trouble making calls after 3.1 update

Chiburb2,
This seems to make sense. I went to the ATT store and had a new sim card put into my phone. That would (I assume) remove me and re-add me to the network. Since then I have not had a problem, as a matter of fact, my phone actually sounds better with the new sim. no echo or static during a call over 3g.

I'll hope that was the fix, but I'll have to wait and see, since my phone had worked for days at a time without a problem.

Also, Apple is aware of the problem as then have sent me email requesting logs. I assume it's because I posted to one of these forums.

Just want to add another user to the pile. I got my iPhone 3GS at launch and it has been fine until this last update. I experience the dropped 3G service, calls that never ring don't show as missed and go straight to voicemail, SMS and MMS that hang at about 95% sent progress and require reboot to send, non-existant data connection, and an odd shut down sequence where instead of turning off it goes back to the home "slide to unlock" screen and I have to try again. All of this happens when the phone indicates full 3G coverage (in the middle of downtown Seattle). Typically I notice the issue when a text message hangs upon sending.

I used to have problems reconnecting to the towers when emerging from underground structures (parking/transit tunnel) but it was easily forced back into service with a toggle to airplane mode. Now since either the 3.1 upgrade or the AT&T carrier file update for MMS it has constant connection problems. Not good when this is my only source of telephone communication. Generally I've been fixing the problem with a reboot cycle, but honestly when I'm on the go that's not really an option to get data to reconnect to check the bus schedule. The bus is long gone by the time it's back on!

I have not performed any restores, but will later tonight when I get home from work. For now I have turned off 3G and am operating fairly smoothly on EDGE, save for the speaker interference I'm getting in my office that I haven't experienced since an old flip phone years ago.

click...click...clickclickclickCLIIIICK Hark! A text is about to arrive...

Message was edited by: trickycoolj (added shut down issue)

Add me to this list. Tried resetting network settings... didn't work. Turning airport mode on and off all the time is a temporary fix.... but it's quite frustrating not knowing when I didn't receive a call or text until I try to make or send one myself.

Replaced the SIM card today at AT&T... we'll see how that works I guess.

Same issue here. Tried turning off 3G and this fixed it. My phone is a new 16gb 3GS replacement, build week 35, for a completely different issue than this one. Dust was under the glass. The replacement phone had 3.0.1 installed. Of course I updated to 3.1, at which point the symptoms described in this thread started happening. So we can bank on this being a software issue, and hence fixable by a software update. (Hurry up Apple!) Still doesn't excuse the inconvenience and unfairness of having to pay for something that doesn't work.

Hmm, notice how when composing a post on this forum, that 'iPhone OS 3.1' isn't available in the OS pick list? Just a coincidence, right? So I chose 'Other'.

Add me to the list - Mine is a 3G, about 5 months old. I have been unable to call/receive at times, and have had the full battery to completetly empty problem also. Plus the battery life has decreased GREATLY. Thanks for everyone for writing and trying to help.

Add me to the list as well. I have a 3G. I have done a restore, restore from backup, and called the apple help line. I haven't tried turning 3G off or having ATT re-add me to the network. I actually called two days after the update and told them the update broke the service. The help guy said I should go to ATT and get a new SIM card. Said that there were not a lot of complaints so it probably wasn't the update.

Another guy in my office has same issues.

We really need definitive fix.

Count me in. First week or two after upgrade to 3.1 I had few instances of my iPhone 3G 8GB just totally getting bricked until doing hard reset to it. Then this went away. But now it's replaced by this seemingly random inability to make calls and get data. Only phone reboot temporarily helps. Some days I have to reboot **** thing twice a day and almost always after 3pm. I'm in NYC. Other proposed snake oil remedies like restoring in iTunes doesn't work. Apple support is totally useless.

And you guys are saying that there's no way to downgrade to 3.0?

Message was edited by: klopus

adding myself to the bunch..

i'm at least glad to know now i'm not the only one having the issue, i thought maybe my phone was defective.. it had been happening since day one when i got it about a month ago, but since it came already with 3.1 i guess that's why

it would be working fine in the morning, then by the time i got to work and tried to make a call or send a text, i'd realize that no calls or texts were able to be made or received.. luckily turning the phone off then back on has always resolved it for that moment

i've never had it happen more than once in a day, and i've had a couple days time go by without it happening at all, but it's a major pain.. if there was a way to tell by looking at the bars that there was no connection it wouldn't be quite as bad, but you're totally clueless unless you try to make a call or text

hope something gets done to fix it, and soon

It's been several days since I updated the network carrier file (the MMS update) and I have not had the problem anymore. Has this worked for anyone else?

I wrote several days ago about how I was going to try restoring my iPhone as new and then setting it up from scratch. That worked for me. I haven't had the zombie 3G problem since.

My theory is that there is some setting that is affecting 3G service on the 3.1 firmware. By restoring as new, you are effectively turning off that setting. Of course, after you restore, you're going to manually put things back the way you like them, so who knows if you're going to unleash the 3G bug.

I'm sure Apple is working on this, and it's very frustrating for all of us, but my recommendation is that until this is resolved through a software update, people just turn off 3G most of the time. You can always turn it back on if you want to use the web, but when you're just waiting for phone calls, you don't really need 3G. It *****, but it's a temporary fix that's far less painful than replacing your phone or restoring it to new.

I feel sorry for the people who don't browse forums when they have a problem and are getting yanked around by ill-informed Apple and AT&T employees.

I am having a slightly different experience. I had no issues with my iPhone 3G for over a year. 3.0.1 update worked fine for me. Then, A WEEK BEFORE 3.1 was available, I started having 3G issues. I would loose calls, lots of them. This lasted for about 2 days. I called Vodafone support (I'm in Greece), but couldn't negotiate a solution. The did some "reset" of my phone in their network and, a few hours later, my situation changed: I now NEVER loose a call on 3G! HOWEVER, I cannot stay connected to 3G for more than 20 seconds! It constantly flashes between 3G and GPRS every 20 to 30 seconds! If 3G reception is VERY HIGH (like next to the provider's antenna) it tends to keep the 3G connection longer; otherwise it seems completely random.

As a sidenote, my brother owns a 3GS and has the same issues, although he hasn't upgrades to 3.1 yet (stays at 3.0.1).

I am suspecting that the culprit is some provider settings that don't work well with the iPhone. So, I am keeping 3G off for now, waiting for a new software that will hopefully fix this issue.

The "fix" did not last. Even with the updated network carrier settings, the problem is back. Next step - new SIM Card.

3.1.2 out today.. Give it a try..

Updating to 3.1.2 Also got a carrier update. Hope this fixes things

also updating - hope it works! But THANKS Apple for listening and getting a patch out!