AT&T "Top 5%" data user throttled down to 2G speeds

By Rene Ritchie
last updated

AT&T has been warning the top 5% of iPhone data users on their network for a while now that they'd start throttling their speeds. TiPb reader David, who previously got the infamous SMS nasty-gram, just received it again and since then can't seem to get download speeds any faster than an EDGE-like 150Kbps.

His friends and co-workers are still getting full speed, ruling out a tower problem.

I called AT&T because I thought it was an issue with them and I did a trouble shooting session on the phone. After finishing they asked if I received any text from them and I replied "yes" and told them which one and that's when AT&T told me "problem solved". I asked how do I go from 14mbps to straight EDGE, bypassing 7.2mbps, and they couldn't reply

Are you one of the top 5% who've previously received warnings from AT&T? Have you experienced any throttling this severe?

Rene Ritchie
Rene Ritchie
Contributor

Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.