WirelessAdvisor.com

TNDan21 · 10-15-2008, 10:16 AM

Customers have spoken, and Verizon Wireless has the lowest percentage of dropped calls among all major U.S. service providers.

That's according to ChangeWave's latest cell phone survey of 2,883 U.S. consumers, completed September 18, 2008

Can You Hear Me Now?

Verizon subscribers report that - on average - just 2.7% of their calls were dropped over the past 90 days, nearly a percentage point better than AT&T (3.6%), their closest competitor.

Sprint/Nextel (4.4%) and T-Mobile (4.5%) were third and fourth respectively.

Importantly, one-in-five Verizon users (20%) say they didn't experience ANY dropped calls over the past three months, compared to 18% for T-Mobile, 17% for AT&T, and 10% for Sprint/Nextel.

In addition, 43% of Verizon's customers in the survey say they're Very Satisfied with Verizon's service. As the following chart shows, that's also the best in the industry.

Telekom · 10-15-2008, 11:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TNDan21

Customers have spoken, and Verizon Wireless has the lowest percentage of dropped calls among all major U.S. service providers.

That's according to ChangeWave's latest cell phone survey of 2,883 U.S. consumers, completed September 18, 2008

Can You Hear Me Now?

Verizon subscribers report that - on average - just 2.7% of their calls were dropped over the past 90 days, nearly a percentage point better than AT&T (3.6%), their closest competitor.

Sprint/Nextel (4.4%) and T-Mobile (4.5%) were third and fourth respectively.

Importantly, one-in-five Verizon users (20%) say they didn't experience ANY dropped calls over the past three months, compared to 18% for T-Mobile, 17% for AT&T, and 10% for Sprint/Nextel.

In addition, 43% of Verizon's customers in the survey say they're Very Satisfied with Verizon's service. As the following chart shows, that's also the best in the industry.

I wonder about these "statistics." I've been with T-Mobile for eight years and in that eight years I can only recall half a dozen dropped calls.

Simon5282 · 10-15-2008, 12:24 PM

We are talking about less than a two percent difference. Not an issue in my opinion. They are all the same when it comes to dropped calls!

cellular_freak · 10-15-2008, 12:27 PM

I was kinda wondering that too. I would have thought that Verizon would have had lower dropped call stats than that, but still be number 1, and T-Mobile would be about number 2. AT&T, to me, it would seem should be last. Sprint has a pretty good network, I think it's the Nextel part that's pulling it down. I think they should separate the Sprint and Nextel networks when doing this. I've had experience with all of these carriers (except T-Mobile) in rural and urban areas in Michigan, and I really think that's how they add up.

larry · 10-15-2008, 2:45 PM

I believe the IDEN part of Sprint is bringing them down. Too bad they can seperate the CDMA and IDEN stats.

Telekom · 10-15-2008, 4:19 PM

I think all the claims except Verizon's best network are pretty bogus. AT&T's "more bars in more places" is completely lame especially the ones where they're in a foreign country and they can't get a signal. Here's a flash: AT&T doesn't operate outside of the US!

WumpusVA · 10-15-2008, 4:33 PM

I'm sorry but this survey is such a waste of time and effort and quite frankly it pisses me off.

The best I can tell, this survey interviewed people and asked how many dropped calls they've had in the past 90 days and who their provider is.

1. I'm willing to bet that a significant amount of those people haven't been keeping track of how many dropped calls they've had in the past 90 days. The respondents most likely came up with the numbers off the top of their head. Gee, I wonder how accurate that could be.

2. This survey doesn't appear to take into account the overall amount of calls that person has made and what percentage could have been dropped. There are some cell phone junkies out there who make thousands of calls a month and might have ten or so dropped. Or, there might have been a casual user using 50 mins who has only had one dropped. Those ten would throw the average way off because it's averaged per user instead of minutes used.

3. Who's fault is the dropped call? Was it because the device is absolutely rubbish or was it because the network? What city(ies) was this survey conducted in? All networks are different in different cities. While Verizon might be the best in town A, T-Mobile might be the best in town B. Did they call the same amount of people from each provider in a particular city?

4. What if the dropped call happened when a Sprint user was roaming on the Verizon's network? It's still Sprint's fault, according to this survey, despite having nothing to do with Sprint.

FINALLY, WHO CARES ABOUT DROPPED CALLS? I would think that there are much more important factors to take into consideration when deciding upon a network such as speed, technology, customer service, availability, devices, etc. Simply ranking the carriers by dropped calls is just stupid.

THE BOTTOM LINE: This survey is absolute garbage!

"THERE ARE LIES, DAMN LIES AND STATISTICS!"

</rant>

KyleAndMelissa22 · 10-15-2008, 4:57 PM

If anything Alltel IMO has the least dropped calls overall on their native network,
but IMO Verizon is also very close.

Alltel will pay you back if you ever drop a call, so it's a win-win for the Alltel customer.
Why weren't they included in this survey?

.....

Looking at my last few Alltel bills, I've dropped about 6 calls out of at least 10,000 in the last six months,
It's nothing really, I'm on the phone way too much anyway.

About 10,000 minutes per month on average.

RadioFoneGuy · 10-15-2008, 6:20 PM

Its all abunch of fluff anyways.

I wonder how many dropped calls on AT&T can be attributed to the iphone 3G issue with software, 3G-2G handoffs and the bad batch of phones floating around out there?

Telekom · 10-15-2008, 6:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KyleAndMelissa22

If anything Alltel IMO has the least dropped calls overall on their native network,
but IMO Verizon is also very close.

Alltel will pay you back if you ever drop a call, so it's a win-win for the Alltel customer.
Why weren't they included in this survey?

.....

Looking at my last few Alltel bills, I've dropped about 6 calls out of at least 10,000 in the last six months,
It's nothing really, I'm on the phone way too much anyway.

About 10,000 minutes per month on average.

Aha, and I know you have used all the other networks for a long period of time so you are "completely impartial" eh?

KyleAndMelissa22 · 10-15-2008, 9:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Telekom

Aha, and I know you have used all the other networks for a long period of time so you are "completely impartial" eh?

Well on the CDMA side, I often do force roam onto other networks in and around my area.
Verizon, Sprint, US Cellular & Carolina West Wireless.

On the GSM side, I've used Melissa's T-Mobile phone when she visits down here.
(She roamed on SunCom or AT&T - but next time it'll just be T-Mobile without AT&T roaming).

...

They're all good overall, and all do have some weak spots.
Alltel has a weak spot not even a mile from my house.

There are areas where Alltel & Verizon can improve here as well,
but not as much as T-Mobile (former SunCom) or Sprint.

At least T-Mobile seems likely to expand the former SunCom network.

hillbilly44 · 10-15-2008, 9:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Telekom

I think all the claims except Verizon's best network are pretty bogus. AT&T's "more bars in more places" is completely lame especially the ones where they're in a foreign country and they can't get a signal. Here's a flash: AT&T doesn't operate outside of the US!

Flash, AT&T does operate outside the US, it's called GSM/WCDMA roaming.

Telekom · 10-16-2008, 8:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hillbilly44

Flash, AT&T does operate outside the US, it's called GSM/WCDMA roaming.

Flash, AT&T does not operate networks outside of the US! Roaming is not your own network. It's pure BS in the commercial to claim that they couldn't receive a call because they were not "on the AT&T network" the same way it was bogus in the series Heroes for the guy who's in Africa and asks why his cell phone doesn't work and the guy says that only "Sprint" works there (funny how Sprint is a sponsor!) If their home carrier was a CDMA carrier and they were in Europe or South America of course they're not going to receive a call on their cell phone unless it's a hybrid. The AT&T ads claiming that they only could have gotten the call if they were on AT&T is in a word bogus.

RadioRaiders · 10-16-2008, 9:26 AM

Flash-OFDM is only available in Finland

Qualcomm FLASH-OFDM - FLASH-OFDM®

Telekom · 10-16-2008, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RadioRaiders

Flash-OFDM is only available in Finland

Qualcomm FLASH-OFDM - FLASH-OFDM®

Flash, does this mean that we have to put the word flash before all of our posts from now on?

danny boi · 10-20-2008, 12:44 AM

I like that commercial where that old guy is using an at&t usb data modem on some remote island while he throws in the statement that he can connect "up to 3G speeds."

3G way out there? Highly doubt it but the commercial tries to insinuate that it might.

Telekom · 12-02-2008, 7:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by danny boi

I like that commercial where that old guy is using an at&t usb data modem on some remote island while he throws in the statement that he can connect "up to 3G speeds."

3G way out there? Highly doubt it but the commercial tries to insinuate that it might.

They never said it was based on reality either real reality or "TV" style reality. AT&T also has those annoying ads where some whiners who had to use a hostel complain that they're stuck in a room with headbangers because they couldn't get a signal (which is almost never the case in Europe anyhow.) AT&T doesn't even supply service in Europe they'd be using a roaming partner anyhow. At any rate most of these commercials attempt humor or just attempt to be annoying. Consider it the price for free TV (we don't pay a yearly license like they do in the UK.)

josephd · 12-02-2008, 8:52 PM

I have to agree this survey is useless and the handset has a lot to do with dropped calls despite the carrier.Try calling my Dad who has VZW on his $2 handset, I can never hear him and usually end up losing the call.
I cannot remember my last dropped call, and aside of a hiccup hear and there I for the most part have been happy with my service. It all comes down to with what works for one will not necessarily work for another.

Telekom · 12-03-2008, 3:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by josephd

I have to agree this survey is useless and the handset has a lot to do with dropped calls despite the carrier.Try calling my Dad who has VZW on his $2 handset, I can never hear him and usually end up losing the call.
I cannot remember my last dropped call, and aside of a hiccup hear and there I for the most part have been happy with my service. It all comes down to with what works for one will not necessarily work for another.

I think you can take these claims of "least dropped calls" from all carriers with a grain of sodium.

There are things that tend to be true such as Verizon having the most robust network overall. And AT&T's campaign of "more bars in more places" is pure fiction. They've been using the "bars" thing from even before they turned themselves back in to AT&T. Just saying it enough times doesn't make it so.

Heck, I can make a bar claim as well. I have five bars within two blocks so I can claim more bars in more places as well I guess

10-15-2008, 10:16 AM	#1 (permalink)
TNDan21 Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Kingsport, TN Posts: 5,964 Phone(s): LG enV2, Samsung t219 Provider(s): Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile Devices: iPod Nano Thanks: 0 Thanked 8 Times in 6 Posts	Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance Customers have spoken, and Verizon Wireless has the lowest percentage of dropped calls among all major U.S. service providers. That's according to ChangeWave's latest cell phone survey of 2,883 U.S. consumers, completed September 18, 2008 Can You Hear Me Now? Verizon subscribers report that - on average - just 2.7% of their calls were dropped over the past 90 days, nearly a percentage point better than AT&T (3.6%), their closest competitor. Sprint/Nextel (4.4%) and T-Mobile (4.5%) were third and fourth respectively. Importantly, one-in-five Verizon users (20%) say they didn't experience ANY dropped calls over the past three months, compared to 18% for T-Mobile, 17% for AT&T, and 10% for Sprint/Nextel. In addition, 43% of Verizon's customers in the survey say they're Very Satisfied with Verizon's service. As the following chart shows, that's also the best in the industry.

10-15-2008, 12:24 PM	#3 (permalink)
Simon5282 Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: USA Posts: 361 Phone(s): Nokia N 75 Provider(s): AT&T Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance We are talking about less than a two percent difference. Not an issue in my opinion. They are all the same when it comes to dropped calls!

10-15-2008, 12:27 PM	#4 (permalink)
cellular_freak Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Caro, MI Posts: 406 Phone(s): iPhone 3G - White Provider(s): AT&T Thanks: 3 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts Images: 38 My Auctions	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance I was kinda wondering that too. I would have thought that Verizon would have had lower dropped call stats than that, but still be number 1, and T-Mobile would be about number 2. AT&T, to me, it would seem should be last. Sprint has a pretty good network, I think it's the Nextel part that's pulling it down. I think they should separate the Sprint and Nextel networks when doing this. I've had experience with all of these carriers (except T-Mobile) in rural and urban areas in Michigan, and I really think that's how they add up.

10-15-2008, 2:45 PM	#5 (permalink)
larry Go Angels! Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Orange County, CA Posts: 12,954 Phone(s): LG Rumor Provider(s): Sprint Thanks: 17 Thanked 16 Times in 15 Posts Images: 146 My Auctions	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance I believe the IDEN part of Sprint is bringing them down. Too bad they can seperate the CDMA and IDEN stats.

10-15-2008, 4:19 PM	#6 (permalink)
Telekom Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Seattle, Washington USA Posts: 1,252 Phone(s): Nokia 8801, Nokia 6310i,, Nokia 6030, Nokia 6010,, Nokia 3510i, Nokia 8310, Provider(s): T-Mobile-US, Fido (CA), T-Mobile NL, Orange IL Devices: iPod Nano Thanks: 6 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts My Auctions	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance I think all the claims except Verizon's best network are pretty bogus. AT&T's "more bars in more places" is completely lame especially the ones where they're in a foreign country and they can't get a signal. Here's a flash: AT&T doesn't operate outside of the US!

10-15-2008, 4:33 PM	#7 (permalink)
WumpusVA Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 902 Phone(s): G1 (i'm lovin it), A host of others... Provider(s): I have been w/ most major North American carriers Devices: XM & 30GB ZEN Thanks: 4 Thanked 4 Times in 3 Posts Images: 1 My Auctions	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance I'm sorry but this survey is such a waste of time and effort and quite frankly it pisses me off. The best I can tell, this survey interviewed people and asked how many dropped calls they've had in the past 90 days and who their provider is. 1. I'm willing to bet that a significant amount of those people haven't been keeping track of how many dropped calls they've had in the past 90 days. The respondents most likely came up with the numbers off the top of their head. Gee, I wonder how accurate that could be. 2. This survey doesn't appear to take into account the overall amount of calls that person has made and what percentage could have been dropped. There are some cell phone junkies out there who make thousands of calls a month and might have ten or so dropped. Or, there might have been a casual user using 50 mins who has only had one dropped. Those ten would throw the average way off because it's averaged per user instead of minutes used. 3. Who's fault is the dropped call? Was it because the device is absolutely rubbish or was it because the network? What city(ies) was this survey conducted in? All networks are different in different cities. While Verizon might be the best in town A, T-Mobile might be the best in town B. Did they call the same amount of people from each provider in a particular city? 4. What if the dropped call happened when a Sprint user was roaming on the Verizon's network? It's still Sprint's fault, according to this survey, despite having nothing to do with Sprint. FINALLY, WHO CARES ABOUT DROPPED CALLS? I would think that there are much more important factors to take into consideration when deciding upon a network such as speed, technology, customer service, availability, devices, etc. Simply ranking the carriers by dropped calls is just stupid. THE BOTTOM LINE: This survey is absolute garbage! "THERE ARE LIES, DAMN LIES AND STATISTICS!" </rant>

10-15-2008, 4:57 PM	#8 (permalink)
KyleAndMelissa22 Cell Tower Picture Taker Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: GAFFNEY, SC (FORMERLY NJ) Posts: 1,022 Phone(s): LG AX4270 Provider(s): ALLTEL (SID 114) (Also Force Roam On Verizon 139) Devices: Grundig S350DL, Nikon CoolPix, PRO-89 Scanner Thanks: 28 Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts Images: 254 My Auctions	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance If anything Alltel IMO has the least dropped calls overall on their native network, but IMO Verizon is also very close. Alltel will pay you back if you ever drop a call, so it's a win-win for the Alltel customer. Why weren't they included in this survey? ..... Looking at my last few Alltel bills, I've dropped about 6 calls out of at least 10,000 in the last six months, It's nothing really, I'm on the phone way too much anyway. About 10,000 minutes per month on average. __________________ CDMA....Coming Soon To A Tower Near You! Alltel User Since September 2006 - Now I'm Good Until August 2010 !!!

10-15-2008, 6:20 PM	#9 (permalink)
RadioFoneGuy Pimpin the Tilt! Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Everywhere. Posts: 1,194 Phone(s): Nokia 6103, 6010, 2260, HTC TILT, moto V400, 55, Nokia 6682, 6085, to many phones Provider(s): The death star formally known as Cell One. Thanks: 3 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Images: 6	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance Its all abunch of fluff anyways. I wonder how many dropped calls on AT&T can be attributed to the iphone 3G issue with software, 3G-2G handoffs and the bad batch of phones floating around out there? __________________ Cellular One of Georgia 1994-96 ATTWS 1999-2003 and VoiceStream 2001-2003 Cellular One from Dobson Cellular 2003-2007 AT&T JR 2008 to Present.

10-16-2008, 9:26 AM	#14 (permalink)
RadioRaiders Telecom Evangelist Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Undisclosed Posts: 944 Provider(s): GSM / WCDMA Thanks: 3 Thanked 12 Times in 8 Posts	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance Flash-OFDM is only available in Finland Qualcomm FLASH-OFDM - FLASH-OFDM® __________________ Understand communications. Visit Radio Raiders

10-20-2008, 12:44 AM	#16 (permalink)
danny boi Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: SoCali Posts: 1,119 Phone(s): BlackBerry Pearl 8120, Moto S9 StereoBT Headset Provider(s): T-Mobile USA Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance I like that commercial where that old guy is using an at&t usb data modem on some remote island while he throws in the statement that he can connect "up to 3G speeds." 3G way out there? Highly doubt it but the commercial tries to insinuate that it might. __________________ http://www.sticktogether.com/coverage/

12-02-2008, 8:52 PM	#18 (permalink)
josephd Tomorrow is another day. Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: MA. Posts: 1,399 Phone(s): 8G iphone 3G, SE W580i, Nokia 2610 Provider(s): AT&T Devices: 2G ipod shuffle Thanks: 17 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Images: 1	Re: Verizon Wireless Leads in Dropped Call Performance I have to agree this survey is useless and the handset has a lot to do with dropped calls despite the carrier.Try calling my Dad who has VZW on his $2 handset, I can never hear him and usually end up losing the call. I cannot remember my last dropped call, and aside of a hiccup hear and there I for the most part have been happy with my service. It all comes down to with what works for one will not necessarily work for another.

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