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Does complaining to AT&T do anything?

After registering dropped calls using AT&T's Mark the Spot iPhone app, AT&T put up a new cell tower in the vicinity of CNET executive editor David Carnoy's home. So maybe it does pay to complain.

David Carnoy Executive Editor / Reviews
Executive Editor David Carnoy has been a leading member of CNET's Reviews team since 2000. He covers the gamut of gadgets and is a notable reviewer of mobile accessories and portable audio products, including headphones and speakers. He's also an e-reader and e-publishing expert as well as the author of the novels Knife Music, The Big Exit and Lucidity. All the titles are available as Kindle, iBooks, Nook e-books and audiobooks.
Expertise Mobile accessories and portable audio, including headphones, earbuds and speakers Credentials
  • Maggie Award for Best Regularly Featured Web Column/Consumer
David Carnoy
2 min read
Text message from AT&T. Screenshot by David Carnoy/CNET

Several months ago I downloaded the AT&T iPhone app Mark the Spot, which has now been updated to version 2.0. Cell phone service isn't too bad in my New York apartment, but every time I had a dropped call, I'd fire up the app and register my complaint.

Now, the area where I live is in one of the denser residential areas in the city, so I don't think I was alone in registering my complaints. But just a couple of days ago, I received a text message from AT&T telling me that the company had just added a new cell site in my area to "boost coverage."

No, I don't live exactly in the area AT&T was describing (I would never live in any of the Trump dude's properties the message refers to). However, I was within about 10 blocks, which is close enough, I guess.

The cynic in me has a feeling the cell tower was in the works for a while, making its way through the city approval process, which can take years. But during one of the three naive, cheerful moments I experience per day, I thought, "Hey, maybe it is worth downloading the app and registering your complaints; they might not be falling on deaf ears."

And heck, if enough people complain in your area, you might get a cell tower (I'm not sure how much my reception has actually improved because as I said, it wasn't too bad to begin with, but at least I haven't dropped any calls in my apartment in recent days).

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