over coverage. Apple, being the smartest of three, responding with a strength of the Apple/AT&T pairing: you can be on a voice call and access data at the same time on an iPhone (with AT&T). Apple knows how to play to its strength. Verizon’s CDMA technology does now allow such a functionality.
Apple iPhone Ad – Did You See My Email? from Arik Hesseldahl on Vimeo.
Apple iPhone Ad – What Time’s The Movie? from Arik Hesseldahl on Vimeo.
AT&T may have its congestion issues, but the GSM-based technology is what runs the world and AT&T is offering up a dead (or near-dead) technology as an alternative.
By the way, given the Verizon commercial showing the iPhone on the island of misfit toys, what do you think the odds are at Apple is anxious to get into bed with Verizon?
The biggest problem with the iPhone?
Hey, that’s easy. The biggest problem with the iphone is not part of the hardware or the software on the iPhone. The biggest problem is AT&T.
iPhone + AT&T = disgust
The honeymoon is over. In the US, the sole carrier for the iPhone is AT&T. Now a new phone is launched on June 19 and new software for existing phones is released on June 17. How does AT&T position itself to feel the love (and the profits) from the new features/functionality? First, they announce that existing owners of the iPhone 3G can upgrade to version of the 3G S for the low, low customer loyalty prices: $699 (32GB), $599 (16GB), and $499 (8GB). This compares to $299, $199, and $99 for new AT&T customers. Screw that.
Then, MMS messaging and tethering are not even going to be offered by AT&T until “later this summer” and tethering prices have not yet been announced.
All this adds up to one thing: Apple must drop AT&T as its US carrier ASAP.
It was even apparent during the keynote yesterday that Apple sounds pretty disgusted with how far behind AT&T is dragging them. Notice the absence of any AT&T personnel on stage. Had AT&T been on the ball to begin with, it most likely would have taken center stage — boasting about all the improvements that would garner shiny new services for iPhone users and more money for the corporate coffers. But it didn’t, and the tension coming from Apple during the moments when MMS and Tethering were announced was pretty tangible. Apple had all of these features that people have been begging for ready to go, and now Cupertino is forced to wait for AT&T to finish twiddling its thumbs and do what it should have done two years ago. I wouldn’t even be surprised if AT&T somehow found a way to block copy/paste!
iPhone + AT&T = disgust
The honeymoon is over. In the US, the sole carrier for the iPhone is AT&T. Now a new phone is launched on June 19 and new software for existing phones is released on June 17.\’a0 How does AT&T position itself to feel the love (and the profits) from the new features/functionality? First, they announce that existing owners of the iPhone 3G can upgrade to version of the 3G S for the low, low customer loyalty prices: $699 (32GB), $599 (16GB), and $499 (8GB).\’a0 This compares to $299, $199, and $99 for new AT&T customers. Screw that.
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Then, MMS messaging and tethering are not even going to be offered by AT&T until “later this summer” and tethering prices have not yet been announced.
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All this adds up to one thing: Apple must drop AT&T as its US carrier ASAP.
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It was even apparent during the keynote yesterday that Apple sounds pretty disgusted with how far behind AT&T is dragging them. Notice the absence of any AT&T personnel on stage. Had AT&T been on the ball to begin with, it most likely would have taken center stage — boasting about all the improvements that would garner shiny new services for iPhone users and more money for the corporate coffers. But it didn’t, and the tension coming from Apple during the moments when MMS and Tethering were announced was pretty tangible. Apple had all of these features that people have been begging for ready to go, and now Cupertino is forced to wait for AT&T to finish twiddling its thumbs and do what it should have done two years ago. I wouldn’t even be surprised if AT&T somehow found a way to block copy/paste!