West Texas left out of AT&T's 3G network
Category: Tech...
Posted Wednesday, July 09, 2008 at 03:48 PM [GMT-6]

My wife and I are kicking around the idea of getting iPhones once our contract with Alltel expires in September. The recent announcements of the "new and improved" (and cheaper) iPhones are making them hard to resist, and one of the big selling points is that they'll be able to access the faster 3G data network.

In his comparison of the new and old versions of the phone, the Wall Street Journal's Walter Mossberg found the 3G network provided download speeds that were 4-5 times faster than the old EDGE network used by the first iPhone iteration. But there's a catch that I hadn't considered: AT&T's 3G network coverage is limited.

In fact, in Texas it appears that the company drew a line down I-35 and decreed that no one west of that line would have 3G (Fort Worth is close enough that it doesn't qualify as an exception). The list of cities with AT&T 3G service is found here.

Since the new phones can still use EDGE if 3G isn't available, and since their WiFi capabilities aren't affected, this may not be a deal killer for us. And 3G coverage is inevitable; the question is simply, "when?" But one does chafe a bit to think that AT&T has increased its data service plan fee by $10 per month, presumably as a "3G premium," and we don't get any immediate benefit in our area.

I guess it could be worse. The entire state of Alaska has been left out, along with both Dakotas.

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Comments

I see no compelling reason to upgrade... but I'll admit part of me wants to and is chanting "Destiny... destiny... no escaping destiny!"

Still, I think I'll resist at least until 3G's available out here.

Posted by: Kelly at July 9, 2008 04:00 PM

I'll bet Igor (pronounced "eye-gore," of course) has an iPhone.

Posted by: Eric at July 9, 2008 04:10 PM

Not only that, but if you hear horses whinnying madly in the theater next time you go you'll know Frau Blucher forgot to put hers on vibrate again.

Posted by: Kelly at July 9, 2008 04:33 PM

Man, I'm not touching that one with a ten-foot pole. ;-)

Posted by: Eric at July 9, 2008 04:35 PM

Whats funny is if you look at the coverage map you will see that the area around Victoria is covered...

My little area here in Port Lavaca has only cable broadband for fast connections and no WiFi site in the area...

Heck I just might get an iPhone because of the service in my area...

Posted by: jerry at July 9, 2008 09:21 PM

It will be a matter of time before we'll get 3g out here, in the mean time you can enjoy the GPS and all the new apps that will be coming out. The iPhone will be the next gaming platform with more processing power than the PSP, so thats something to look forward to. Now if they would only add voice dialing like my old Nokia.

Posted by: Bleu at July 9, 2008 10:21 PM

Jerry, if by "WiFi site in the area" you're referring to a wireless ISP like ClearWire, that's not really relevant to the iPhone's capabilities. Its ability to access WiFi means that it can connect to any standard wireless home or public network (unless prevented by security measures).

Bleu, those other features do indeed constitute a "tipping point" that make the iPhone attractive enough to consider switching, even without 3G. But like you, we'll miss the voice dialing, which is an inscrutable omission.

Posted by: Eric at July 10, 2008 06:41 AM
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