Iphone 3g service issue...frustrating

[TenaciousT]

Hello,

I have searched high and low through the tubes of the internet to no avail, and I come to you for help.

I have an Iphone 3g ~1yr old that is having no service about 99% of the time. I tried all of the fixes that were posted on other help forums and even on here: reset all network settings, get a new sim card, turn off 3g, did a restore, updated to the new 3.1.2 software (which the apple genius said should fix the problems), etc.

Nothing works.

This being my first post, I don't expect a surge of eager folks to come rushing to my aide, but possibly pointing me in the right direction would be awesome. If I have left anything out that might help, let me know

Again, any help is appreciated!

[macgirl]

I take it that it HAS worked before without any problems? If so, when did this problem start? Have there been any AT&T network changes in your area? Can you get service reliably with your iPhone's SIM card in another phone (if you have one to try this with)?

If everything still points to the iPhone as the source of the problem, I don't think there's anything you can do beyond what you've tried already. There may be just something wrong with it internally that requires repair.

[TenaciousT]

Yes, the phone was working well up until about a week ago. I live in western north carolina, so ATT service is spotty at best, but it was solid in my apartment and at school. Now I'm lucky if I can get one bar.

I travelled back to CA this past week and was able to get 3g service off and on, but again it was super sporadic. My sister has the same phone and side by side my phone had little to no service while hers had full 3g.

I would doubt it's a SIM issue since I got it replaced, but it is possible. I don't have another phone available to me, but I can try and find one of my friends.

[llrickman]

Is it over a year old yet? if not id be calling apple asap and get it replaced

Have you restored it as a new phone and not from a backup? i see you have reset network settings etc...

thats all i can think of atm that could fix it

[TenaciousT]

According to the rep I called the other night, I am approx. 14 days outside of my "warranty" and I wasn't aware when I bought the phone that I could have purchased apple care (cue pity music)

If I do a restore as a new phone, would I be able to save all of my contact/etc., or would I be looking at a huge task of putting everything back on the phone?

[computerfox]

Hello,

I have searched high and low through the tubes of the internet to no avail, and I come to you for help.

I have an Iphone 3g ~1yr old that is having no service about 99% of the time. I tried all of the fixes that were posted on other help forums and even on here: reset all network settings, get a new sim card, turn off 3g, did a restore, updated to the new 3.1.2 software (which the apple genius said should fix the problems), etc.

Nothing works.

This being my first post, I don't expect a surge of eager folks to come rushing to my aide, but possibly pointing me in the right direction would be awesome. If I have left anything out that might help, let me know

Again, any help is appreciated!

usually a new sim should make it work. try your sim with another phone. if it works then i would suggest going back to where you got it from and try to get a replacement.

[computerfox]

According to the rep I called the other night, I am approx. 14 days outside of my "warranty" and I wasn't aware when I bought the phone that I could have purchased apple care (cue pity music)

If I do a restore as a new phone, would I be able to save all of my contact/etc., or would I be looking at a huge task of putting everything back on the phone?

contacts should either be on the sim or on your computer. if they're not then it will be a big hassle putting them back on.

your apps and music and other stuff like that should sync with itunes and should bring the phone back to how you had it from the backup.

[dturner]

contacts should either be on the sim or on your computer.
Contacts aren't stored on the sim. Make sure they are on the computer and you can retrieve them from there after the restore.

[Krunk83]

Yeah, they are not on the sim. Back them up when you sync your phone to itunes and they will be placed back on the phone after a restore to new. You will still have to set up some of your settings and such like ringtones, and some others. But you will still have your contacts.

[TenaciousT]

Update:

Tried my sim in another phone, works fine (since it's brand new)

Figured I'd try and replace the antenna, which I did, and it still doesn't work. Everything else does though: the speaker, the screen, the wi-fi, the camera, everything

This is really beginning to baffle me.

[macgirl]

If you haven't done a complete restore (setting the iPhone up as new and NOT restoring your data from a back-up file), you should try that before taking it apart again. Doing a clean restore can be a bit of a pain, but it solves many problems.

[TenaciousT]

Sounds good..I'll have to try it tonight.

I may be dumb for asking, but where is the option to sync contacts with iTunes? I've done syncs, but I haven't seen where or how I can put all of my information back on the phone once the new restore is done

[TenaciousT]

Alright...nothing has worked.

I appreciate all of your suggestions and help, but getting a new sim, restoring to a new phone, etc. hasn't worked a bit. I still have 0 service 99% of the time, even after replacing my antenna

I'm open to almost any suggestion at this point. Would jailbreaking help me at all? Or does this seem like a hardware issue and I'm screwed?

[Krunk83]

Sounds good..I'll have to try it tonight.

I may be dumb for asking, but where is the option to sync contacts with iTunes? I've done syncs, but I haven't seen where or how I can put all of my information back on the phone once the new restore is done

When your iphone is plugged in to your computer and itunes is running there are different tabs if you click on the phone in itunes. It's second to the left side and says "info". Under that tab you will find where you can check off what to sync for contacts, calendar, email, notes, etc.

[Krunk83]

Alright...nothing has worked.

I appreciate all of your suggestions and help, but getting a new sim, restoring to a new phone, etc. hasn't worked a bit. I still have 0 service 99% of the time, even after replacing my antenna

I'm open to almost any suggestion at this point. Would jailbreaking help me at all? Or does this seem like a hardware issue and I'm screwed?

Looks like a hardware issue. Apple owes you a new phone.

[TenaciousT]

So I should make a case even though I'm out of warranty, have no apple care and I've opened it up to replace part of the guts?

[Krunk83]

Well if you opened it up it voids the warranty anyway even though you are past your year. You can go talk to Apple to see if you can get one for a cheaper price or just deal with the bad signal until your contract is up.

Or you could drop it in water and they will see that you have water damaege and offer you a one time deal for a new phone for $100. That is only a one time thing though so if you do accidentally get water damage then you are SOL.

[thehumble1]

I'm having the exact same issue, only I'm on T-Mobile. I haven't swapped out the antenna yet, but I did find that if I swab off the SIM with contact cleaner it does make the signal appear strong for a few minutes, probably meaning it's a problem with the SIM contacts. This is probably why sometimes getting a new SIM would work (because it's contacts aren't oxidized). I can't completely get at the sim contacts on the board to check them because of the SIM bracket (not the tray) being fixed in place. Short of clipping that and spreading it like open heart surgery, I'll have to work around it.

Logic Boards for these are super expensive, as are replacements. You could try to pick up one on craigslist or such with a broken LCD, so it could be $100-150 for a complete replacement that you just swap screens with. Then sell the cracked screen, bad signal phone on eBay for $150. A lot of work, but I'm thinking about it, because it saves all kinds of money.

So maybe try that. press on the SIM when it's in and/or try contact cleaner to see if that changes things. Since the antenna connects to the board at the bottom of the phone, messing around with the SIM shouldn't affect the antenna. You may also want to clean the contact between the antenna and the board to make sure that isn't oxidized. I'm sure any resistance there would greatly weaken the signal.

great luck! write back. let's figure this out! We'll be heros, because I know there are others out there with the same problem but are being told bad advise like: "all 3Gs have bad service" and "you should restore" when those haven't worked at all.

[Moller.Dance]

The Northeast in general, on the other hand, recorded the highest percentage of satisfied iPhone 3G users based on the overall responses from that region. We received a total of 61 responses from residents of that region and 23 percent said they were satisfied with the reception of their iPhone 3G. Residents of the Southeast also seemed more satisfied with their reception than the average user.
Owners reported, for the most part, sympathetic if frustrating treatment from representatives at their local Apple and AT&T stores. Many of those who took the time to share extended accounts of their experience said that Apple and AT&T appeared to be aware of widespread issues with the handsets, especially in the week since coverage of the complaints of iPhone 3G owners has expanded.

[JD123]

I had this same issue about 6 months ago. I tried everything that you have described and finally had to replace the device. This solved all issues I was having.