AT&T 3G Microcell / iPhone 4/4S / IOS 5

Hello Chris J...

ATT did not tell me how to tell new generation Mcell from old generation Mcell, but I will tell you upon pluging in new Mcell, there was a --red-- power light (top light on device), that initially was --RED-- then turned green after boot up.. On my old Mcell, it powered on in a blinking --GREEN-- then went solid green when booted up.

Like I said,, I dont know what different -guts- are inside newer Mcells, but for me and my fam, we are now on day 7 with no issues at all for the 2 iphone 5's 1 4S and 1 3gs...

By the way,, after much -discussion- at the ATT store,, I was able to get a refund on the new Mcell I purchased, while --trading in-- the old Mcell. They (ATT staff at the store) did not want to do it, and it took 1 hour of my time and many phone calls for the $220 refund to happen.

The voice calls I have made in my home now are crystal clear, no echos, just great conversation. In the old days of no Mcell, I'd have 1 or 2 bars, and calls would drop all the time

Again, this is --my story-- but it now has a happy ending for me.

Good luck to all

Mark E

The whole notion of AT&T offering a micro cell for a price blows my mind. With the cost of their cell service they should be required to provide service w/o customers having to purchase another device to get the reception they pay for in the first place.

Great to hear. Mine has a green power light, but as I said, it has really been working fine. I may have to update it one day, but I'll limp through for now.

@triumphnorton. You don't pay for reception, you pay for service. And, they cannot and don't guarantee reception. There are too many variables that can affect that. There are arguments for the fact that they may advertise in their coverage map that someone is in a good reception area but still has connection issues. I paid for my MicroCell up front, but was refunded the cost on my next bill. My home is not signal friendly, and I live in close proximity to some high tension power lines that affect reception. That isn't AT&T's fault, but the MicroCell makes it bearable.

I do pay for a service and in that service is phone use which is basically to use a phone off of their network. w/o a micro cell I am unable to use their service or their network successfully. To me if a micro cell is offered this tells me there is a known issue with their network regardless if it is my area or somewhere else. Paying an extra 200 dollars for a device to get reception/service is ludicrist. With a 12% profit margin ATT could certainly afford to put up towers in ares that are probleam areas. guarantee or not a phone customer pays to be able to use a phone. I do not live in an area with high tension lines so my judgement is not clouded as yours is. 😉

Sorry Chris reception is service. AT&T is well aware of areas that have poor reception. MY house is in one of them.After repeatedly getting 0-1 bars on my iPhone 4, and after a dozen calls to tech support, they "offered" to sell me a microcell.I refused and demanded a free one (nicely of course). After I got one it worked flawlessly until IOS 5. Now IOS 6 it has improved again, in that when I enter the house I stand by the microcell and put the phone in airplane mode and then switch it back. It usually holds the signal until I leave the house. Whether Apple is to blame or AT&T, it doesn't matter. Bottom line my neighbor has a Verizon phone and he gets 4-5 bars in his house next door.So, it is AT&T's problem. As soon as I can get out of my contract, Verizon here I come.

I'm sorry, but celluar providers cannot just put towers up where and when they want. Local governments and individuals, while expecting improved service, will still tell the providers NIMBY, or not in my back yard. They have been fighting the construction of cell towers, but still complain about service. This is a Catch-22.

As far as service inside the home, no cellular carrier will guarantee service inside a home. Too many variables will affect service there. I've read on the AT&T forums that something with iOS 6 is making it difficult for the phone to hand-off the call to a regular tower after using the Microcell. Many have recommended going onto the AT&T website, logging in for your Microcell and disabling the Hand-off control. Not sure if that works, since I'm not having this problem, despite having one of the older Microcells. I've also read of replacing the Microcell. The older hardware doesn't always work good with the newer phones. It seems the way to identify the newer M-cells is the newer ones have a red power light, while the older ones have a green one.

If a user decides to use a service that is less than adequate in their location, that is their decision, and the Microcells are to help improve that, most times for places like apartment buildings where the building degrades the service. I agree they pay to use the service, but as I said earlier, not all carriers provide full service to all areas. That is a choice of the user to determine which provider has the best service in his area, and chose that first and foremost.

I wouldn't say my judgement is clouded just because I described my situation. I was just making reference to the fact that I get excellent AT&T service in my area, with the exception of around my home, and it is caused by the high tension wires. That is not AT&T's fault, nor the iPhone. That is how electrical and radio signals work.

As far as the service you describe is concerned, are you in an area where there is supposed to be full service? It seems as though you are in a lower service area and tech support did not satisfy your questions. The Microcell is a way to augment your service if there is no other way to improve it. Users need to be sure of their coverage prior to making a decision on a provider. If you are in an area where AT&T has weak signal, then yes, you should not be with them. If Verizon provides better service in your area, then certainly go to Verizon. Not all carriers provide full service in all areas. Until a few years ago, you couldn't get Verizon service in my area at all.

I am in AT&T MicroCell **** also. I have two Iphone 5's and they quit working with my mcell a few weeks ago. ATT determined my mcell was bad so I purchased a new one. After hooking it up it sees my wifes phone but not mine which is the primary phone on the system. I have done everything they have asked except rebuild my phone. Should I try that. Any ideas?

Should you try what?

My microcell works fine with my 5, and my wife's 5. It also worked with the 4S I had before an her 4.

Should I try rebuilding my iPhone ?

It can't hurt.

AT&T sent me a Cisco 3G Micro Cell (MC) to solve a no ring problem.

The MC caused a new problem - where the other person on the call would stop hearing my voice. I called AT&T many times over 2 yrs about this new problem & their Reps denied the problem existed.

A Google search on: MC problems returns millions of entries.

With AT&T’s knowledge, I:

1. Replaced my iPhone
2. Ran the new iPhone in factory mode
3. Replaced my SIMM card
4. Replaced my router

None fixed the problem. I spent 60+ hrs trouble shooting for AT&T.

Last week I read a Forbes article there is a known problem between MC & iPhone.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonykosner/2012/10/07/some-att-microcell-users-ar e-experiencing-problems-with-iphone-5-&-ios-6/

I called AT&T to learn a new black MC is available, which they sent me and seems to work without dropping calls.

I called Cisco today and found an engineer who said there WAS indeed a known MC firmware & iPhone problem but the black model fixes it.

http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/solutions/service-provider/mobile-internet/att_micr ocell.html

Between Forbes & Cisco, AT&T was withholding the truth these past 2 yrs & knowingly distributing faulty MCs to the public.

If you are having MC and iPhone or Android problems, call AT&T and request a new Black Micro Cell immediately.

Thank you. Thank you.

Calls of more than 3-4 minutes have increasingly bad reception until they fail. I'll see if I can get one of the new units.

Thank you.

Interesting. I still have the old gray/white Cisco unit and it works flawlessly with the iPhones here in our home. We have 2-iPhone 5S, 2-iPhone 5C and an iPhone 4S. All are using the most current iOS software.

Did AT&T replace your Microcell free of charge?

I called ATT and said known problem with known solution. The tech support person still ran me through many steps and then installed a "patch" that she said would solve the issue. We'll see. I'd given up on calls of more than 3 minutes and tended to call back vs land line or Skype to avoid the problem.