AT&T: Alca-Lu software bug affected uplink speeds

AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) said that the company, along with Alcatel-Lucent (NASDAQ: ALU), identified a software bug that slowed some users' data uplink speeds.

"AT&T and Alcatel-Lucent jointly identified a software defect--triggered under certain conditions--that impacted uplink performance for Laptop Connect and smartphone customers using 3G HSUPA-capable wireless devices in markets with Alcatel-Lucent equipment," AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel told FierceWireless. "This impacts less than 2 percent of our wireless customer base. While Alcatel-Lucent develops the appropriate software fix, we are providing normal 3G uplink speeds and consistent performance for affected customers with HSUPA-capable devices."

Siegel said the glitch "only affects uplink and only in markets served by Alcatel-Lucent equipment." He declined to say when the software fix will be in place. 

According to several reports, and user comments on the blogs Macrumors and Gizmodo, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone customers in several major metropolitan areas across the country said Tuesday they were unable to upload data any faster than 100 Kbps, even though their downlink speeds remained well above 1 Mbps.

Additionally, according to data provided to Wired by Speedtest.net, users in numerous markets began seeing a degradation in uplink speeds during the weekend. Speedtest.net said its broadband testing app is on more than 3 million iPhones and records more than 150,000 speed tests from iPhones on a daily basis, according to Wired.

This is the latest connection snafu to hit both Apple and AT&T. Apple said last week it had been incorrectly calculating the number of bars available for cellular service on the iPhone.

For more:
- see this Wired article
- see this CNet article

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