Apple on iPhone 4 Reception: Signal Strength Display Issue Only, Software Update Coming

[dmelgar]

People somehow actually believe that 3G from Verizon blankets the Nation. Not even close.

There's a map for that.
In the south east, and in most of the country outside major metro areas, the difference in 3G coverage is enormous.

 

[erio8]

I tried several iPhone 4's at my local AT&T store and all had 5 bars, and never dropped a single bar no matter how i held them. This was my first chance to test it out because i'm waiting for the white iPhone 4 before i purchase. The few i saw seemed fine to me.

Not trying to say that this is a set up, but I had the same experience when I took my phone to the apple store the other day. In fact, I had excellent reception in the entire area (about a 0.5 mile radius) where the store is located. Not a single dropped bar even with the death grip. However, when I use my phone a few miles away in an area where my 3gs always worked great, I get dropped calls/lost bars instantly when I use my left hand or even hold it the wrong way with my right hand. It starts out with 4-5 bars and then drops off bars and then the call when I hold it incorrectly. It's confusing.....

 

[dmelgar]

Let's just wait for the fix and see how that goes....
Hopefully, they'll have the update by next week and really fix the problem.

Reread the letter. There is no fix. Its a change to the number of bars displayed and making them look taller. It doesn't even attempt to help the problem.

 

[tatonka]

No, but we are early in the history of tiny portable devices with powerful microwave antennas. How many years were between the new "magical" Brownie and the public's common use of SLRs and the like?

No we are not! Even my Grandma knows how to use a mobile phone.

 

[kernkraft]

I'm a poet!

Steve Jobs sucks knobs.
YEah it rhymes, Im a poet!

You are certainly better in poetry
Than he has been in PR recently...

 

[Max(IT)]

So instead of going from 5 to 3 bars it's gonna go from 3 to 1. Great.

actually they are saying that what you now read as a 5 is more likely a 3-4 bars, so by touching the antennae you are going to have a drop from 4 to 3 bars, which is more than acceptable.

I don't know if that is the truth or not, but what I DO KNOW is that whatever Apple says now, you and others whiners on this forum are not going to trust them.

I'm waiting for the fix and THEN I will judge.

 

[Consultant]

Not trying to say that this is a set up, but I had the same experience when I took my phone to the apple store the other day. In fact, I had excellent reception in the entire area (about a 0.5 mile radius) where the store is located. Not a single dropped bar even with the death grip. However, when I use my phone a few miles in an area where my 3gs always worked great, I get dropped calls/lost bars instantly when I use my left hand or even hold it the wrong way with my right hand. It's confusing.....

All the stores have Microcell (mini cell phone antenna) to blanket the area with good reception.

 

[subsonix]

Uh, yeah. All phones have attenuation if you cover their antenna with your hand. However, this is DIFFERENT because you're actually touching the antenna with your hand.

Take some time and read this and you'll see why that is not affecting the issue, it's not DC but RF and the fact that the antenna is on the outside will actually give better reception if anything.

http://www.antennasys.com/antennasys-blog/2010/6/26/hey-hold-the-phone-like-this.html

 

[CBR900RR]

So instead of lllll, it'll be lllll. Much easier to distinguish.

New AT&T slogans

Tall bars in more places

 

[dmelgar]

Yes, but that is true will ALL antennas on all phones. Read up on the articles by some real experts in this field.

Not true. Reread those articles.
Detuning only occurs with direct skin contact to an antenna. No other phone has an exposed external antenna. And there's obviously a reason for that.
Attenuation occurs by having your hand or body close to the antenna. Its a different affect which does affect all phones but is no where near as dramatic as detuning in this case.

 

[rhanley]

You would think that a patent attorney would know that people embedded in technological history often don't know that they are a part of it.

I disagree with just about everything you say, but I like your style . Were you on the debate team in college?

 

[srxtr]

Y'all should stop complaining and be happy with your iPhone 4.

I want one so bad but none of the stores have one in stock...

 

[erio8]

All the stores have Microcell (mini cell phone antenna) to blanket the area with good reception.

Ahhhh....they didn't tell me that when I asked about their improved reception.

 

[kernkraft]

Y'all should stop complaining and be happy with your iPhone 4.

I want one so bad but none of the stores have one in stock...

Wait a few days, when the refurbished ones start to appear.

 

[firewood]

At the very least, Apple could have covered the metal with some type of coating to insulate it...

If actually are an EE, you would realize that capacitance is related to dielectric thickness, and that a thin coating would create a capacitor that would pretty much be a short at 3G cellular frequencies. For all we know, the RF path is already capacitively coupled to the antenna.

Ok, it might help a couple dB. But the bumper does better. And a nice large air gap ("hold different") is obviously best.

Note that the i4's uninsulated external antenna has already passed FCC (and EU) certification.

 

[iphonetester]

You are absolutely right about that.

The vast majority of posts are either "my IP4 and all my friends IP4s are all fine" or "my IP4 and all my friends IP4s have reception issues" - which strongly suggests that location/signal strength is the issue and all IP4s will behave the same way in the same location.

But just occasionally a post like juan's slips through. There is also a lady that says her husbands phone suffers badly but hers does not. These posts need further examination I would be very grateful if Juan or that lady could provide some video evidence of 2 IP4s behaving differently in the same location (one showing the problem, the other not).

Despite hundreds of pages of forum posts on this issue, no one has been able to do that yet. Believe me, I would love to see that video as it would mean there was a chance of exchanging my flawed IP4 for an unflawed one. But until I see any evidence to the contrary, I believe that every IP4 suffers from 20db attenuation when the black bar on the bottom left is covered - which depending on your particular location/signal strength may mean that you lose bars and drop calls/data or you don't.

Great Pic too!

What really frustrates me is how so many of you make fun of Apple marketing slogans, yet stand in line for hours to get their products. Yes iPhone changed the world as we know it. Now bunch of junk-heads created Droid family. Those phones change nothing, they are just an alternative to iPhone. Instead of whining for 51 pages, just return your iPhone and see what Droid does...

On the software update - you guys have no idea, what apple is going to fix inside that update. They say simply the bars - bars are not a pure animation. I think Apple going to adjust the frequencies of antenna as well. In my own experience, I found that the signal does go down quick when it is already bad, but does not drop when the signal is strong, no matter the grip. I just do not get it: yes there is part of the phone that you should not squeeze - so what is the big deal? I am coming to forums to find out more exciting stuff I can do with my iPhone 4. Instead I keep seeing disgruntled mockery.

 

[cmaier]

You would think that a patent attorney would know that people embedded in technological history often don't know that they are a part of it.

No, I'm quite convinced we are not in the early history of photography.

 

[scottnj1966]

Apple has posted positions open for antenna signal type engineers.
I am sure they will figure out a fix but this BS they just told us really makes themselves look like morons and a company we make not be able to trust.
Lose your reputation apple and you will lose everything. How do you not know this.

 

[Xenoxide]

I thought that iPhones connected to AT&T Microcells said "AT&T Mcell" at the top instead of just "AT&T". Surely you'd be able to tell if they were.

 

[ChrisJSNh]

I know I am way behind in this thread and falling further behind, but this sentiment can't be said enough.
<snipped tons>
We are telling you to return it now. This patch will not fix you problem if you are experiencing lots of drop calls and data slow downs and you are using a case and avoiding holding your phone in that area.
<snipped tons>
That is why I have decided to try and explain it over and over. I feel it is a public service I am providing. I am not sure why so many people here did not understand this straight forward and basic letter, but they don't.

You know i have a question and request an honest answer do you work for Apple? Your use of we,(middle quote i left intact),, and continual extreme attempts to re-educate people seems odd.

This is not meant in an insulting manor, just asking out of curiosity.

 

[cmaier]

If actually are an EE, you would realize that capacitance is related to dielectric thickness, and that a thin coating would create a capacitor that would pretty much be a short at 3G cellular frequencies. For all we know, the RF path is already capacitively coupled to the antenna.

Ok, it might help a couple dB. But the bumper does better. And a nice large air gap ("hold different") is obviously best.

Note that the i4's uninsulated external antenna has already passed FCC (and EU) certification.

Not if the dielectric constant is low enough. After all, if you take your finger off the antenna even by a tiny amount, the detuning stops. And your finger forms a capacitor with air as the dielectric in that case. Something like a 100A of polyimide would do nicely, but would be too soft, so probably you'd need 500A of something with better adhesive and mechanical properties.

I thought that iPhones connected to AT&T Microcells said "AT&T Mcell" at the top instead of just "AT&T". Surely you'd be able to tell if they were.

Yes, that's how it works. The stores don't use those microcells, though. They use real cells.

 

[hermes1980]

I'm OK with this response from Apple.
At least they issued a statement.

The reality is that I don't have problems with the antenna that others are reporting. Maybe it is true that there is attenuation of the signal while you are covering up the antenna, but actual real-world usage has not been a problem for me.

What I really wish for is Apple to fix the proximity sensor issue.

you must not use the phone at all. the first hour I got the phone I could tell there was an issue with the signal. lets stop calling it IPHONE it is not
Its a Mini Pad. I own 1st generation 2G and 3G , did not get the 3GS waiting for 4G got it to only 1 day later take it back to ATT and get my 3G back on line. I feel insulted when Mr Jobs tells me that I am holding the phone incorrectly only to see in many pictures holding the phone the same way I allways do.

 

[tivoboy]

my example.

Here is my example of the data throughput problem. I wish the speedtest.net app would run each test a bit longer, but you can see exactly what is happening here. Run the test, the download speed accelerates up to speed and when one simply TOUCHES the side black bar it IMMEDIATELY drops the speed off and would continue to drop it to ZERO if the test would continue to run.

You can REALLY see this with the UPLOAD test, which is just stopped DEAD in its tracks when one TOUCHES the side of the iphone4. stopped dead cold. this is probably why uploads, SMS and others fall so miserably since the UPLOAD speed and connection seems to be affected even WORSE than the download.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H795Qz-PBQc

 

[starstreak]

So explain the big drop in call quality and data speed when holding via the death grip? If it was only bar indicators, it shouldn't matter.

Give me 30days to return? I would but like many people here, I bought apps. Like a $50 tom-tom I needed on my trip. Which lost gps a few times when holding the phone wrong! I won't get credit for those apps..

 

[modul8tr]

A much needed laugh.


Translation From Apple’s Unique Dialect of PR-Speak to English of the ‘Letter From Apple Regarding iPhone 4’

http://daringfireball.net/2010/07/translation_iphone_4