As a tech rep for AT&T Mobility, I look forward to new devices with a small amount of dread.  Inherently, there are always problems that occur that no one seemed to see coming.  This is even more so with the announcement of the new iPhone.  With its cheaper price and 3G network access, it’s sure to be a huge seller.

I can’t help but wondering though, did AT&T think about how much of a strain these new accounts will have on the 3G Network?  The original iPhone wasn’t too bad of a drain because 55% used local WiFi access to do data intensive tasks.  With access to the 3G network, this will not be the case now.  Last year (according to an internal email), iPhone users guzzled 5 times more data than the average subscriber.  With the mandatory unlimited data plan, there’s nothing to stop new iPhone users from constantly putting a strain on the 3G, which, let’s be honest, has not had a stellar track record to begin with.

I’m not so sure that all the usage won’t bog down the 3G network until it is little more than EDGE, at least for a while.  Even with “regular” 3G phones, the system has encountered issues from intense usage, causing slow downs, crashes, and complete shut-downs.

I expect numerous calls into the call center from new iPhone customers complaining of the slow speed or no access, as well as internal emails letting us know of outages across the entire 3G network.  I suppose all I can do it brace myself for the onslaught and prepare to be yelled at for not providing the service the customers are paying for.