While the overall satisfaction rates with the AT&T and Verizon versions of the iPhone are "virtually indistinguishable," consumers on the Verizon iPhone report fewer dropped calls, according to a Tuesday report.
Of the 4,068 people surveyed by ChangeWave Research last month, about 82 percent of Verizon subscribers are "very satisifed" with their iPhone 4 and 80 percent of AT&T iPhone 4 users feel the same.
Customers on Verizon, however, reported a 1.8 percent dropped-call rate on the iPhone 4, while AT&T landed at 4.8 percent.
"Similar to the historical patterns in our overall industry findings – Verizon iPhone 4 owners currently report a lower dropped call rate than their AT&T iPhone 4 counterparts," ChangeWave said.
The company noted, however, that Verizon is in the early days of offering the iPhone 4; it debuted in early February. "It remains to be seen how well the Verizon network performs as the number of Verizon iPhone 4 owners ramps up and inevitably puts more pressure on their system," ChangeWave said.
Of those who plan to purchase an iPhone 4 in the future, 46 percent will opt for Verizon while 27 percent will select AT&T, "a sign of the magnitude of the ramp-up Verizon is facing," ChangeWave said.
ChangeWave has been tracking dropped-call rates on the four U.S. wireless for several years. Its latest data finds that Verizon is at number one with a 1.4 percent dropped-call rate, followed by T-Mobile at 2.3 percent, Sprint at 2.7 percent, and AT&T at 4.6 percent.
AT&T has trailed Verizon on this point since 2008, when ChangeWave first started tracking the phenomenon. In December 2010, AT&T improved considerably, dropping from 6 percent in September to 4.7 percent in December. Verizon, meanwhile, is at its lowest rate ever; it's all-time high dropped-call rate was 2.7 percent in September 2008.
"In sum, while the survey finds overall customer satisfaction ratings are virtually indistinguishable between Verizon iPhone 4 owners and AT&T iPhone 4 owners, there are apparent differences in the relative percentage of reported dropped calls – where in the current survey Verizon is outperforming its industry rival," ChangeWave concluded.