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

NT1440 said:
Does anyone here rallying against apple honestly believe that this update will ONLY adjust the signal display?

Come on guys, think a little. :rolleyes:
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Ditto. ^ ^ .

I am astounded to see so many replies in the thread (though perhaps with all the hype, its maybe not surprising).

I first thought, the cynical in me, "oh its just an optical illusion", a "fake fix" etc., but then thinking deeper, reading into how antennae works (thanks to Wiki and some well informed posters on here) I am thinking that (though probably wrong somewhat):

1) The new antenna design required some work into how it communicates with cell towers, etc.
2) As with all technology Apple look to improve their technology how and where they can:

1 + 2 = some of the problems we are seeing in the number of bars, dropped calls (perhaps due to iPhone communication with towers, suchlike).

The new design is controversial and rightly so. It's unclear what Apple can do now besides some software changes to improve the issue.

Where issues are perhaps more obscure/dangerous/defeating the iPhone as a phone - Apple needs to look forward.

How can they improve it?

iPhone 4 - issue free bumpers and software update.

Looking forward:

Perhaps, 2 antennae and design the antennae to have breakups or failsafes along the way(if this is even possible) to allow users to receive a signal even where they put their fingers over "that spot".

In Conclusion,

Considering most users have usually, if not always buy cases, in the event that they don't, there is a workaround:

- I, for instance always put my phone in a pocket (either at my waist on my jeans or on the inside or front of a blazer/jacket).
- I use headphones/bluetooth for taking calls.
- Result? - not touching the phone to obscure the signal. I've been doing this since I've had a 3G, vastly improved calls in my experience.

And all this, and I'm a disabled guy with cerebral palsy* in my left hand side. A lot of whingers are like "WTF I CANT USE MY iPHONEZ", but, have they ever tried to use the phone one handed - and right handed at that? I do. and I type, scroll, do everything with my thumb. And by and large, my fingers wouldn't cover that *spot* on the iPhone 4.

*not the only one on these boards, I've noticed.

I guess, its the phone designed for me ;) .... but seriously, vote with your wallet. If, like me you've invested A LOT into your iPhone, and iPhone 4 is just not for you, either wait it out, and if the "improvements" fail YOU, then trade it in and get a 3GS. The tradeoffs shouldn't lose you money, only features.

Either Apple's "fixes" (if they are fixes at all, frankly I'm surprised theres not two antennae considering its external placing) will work for iPhone 4 (and hey, get a case, if not for signal then for protection too - it is glass you know ;)) ; or iPhone 5 will make some revisions into this process, with a protective band around the antennae or an extra one somewhere as a failsafe.

This is a shocking state of affairs and yes, I confess I am a fanboy and I'm disappointed Apple dropped the ball here. But. History tells us:

APPLE WILL FIX THIS.

I mean, come on, they have to.
 
Can someone clarify what the signal display update was done in firmware 2.1?

Here is a screenshot:
https://www.macrumors.com/2008/09/12/iphone-2-1-firmware-now-available/

The last line of the screen shot says "improved accuracy of the 3G signal strength display."

In Apple's letter, they claim:

"We will issue a free software update within a few weeks that incorporates the corrected formula. Since this mistake has been present since the original iPhone, this software update will also be available for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G. "

How can they claim the display has been wrong all along when they've already fixed it once?
 
Fastshutter said:
Can someone clarify what the signal display update was done in firmware 2.1?

Here is a screenshot:
https://www.macrumors.com/2008/09/12/iphone-2-1-firmware-now-available/

The last line of the screen shot says "improved accuracy of the 3G signal strength display."

In Apple's letter, they claim:

"We will issue a free software update within a few weeks that incorporates the corrected formula. Since this mistake has been present since the original iPhone, this software update will also be available for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G. "

How can they claim the display has been wrong all along when they've already fixed it once?
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I started a thread about this but no one seemed interested

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/958688/
 
-aggie- said:
Why does everyone assume that you have to have a problem, because someone else has the problem? I use my phone and I’ve tested it in all kinds of locations (ones with very low signal to ones with good signal) and situations (in the office, in my house, outside, etc). I don’t have the problem and consider myself lucky. I’ve covered the special spot. I’ve cupped both hands around my phone. Nothing.
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Because all the evidence points to ALL IP4s behaving the same way in the same location. All it would take to disprove this is a single video of 2 IP4s behaving differently in the same location (1 with problem, 1 without) but despite hundreds of forum pages about this issue, no one has been able to do this yet.

I would bet my new phone that if you came to visit me, your phone would have the problem. And if I came to visit you, my phone would be fine.
 
If Apple thought this signal issue was that much more of a problem than they've stated surly they'd release an update sooner rather than later?

I'm unsure as to whether my iPhone 4 has a reception issue or not, as I have experienced dropped calls and data signal loss on a few occasions, although no more than my 3G did. The signal bars certainly go down when I hold it though.

If Apple's "software fix" sorted the problem for me, then that would be great.

However, I'm not a mobile expert so I don't know what to believe.
 
cmaier said:
Comparing BP to Apple is stupid. Apple's failure didn't kill anyone or destroy the livelihoods of thousands of people.
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I didn't think anyone was so stupid to think I would trivialise the loss off life of those American workers on the American Oil Rig!
I guess I hadn't appreciated the MR forum... Get a grip, oops
Sorry wrong words... Get a hold... oops.

Maybe take a remote grip using fingers only and hold only over a soft surface and having first checked that you aren't in an already low signal area, or even a soon to be apple low signal area before calling mummy and going home phone in rear!
 
i figure it can't be a software issue. it makes more sense to be a hardware issue. I have a iPhone 3Gs and my partner has a iPhone 3G. I can have both phones sitting next to each other and the 3Gs will be searching and the 3G will have 3 bars. I have never been able to get a 3G service where i live with the iphones. It has been this way from the start. I can place my nokia next to them and it gets 3.5g. i just figure its an iphone flaw that has been there since day dot.
 
Daveoc64 said:
That's not how it works in the UK.
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How does it work in the UK? Do they force you to keep products that don't work? That sucks. I thought England and Europe were all cool and stuff. Every day I find more backwards things about them.


tivoboy said:
No, you are not crazy and no you are not wrong to feel this way. There IS an issue, you are in good company the only uncertainty is what the resolution is going to be.

If you have 2g/3g/3gs STILL then you have some good options, but it most likely WON'T be keeping this phone.

There is CLEARLY a real physical problem. If EVERY phone before had this type of problem we WOULD HAVE SEEN it on the internets before. This one is different.

What I REALLY don't understand is why apple just doesn't put a stop to this, not enough phones have been sold. FIX IT, get a new design out there, everyone take breather, take a 250M hit to earnings, but get a new kick A device out there and move FORWARD. Every day that they sit around trying to figure out the MESSAGING and the PR SPIN/DENIAL is just another delay of the inevitable. People aren't going to CARE if they admit to a problem and FIX it and get on with making great products and growing market share. People WILL CARE if they simply continue with denying what is clearly an issue for MANY and don't truly work on a fix for it. Come on apple, you ARE better than this.
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Apple said in the Press Release that they have gotten a lot of positive feedback from very happy iPhone 4 users who are having excellent experiences with the phones. People here seem to think there is some problem or issue that impacts all if not most iPhone 4 users and there is no evidence that is the case at all.

So when people say things like defective or recall and the like yet we know of hundreds of thousands and even million plus or more users all enjoying their iPhone 4s without issues, it is hard to accept there is some kind of large scale flaw.

So from there you go to look at specific issues, and notice specific things that plague people. Ultimately because of the way cell phones work, some people are just not going to be happy with the experience, and thus for them the best course of action. There is no cell phone/cell carrier combo in the world that works for every potential customer. Does not exist, and will not exist for a very long time, if ever.



jsnmao said:
no because some people have been claiming they have no signal loss no matter how they hold it, so i want one of these models.
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Well it would help if you were in an area with a very strong signal to begin with... Good news is the software update will better allow you to identify these locations.

mgmusicman94 said:
Because since the iPhone is using a bad formula, the phone thinks it has a bad signal and it drops the call. The phone drops the call because it thinks is has bad reception,
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I am not sure where people are coming up with this. If someone can speak to this with some credentials I would love to hear it. I know of no reason or cell phone that drops calls because the display bars reach a certain level. Cell calls drop because the signal is so low that the call fails. It is not disconnected because of a bar display on the phone.

techwarrior said:
Interesting... so this fix is to show correct bars. Correct me if I am wrong here, but wasn't ATT advertising "5 bars in more places" in recent ad campaigns? What will this iPhone fix do for that?
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Since Apple will now be using AT&T's scale for bars, it should not do anything, because I assume AT&T made those pronouncements on their own recordings of signals and based it on their own scale for bars.


Kavier said:
Actually he did return it. I am not posting here to let out my frustration. I am posting here because I am sick and tired of all the Apple fanboys running to defend Apple when Apple clearly has a defect in their product yet refuses to acknowledge it! There are so many people on this forum with their heads in the sand it is ridiculous!

Here's a video from someone else with the same issue:

http://9to5mac.com/node/18982
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So it is defective yet 100s of thousands and even million plus or even millions of people have no problem with the phone. Yet you say it is defective. Seems illogical to me.
 
funny, just saw this post, took off the bumper, cupped the lower left corner, started losing bars SITTING NEXT TO MY MICROCELL
 
marksman said:
How does it work in the UK? Do they force you to keep products that don't work? That sucks. I thought England and Europe were all cool and stuff. Every day I find more backwards things about them.
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He/she was wrong. There is very strong consumer protection in Europe. However, I have to say that tens of millions would probably support me in saying that the UK can be incredibly crap.

I lived in other European countries and the standards can be shocking here (and I live in rural Hampshire, but I lived in the Datchet/Eton area before).

In terms of backward thinking - the UK has plenty of that, but I'm sure that to a certain extent, that applies to the whole world.

What I hate about the UK the most is xenophobia with general sense of superiority. Meanwhile, I am sick of bricks, low ceilings and these pathetic Vauxhalls.

Also, I haven't met so many snobs anywhere else in my life. When I went to a Law School, the place was full of peasants and snobs.

If I'm wrong, I'm sorry.
 
Interesting response from Apple.

First let me say I still believe People here are making mountains out of mole hills. Many people are reporting the best RF performance of any Apple phone they have had. That doesn't mean that individual phones don't have problems but that when iPhone 4 works people are impressed with it.

Second I'm currently running iOS 4 on my 3G, let me say clearly that this release does have issues. In fact 3G networking on the 3G is significantly worst. So one should not dismiss the idea that software might be a problem. Apple is likely taking weeks here to address multiple issues.

As to the whinning about the bars, people please grow up, there is no standard for these displays. Apple is not doing anything strange here. The bars are much like idiot lights on a car that alert you to a problem after it is to late.

Will the update fix everybodies problems? That is doubtful especially if you insist on gripping the phone by the seam. However I'm convinced that iOS has enough problems that a software fix will work to solve some problems.

As to signal strength and data rates there is a relationship between signal strength and data rates. The lower the signal strength the slower the transmission speed, it is a physical fact of life. V so if the iPhone thinks it is on a poor RF link data rates will change. The question then becomes is their error in calculation seriously impacting the speed of data flow. So yeah some of the reported problems could be software. Cell phones continously monitor the link to the tower and adjust data rates and power levels continously, every cell phone does so.

For those of you that got inboard early with the 3G you can relate the early problems that phone had that eventually where fixed with a software update. Things were pretty bad in the early days of the 3G, probably worst than with iPhone 4 now.

In the end it does look like the Gizmodo link did force Apples hand and caused the early release of this device. So throw stones at Gizmodo if you feel the urge.

Also about the press releases quality, it might not be up to Apple standards but realize they are trying to combat a lot of stupidity on the net. This issue has all the indicators for mass hysteria. Especially when you have hundreds of people wonder if they should return their iPhone 4 even though it works fine for them. People with problems are one thing, people jumping on the bandwagon for nothing is a real problem for Apple.

I think part of the problem here is unreasonable expectations. How many people here have picked up an FM radio and had the reception quality change? Have it change again when grabbing the antenna or have it change yet again when walking around. It is going to happen due to the physical realities of RF communications.


Dave
 
samcraig said:
Look - I don't disagree with you. And I could be wrong on what I'm about to write but humor me please.

I think a lot of people get that the fix is visual and visual only. And that the visual fix will be a better representation of why a call or data might be impeded.

However Apple's PR engine is creating a, dare I say, straw man "argument." They are (and deliberately so) sending out this release and creating this "fix" in RESPONSE to people having actual issues that transcend trying to lower their signal by holding the phone in an awkward manner. The real issue for some (who knows how many) is that when holding the phone in a normal manner - they drop calls. And lose data. And you're right - this fix isn't going to help.

Apple is creating a smokescreen (and a very good one) to cloud the issue. This way they minimize the damage done by people saying bars are dropping. Bars dropping isn't the issue. People (many) can still make calls and who really cares if I have 1 bar or 5 as long as my data and phone calls work, right? The real issue is that some people (again who knows how many) have a bigger problem.

Some of the press will just report what Apple tells them and a lot of the general public WILL believe the issue has been fixed. But as you have said - no issue REALLY has been fixed. A visual "trick" if you will.

After the new software is released - people will not be visually aware of bars dropping if they are more defined. But some (how many?) will still experience the same exact problems.

So it will be interesting to see how this plays out. Will Apple effectively "save" the bad press they have gotten (warranted or not) - or will it backfire.

Sorry - this post is already longer that I intended. I do hope you read it though...
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It's obvious that people aren't getting the point. The calls and data are being dropped because you are in a weak signal area. The phone is now basically telling you that you have more signal than you actually have. Once the fix is installed, in those places where you were showing erroneous bars on the display, it will now presumably show a more accurate representation of your signal. You will still drop calls and lose data in the same spots you did before, but it will be obvious that it's because you are in a spot that has weak signal. You won't look at the display and think "I have 4 bars, what's the problem?"
 
phpmaven said:
It's obvious that people aren't getting the point. The calls and data are being dropped because you are in a weak signal area. The phone is now basically telling you that you have more signal than you actually have. Once the fix is installed, in those places where you were showing erroneous bars on the display, it will now presumably show a more accurate representation of your signal. You will still drop calls and lose data in the same spots you did before, but it will be obvious that it's because you are in a spot that has weak signal. You won't look at the display and think "I have 4 bars, what's the problem?"
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I'll try and explain this to you although I doubt you have the brains to understand it. Yes it will drop calls like before but only compared to the iPhone 4. I had no problems with the 3G or 3GS and nor did other people. But now with the 4 we drop calls from 4 bars just because we're holding the phone. If you don't understand the problem then don't make yourself look stupid.
 
phpmaven said:
It's obvious that people aren't getting the point. The calls and data are being dropped because you are in a weak signal area. The phone is now basically telling you that you have more signal than you actually have. Once the fix is installed, in those places where you were showing erroneous bars on the display, it will now presumably show a more accurate representation of your signal. You will still drop calls and lose data in the same spots you did before, but it will be obvious that it's because you are in a spot that has weak signal. You won't look at the display and think "I have 4 bars, what's the problem?"
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problem here is there are some people have no problem with their other iphones
I never had a problem with my 3G and 3GS ,, i sent both my iphone 4's back.
it had nothing to do with display and more than me are saying that.
If i picked the phone up it hung up. if picked the phone up my download speed went from 1.2 m to 56k
 
phpmaven said:
It's obvious that people aren't getting the point. The calls and data are being dropped because you are in a weak signal area. The phone is now basically telling you that you have more signal than you actually have. Once the fix is installed, in those places where you were showing erroneous bars on the display, it will now presumably show a more accurate representation of your signal. You will still drop calls and lose data in the same spots you did before, but it will be obvious that it's because you are in a spot that has weak signal. You won't look at the display and think "I have 4 bars, what's the problem?"
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What is clear is that you just don't get it, an Iphone 3 a 3GS even an Ipad I have, all with valid sims, on the same network ( I have staff I provide with these) can line them up and the Iphone 4 is the clear loser... displaying less bars will make no difference, if relatively the Iphone 4 will be the one and only phone not in a conference call!

Simples!
 
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