2008 Wireless Call Quality Volume 2

The wireless universe is getting more complicated by the day. Phones that used to simply make and receive calls now handle video, messaging, music and Internet connections. There’s increasingly fierce competition between wireless carriers for customer dollars and superior network quality is one of the key ways they can stand out from their competition.



J.D. Power and Associates semi-annual Wireless Call Quality Performance Study analyzes customer experiences to help them see which companies are staying at the forefront of the satisfaction curve. This round’s study included more than 22,000 wireless customers, representing every region of the country. We asked them about their experience with the seven deadly sins of bad wireless service: dropped calls; static/interference; failed connection on the first try; voice distortion; echoes; no immediate voice mail notification; and no immediate text message notification.

Here are the top performers in each geographic area:

Northeast Region: Verizon Wireless ranks highest, with fewer customer-reported problems in dropped calls, initial connections and static/interference compared with the regional average.

Mid-Atlantic Region: Verizon Wireless ranks highest for an eighth consecutive time, with fewer customer-reported problems regarding initial connections compared with the regional average.

Southeast Region: Alltel ranks highest in the region, with customers reporting fewer problems than the regional average in dropped calls and voice distortion.

North Central Region: U.S. Cellular and Alltel rank highest in a tie. U.S. Cellular customers report fewer problems in dropped calls, static/interference, echoes, voice distortion and late voice message notifications. Alltel customers experience fewer problems with dropped calls, initial connections, static/interference and voice distortion compared with the regional average.

Southwest Region: Sprint Nextel and Verizon Wireless tie to rank highest in the region. Sprint Nextel customers report fewer problems regarding initial connections. Verizon Wireless customers experience fewer problems with dropped calls, static/interference, voice distortion and failed voice message notifications compared with the regional average.

West Region: Verizon Wireless ranks highest in the region, with customers reporting fewer problems in dropped calls, initial connections, static/interference, echoes and voice distortion than the regional average.