[PCWorld]

Post your comments for AT&T's Many Missed IPhone Opportunities here

[Yoni]

*{size:10pt}AT&T's Many Missed
iPhone Opportunities = iPhone missed one-third of its functionality because of
AT&T. {size}*





Facts:





*AT&T's
network can't truly withstand the iPhone or its user*.





AT&Tenforces 30 dollars data plan on every iPhone because it is a
"multimedia" phone. Ironically, AT&T blocks features such as MMS
and tethering in a service they have been charging for since day one. If *customers
pay $30 for 5GB per month data plan to have access to the internet by using
thier 3G networks* they shouldn't block these people from using the service,
INCLUDING tethering within the 5GB data plan limit the customer pays for. If
AT&T can't truly support the iPhone why are they allow to false advertise
and charge for a service they can't simply provide. Isn't AT&T liable for this
nonsense and arbitrarily?





*AT&T
has no respect for their loyal customers and they don't seem to change over
time*.





Good
luck upgrading to the new iPhone 3G S. AT&T amazes me every time they
come up with this - "ideas"? No wonder why customers tend to dislike
this company so much.





*APPLE
is being careless about their customers as well*.





Apple
knows that AT&T's network is incapable of handling iPhone's demand
still they continue to lock the device with this sub-standards company. Apple
is getting a healthy chunk of money for every sold iPhone and not caring for
what's happening afterwards - Not a good thing, Apple. iPhone owners are the
same enthusiasts that go to the Apple store and buy a Mac, extended warranty
services, accessories, music, movies and what not. What's going on!? Why
nothing is being done for a change we all want!? How about removing AT&T's
exclusivity to the iPhone so we can have some real competition? Simply because
AT&T has wider international covertures doesn't mean they are better - they
are actually worst in many scenarios. Sorry Steve, I don't buy it this time.
And don't forget we pay for the iPhone because it is "Apple's phone".


The
iPhone is a revolutionary device. It is changing the way people look at phones
but it is handcuffed to the dinosaur era for a company like AT&T -
Look around and tell me about any company in US that hasn't support MMS
for the last 10 years.


Why
it is that AT&T allows users to send and receive MMS with other phones and
blocks iPhone owners from doing so? I have no sympathy for AT&T. Are they
liable for incompetence, false advertisement and abusive policies? Shouldn't we do something about it?

[smax013]

Yoni said:

Apple
knows that AT&T's network is incapable of handling iPhone's demand
still they continue to lock the device with this sub-standards company. Apple
is getting a healthy chunk of money for every sold iPhone and not caring for
what's happening afterwards - Not a good thing, Apple. iPhone owners are the
same enthusiasts that go to the Apple store and buy a Mac, extended warranty
services, accessories, music, movies and what not. What's going on!? Why
nothing is being done for a change we all want!? How about removing AT&T's
exclusivity to the iPhone so we can have some real competition? Simply because
AT&T has wider international covertures doesn't mean they are better - they
are actually worst in many scenarios. Sorry Steve, I don't buy it this time.
And don't forget we pay for the iPhone because it is "Apple's phone".

And I suppose it has nothing to do with the fact that Apple has a binding contract with AT&T that grants AT&T exclusive rights to the iPhone for now. But, then who cares about pesky little things like contracts and agreement when we should be able to do whatever we want, whenever we want no matter what was previously agreed to.

:)

[TechieXP]

And both companys should honor said contract. If a company is charging you for features you can't use that is wrong. They should charge a lower price to compensate for lose in functionality. How can you charge everybody the same if they are giving you less. If you went to a gas pump and you found out it gave you less gas, yet charged you the full price...wouldn't you bitch?
The reason ATT is getting away with it, is bec no one is complaining enough. But lets turn the tables...let MSFT do it and see what happens.

[smax013]

TechieXP said:

And both companys should honor said contract. If a company is charging you for features you can't use that is wrong. They should charge a lower price to compensate for lose in functionality. How can you charge everybody the same if they are giving you less. If you went to a gas pump and you found out it gave you less gas, yet charged you the full price...wouldn't you bitch?

The reason ATT is getting away with it, is bec no one is complaining enough. But lets turn the tables...let MSFT do it and see what happens.

In what way is AT&T charging you for features you cannot use? When has AT&T EVER said that iPhone plans included MMS or tethering (assume those are the features you are talking about)? Every iPhone customer bought an iPhone and signed the two year contract with that information known in advance (if they did not know, that is there fault for not educating themselves prior to buying). If you do not like that, then do not buy an iPhone and instead get a phone that AT&T did support tethering and MMS on.

Is it crappy and potentially a money grab by AT&T? You betcha. I will not disagree in the least that lack of MMS and tethering on an iPhone is crappy when other AT&T phones have those features. AT&T's claim that they cannot support MMS or tethering is largely crap...but you also cannot ignore the facts that iPhone users then to use more bandwidth than other smartphone users (there are studies showing that...and it does make sense...the iPhone was the first smart phone that was more of an iPod phone that a tradional smart phone...i.e. mainly for email, contacts, calendars, etc...aka more business oriented). As such, it is entirely possible that AT&T knows that allowing MMS and tethering would bring their network to their knees and thus wnat a little more time to make network upgrades. Of course, there is also the fact that Apple did not include tethering or MMS support in the iPhone OS until yesterday with the iPhone 3.0 software...thus, Apple deserves part of the blame (since we can never really know if AT&T forced Apple into that position or not, I will lump the blame on them both).

And why do you always have to make everything about Microsoft? Microsoft has nothing to do with this. Contrary to your belief, not everything is about Microsoft.