AT&T has just been getting worse and worse. - Robert Scoble

Instead of blocking Google maybe they should put up some more cell towers so I will ALWAYS have 3G coverage everywhere. But no. It drops like a mofo. - Robert Scoble

And they charge my family more than a car payment for our mobile phones (and a nice car at that!) - Robert Scoble

Can you imagine if you downloaded Firefox or something on the Mac, and it said "This application is unavailable because it duplicates the functionality found in Safari on Mac OS X". - Mark

such a short-sighted move by Apple/AT&T. Google will just go to a web-app and AT&T will still lose. - Seth Gray

I guess it is time that we all throw away our iPhones and move to the Google phone. - Wizetux

I had to send my iPhone back as I had no coverage where I live (UK O2) and had to stay with Orange instead. Maybe it wasnt such a bad thing after all? - Julia Ault

How much is that nice car payment? Would you mind sharing average cost per iphone per month? Do you think most iphone users are paying much more than $100 per month? - Charbax

Palm Pre/Sprint EVDO FTW! :) - jcunwired

At&t will never change as long as you all just keep complaining but continue to tollerate the service. If you really didn't like it, then you would cancel your contract when they come up, and move to a different service. But you all seem to want the latest greatest version of the phone, which puts you in a new contract before your old one is up. Just like At&t want you to do. *Edit* you are the consumer, you hold the final say on whether you will use or purchase the product a company is selling. - Wizetux

well said Wizetux. - Mark

for all MG Siegler's complaint's, if apple announce a new AT&T Iphone in a years time he will still buy one. We can't help ourselves. - Mark

Mark: yeah, that is the problem. So far my iPhone has been worth putting up with AT&T. But I'm definitely looking into Android. - Robert Scoble

This does not look like free society. - ashish from iPhone

Perhaps you should consider that Apple may be the evil one blocking your iphone apps? Surely Apple is making just as much money if not more money on each iphone sold on the AT&T exclusivity. - Charbax

My guesstimation is that Apple is making $1000 per iphone sold on AT&T's network. Anyone have the real numbers? Consider that an iphone costs only $150 to manufacture in China. - Charbax

@ashish: Free society? why doesn't it? You had the choice to buy the iPhone. You wouldn't buy a speed boat if the only river you had access was only three feet deep because the experience of the boat would not be the same. So because you continue to use a phone on a service that was not designed nor looks like is being developed to handle the phone, that is your ultimate choice. - Wizetux

Recent comparisons have been very forthcoming in the outrageous additional $ you iPhone owners spend over the course of two years. It must really be an amazing device to put up with the difficulties. That, or just diehard ifanboys? - jcunwired

How bout this, a class action lawsuit for bad quality on AT&T. You need to have a bunch of people document the bad quality of the AT&T service, then do a class action lawsuit that allows you to unlock your iphone for free to use it on any other network. - Charbax

I finally activated my iphone today but I am on the O2 network and its just wonderful. - Mark

A really good reason why I don't own an iphone: AT&T - Karma Martell

@Charbax. It is not that easy. Not all of the US carriers use the GSM network. You can already unlock your phone, and move it to T-Mobile. But to use the phone on Sprint or Verizon, would require you to put in a whole new chip that works on the CDMA network. - Wizetux

This is why as soon as I get an update offer/contract is up, I'm moving to an Android phone - David Kettler

Shoot, I guess I'm lost... wrt AT&T and Google Voice, they're blocking the functionality? (Sorry, geek but a little slow somedays.) - Kirsten Davis

Wizetux, a class action lawsuit would let you all be able to wave the early cancellation fee and other such costs while still being allowed to unlock your phone to use on T-Mobile if you want. - Charbax

All along, telcos and phone manufacturers have failed to "get" the Net - from dialup days, to WAP, to the way cellphones had Web access kludged in as a crude afterthought until the iPhone. Google Voice doesn't even threaten anything except their SMS overcharging: you still use their airtime for all your calls, and still need to pay rental+data to access the service! But no, in the telco mindset change=threat=bad. - James

Well they spent tens of billions putting up these cell phone towers and employ hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, so, naturally they want people making PAID phone calls :) - Mark

@Mark - I think they spent all that money on "infrastructure improvements" to their game room at HQ. What other reason for so many iPhone complaints that misallocation of funds? ;) - Bryan Zirkel

The only "right" move AT&T ever made was making a monopoly everywhere they could. - xero

@Wizetux: Even unlocking it isn't enough: the iPhone doesn't support 3g on the 1.7GHz frequency T-Mobile uses in some areas ("UMTS1700"), so you'd only get 3g on a subset of their 3g network coverage. Then again, I find EDGE reception rare in the UK, and 3g rather patchy; I'm often reduced to GPRS anyway, whether on Vodafone or O2. I did find AT&T much, much better while I was in the US last summer. - James

It's a flat rate anyway, so with or without Google Voice you pay exactly the same amount to AT&T. Except international calls, but there are so expensive that I doubt that many would do them with AT&T's plan. And then you can use Google Voice through their (crappy) web app right now, so I really don't understand what AT&T is loosing with Google Voice support on the iPhone. - Oliver Bouchard

Questions - Since the carriers control all these features (Daring Fireball is reporting it's all AT&T blocking, not Apple) what makes everyone think Verizon (or AT&T) won't do the same to Android handsets? And, what makes ya'll think the Verizon network could handle all the data traffic associated with an iPhone, it's not been tested? And, I have both Verizon voice/data plans and it isn't much cheaper (if at all) than AT&T/iPhone so why the complaints about the price? - PXLated

@wizetux I meant with AT&T and Apple partnering to ruin the Iphone experience. - ashish

Just going to drive more and more to jailbreak or make the Android more enticing - Christian Burns from iPhone

Christian - Why Android more enticing if carriers control what can or can't run on their network? - PXLated

AT&T was only mildly annoying during original iPhone and even iPhone 3G. But since the 3GS came out, I have bcome nothing but more and more angered towards them. Give me an iPhone on Verizon LTE. - Andru Edwards

Andru - Why do you think Verizon would be better/different? (see my previous questions) - PXLated

Google made a really smart move by having the Google Voice app available on jailbroken iPhones. - Zulema ◕ ◡ ◕ from iPhone

Robert: They probably are lost for words :) - Amir

Perhaps AT&T is just the first to make this move... - © b e e n s w a n k

The dropped calls and feature restrictions have me looking elsewhere too. I moved to the iPhone on launch because I was frustrated with my smartphone at the time constantly crashing and I was willing to take the risk on a new platform. Now that I have the iPhone I can see so many things I want to do with it, but yet some of the best ones are blocked or have restrictions that have me shaking my head. The dropped calls or no service issues add to the frustration. So at least for me, the motivation is growing to take the risk and try something else. - Loren Heiny

Loren: Those are the same reasons that I gave up my iPhone 3G and my contract with AT&T. - © b e e n s w a n k

AT&T screwed it up with the iPhone. Robert: Yep. They are making all the wrong moves. - Amir

Same reason I refuse to purchase a Kindle - controlled content. - © b e e n s w a n k

PXLated - I don't really care about app blocking. I mean, it's annoying, but I understand it. Whatever. What I want is coverage all over, less dropped calls, and a company that doesn't have to "get prepared" for iPhone users to use freaking MMS messaging. Those are just signs of a poor network infrastructure. - Andru Edwards

Andru - Verizon isn't any better though, I can take you many places you won't get even one bar on Verizon and many where there isn't even a signal. One of those spots is just a mere 10 miles outside a major metro area. And that's a phone signal. EVDO signals are even worse. So, not sure Verizon would be any better overall than AT&T. - PXLated

Maybe the wrong move but it was very predictable. - Kim Landwehr

AT&T PR got back to me and said to call Apple. - Robert Scoble

Not surprised that the PR dept passed the buck. - Karma Martell

Robert I really hope you get to the bottom of this. PLEASE keep pushing them because this is ridiculous that this app is not on the iPhone. I really think this is AT&T telling Apple no. Phil Schiller already approved GV Mobile! I sent "Steve" and email... here's a copy: http://post.ly/1efR - Ken Wiesner

This is a prime example of the failure of Government regulation. Competitive capital is discouraged and afraid to move into this space because of things like the Telecom act of 1996 that privatized the risk and socialized the reward. Anytime government can move in to an industry and wipe out returns, Capital won't move in and provide the competition we need. - Stephen Pickering

I HATE AT&T but I can deal with it long enough to have my iPhone. As soon as Apple goes to a second carrier, I'll be there too. - Dane Deasy

The newer "other options" are beginning to tempt me away from the iphone...AT&T get a clue - Gordon Montgomery

Gordon, you aren't the only one... http://www.tuaw.com/2009... - Ken Wiesner