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News

Apple Sued Over Lousy 3G Performance
Posted 08/21/2008 at 1:24:11pm | by Susie Ochs

Go wake up the lawyers—Apple is facing a lawsuit over the "defective iPhone 3G," brought by an Alabama resident named Jessica Alena Smith.

Smith bought an iPhone 3G but has experienced slower-than-expected data-transfer speeds and "an inordinate amount of dropped calls," according to the complaint, which she hopes will be granted class-action status. It should be noted that Smith lives in Birmingham, which has excellent 3G coverage according to AT&T.

map

This is AT&T's 3G coverage map for the Birmingham, Alabama, area. This is voice coverage; the map for 3G data coverage looked virtually identical. (Click image to embiggen)

The lawsuit alleges that the problems experienced by some iPhone owners flies in the face of Apple's "Twice as fast for half the price" marketing mantra, and that Apple "was and continues to be unjustly enriched at the expense of Plaintiff and Class members." The suit asks that Apple repair or replace any defective iPhone 3G units, as well as pay damages, interest on the damages, and attorney's fees. (Read the complaint here.)

If you recall, Steve Jobs (allegedly) emailed an iPhone owner earlier this week acknowledging connectivity issues with the iPhone 3G and saying the company was "working on some bugs, which affect around 2% of the iPhones shipped, and hope to have a software update soon."

And thus came the iPhone 2.0.2 firmware update, which Apple vaguely claimed includes "bug fixes," but is it truly the fix we're waiting for? For some people, not so much: The editor-in-chief of Ars Technica, for example, couldn't even make phone calls on the 3G network after installing the 2.0.2 update, and elsewhere on the Internet we're seeing similar complaints.

How's your iPhone 3G working? Have you turned off 3G and decided to stick to the slower but seemingly more reliable EDGE network? If this lawsuit is granted class-action status, would you consider joining the class? Do you believe Possibly Steve, that Apple will fix it and everything will be fine? Chime in below, in the comments section!

 

COMMENTS: 9
TAGS:  Lawsuit, Smith v. Apple
COMMENTS
avatarI don't see why people are

Submitted by jdemp on Thu, 2008-08-21 10:55

I don't see why people are suing Apple over poor 3G, I have had no problems with it, I live in Austin and average 3 to 4 times edge speed

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avatarthats stupid

Submitted by maclua on Thu, 2008-08-21 11:00

when apple started the marketing campaign the said that speeds may vary

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avatarI agree this lawsuit IS stupid

Submitted by Loup407 on Thu, 2008-08-21 11:15

I've turned my 3G off, as it shows zero bars no matter where I am (also during recent travels). There are more than a few disclaimers in most of the propaganda/advertising I've seen; and anyone who takes advertising claims at face value is in for a sad life of disappointment. I expect that we'll see, in due time, a version 2.1 or 2.2 that will deal with this. As a veteran early adaptor; I think anyone who buys early should expect some bumpy roads.

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avatarClass Action

Submitted by xybernaut on Thu, 2008-08-21 12:18

Where do I sign up for suing Apple. They are rotten and mean, delivering a cell phone that only works as good as the service provider. 3G reception MAY be your culprit, if so I want to sue AT&T, T-Mobile and every other rotten mean person who would dare to interfere with my god given right to enjoy cell telephones.

I also want to sue every person who is so important they use a cell phone while they eat, go to the bathroom and/or drive.

The incessant ringtones and the endless days of people seemingly speaking to YOU while funny things are stuck in their head, are making me just a bit edgy.

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avatarI'm in Birmingham

Submitted by SteveO on Thu, 2008-08-21 13:35

I live in Birmingham.

Aside from the first hour of activation (which made me nervous because several calls dropped right after I drove out of the store) I haven't really had any problems.

I even live down in a hole where reception is difficult, but I still get reception at home.

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avatarIn Chicago from downtown to the burbs...

Submitted by Groid on Fri, 2008-08-22 00:40

...and the 3G is inconsistent even though the whole area is blue as blue gets on the coverage map. By comparison, no matter where I was on my Sprint phone and no matter where my gf is on her Verizon phone do we have issues like this.

I'm an Apple Fanboy as much as the next person...but it's getting rather silly.

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avatar(Click image to embiggen)

Submitted by headhunter66 on Fri, 2008-08-22 03:17

 (Click image to embiggen)

This little zinger right here made me laugh today. Being in Afghanistan, an unexpected laugh is always welcome. As for the iPhone issues, we don't hear much about them here on Bagram. My wife however has an iPhone in Clarksville, TN and says it is working fine. Thanks for the chuckle. Dave

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avatarWhat now, upgraders? :-)

Submitted by zorg86 on Sun, 2008-08-24 19:56

I've heard the problem attributed to a faulty communications chip. To be more specific, it's the 3G amplifier. This is backed up by the fact that a lot of people's iPhones drop calls when switching between EDGE and 3G. A few people at school are having similar issues. However, I'm loving my decision to buy an OG iPhone from someone with a 3G. No problems, satisfactory data speed, and better battery life. Who has the more advanced phone? (The 3G one that drops calls, or the OG on that actually works.) Regardless, I'm sure Apple will fix the issue, however, if it turns out to be a hardware issue, it'l take a while. No one likes a recall. Look out for plenty of software updates soon.

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avatarhello!?!

Submitted by photogirl333 on Wed, 2008-08-27 05:36

Shouldn't she sue AT&T??? Afterall, it's THEIR map showing coverage, NOT Apple's. Some people aren't playing with a full deck of cards...

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