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Topic: Smartphones

AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

Summary: AT&T seems to be having a busy day today. I wonder why?

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

By for Hardware 2.0 |

Wondering why you can't activate your brand new iPhone 4S? Or maybe you think Apple's new shiny thing is going to be a flop because it didn't live up to the blogosphere hype?

AT&T seems to be having a busy day today:

October 14, 2011 As of 4:30 pm ET today, AT&T had already activated a record number of iPhones on our network - and is on-track to double our previous record for activations on a single day.

I'm hearing from a lot of people who have got an iPhone 4S in their possession but who can't activate it. My advice is something that's easier to dish out than to take ... patience!

Note: I'm hearing from iPhone 4S owners that Verizon activation are happening pretty swiftly.

Here is a photo of the queue of people waiting for the iPhone 4S at the George St Apple Store in Sydney, Australia:

Image credit: Beau Giles

Topics: Smartphones, Hardware, iPhone, Mobility, AT&T

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32 comments
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  • WoW! I gotz Minez!!!

    And Im soooo happy!<br><br>Its an awesome phone.

    I got to the Stoneridge Mall in Pleasanton CA at 3 AM abd security did not even let us in the parking lot until 5am. Then the mall opened at 6 am, followed by Apple at 8AM.
    Bay Area CA Male
    Reply Vote

    • RE: AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

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      pisces88
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  • But... but was not iPhone 4S a 'failure', if you read bloggers, which

    ... were expecting things that Apple never promised, nor even mentioned, and actually even boldly spoke against of (like turning a phone into Hummer-size monstrosity)?
    DDERSSS
    Reply Vote

    • RE: AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

      @DeRSSS ... most of that was just nonsense talk or link baiting.
      Adrian Kingsley-Hughes
      Reply Vote

      • Agree; while it sure fun to play with the rumours how new phone could look

        @Adrian Kingsley-Hughes: ... and be called, this demanding attitude could not be entirely serious.

        Media and bloggers created the drama -- partly because they believed in what the invented, partly intentionally since it is always good business (not unlike to last year's "antennagate", which turned out to be nothing in practice with less than two percentages of buyers taking free cases for iPhone 4 when Apple had this problem).
        DDERSSS
        Reply Vote

      • Antennagate was nothing?

        Then why did Apple fix it?

        http://appadvice.com/appnn/2011/10/it%e2%80%99s-true-%e2%80%93-the-iphone-4s-eliminates-the-death-grip
        toddybottom
        Reply Vote

      • There is no information that they 'fixed' it, since, on the one hand, ...

        @toddybottom: ... basically no smartphone is safe from "death grip" problem since hands are not "radio transparent".

        Also, many people could never reproduce "death grip" even on original iPhone 4 and even in weaker cover areas (let alone when the signal is strong), no matter what how they tried to hold it, so it relates to specifics of person who holds (has to do with the humidity of the hands and the amount of electrolytes in the blood, which is individual).

        So this video does not tell anything about fixing.

        Antenna's construction is the same as in the CDMA iPhone 4 -- they had to make more segments in antenna since it is an absolute requirement of CDMA standard. Obviously, since iPhone 4S is universal phone, they had to go with this design (iPhone 4 for GSM are still produced with the original two-section antennas).

        That said, iPhone 4S might has lower probability to experience signal attenuation. But this is not because Apple re-designed antenna specifically for this purpose (as I said above, it is about CDMA standard), but because additional antenna segment allows to use one of two antennas either for reception or transmission depending on which is better in the current moment.

        This might compensate somewhat higher risk of attenuation which is imminent to the outer conceptual design of antenna. But there is no way to "fix" Death Grip completely since, as I said above, hands may tamper with radio signals very well no matter what you do with the antenna.

        And, anyway, practical hard data show that iPhone 4 antenna scandal was another media bubble. All phones could experience this attenuation since radio waves could feel bad going to users' sweaty hands.
        DDERSSS
        Reply Vote

      • RE: AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

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      • RE: AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

        @DeRSSS <br><br><i>basically no smartphone is safe from "death grip" problem since hands are not "radio transparent". </i><br><br>ALL other phones are safe from the "death grip" because the "death grip" never had anything whatsoever to do with radio transparency of hands. That is a completely different issue which can affect all phones. That was a red cape in the hands of an expert matador.<br><br>The "death grip" is, so far as I know, unique to the iPhone in the entire history of radio electronics. Because engineers have always known that the human body is conductive and can thus interfere if it touches bare metal antennas. So nobody but Apple ever made an antenna that was part of the handle. Anyone who grew up adjusting rabbit ears instinctively knew this by about age four.<br><br>And yes it depends on a lot of factors as to how much of an effect there will be, but the overall result is to, on average, lower the range of the phone. It was a deliberate choice for pretty over functional. <br><br>Since it is always the carriers that get blamed for reception issues Apple has had little incentive to put a lot of worry into this. I've had friends making calls from the same room I was in on the same carrier I was on while my $20 nokia was flawless. And they still blamed AT&T. After I pointed this fact out.<br><br>Everyone I know puts a case on the thing anyway, whether it was a freebie or not, so the low takeup on the case means little. Everyone had one in mind, like Otterbox already, even for the relatively few that follow tech enough to have heard of the antenna issue.<br><br>Apple also put out a "patch" which hid the effect in software so the only way to really test would have been in an area with weak signal strength. If you are in an area of strong signal strength anyway, the software would hide the effect and you could still talk fine anyway.<br><br>But keep goring that red cape.
        SlithyTove
        Reply Vote

  • RE: AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

    You would think, for a phone that was such a letdown, that the activations would reflect that.
    Rick_Kl
    Reply Vote

    • Say What?

      @Rick_Kl
      Come one! Be realistic! This is the latest greatest iApple phone type device. It will sell well even though it is not what folks were expecting and arrived 4 months late. :D

      [i]btw I got the SGS2 instead... the 4S didn't offer what I wanted.[/i]
      rhonin
      Reply Vote

      • Well DUH!?! Anyone whose paid the slightest

        @rhonin... attention to your posts would know that. But it does bring to mind an interesting question. You've not any real good thoughts and or feelings about Apple and still you are unexplainably draws to articles about Apple like an insect to a bug light and have you asked yourself why? What do you get out of this? There might be an interesting case study done on people like you I think:)

        Pagan jim
        James Quinn
        Reply Vote

      • RE: AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

        @rhonin
        It's not only that it's selling well; it's breaking records. Even more surprising as it happens on AT&T because they were the exclusive carrier at the last launch.
        anono
        Reply Vote

    • It's true, there is no effective competition in this market

      @Rick_Kl
      We all lose.
      toddybottom
      Reply Vote

      • No gloomy Gus or Nancy negative... I

        @toddybottom ... here you saying that about the iPad all the time and while I do not agree still I understand why you say it. However in the phone market Apple has plenty of competition. So HUH!?!

        Pagan jim
        James Quinn
        Reply Vote

      • Is that what you &quot;here&quot;?

        I "here" that people who don't know the difference between "here" and "hear" are 1diots.
        toddybottom
        Reply Vote

      • OUCH!!! My feeling... AGAIN:(

        @toddybottom ... You are so mean! Sniff:(. Gong to cry silently now.

        Pagan jim
        James Quinn
        Reply Vote

      • Besides my point (badly spelled) still stands

        @toddybottom ... Which is/was where do you get the idea there is no competition in the mobile phone space?

        Pagan jim
        James Quinn
        Reply Vote

    • RE: AT&T reports record number of iPhone activations

      @Rick_Kl

      When has anyone ever suggested that success of an Apple product had anything to do with the quality of the product produced?


      At any rate, the number of activations isn't the issue, the REAL issue is how many of these are people who have never had an iPhone before.....and my guess is probably not many.

      Market research showed that more than 75% of iPhone 4 sales were to people who were already using an iPhone.....

      Given than the iPhone 4S is released much later than any previous iPhone model, and given the number of people just finishing up their iPhone 3G and 3GS contracts from 2009-2010 who are now due for an upgrade, I suspect that just like with the iPhone 4 the overwhelming majority of these sales are to people who already have an iPhone, with very few converts from other platforms.

      And that has to be troubling for Apple.
      Doctor Demento
      Reply Vote

      • Except sales are ever growing....

        @Doctor Demento ... And since when are loyal, happy customers a worry? Besides 3GS phones have been selling and continue to sell through Apple and AT&T since well the 3GS game out a couple of years back. So I don't see a problem.<br><br>Pagan jim
        James Quinn
        Reply Vote
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