iPhone problems? Could it be because AT&T doesn’t know how to configure their own network?
Many iPhone users on AT&T in the U.S. usually spend at least a small part of each day rationalizing why their coverage or network performance sucks so bad. Everything from hardware to network problems cross their minds as they desperately seek an answer. Many will claim that AT&T simply needs to add more towers as increased network load from increasingly dense cities puts an ever increasing load on each tower. But is that really the answer? Could be something as simple as an improperly configured network? Surely they must have that part down…right? Maybe not.
According to Brough Turner, a telecommunications employee since 1983, AT&T does in fact have an improperly configured network sighting examples of how ping times on AT&T are most often either really good or really bad with no real middle ground/grey area. More specifically, Brough Tuner states that “misconfigured buffers in their mobile core network” are the sole reason AT&T’s network sucks. Further supporting his hypothesis, IntoMobile states simple facts regarding population density in Shanghai whom back in 2007, had a staggering average of 13,400 people per square kilometer. That’s insane! Even still, Shanghai was only ranked as the 10th most densely populated city. Now take into account that a bulk of AT&T’s problems in the US occur in large cities where densities are sky high. Sky high on a national scale however, as globally speaking, the most densely populated U.S. city is that of Los Angeles with a paltry 2,700 people per square kilometer and a ranking of 90th place when population densities are concerned. As you can see, the problems here in the U.S. are a fraction of what China goes through, yet they somehow manage to keep their networks up and running without the ridiculous problems that plague us stateside.
So what is AT&T’s problem? It’s anybody’s guess. Does Turner’s hypothesis have any weight? Sure it does. But AT&T will deny any such issue and repeat the same “huge increase in demand line”. While true, you can only blame demand for so long before people begin questioning you as to why it’s taking so long to fix the issue at hand.
While such news is nothing new, AT&T is still standing by previous statements made in regards to iPhone tethering — that is, that the network needs further work and upgrades before such a feature can launch successfully. Other examples of needed work were seen with the delay of MMS and VoIP apps on the iPhone, though, this past month and more recently this week have seen reversals on both stalemates. Tethering still remains a locked down feature however as in plain terms, their network simply can’t handle it. It’s worth mentioning that a vauge “sometime in 2009″ statement had been heard from Big Blue as to a release time frame for iPhone tethering. Currently however, that mystery date and comment have failed to materialize into anything worthwhile physical meaning our wait goes on…
