The drop with those phones was shown by Anandtech to be nowhere near as bad.
Out of the three phones they tested (Nexus One, 3GS and iPhone 4) the iPhone 4 was significantly worse when being held.
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Apple on iPhone 4 Reception: Signal Strength Display Issue Only, Software Update Coming
- Thread starter fruitbat04
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The drop with those phones was shown by Anandtech to be nowhere near as bad.
Out of the three phones they tested (Nexus One, 3GS and iPhone 4) the iPhone 4 was significantly worse when being held.
It's not that we're saying "return it because it has signal issues," we're saying "if you are unhappy with the phone, then return it." If you're unhappy with any phone, iphone or not, return it.
I'm sorry, but...
I will admit, I'm an over 25-year Apple aficionado, however, this is a MAJOR fail on Apple's part. To date, this is quite possibly the most important launch of the company's history. To not only botch the PR on this (I'm sorry, Steve, really?), but to then Band-Aid it with this new (lame) twist? Not good. Trust me, this is not the end of this story.
I will admit, I'm an over 25-year Apple aficionado, however, this is a MAJOR fail on Apple's part. To date, this is quite possibly the most important launch of the company's history. To not only botch the PR on this (I'm sorry, Steve, really?), but to then Band-Aid it with this new (lame) twist? Not good. Trust me, this is not the end of this story.
The reason for the issue is... (#insert_distraction_here)
"We have gone back to our labs and retested everything, and the results are the same the iPhone 4s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped. "
They retested "everything" yet the feedback is specific to wireless performance. I thought the issue was functional i.e. complaints around dropped calls 1) when holding the phone a certain way or 2) when compared to the iphone 3gs.
Thanks for letting us know that it will perform well when it works?
On the bright side, at least new owners will now be able to accurately determine how bad the REAL underlying problem is.
That is, unless they are mislead by the taller bars that will now appear when they have a weak signal... I for one would be extremely surprised if this response from Apple is met without anything else than a major outcry.
"We have gone back to our labs and retested everything, and the results are the same the iPhone 4s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped. "
They retested "everything" yet the feedback is specific to wireless performance. I thought the issue was functional i.e. complaints around dropped calls 1) when holding the phone a certain way or 2) when compared to the iphone 3gs.
Thanks for letting us know that it will perform well when it works?
On the bright side, at least new owners will now be able to accurately determine how bad the REAL underlying problem is.
That is, unless they are mislead by the taller bars that will now appear when they have a weak signal... I for one would be extremely surprised if this response from Apple is met without anything else than a major outcry.
As much as I love Apple's products, I have to say this announcement marks the biggest piece of BS reversal/cover-up I've seen in my lifetime. It's as if the sideways universe never existed at all (see Lost).
Now before you dismiss me as a hater or whiner, let me just say I'm perfectly fine with my iPhone 4 and have no intention of returning it. I can reproduce the issue (already detailed in other posts) but am not affected in general use, either with or without a case.
However, as an RF Engineer with a PhD in EE, I can guarantee this is not a software issue and I find the audacity of such a cover up to be rather incredible, yet ultimately I can see how it happened. The antenna engineers took a risk with this design, and I'm sure someone knew something like this could happen; either that or their antenna staff is a bunch of idiots and that's why they are now hiring new engineers. The brilliance of using this *software* coverup is that it's hard to debate. There are no signal strength standards attached to bars, so the Apple software folks can simply tweak to their hearts delight to make the signal attenutation no longer appear under different signal strength conditions. Voila, the problem has vanished.
Problem for them is when people continue to run tests with Speedtest and other means of testing such as dropped calls. The latter is probably unreliable and difficult to legally prove as it could always be blamed on the opposing party. Speedtest is probably the best way to confirm you are still losing signal strength, but even that is subject to issues that would be hard to prove in court.
Pretty genius legal move on their part to cover their asses and placate some of the masses, but it stinks if you ask me.
Now before you dismiss me as a hater or whiner, let me just say I'm perfectly fine with my iPhone 4 and have no intention of returning it. I can reproduce the issue (already detailed in other posts) but am not affected in general use, either with or without a case.
However, as an RF Engineer with a PhD in EE, I can guarantee this is not a software issue and I find the audacity of such a cover up to be rather incredible, yet ultimately I can see how it happened. The antenna engineers took a risk with this design, and I'm sure someone knew something like this could happen; either that or their antenna staff is a bunch of idiots and that's why they are now hiring new engineers. The brilliance of using this *software* coverup is that it's hard to debate. There are no signal strength standards attached to bars, so the Apple software folks can simply tweak to their hearts delight to make the signal attenutation no longer appear under different signal strength conditions. Voila, the problem has vanished.
Problem for them is when people continue to run tests with Speedtest and other means of testing such as dropped calls. The latter is probably unreliable and difficult to legally prove as it could always be blamed on the opposing party. Speedtest is probably the best way to confirm you are still losing signal strength, but even that is subject to issues that would be hard to prove in court.
Pretty genius legal move on their part to cover their asses and placate some of the masses, but it stinks if you ask me.
Read my post and the post i quotes more carefully. I was actually confirming the issue.
I don't yet have the iPhone 4. Not eligible for a few months. But even if I wasn't I don't like to be early adopter.
None of us have any idea how widespread this issue really is at this point. It's clear that there are people who are having problems and it could be widespread (or not).
I think what is upsetting to them is that they, like me, love Apple products and really want them. And when you have issues like this they are very disappointed. Apple, like any company, is not immune to problems. But their track record is better than most. And they do make amazing products. When one has problems right off the bat like this, it's not a good feeling.
People have the option to return the phone. They all know that. Their preference is to keep and have it work right. We'll put up with some of the vagaries of the iPhone such as battery life, etc., because we know it's the best phone out there.
Most of them are just super frustrated. And some are just ******s.
Personal opinion is that software won't solve it. They ought to give the bumpers away. But anyone that isn't happy should just return it and wait a few months for the next batch which will probably be better.
None of us have any idea how widespread this issue really is at this point. It's clear that there are people who are having problems and it could be widespread (or not).
I think what is upsetting to them is that they, like me, love Apple products and really want them. And when you have issues like this they are very disappointed. Apple, like any company, is not immune to problems. But their track record is better than most. And they do make amazing products. When one has problems right off the bat like this, it's not a good feeling.
People have the option to return the phone. They all know that. Their preference is to keep and have it work right. We'll put up with some of the vagaries of the iPhone such as battery life, etc., because we know it's the best phone out there.
Most of them are just super frustrated. And some are just ******s.
Personal opinion is that software won't solve it. They ought to give the bumpers away. But anyone that isn't happy should just return it and wait a few months for the next batch which will probably be better.
This update will fix my problem. I haven't had a single dropped call yet though I do notice my bars dropping when I hold the phone in my apt. GREAT NEWS!!!
Not as a handheld phone in the one location I need it to do so, my home and all previous versions of the iPhone did. Yes in that location it still functions as a game console, alarm clock, personal calendar, but it doesn't as a phone, which it is sold as.
So to avoid such pedantic retorts please let me restate:
To make it as functional as the equipment it is an upgrade to in the locations I need it most for the primary function it is sold for it needs a case due to a design flaw that drastically reduces signal strength with normal holding unlike all previous versions of the iPhone.
Better?
I'm tired of all the references to left- vs right-handers in this debate.
I am definitely a right-hander but I hold my phone in my left hand most of the time! That's because I use my right hand to control the phone. I also tend to use my left ear when I'm on the phone.
As for signal drop off, in most cases I can make the phone drop signal on demand while holding it in my left hand. In a minority of cases I can't reproduce the problem.
I am personally convinced that most, if not all, units would exhibit this problem under certain conditions that are not completely clear to me. It could be related to the characteristics of the connection/signal/tower the phone is using at the moment. It may also differ depending on the person who's holding it. I am basing my conclusion that most, if not all units, have the problem on the fact that the only friend I know with an iPhone 4 also has this problem and from all the reading I've been doing on line. Of course, I am not certain of my conclusion - it's just my opinion.
I am definitely a right-hander but I hold my phone in my left hand most of the time! That's because I use my right hand to control the phone. I also tend to use my left ear when I'm on the phone.
As for signal drop off, in most cases I can make the phone drop signal on demand while holding it in my left hand. In a minority of cases I can't reproduce the problem.
I am personally convinced that most, if not all, units would exhibit this problem under certain conditions that are not completely clear to me. It could be related to the characteristics of the connection/signal/tower the phone is using at the moment. It may also differ depending on the person who's holding it. I am basing my conclusion that most, if not all units, have the problem on the fact that the only friend I know with an iPhone 4 also has this problem and from all the reading I've been doing on line. Of course, I am not certain of my conclusion - it's just my opinion.
So you are see a lot of people believe it is affecting most iPhone 4 users because the minuscule percentage it is affecting are so vocal. I agree with you.
Thank you for your support.
I dont think YOU understand the reviews. The signal degradation only occurs when holding the phone in that one TEENY TINY LITTLE spot that most motor morons cant figure out how not to touch it.
Thanks - then you've proven my earlier point that Apple's hardware is flawed and perhaps has ALWAYS been. And they've been deceiving people with the their radio strength by falsifying the indication bars.
Listen - I loved my 3GS and I really enjoy my i4 and have only minimal issues now that I have a case. But that doesn't change the fact that APPLE is guilty of some shenanigans. Either in the reporting of signal strength or design flaws. And no press release is going to relieve them of that.
Responses:
1) Acceptable
2) No. No one made you buy the phone. You're entitled to a refund, but nothing more.
3) The phone really is beautiful, I love looking at it and holding the thing. Like no other phone to date.
4) Why recall every phone if they don't have a problem?
The idea was that reviewers found the reception to be superior on the device. A claim was made that it was only while the phone was not being held. For a phone to be reviewed, it must be held. I said that exact fact, and someone posted an analysis of the reception issue that had nothing to do with point being made.
Because you are the one saying it is a problem. You purchased a product you are not happy with. Take it back. You do realize that somewhere between many and nearly all iPhone 4 users are not experiencing problems right?
Agree 100%...
I live in Omaha & have AT&T, & despite an occasional call drop about once or twice a month, I get solid 3G service wherever I am. I have used every manufacturer from several Nokias, Motorolas, Samsungs, & HTC handsets, & I have never experienced the kind of signal degradation that the iPhone4 is plagued with.
Yeah....I smell Apple bull-**** once again. If you fools are going to stand there and be lied to like this then by all means do it.....I for one am sick of the crap that Apple spews out. First chance I get I am going to toss my iPhone 3GS out the window and go buy an android phone!
Well in CERTAIN locations I don't have any drop in signal with the death grip either. However, at the same locations where I use the phone the most, home and work, I have much worse reception if I hold it the wrong way-it doesn't even require a "death grip." I just have to lightly cover up the left side as I often do when using the phone with my left hand.
Well, why did they design the new phone in such a way that it has an "easy spot" ruin the signal?
you are free to take it back without penalty... pay compensation??? If only I were paid compensation for every decision that I've ever made that went bad by no fault of my own (other than my initial decision)..
No need to recall my IP4.. works perfectly - as do the other 14 IPs I have tabs on.
You might want to reread that article. I'm not the one generalizing things here:
I'm saying, "I have a problem with my phone."
Others are saying, "I'm also having the same problem."
You're saying, "I don't have that problem, so it isn't a problem at all."
I'm sitting here on my iPhone 4 responding on 3G with 4 bars. I an hold it anyway I want an I still works.