Fuck You, AT&T. That’s the scream of the internet. Dropped calls, no data connection even with full bars, spotty coverage, collapsed networks in big cities… it’s a huge clusterfuck of customer rage. That’s why people are crying for the Verizon iPhone.
Every time Apple releases an iPhone we get the same reaction: A horde foaming at the mouth asking for a Verizon version. Why? Unanimously: Because AT&T service sucks. And I agree. It sucks. Quoting Giz alumnus Mark Wilson: “Having an iPhone with AT&T is like having a Ferrari in a big city. You never know what it is really capable of.” And it’s true. My experience with AT&T has been generally bad. Very bad voice quality and crappy data access in any busy area in New York City. I’m ready to switch to Verizon, although I will hold it until the new iPhone 5 comes out.
It’s yet to be seen how this clamour translates in people switching from AT&T to Verizon when the new iPhone 4 comes out in February, but I’m sure AT&T are not very comfortable about it, despite Ralph de la Vega’s words to the WSJ: “We are ready for it. The short- and long-term viability of AT&T will be good whether we have exclusivity or not. We are much bigger than this.”
Maybe you are, Ralph. Or maybe the impact would be a lot greater than you think, judging by your customers’ complains. Or maybe you would get lucky and, once the updated iPhone 4 hits, Verizon’s network would collapse into a steaming pile of donkey excrement. We will discover what happens soon.
Video by Jesse Quijote