Verizon goes after Sprint's 'most dependable 3G network' ad claim
By Nilay Patel 
posted November 24th 2009 7:21PM
posted November 24th 2009 7:21PM
posted November 24th 2009 7:21PM
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wow. if they would just make Engadgets' posts their commercials, verizon would make at&t just look more silly
@brandoshido
We have the same avatar!...small world
you must've copied mine...
@brandoshido
so since he made your avatar his, does that make him just look more silly?
so Verizon has less dropped calls and that makes their 3G coverage more reliable? correct me if im wrong but im pretty sure phone reliability has nothing to do with 3G dependability.
Here, I'm correcting you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_phone_signal
i don't really get it. what does 3G have to do with phone service? im on AT&T and i have no problem with phone calls but the 3G is crap. i don't see how one relates to the other.
On Verizon, all calls are completed through the 3G network, AT&T does calls over EDGE when 3G is spotty or unavailable.
If you don't have any signal for phone calls, you probably don't have 3G either...
gotcha. thanks.
@shamusl Actually they aren't. All calls are done over CDMA 1xRTT, which is a 2G network technology. EvDo is Data Only, as the acronym implies.
@kojo87.yes and no. it is possible for a good phone to switch off between 3g and whatever without dropping the call. so that does up the 'reliability' a bit.
the other catch is that one carrier might be the most reliable here but over there it's the other guy and over there it's the other other guy. so perhaps what they need is to look at various places and take it area by area instead of trying to average out to the whole country.
Perhaps what they need for this appeal is an up to date review, since both sides may have upgraded since Nielsen Media started their thing.
Also, I'd be curious what Sprint's tower coverage is like, since they are likely the closest to Verizon's service level also being CDMA. A tad shocked that Verizon hasn't put up the Map for That.
@kojo87 How can you say you have no problems with calls but the 3G is crap? Calls on a UMTS plant are done over 3G if it says 3G. Are you saying 3G *data* is slow for you?
You contradict yourself.
that is what i am saying. like i said i don't fully understand how this all works. i always thought 3G was strictly data but now i see that is not true. what i meant was i have crappy data service. i get HSDPA (through a bit of Googling i see that HSDPA and 3G are essentially the same) most everywhere but half the time i can't even access the web. i couldn't tell you the last time i had a dropped call though.
I hope this clears some of this up. I'm not positive about AT&T's technology, but as for Verizon and Sprint, whom run CDMA towers, all voice is sent through their 1xRTT signal, which is loosely defined as 2G. The technology they use for their 3G is call EvDo, or Evolution Data-only. As the name suggests, this EvDo is a separate layer placed on top of the 1xRTT signal that allows a faster data connection. EvDo has nothing to do with their systems, think of them as two concurrent signals broadcasting at once. EvDo for data, and 1xRTT for voice (or slower data where EvDo is not available).
I believe, correct me if I'm wrong... that AT&T can run both their voice and data through one connection, be it 3G (UMTS) or 2G (EDGE). That is why on AT&T you can surf the web while on a call.
Lemme correct that. UMTS is T-mo I believe. HSDPA is AT&T
@kojo87
Evdo is a dial up connection. #777 It has to disconnect to make a call.
You don't use 3g for phone calls.
1st attempt on new comment system..
Can you tell me the DL speed, theoretical, since they all use bull theoretical speeds. I'm in oz and we only have gsm styled 3g / hspda like AT&T with "speeds" of 21mbit / 7.2mbit / 3.6mbit depending on device (not many 21mbit). I have yet to find EvDo speeds quoted...
@MarcusMaximus
Genius! Did you figure that out all by yourself?
@pickettcj UTMS is just slower than HSPA; otherwise it's really just EDGE to UTMS to HSPA (HSDPA is just an acronym describing the faster download speeds over the the HSPA)
Oh big Red... What kind of sneaky tricks do you have up your sleeve?
I think Verizon needs to mind their own biz.
@DanMcQ I think Verizon is just pissed about this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65UKKsSsRgQ
Poor Verizon guy.
@DanMcQ
Someone needs to tell Verizon what time it is.
@DanMcQ I think Verizon needs to get over itself. They *finally* get a Hero phone, and instead of promoting it more, they go on a tyrade about how their network is best.
First off, GSM-camp 3G - 3G calls are higher quality than *any* calls made on a CDMA2000-based network. There's this strange notion in peoples' heads that calls on Verizon are done over their 3G EvDo network. That couldn't be further from the truth. Those calls are all done over plain old 1xRTT. That's right, all of them. It's also part of the reason why you can't do data and voice at the same time. Why else do you think every Verizon phone ever has a 1x *and* Ev signal bar at the top? It's because Ev is used for data, and 1x for voice.
@Kaitou KID
Holy shit that was amazing!! I haven't laughed that hard in a while.
I guess for them it's that time of the month...or year.
Personally I don't care if the call quality is higher or not, if the call keeps getting dropped/doesn't actually come through/has no signal or whatever other random thing is happening that prevents calls from happening (which happens to my buddy with his iphone 3g all the time) then it doesn't matter. I'd sacrifice a little bit of quality for reliability/dependability any day of the week.
@DanMcQ So you'd just sit silently by as your competitor says their network is more reliable than yours (and trust me, reliability is a big factor in non-data users determining what network they want to use) when you have decent evidence that indicates yours is actually more reliable?
@DanMcQ
but, Verizon lawyers are buying BMW's...
@DanMcQ I agree, now they're just milking it..
it's "go" time!
Good thing I'm Canadian and all this is only something to watch rather than take part in.
@werty1432k
Yes, because we Canadians have it /way/ better than them down there in the US of A when it comes to telecom. *rolls eyes*
Ha very true!
But didn't Telus, up in our friendly neighbor to the north, sue Rogers over their own ridiculous network reliability and speed claims (you know, the one where "Rogers is Canada's most reliable network... twice as fast as any other") recently?
What makes Rogers' claims funny is that Telus just rolled out HSPA+, which made Telus faster than Rogers everywhere but Toronto (where it's a tie), and Rogers kept using the slogan.
They're not really competing, but wouldn't doubt it.
Scratch that.
They're really competing to see how many suckers they can trick into using their networks w/horrible prices and hidden fees, terrible support, etc...
I could go on all day/night (who couldn't), but I'll spare you the rant.
(that last comment was for MFfan310, dunno why it didn't automatically add the "@MFfan310".)
GO verizon GO
Heeeeere we go again...
C'mon Verizon, I love ya but this is getting a little out of hand. If you slip up even a little but then every wireless provider is going to be on you with a vengeance and you might get bested one of these days.
At this point, I think Verizon is getting stingy. That was a low blow to a network that is becoming the underdog of network.
@groovedafied I dunno about underdog. Sprint's 3G is better than T-Mobile's or AT&T. The only carrier with more coverage area than Sprint is Verizon.
Are you mental? Verizon and AT&T both have larger networks.
The current 3G data coverage ranking is 1) Verizon, 2) Sprint, 3) AT&T.
@Drybones5
Are you mental? Have you ever looked at the 3G coverage maps for Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T?
AT&T has a fraction of the coverage of Verizon and Sprint.
@krische last time I checked, Sprint was not a large network
@Drybones5
I'd say based on the comments to you it's time you checked again.
Verizon must feel threatened. They are also barking up the wrong tree, seeing as how Sprint is moving past 3g and has 4g in many markets now. (supposed to be nearing a 4g handset) But while we are on the subject, I have never had a problem with my 3G's dependability.
@(Unverified) HTC already has a WiMax handset in the former Soviet Union.