Blog on Charlie’s Server

Since I got the new iPhone 3G, I’ve been getting a whole ton of dropped calls. Not just the normal amount that I used to get on the old iPhone’s crappy reception, but even more weirdly so, calls would drop immediately without any warning — no silence on the other end, no garbled sound, no period of inactivity, nothing other than three maddening beeps and a “Call Failed” message on the phone. It seems that others on the Apple support forums are having the same issue and provide some insight as to what might cause it.

Now with the 3G iPhone, I cannot travel my morning/evening commute route without dropping my calls, sometimes more than once during the 15 minute commute. Checking the ATT coverage map shows that the location that I drop my calls is an area that has no 3G coverage, which is surrounded by an area of full 3G coverage. In other words, I drop calls when I travel from a 3G coverage area into an area of no 3G coverage. The problem is that the iPhone refuses to hand off the call from 3G to GSM. When the phone does switch to GSM the signal is very good, but the call has already been dropped.

This is one of the issues that I’m having, certainly, amongst others. Many have suggested that the solution is to simply turn off 3G, to which the general response — was annoyance. Though this solution does indeed work, it’s definitely not one I’m terribly thrilled about. One aggravated customer responds:

So we’re paying an extra $15 a month extra compared to the older plan and can barely use it without glitches… and you recommend shutting of 3G to make calls?

I can’t agree more, having ‘upgraded’ from a fairly well-functioning first-generation iPhone to this. Some people reported that they were able to alleviate the issues by simply restarting the phone but unfortunately this had no effect for me. It appears, however, that there’s light at the end of the tunnel! The original poster eventually took his phone back to Apple store and was given a replacement.

On my way home I decided to test the new phone, so I started a phone call while in 3G service and then drove home via the same route that I normally commute (which previously had always included 2-3 dropped calls during the 15 min commute). I was shocked that I did not drop the call the entire way home! Since then I have traveled the same route several times while on calls and still have not dropped a call. I have even watched my phone switch over to GSM while on a call!

That definitely sounds promising, so I’ll have to give it a shot. I’ll be going to the Apple store later tonight, and will post back here in a few days with the results.