The iPhone and I took a little trip to the Blue Bell Creameries in Brenham, TX yesterday. We went on a tour and it was all very fun and very tasty (you get ice cream at the end!) but I was concerned about how the iPhone would operate in a small town.

While Brenham isn't exactly a small town, as it has a population of about 13,500, I've lived in Houston (population about 2.1 million) my whole life. I'm used to having a Starbucks on every corner, four shopping malls within 20 minutes, and seeing cell phone towers dot the landscape.On the way up, my mother doubted my navigational abilities. We had been on 290 for about an hour and fifteen minutes when she demanded I check the map. I pulled over in the middle of nowhere, fired up Google Maps and found Brenham. Though I would've enjoyed having built-in GPS in the iPhone, all I needed to do was verify that 290 does, in fact, go to Brenham.

But since I had no idea of where I was, other than "on 290," we did have to turn on our Mio GPS and put in the creamery to get an ETA. If I didn't have that GPS, I'd probably still be hearing about how I got us unspeakably lost, but thankfully I did. As it turns out, GPS successfully lead us to our destination with his cute little British accent.

Around the city, I almost always had five bars of reception while my mother (on Virgin Mobile) had absolutely no service for 90% of the time, and only two bars when she did. While calling my brother from Brenham to our house in Houston, the quality was clear and excellentjust as good as if I were calling from inside the house.

EDGE speeds were pleasantly surprising, too. Inside the creamery after our post-tour scoop, I googled for a restaurant at which to have lunch. Even inside the giant ice cream factory, I had five bars of reception. I quickly pulled up all sandwich shops in downtown Brenham while my mom was still getting verbal directions from the two tour guides cleaning up the ice cream counter. One asked if my phone was the new "iTunes Apple phone" and I offered to let him play with it in hopes of getting another cup of Buttered Pecan. Unfortunately, he was covered in ice cream and didn't want to get any on the phone.

iPhone+sammich 500

While sitting at lunch, I emailed a picture of my sandwich to a friend. I heard the little wooshy "sent" noise about 10 seconds later, just the same amount of time it takes while in Houston via EDGE. In the end, I was terribly impressed with AT&T's coverage in a small town. It was better there than in parts of Houston.

IMG 6750 500
Katie and iPhone in front of Blue Bell Creamery

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.5 With New Wallpaper, Screen Time Changes, Carrier Satellite Support for iPhone 13 and More

Monday May 12, 2025 10:06 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5, the fifth updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5 come a little over a month after Apple released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. The iOS 18.5 update has a...
tvOS 18 Feature

Apple Releases tvOS 18.5

Monday May 12, 2025 10:01 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 18.5, the latest version of the tvOS operating system. tvOS 18.5 comes a little over a month after the launch of tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models. tvOS 18.5 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software. ‌Apple TV‌ owners who have...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

WSJ: Apple Weighing Price Hikes for iPhone 17 Lineup Without Blaming Tariffs

Monday May 12, 2025 3:36 am PDT by
Apple is considering raising prices for its upcoming iPhone 17 models set to release this fall, according to people familiar with the matter cited by The Wall Street Journal. The company reportedly aims to pair the potential price hikes with new features and design changes to justify the increased cost to consumers, rather than attributing them to U.S. tariffs on goods from China. The...
iOS 18

iOS 18.5 Expected This Week With These New Features

Monday May 12, 2025 7:20 am PDT by
Following more than a month of beta testing, Apple is expected to release iOS 18.5 to the general public this week. While the software update is relatively minor, it still includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones. Below, we recap everything new in iOS 18.5. Pride Wallpaper Apple recently announced its 2025 Pride Collection, including a new Apple Watch band, watch face,...
macOS Sequoia Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.5

Monday May 12, 2025 10:10 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.5, the fifth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched last September. macOS Sequoia 15.5 comes a little over a month after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.4. Mac users can download the ‌‌‌macOS Sequoia 15.5‌‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run ...
Mayday Calendar

Apple Acquisition Hints at Upgraded Calendar App on iOS 19 or Beyond

Friday May 9, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple acquired Canadian startup Mayday Labs in April 2024, according to a European Commission listing, spotted by French blog MacGeneration. The acquisition had not received widespread attention from tech publications until now. Apple is legally required to report certain acquisitions to the European Commission, under the terms of the EU's Digital Markets Act. Mayday Labs founder Jeremy...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

20th Anniversary iPhone Will Be Mostly Glass With All-Screen Design

Monday May 12, 2025 2:52 am PDT by
Apple will mark the 10th anniversary of the iPhone X in 2027 by launching a mostly glass, curved iPhone without any cutouts in the display, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Writing in his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman said the all-screen device will arrive later in 2027, suggesting a fall release. The model will be preceded by Apple's first foldable iPhone, claims the reporter....