iPhone suffering from flawed 3G chips?
updated 04:50 pm EDT, Tue August 12, 2008
Flawed 3G chip in iPhone?
Issues with the 3G reception on the iPhone -- currently the subject of a second major thread on Apple's support forums -- may be traceable back to the manufacturer of the chip, an analyst suggests. Richard Windsor of Nomura Securities argues that "these issues are typical of an immature chipset and radio protocol stack," and that the blame may lie with Infineon, makers of the 3G chipset. While Infineon is experienced, problems may in theory exist either with quality control or with adapting to the unique requirements of the iPhone.
Windsor notes that if problems can be traced to the chipset, they are unlikely to be solvable through a firmware update, which may force Apple to recall a portion of iPhones for fixing or replacement.
Complaints about 3G service are varied, including issues such as poor reception in general, and calls dropping with 3G on, but not when the technology is forcibly disabled. The 3G chip may in fact be causing interference, as some iPhone owners are are reporting automatic improvements in voice reception once 3G is off.
I happens every time
08/12, 06:04pm reply
This is what happens to people when they buy the newest and greatest thing. There is always a chance of getting the 1st gen bugs, and while this is a 2nd gen iPhone, it is a 1st gen 3G chipset.
Simple solution to these headaches...buy at least one generation back and let others be the beta testers.
Simplify your life.
lamewing
Forum Regular
Joined: Aug 2004
ATT Network capacity
08/12, 07:13pm reply
This is not a hardware issue. Many Canadians including myself had similar problems for a few days in Canada a day or two after the iPhone launch. My problems went away without having to change out my iPhone or swap my SIM.
Fido was able to fix the network capacity issue and I'm getting great voice and data reception throughout the city where I live and work.
aristotles
Senior User
Joined: Jul 2004
ATT Network capacity
08/12, 07:40pm reply
I agree with the previous reply, seems to be an issue with AT&T's network capacity. Got my iPhone 3G last Friday, works great where I live (Brooklyn, NY), consistently good network speed (approx 1.5Mbps), no complains here. Manhattan though, where I work, is a whole different story. I work in midtown, and when I get there early in the morning, it's still quite snappy, but later during the day, it's getting real bad, and 3G service is becoming entirely unusable in the afternoon.
msewtz
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2008
Manhattan
08/12, 11:20pm reply
I kept thinking something went wrong with my iPhone 3G this weekend (was on vacation in Manhattan), but my wife's and daughter's original iPhones are also suffering from pathetic speeds. Meanwhile, they seem to work fine in Jersey, PA and Wilmington, DE.
AT&T have some work to do.
Cadaver
Addicted to MacNN
Joined: Jan 2003
Portland, OR
08/13, 01:39am reply
My new 3G... hmmm, When I am at home (Vancouver, WA) or work (Portland Int'l Airport) my phone thinks I am in Houston, TX. When I turn 3G off and re-locate, it comes up correctly. Also, when 3G is on I get 1 bar, lots of dropped calls / no network. The only time the phone works as purchased is when I am in downtown Portland, not standing inside any building.... AT&T and Apple are both blaming each other, and I am still being force to pay 10$ more for a part of the phone I regularly keep turned off.
Guest
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 1999
Portland, OR
08/13, 01:40am reply
My new 3G... hmmm, When I am at home (Vancouver, WA) or work (Portland Int'l Airport) my phone thinks I am in Houston, TX. When I turn 3G off and re-locate, it comes up correctly. Also, when 3G is on I get 1 bar, lots of dropped calls / no network. The only time the phone works as purchased is when I am in downtown Portland, not standing inside any building.... AT&T and Apple are both blaming each other, and I am still being force to pay 10$ more for a part of the phone I regularly keep turned off.
Guest
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 1999
Portland, OR
08/13, 01:40am reply
My new 3G... hmmm, When I am at home (Vancouver, WA) or work (Portland Int'l Airport) my phone thinks I am in Houston, TX. When I turn 3G off and re-locate, it comes up correctly. Also, when 3G is on I get 1 bar, lots of dropped calls / no network. The only time the phone works as purchased is when I am in downtown Portland, not standing inside any building.... AT&T and Apple are both blaming each other, and I am still being force to pay 10$ more for a part of the phone I regularly keep turned off.
Guest
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 1999
This is why
08/13, 09:41am reply
You can pry the 2G out of my cold, dead hands.
ibugv4
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jun 2003
Not Just Hardware
08/13, 09:48am reply
There may or may not be a problem with the 3G chip/radio, but there is definitely a software or service problem in the U.S. I have a 1st gen phone that was fine running 1.1.4, but after the 2.0 update, tower handoff started to be a problem. 2.0.1 improved things, but there are still some reception/handoff problems that did not exist before 2.0.
Guest
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 1999
to the first post
08/13, 10:29pm reply
need I remind you, 3G is not a new technology, AND this IS a second generation iPhone.
Roehlstation
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2001