JD Power Survey shows Call Quality problems declining

OK, I guess this is true to some degree, but....

Dropped calls is still a problem with each of the carriers I have (VZW, T-Mo, AT&T).

Most other issues have improved but not as much as JD Powers claims, then again most of us here don't take these JDP things very seriously anyway...

 

Hmmm, I wonder if the decrease in static has something do do with the fact that analog is rarely used anymore? Its hard to get static from a digital phone...

-Jay

 

Honestly, in some respects I think call quality problems have actually gotten worse. Sure, more cell sites are added every day across the country, but more and more users are signing up for service and users use more and more minutes, data, etc. When you look across forums, complaints about capacity and network quality have actually gone up from what I've noticed.

 

I guess I'm spoiled because here in the DC area Cingular operated two separate networks, then merged them togeather to make a really great network with few gaps and lots of capacity. I can think of only 2 times in the almost 8 years I've had a cell phone that I encountered capacity problems.

-Jay

 

You are spoiled, lol. Even though things here in Utah are not bad for Sprint, Verizon and 99% of the time for T-Mobile, AT&T still is struggling with capacity and voice quality issues. It's so weird, though, because Salt Lake City really is not that hard of a market to cover.

 

Makes me wonder when they're going to address issues in the Wasatch Valley.

 

hmmm.... I guess T-Mobile didn't sponsor this study.

 

Nope, I hear Verizon did!

 

Well then how do you explain Sprint? Sprint is adding by far the most new cell sites out of any carrier while signing up the fewest customers. Capacity is not an issue with Sprint. So you would think they would be moving up in these newer studies....But no that would never happen. Too bad they don't differentiate the CDMA and IDEN services on Sprint because IDEN is obviously hurting them in these studies.

By the way how come these JP Power studies come out so often anymore? They used to do them only once a year and then it became twice a year. Now it's every month. I don't see the point of doing them that often because public perception and study results are not going to change much in only a month.

 

I wonder too how much longer Sprint's negative reputation will dog them. Even with the Nextel problems, they still aren't as bad as they're being made out to be.

 

Interesting to note that Verizon is the carrier that's making the least amount of improvements of the big 4 on a nationwide average but yet they somehow always manage to beat the others who've been making more improvements for many years now. It must be the Verizon "It's the Network" Kool aid drinkers who've been brainwashed by Verizon's brilliant marketing efforts.

 

I totally agree. Like I said before they could add 20,000 new cell sites this month and they would still finish last in the next survey. There's nothing they could do to escape the bad perception that certainly isn't deserved IMO.

 

"PP100"?? Where did JD powers come up with this? (I can tell you it's not a phone industry term.) And how do they derive this? Just call people and ask them "So, what is your PP100?"

This report is the biggest pile of rubbish I've seen in a while. The only way to make a true comparison is either: 1) statistics comparisons from each operators MSC's (which they usually don't like to publically disclose) or 2) extensive drive testing (which is very expensive and can only be used to compare different market areas ie: New York or DC, but not the whole country)

 

I think they're hoping we won't ask questions and just accept their jargon as law...

 

LMAOL! Well said! :lmao:

 

I swear all these surveys, etc. are all meaningless.

 

I agree with you. Personal experience is the only survey I listen to...

 

Well put. The only networks I havent tried are the IDEN ones (since Nextel is the most hated provider in my area and Southern Linc does not have a retail presence here although I am covered by them). I had garbled calls (in and outdors) on ATT but it could have been the phone I was using. Alltel has been having network issues in my area (hopefully they're fixed). Sprint is a no no indoors (at least in the places I frequent). TMobile is also a no no at home... I used three phones all with similar results (to my shock, the RIZR did worse than my old NOKIA 6010). Verizon and ATT are the ones that have worked for me. The network (plus roamers) and customer service is what won me over to red.

Some of the Verizon "network" issues (increased dropped calls and calls suddenly going out) I had seemed to be connected to my former Samsung (I went thru 2 930 FRUs)... I have had no issues with call quality on my Q. I wonder how many people are having phone issues versus true network issues.

 

I find it's easy for people to blame a carriers network when the problem could really be their phone. When you consider all of the factors that come in to play for a cell phone to work, it's amazing we don't have more problems than we do. I guess we humans are perdy smart creatures...:browani:

 

Or exaggerate network problems when they don't get everything they want or have some type of customer service or billing issue. Yes this happens all the time on forums.

 

Well yes, that too...I didn't want to strike a nerve in anyone...

 

Usually it's the radio network that causes problems (ie: no coverage, interference, wrong neighbor cells defined), but the phone can also be a factor. People don't realize how much it's working while your making a call. Every second it's measuring the neighbor cells and sending the info the the network, along with adjusting the Tx power level and a host of other things.

Alot of newer phone manufacturers focus more on style and menus rather than performance (the iPhone comes to mind ). I also think it's important that a phone manufacturer has experience on the network side, so they understand exactly how a phone should perform. After all, the phone is really "dumb" as it is told by the network how to behave. And if the phone doesn't understand a message sent by the network, something can go wrong :browani:. Companies like Apple, Samsung, LG don't have experience on the network side. Ericsson, Nokia, Motorola and Siemens do.

 

That's a good point, and it explains why phones from the latter 4 generally work better than the others.