3.1 update? GOOD or BAD???

Time to move on? I'd love to, except that at several times a day, my phone becomes disconnected from the network. I can't make/receive calls, send/receive texts, and when trying to get to the data network I receive the following error: "Network Error. Failed to connect. Please check that Airplane mode is off". (It is). A restart is required to make the phone operable. This all started when I loaded 3.1 on my phone. I did not have these problems even once before 3.1. Other people have reported these problems as well.

I would not call the expectation to be able to make/receive calls, send/receive texts, and access the data network, "overinflated expectations".

p.s. Apple will be calling me on these issues tomorrow. I will report back what they say.

Apple support called me today. They had me remove my SIM card, reset the Network Settings, insert my SIM card, then restart my phone. This solved the problem for five minutes. Now the problem is back: can't send/receive calls or texts, and can't connect to the data network.

They told me that if this didn't work, to stop by ATT for a new SIM card. I'll stop by on my way home from work tonight and report back here.

still working great here for me... slightly improved battery life.

It's fine, there seems to be the usual little nits but nothing to worry about.

My iphone has froze 3 times in a week since downloading the 3.1 update. The only way to have the phone work again is the reboot.

What have you done to troubleshoot/correct you issue? You should probably start a new thread with your specific problem and what you've tried so far so you can get some advice.

You should always upgrade to the latest firmware. Apple knows what is best. If you don't upgrade, then hackers might get into your phone, depending on which obsolete version of the OS you are running.

"The simple hypothesis is that there is something wrong with how people are handling 3.1 "

Yes. Apple would not release something that was not perfect. That would make no sense. It is NOT how Apple does tings.

You will find that in every case, it is the user's fault, and not Apple's.

I agree. I've got 2 iPhones in the family, my original that I gave to my son, and my 3G. Both have been upgraded to 3.1 and I have not had any issues with either. The both seem to work flawlessly.

The think that I'm happiest about right now is that AT&T has finally finished the upgrade to the network in my area and turned 3G on yesterday!! The other thing people need to realize is the work involved in network upgrades. Do you think that when AT&T, or any other carrier for that fact, wants to put up a new tower because of coverage issues they just start construction? The zoning issues they have to work with are incredible. I worked for a city government and it took them almost a year to approve the zoning permit needed to construct a tower here, and you can bet in other places it can take longer. Most people view the issue as "NIMBY", which means not in my back yard. They want the coverage, but they don't want the tower.

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You should always upgrade to the latest firmware. Apple knows what is best. If you don't upgrade, then hackers might get into your phone, depending on which obsolete version of the OS you are running.
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I bet you're one who says "The Government knows what's best" too, aren't you?

Not all 'upgrades' are. Upgrades that is. Sometimes the 'upgrade' destroys functionality.

Nothing will ever be 'perfect', and I expect bugs in new firmwares, but this one seems to have its issues ...I'm having my own, in a similar vein to others in this thread. Inexplicable network outages....locked phone...

Somethin' ain't right in Denmark.

My experience is;

Worse battery life - much worse.

Absolutely NO WiFi functionality - phone searches endlessly for local networks but finds NONE.

During the day a dialog pops up several times a day saying that the cellular data network is no longer available - in areas with previously GOOD Edge coverage.

If I didnt know better I would think it was all designed to make me buy new hardware!?!

You're an idiot. I have had no problems with my 3G until that update. I called apple and they replaced the phone. Didn't fix it, as soon as I updated it failed EVEN after restoring as a new phone (not from backup). I setup my mail etc all from scratch again.

I called back, they said it was the update causing the issue and that Apple wants to get their hands on as many of these units as possible. So, they sent ANOTHER phone.

This time, I didn't update to 3.1. I set the phone up as if it was completely brand new. It has been fine for a week on 3.0.1. It hasn't shut off once. Under 3.1 it shut off 2 - 3 times a day. Very odd behavior.

Ok, I don't think you are an idiot, but do not assume that these users are the "fringe" customers that are not savvy enough to use the OS properly.

Per Applecare's advice, I stopped by ATT last night for a new SIM card and 12 hours later the phone is still working. I'll report back later if the problem stays away...

No there are real problems, Iphone3G goes black after the upgrade so far 4 times, ( there are 1000s on the site saying the same thing ). they all do not work for MS. The only way to get it back is plug into macbook and reboot and then i no longer can connect with itunes when i plug in, i have to manually open itunes and sync. i have advised people to not upgrade and stay w 3.0 .

Well, without any doubt about it, the 3.1 OS update utterly corrupted my iPhone on Tuesday. My handset's only 120 days young and barely even had, at the most, a dozen of the most popular, stable Apps installed.

3.1 instantly threw my iPhone into a permanent state of Recovery Mode and it will not restore. I have tried every step in the support article twice and iTunes returns different unknown errors each and every time ( http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1275).

I think it only takes 5 mins of looking on these and other forums at the sheer volume of people suffering corruptions and instability across all applications and features as a direct result of the 3.1 install.

In my call to AppleCare support today the tech operator told me in not so many words that every call she was taking was about faults presenting after updating to OS 3.1 - and I had to queue on the line for 40mins before I even got through today at 6pm GMT.

Conclusion: iPhone OS 3.1 is like a bad Windows ME (and that's being generous).
If you haven't updated, don't! Wait for the fix; it HAS to come in short order.