Apples iPhone 3G has taken quite a bit of criticism recently for its handling of the 3G Network. The high-tech mobile has a bad habit of dropping calls to pick up weak 3G signals instead. Thankfully Apple listened to the complaints and has issued a software update that should make your iPhone worth the money.

Apple claim the software update improves the device’s 3G abilities, but as always, not everyone is happy the update has solved the connection problems. It’s also a unclear as top why the 3G problems exist in the first place.

The problem flagged up by users is that the iPhone performs poorly when attempting to connect with high-speed cellular networks. Apple has seen the complaints (on forums and blog’s all over the place), and thus far remained tight-lipped about the issue.

Apple’s shiny new 2.0.2 iPhone update should help to sooth disgruntled customers, but Apple still hasn’t revealed exactly what “bug fixes” have been fixed. To Apple’s defence, they never tend to give much away, so it’s not unusual.

“Based on user reports collected so far, the iPhone 2.0.2 software update does not address 3G issues; however, as we don’t have detailed release notes from Apple, it’s unclear as to what 2.0.2 specifically addresses,” Raven Zachary, founder of iPhoneDevCamp and a contributing analyst for The 451 Group, said.

“So far, I am pleased with this update. On-screen keyboard responsiveness and Contacts performance seem improved,” he added.

Jennifer Bowcock, an Apple iPhone spokesperson, claimed that, “The iPhone 2.0.2 software update improves communication with 3G networks.” Sadly that was all she gave away.

“I never noticed any iPhone-specific connectivity issues to begin with,” Avi Greengart, a research director of wireless devices for Current Analysis, said.

“The last time my iPhone 3G repeatedly dropped from 3G to EDGE, I pulled out four other phones with HSDPA 850/1900 - a BlackBerry Bold prototype, Nokia E71, LG Vu, and HTC Tilt - and they were all down to EDGE as well, indicating a temporary network issue. By the next morning, all five - iPhone 3G included - were back to HSDPA,” he added.

“By no means am I saying that the iPhone 3G is perfect,” he noted. “I have also experienced random slowness and/or crashing with every build of the software, including the 2.0.2 update.

“I have also had serious qualms with the iPhone 3G’s battery life - the 2.0.2 firmware hasn’t been out long enough for me to know if battery life is any better with it,” he said, noting that he’s personally had good service in northern New Jersey, Boston, San Diego, and New York City, while his colleagues have reported good 3G service in northern Virginia as well.

“I’m sure that there are some people who aren’t happy with their iPhone 3Gs. Maybe they have defective units. Maybe they have poor AT&T coverage in their areas, or the network is overloaded,” Greengart said.