Carrier issues, Iphone 3gs: Carrier is in the carrier list but does not connect = no service

Right introduction, I live in the country signal for iphones under 02 in my area is 3-4 bars of GPRS signal. This is plenty to make and receive calls, texts and all that as use home wifi for internet simple. Everything working fine for about a year of having the phone, then did updates and started to see the "no service" almost all the time and had to place my iphone in a signal spot just to get 1-2 bars and couldn't touch it without dropping out! Basically I could not use it at all and the crap about the signal now showing true signal is rubbish as before i could make calls fine and no drops, but now due to "no service" i can't make any calls or texts or anything. I have a ipod touch when nothing HAS CHANGED other than i can think when the update to 4.0 came along! I have been living with this for almost a year. I have done every possible solution, apple stores, 02 stores, new sim cards (many), every type of phone resetting possible, manually turning off 3g and other settings to turning everything off bar just basic GPRS signal. Network resets everything possible no joy what so ever.

I have been paying for a year now for a phone that i can't use anywhere other than right next to a signal tower! Yes the phone connects to GPRS, EDGE, 3G when in town but just about. Before these problems i could get max 3G signal in my local town no issues but now struggle to get 1 bar of 3g in a town as well. The problem is I used to be able to use my phone as a phone where i needed to use the phone. Now i can't use the phone anywhere and get drop calls all the time when i do manage to get signal!!!!!!!

Now i can't even connect to 02, yet at home under a manual carrier search all UK networks appear on the list including 02, I click on 02 and it comes up with the warning "network lost see settings" So my phone CAN find signal but does not connect to 02. This has been the case for a long time now and as stated before several sim cards latter and plenty of trips to apple and changes of phone make NO difference which makes me believe this is a software issue on apple's part. I only started getting these issues when the iphone 4 came out and updated the ios. Now what can i do, i can not downgrade the ios as i never jailbreaked my phone so don't have the files stored that i should to be able downgrade. Apple are offering 0 help with this, all i want to do is smash it to bits as it no longer works as a phone. I have to use a 10 year old nokia to call and actually use my contract that I PAY FOR. I PAID FOR MY PHONE and just after the warranty runs out as well and it seems all a software problem.

I have searched all over the net to find no solutions to my problems this is a last resort before i do actually smash the thing and I love apple to bits but come on a simple software issue.

I mean isn't it silly that i can't downgrade my ios and that apple don't support this and yet my issue seems to lie in there update.

I know that the signal update reworked the algorithm to show true signal XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX um no it doesn't as now i have 0 signal as before i had no problems what so ever with dropping calls and the signal showing right so WHY WHY WHY.

Please help I am so frustrated with things and need to solve this issue. Please ask anymore questions if you want more details about anything, i need to sort this out please.

By the way i am running ios 4.3.3 yet bellow in the options this is not stated?? I have been updating hoping that it gets solved but only seems to get worse the more i update.

Thanks

James

Thanks

James