Sprint is working with Apple to figure out the slow connection problems some users are having with the iPhone 4s on the Sprint network, but so far there’s no solution.
CNET reports that some iPhone 4s users on the Sprint network are experiencing dramatically slow data speeds. An issue that reared it’s ugly head almost as soon as the device hit the Sprint stores.
“We’re taking the reports of problems from a small number of customers seriously,” Fared Adib, head of product development for Sprint, said in an interview with CNET today. “There’s nothing of significance to report yet.”
The problem remains a hot topic on Sprint’s support message board, with more than 1,200 responses and 235,000 views. Adib said the complaints represent a single-digit percentage of the base of iPhone 4S users on Sprint.
The problem has dulled what Sprint had hoped would be a shining moment, when they could finally go toe-to-toe with their larger brethren, AT&T and Verizon.
Sprint is finding it difficult to replicate the slow connections, complicating efforts to fix the problem. The issue is not universal, as CNET had performed data speed tests in the Manhattan area, and found Sprint’s speed to generally be superior to that of Verizon’s.
The Next Web reported last week that Sprint and Apple were aware of the connection problem and were attempting to find a fix. An alleged internal memo acknowledged the problem and pointed to a software problem.
In spite of the problems, Sprint reports that customer satisfaction surveys show that Sprint iPhone users have the highest rates in customer satisfaction. It also boasts the lowest return rate. Over 4 million units of the iPhone 4s were sold over the opening weekend, and Sprint expects to sell 1 million iPhones in the 4th quarter.
