Carrier AT&T vs Apple Preorder (I have a specific issue/question)

[nikhilnagaraj24]

I bought a Sim free unlocked iPhone X from Apple last year.

6 months later, I moved to a new apartment with a pathetic cellular connectivity. Tried Tmobile, Xfinity Mobile(uses Verizon network) and AT&T Sim cards and have always had issue getting the 2nd bar in my house, which leads me to believe I live in a Blackhole for Cellular connectivity.

But my neighbor hasn't had any issues with her AT&T. The only difference? She bought her phone from AT&T.

I've since sold my X and now ready to upgrade.

My questions are

1. Does AT&T limit connectivity to your phone if it's not bought from them? If yes, is there a way for me to fix that?

2. Keeping the above in mind, Should I buy my new phone from At&T or Apple? If Apple, will I again be screwed if I get an unlocked phone? I know buying from AT&T would be safer in terms of connectivity, but the preorder process has never been smooth with them, from what I hear.

 

[penajmz]

I don't remember exactly but I think there was a difference in bands supported last year based on which model was bought, but I thought that only affected T-mobile... Again I'm not really sure.

I doubt t they can restrict connectivity based on whether you bought their version or the AT&T version.

I'm having the same dilemma now, I kinda want to buy it sim free but I don't know if there will be a difference between the two.

 

[Banglazed]

SIM-free version will be available at preorder and at launch on Apple.com. I doubt carrier has that ability to restrict coverage in a house but it’s possible there are inference that causes loss of signal to penetrate in your building. It is the same as my place since I get 1-2 bars. I’ve tried other carriers but T-Mobile does offer a LTE booster to drastically improve coverage to full bars for a $25 deposit. As soon as I step outside, I get 4-5 bars and walk one block away I’ll get full bars. This year iPhones will have 4x4 Mimo with gigabit class LTE so it might be possible the antenna band may improve coverage in your building.

 

[Lobwedgephil]

The versions are exactly the same this year, so no difference in models between Apple, At&t, Verizon, or Sprint. All the same phone. You don't lose anything on At&t no matter where you buy the phone.

 

[nikhilnagaraj24]

I doubt t they can restrict connectivity based on whether you bought their version or the AT&T version.

They used to do it for sure before I switched to Tmobile 3 years ago. The fix was to get the IMEI from an AT&T demo phone, call their customer care and update them claiming that was your phone. The customer care representative had a standard response that they couldn't guarantee 'full compatibility unless the phone was bought from them'.

 

[Lobwedgephil]

They used to do it for sure before I switched to Tmobile 3 years ago. The fix was to get the IMEI from an AT&T demo phone, call their customer care and update them claiming that was your phone. The customer care representative had a standard response that they couldn't guarantee 'full compatibility unless the phone was bought from them'.

That is an issue on unlocked android phones, but not on iPhones. You get all the advanced calling features, etc. But as their is only one model this year, makes it even less of an issue.

 

[nolegirl]

Does anyone know if we will be able to order more than one during pre ordering? Both my fiance and I are upgrading so I wanted to order both phones in one go instead of having to order one at a time and risking backorder. Will use which ever company allows ordering multiple phones, Apple or AT&T. TIA!!

 

[Lobwedgephil]

Does anyone know if we will be able to order more than one during pre ordering? Both my fiance and I are upgrading so I wanted to order both phones in one go instead of having to order one at a time and risking backorder. Will use which ever company allows ordering multiple phones, Apple or AT&T. TIA!!

Typically Apple will let you order two.

 

[Nanotyrns]

I bought a Sim free unlocked iPhone X from Apple last year.

6 months later, I moved to a new apartment with a pathetic cellular connectivity. Tried Tmobile, Xfinity Mobile(uses Verizon network) and AT&T Sim cards and have always had issue getting the 2nd bar in my house, which leads me to believe I live in a Blackhole for Cellular connectivity.

But my neighbor hasn't had any issues with her AT&T. The only difference? She bought her phone from AT&T.

I've since sold my X and now ready to upgrade.

My questions are

1. Does AT&T limit connectivity to your phone if it's not bought from them? If yes, is there a way for me to fix that?

2. Keeping the above in mind, Should I buy my new phone from At&T or Apple? If Apple, will I again be screwed if I get an unlocked phone? I know buying from AT&T would be safer in terms of connectivity, but the preorder process has never been smooth with them, from what I hear.

I don't think they could get away with kneecapping AT&T phones sold through Apple. Also the phones that AT&T sells are shipped to them directly from China to Kentucky I think and then processed to be sent to you. That would be a lot of work to keep track of which phones to restrict.

Your neighbor might not be experiencing an issue honestly because her location is even just tens of feet outside of your signal issue.

You might see if the Mark The Spot app is still available in the App Store. It's made by AT&T specifically so you can send a ticket to them directly about signal issues. You choose the problem you are experiencing and it runs some diagnostics and sends off the ticket. I think it's dead useful and use it now and again. If you call customer service about this kind of issue I'm not sure they know how to escalate it but this app gives you a direct line to better support.

 

[indychris]

Might this simply be an issue of a Qualcomm vs Intel antenna? I haven't gone back and looked specifically at the X, but I know in previous years Apple has sourced Cellular Antennas from both companies, and there have been reported differences in reception between the two. Just knowing that one is a sim-free, unlocked phone would lead me to believe that it has an antenna designed for all networks, while the AT&T phone may have a unique GSM antenna. It could simply be a factor that one performs better than the other.

 

[nikhilnagaraj24]

Might this simply be an issue of a Qualcomm vs Intel antenna? I haven't gone back and looked specifically at the X, but I know in previous years Apple has sourced Cellular Antennas from both companies, and there have been reported differences in reception between the two. Just knowing that one is a sim-free, unlocked phone would lead me to believe that it has an antenna designed for all networks, while the AT&T phone may have a unique GSM antenna. It could simply be a factor that one performs better than the other.

Totally possible. So AT&T might not be willfully throttling, but this could be a genuine hardware bottleneck.

I am leaning towards ordering from AT&T to be safe.

 

[nikhilnagaraj24]

Done... Placed the order on AT&T 6 mins before 2AM CST!!!