etc: AT&T has fared much better in PCWorld’s latest round of 3G data tests, topping the charts even when using and iPhone. Data speeds and reliability all improved significantly.
AT&T has fared much better in PCWorld’s latest round of 3G data tests, topping the charts even when using and iPhone. Data speeds and reliability all improved significantly.
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PCWorld
How smartphones are bogging down some wireless carriers
It’s no secret that the iPhone has taxed AT&T’s network in densely populated areas, especially New York and San Francisco. Reports of problems using iPhones at major tech conferences, like SXSWi, Macworld Expo, CES, and NAMM are not unusual. The iPhone’s ease of use and focus on mobile media generally lead to higher data usage on average, but despite claims by AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega, the amount of data being consumed is rarely the problem. The issue has to do with how modern smartphones—beginning with the iPhone—save power by disconnecting from the network whenever possible.
Even though AT&T has made improvements to its network over the last couple of years—including moving towers to an 850MHz spectrum that can more easily penetrate building walls, as well as upgrading to faster 7.2Mbps HSPA+ protocols—those improvements have done little to stem the tide of complaints from consumers in larger urban areas. Those users experience frequent dropped calls and an inability to make data connections, and in general they feel that service is spotty.
etc: Apple has bumped its 3G download limit from 10MB to 20MB. This applies to apps, music, podcasts, and more. What does this mean for AT&T’s clogged network, though?
Apple has bumped its 3G download limit from 10MB to 20MB. This applies to apps, music, podcasts, and more. What does this mean for AT&T’s clogged network, though?
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Macworld
etc: The new, 3G-compatible SlingPlayer Mobile is now available on the App Store. After what seems like an infinite wait, Sling users can finally stream video over AT&T’s network.
The new, 3G-compatible SlingPlayer Mobile is now available on the App Store. After what seems like an infinite wait, Sling users can finally stream video over AT&T’s network.
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App Store, Ars past coverage
Sling: We didn’t ‘work’ with AT&T for 3G streaming to iPhone (Updated)
AT&T made headlines Thursday by announcing that it had decided to allow SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone to stream video from a Slingbox over its 3G network. AT&T’s CEO claimed in the announcement that Sling Media modified the app to be more efficient on its network, but Sling has responded, saying it didn’t have to change much of anything.
“Sling Media was willing to work with us to revise the app to make it more bandwidth sensitive,” AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega said in a statement early on Thursday morning. “They made important changes to more efficiently use 3G network bandwidth and conserve wireless spectrum so that we were able to support the app on our 3G mobile broadband network.”
AT&T said that it plans to “provide developers with wireless network optimization requirements for video and other applications by the end of the first quarter.” AT&T wouldn’t comment on what those requirements were, but a spokesperson for Sling Media contacted Ars this afternoon to clarify what the company had changed in the software.
Sling Media’s John Santoro told Ars that no fundamental changes were required. “AT&T never discussed any specific requirements with us.”
Santoro explained that SlingPlayer Mobile has always contained code to adapt the stream quality to the given network conditions. AT&T has been in discussions with Sling since the app was first released last year, but AT&T never asked the company to make any specific modifications. However, the code has been continually improved, and Sling was able to successfully demonstrate that SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone would not have a negative impact on other wireless customers.
AT&T may have merely been concerned that if SlingPlayer Mobile became popular that it could tax its network—already a problem that customers often complain about. de la Vega recently blamed the problem on a very small percentage of “heavy” users, mostly iPhone users with an appetite for video, audio, and other media. But that hasn’t stopped the company from adding numerous data hungry devices, like e-book readers, Android-based smartphones, and even the iPad. Nor has it stopped other apps that stream video over 3G, such as Ustream, from being rejected. The company has announced a number of network upgrades intended to increase overall capacity, so it may have less concerns about SlingPlayer Mobile specifically.
“Whatever the reason, we’re just glad AT&T has approved it,” Santoro told Ars. “We’re just waiting for Apple’s OK, now.” The revised app has been submitted, but has not yet been approved for the App Store.
UPDATE: Sling Media general manager John Gilmore contacted Ars to clarify the working relationship between Sling and AT&T.
“We actually have been working very intensively with AT&T to get the 3G streaming approved,” Gilmore told Ars. “Over the course of the last couple of months, they have been testing the app in their labs.”
Gilmore said that AT&T was able to determine that SlingPlayer Mobile wouldn’t significantly impact network performance after extensive testing. “We always felt comfortable that that wasn’t the case,” he told Ars. “As we built our relationship with AT&T, we were able to prove to them that our app wouldn’t cause a negative customer impact. We always felt that our app was a ‘good network citizen.’”
When asked what code changes AT&T wanted, if any, Gilmore verified that no specific changes were made at AT&T’s request. He did say, however, that the 3G streaming code has had some improvements over the course of the last several months due to general code optimization. “We want to make sure that we constantly improve how our app uses network resources.”
Sling: We didn’t ‘work’ with AT&T for 3G streaming to iPhone
AT&T made headlines Thursday by announcing that it had decided to allow SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone to stream video from a Slingbox over its 3G network. AT&T’s CEO claimed in the announcement that Sling Media modified the app to be more efficient on its network, but Sling has responded, saying it didn’t have to change a thing.
“Sling Media was willing to work with us to revise the app to make it more bandwidth sensitive,” AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega said in a statement early on Thursday morning. “They made important changes to more efficiently use 3G network bandwidth and conserve wireless spectrum so that we were able to support the app on our 3G mobile broadband network.”
AT&T said that it plans to “provide developers with wireless network optimization requirements for video and other applications by the end of the first quarter.” AT&T wouldn’t comment on what those requirements were, but a spokesperson for Sling Media contacted Ars this afternoon to clarify what the company had changed in the software.
“We didn’t change anything,” Sling Media’s John Santoro told Ars. “AT&T never discussed any specific requirements with us.”
Santoro explained that SlingPlayer Mobile has always contained code to adapt the stream quality to the given network conditions. AT&T has been in discussions with Sling since it was first released last year, but AT&T never asked the company to make specific modifications. No changes were made to the app’s 3G streaming capabilities between its being barred from AT&T and now.
AT&T may have merely been concerned that if SlingPlayer Mobile became popular that it could tax its network—already a problem that customers often complain about. de la Vega recently blamed the problem on a very small percentage of “heavy” users, mostly iPhone users with an appetite for video, audio, and other media. But that hasn’t stopped the company from adding numerous data hungry devices, like e-book readers, Android-based smartphones, and even the iPad. The company has announced a number of network upgrades intended to increase capacity, so it may have less concerns about SlingPlayer Mobile specifically.
“Whatever the reason, we’re just glad AT&T has approved it,” Santoro told Ars. “We’re just waiting for Apple’s OK, now.” The revised app has been submitted, but has not yet been approved for the App Store.
Sling reduces 3G bandwidth use enough to make AT&T happy
After stripping SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone of its 3G streaming capabilities last year, AT&T has changed course and “approved” a version of the app with 3G streaming for sale in the App Store. Key to the reversal were changes that Sling Media made to make bandwidth use more efficient over 3G connections.
It took almost a year and a half for Sling to bring SlingPlayer Mobile to the App Store, and many users were disappointed when the app arrived without 3G streaming capabilities. AT&T cited a clause in its terms of service that prohibited “redirecting a TV signal to a personal computer,” noting that it considered the iPhone a personal computer.
Apple opens up VoIP over 3G, finally
Good news came today for iPhone users who enjoy unlimited data plans, but often find themselves running low on minutes. According to two different developer accounts, Apple has lifted the ban on transmitting voice over IP traffic across the AT&T 3G network.
According to a press release published by VoIP company iCall (hat tip to Engadget), Apple’s release of the updated iPhone developer SDK made it possible for iCall to enable VoIP over 3G. The release of the 3.2 SDK yesterday was iPad only, though some expect this functionality to spill over into the iPhone. fring, makers of the another VoIP iPhone application, has confirmed that the restriction has been lifted. It, too, has an updated application (hat tip to Slashdot) available for download that makes use of the AT&T 3G network.
You may remember back in October when AT&T changed its stance regarding iPhone VoIP traffic on its network. This, of course, was after the FCC began an investigation into Google Voice rejections in early August. There are currently two developers with updated VoIP applications that we are aware of, but it seems likely that more will follow in the weeks to come.
What is peculiar about this situation is the wording in iCall’s press release stating that an updated SDK was responsible for the change. It seems more likely that Apple simply changed the wording of some of its developer agreements, making it kosher for developers to make the changes. However, if that’s all it took, why did Apple wait so long before opening up the floodgates?
etc: Is AT&T’s beleaguered network up for the iPad? The wireless giant says yes, touting its "aggressive plan" to handle the traffic.
Is AT&T’s beleaguered network up for the iPad? The wireless giant says yes, touting its “aggressive plan” to handle the traffic.
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New York Times
Brief: AT&T dancing around mysterious New York iPhone issue (Updated)
A peculiar website notice suggests that AT&T may be blocking New Yorkers from ordering iPhones online because New York isn’t “ready for the iPhone,” though the device currently remains available from brick-and-mortar stores. To make matters worse, AT&T seems to be dancing around the issue without offering a clear explanation for the decision.
The story started with a reader contacting the Consumerist, claiming that AT&T’s website would not let him buy an iPhone when he entered a New York area ZIP code for his location. Consumerist verified that customers entering a range of metro-area ZIP codes were being blocked from ordering iPhones (though incidentally, San Francisco ZIP codes work just fine). A customer service representative verified that this was the case, explaining that the network couldn’t handle the iPhone.
“Yes, this is correct the phone is not offered to you because New York is not ready for the iPhone,” the AT&T customer service rep told Consumerist. “You don’t have enough towers to handle the phone.”
We checked with our contacts at AT&T to verify the situation and asked for an explanation, though we didn’t get much. “We periodically modify our promotions and distribution channels,” AT&T spokesperson Seth Bloom told Ars. However, he said, “the iPhone is available in our New York retail stores and those of our partners.” We verified that New York-area Apple Stores are also not affected by this change; customers with New York-area ZIP codes can still sign up for service there as well.
AT&T has admitted that its networks in New York and San Francisco aren’t quite up to snuff and can’t seem to handle the increased data traffic from iPhones and other smartphones as well as they should. Blocking online orders while still selling them at retail, however, doesn’t seem like it would help much if it is indeed the case that the network is the cause. A rash of online fraud from the New York area has also been blamed for the decision, though AT&T would not confirm this with us. If that were the cause, why wouldn’t AT&T just say so? Customers are usually understanding about issues like this when companies offer a reasonable explanation.
Whatever the reason for the block, New Yorkers wanting to get a new iPhone will have to do so in person for the time being.
UPDATE: It appears that the restriction on ordering iPhones online for New York ZIP codes has been lifted just as mysteriously as it appeared this past weekend. We tried a few ZIP codes ourselves just to be sure, and we weren’t able to get the warning that was being generated earlier today.
