So, I've been following this story since they first aired the "There's a Map for That" ads on tv depicting the difference in 3G coverage between the nation's two big carriers: Verizon and AT&T. I remember talking to my roommate, Max, about it. He has an iPhone 3G on AT&T and I have a Blackberry Storm2 on Verizon. Apart from the simple jabs we make at each other, we've both seem to have the same amount of coverage and shortfalls with our respective services...
What's funny about these commercials is that it seems that AT&T really doesn't like being the butt of these funny, and remarkably true ads. It rings so reminiscent of the "I'm an Apple, and I'm a PC" commercials. It seems that AT&T has gotten so butt-hurt over these ads that they have filed suit against Big Red requesting that they cease airing these commercials because they fear that the average consumer will, "believe that there is no coverage at all in the large swaths of the country not in blue."
I mean, at first glance, one might think that AT&T is lacking in a large part of the country. And guess what, they'd be right. It comes down to the breakdown of network stability and overall service. AT&T has a very bizarre network breakdown--it goes 3G, EDGE, and then some really janky, old school 2G-type network. Verizon's entire network is 3G and they're busy working on creating a new grid for LTE, or what would be 4G. I'm not choosing a side, notwithstanding the fact that I have Verizon. I just think it's incredibly small of AT&T to pull such a move.
It's a simple act of ingenious marketing. AT&T isn't even denying the fact that Verizon's 3G network is way bigger. They are just pulling hairs basically calling the American public a mass of slow-thinkers who can't compare apples to apples.
Ask any iPhone user, however, in any mass market, and as Engadget so eloquently puts it, "using an iPhone on AT&T's network in New York or San Francisco is an exercise in frustration, regardless of whether you have 2G or 3G, and we've had zero problems on Verizon. Let's just hope AT&T is working as hard to fight these ads with its actual service as it is with its lawyers."
What's also funny is that the ads actually have a disclaimer that explains "Voice and Data available outside of 3G coverage". So c'mon, Ma Bell, get over it.
That's essentially what it comes down to. The days when companies would use ads like these as impetuses to actually CHANGE their service. A call to improve infrastructure and offer the next best thing. Competition has always been a driving force in every tech industry. Sony vs Toshiba, Windows vs Apple, Big Red vs Ma Bell. The iPhone is a great piece of hardware, but what good is it if you want to throw it against a wall when you see that little 3G turn into an E when all you want to do is watch that 5 second clip of "Dramatic Prairie Dog" one more time on YouTube.
Hit the Read links below to check out the ads.
[READ] Original "There's a Map for That" ad
and
[READ] The Island of Misfit Toys ad
and
[READ] The Christmas Elves one
and one more
[READ] The Christmas Blues one
Classic ads, I must say.
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