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Apple Takes on Droid X With Latest Smartphone Antenna Video

gnasher729 said:
Scott Adams thinks differently. See

http://www.dilbert.com/blog/entry/high_ground_maneuver/

It is _not_ an Apple problem. It is a problem for every single manufacturer in the industry. So it would be rather idiotic for Apple to say "sorry, it is our problem" when it is everyone's problem.

You can also look at the blog of a professional antenna designer at http://www.antennasys.com/antennasys-blog/2010/7/14/iphone-4-meets-the-gripofdeathinator.html . Interesting little fact that the "Vulcan Death Pinch" actually improves reception on the iPhone 4 (check it out), unfortunately that is not how people hold _any_ phone :D But seriously, he found that while worst case the iPhone 4 suffered more than the iPhone 3GS, it still produced better results under _all_ conditions. That's what Anandtech found as well, that the iPhone 4 can receive calls at 8 dBM less signal strength than any other phone.
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Big TOTAL BS!!

iPhone has short circuit problem and _not_ how you hold it problem. The BIG difference between all those phones and iPhone 4 is that you only have to touch the spot, you don't even have to hold it in your hand. How difficult is it to understand? It's got nothing to do with "covering antennas"!!! So showing other phones is pathetic. On top of that none of those phones drop calls on you!!! But hey... average user will be happy...
 
gnasher729 said:
Scott Adams thinks differently. See

http://www.dilbert.com/blog/entry/high_ground_maneuver/

It is _not_ an Apple problem. It is a problem for every single manufacturer in the industry. So it would be rather idiotic for Apple to say "sorry, it is our problem" when it is everyone's problem.

You can also look at the blog of a professional antenna designer at http://www.antennasys.com/antennasys-blog/2010/7/14/iphone-4-meets-the-gripofdeathinator.html . Interesting little fact that the "Vulcan Death Pinch" actually improves reception on the iPhone 4 (check it out), unfortunately that is not how people hold _any_ phone :D But seriously, he found that while worst case the iPhone 4 suffered more than the iPhone 3GS, it still produced better results under _all_ conditions. That's what Anandtech found as well, that the iPhone 4 can receive calls at 8 dBM less signal strength than any other phone.
Click to expand...

You really are relying on Dilbert to reinforce your position?
 
cmaier said:
You really are relying on Dilbert to reinforce your position?
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Especially since Dilbert's author seems to agree that Apple's brilliance is in how they managed to deny, deflect and spin and that the media bought it. ;)

And knowing him and his views on corporate life, any positive in that blog is ladden with heavy sarcasm.
 
I've used both, and the iPhone4 is terrible in comparison

rsocal said:
Do you own a iPhone 4? Have you used one daily for even a week?
If you have not how can you truly say what the issue is or even if there is one?:apple::apple::apple:
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Yes, and Yes. I have done the comparison, and the iPhone4 was, in my experience, much worse than any other mobile phone I've used (it was my first iPhone, so maybe if I was accustomed to poor reception characteristic of the earlier iPhones, I would not have been as surprised).

I've now had a Droid X for 2 days and it is so much better than the iPhone, it is startling. No dropped calls (out of about 60 so far). Great 3G response (I haven't yet quantified the speed).

So yes, I can corroborate the experiences of the legions of others saying that the iPhone4 has a dropped call problem in normal use when in an area with anything other than the strongest signal. I can also add my support to the large and growing chorus of happy Droid X owners who get great phone and internet performance.

I would normally just let this drop, but we have an obligation it to potential new buyers of the iPhone 4 to share our experiences and correct the misinformation being spewed by Apple and those who will blindly and reflexively preach the Apple mantra no matter the facts.
 
zYxMa said:
Big TOTAL BS!!

iPhone has short circuit problem and _not_ how you hold it problem. The BIG difference between all those phones and iPhone 4 is that you only have to touch the spot, you don't even have to hold it in your hand. How difficult is it to understand? It's got nothing to do with "covering antennas"!!! So showing other phones is pathetic. But hey... average user will be happy...
Click to expand...

What’s the “average user”? What other user’s is there?
Aren’t we all just “average user’s”?
 
MrPinkBlackrose said:
We get it already. You can choke the bars out of quite a few phones. Just let it go. iPhone sales are still strong...you would think they would leave this alone.
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These videos aren't exactly national TV ads. They're quiet updates to an obscure part of Apple's website.

The hassle of Apple's argument that this is an industry problem, is they're going to have to keep this info page up-to-date, or else new visitors will get the impression that it only affects old phones, or that the latest competitor has fixed it (see Droid X ads falsely claiming that you can hold it any way you want). These video updates will necessarily keep coming until Apple has something more positive to say on the subject (like yet another physics-breaking product release).
 
sciwizam said:
Death Gripping boosts the signal in Droid X! Thanks Apple!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fup7fb1qIM&feature=player_embedded
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That guy is a complete idiot. He lost me when he was talking about how Apple's antenna is 'bridged' by a hand. Apparently everyone is an electrical engineering these days and an expert in antenna design. Everything he said in the first 1:30 is complete false and idiotic.

And what's with people saying: "who holds a phone like this when making a call??" all of a sudden. It's the same way everyone was holding the iPhone 4 in the videos they made showing the bars dropping! WTF. That my friends is cognitive dissonance.
 
KnightWRX said:
Please, show us the other phone that suffers from signal loss when touched by the tip of a single finger on 1 spot

And btw, your article points out how the Apple spin managed to deflect the issue by Apple issuing a denial ... Not exactly what I call a glaring positive review.
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*tsk*. You still haven't looked up the logic point that whoooshed straight over your head. And also, could you quote the exact text in the linked articles where either says Apple issued a denial?

I think you should apologise for your lack of good faith.
 
bkspero said:
Yes, and Yes. I have done the comparison, and the iPhone4 was, in my experience, much worse than any other mobile phone I've used (it was my first iPhone, so maybe if I was accustomed to poor reception characteristic of the earlier iPhones, I would not have been as surprised).

I've now had a Droid X for 2 days and it is so much better than the iPhone, it is startling. No dropped calls (out of about 60 so far). Great 3G response (I haven't yet quantified the speed).

So yes, I can corroborate the experiences of the legions of others saying that the iPhone4 has a dropped call problem in normal use when in an area with anything other than the strongest signal. I can also add my support to the large and growing chorus of happy Droid X owners who get great phone and internet performance.

I would normally just let this drop, but we have an obligation it to potential new buyers of the iPhone 4 to share our experiences and correct the misinformation being spewed by Apple and those who will blindly and reflexively preach the Apple mantra no matter the facts.
Click to expand...

That’s not my experience or my wife and kids as well as several other friends and the majority of i4 owners!
 
Krauser said:
2. The iPhone 4 doesn't need to be gripped like a madman to drop a call. From whats been shown, anything at all... even a finger tip bridging the gap... totally halts all data transmission COMPLETELY.
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ON 0.55% OF THE iPHONES. Zero point five five. Doesn't matter how many hits a You Tube video gets, it's still 0.55%. One phone in two hundred. 99.45% do not have the problem.
 
farmboy said:
ON 0.55% OF THE iPHONES. Zero point five five. Doesn't matter how many hits a You Tube video gets, it's still 0.55%. One phone in two hundred. 99.45% do not have the problem.
Click to expand...

Wait, where did you get this statistic ? Because this is the first time I've seen anyone with such a precise number for affected units. And if it's only 0.55% of phones, why aren't Apple offering exchanges ? Surely there's something different on the other 99.45% of phones ?
 
Nice try to deflect

mattster16 said:
That guy is a complete idiot. He lost me when he was talking about how Apple's antenna is 'bridged' by a hand. Apparently everyone is an electrical engineering these days and an expert in antenna design. Everything he said in the first 1:30 is complete false and idiotic.

And what's with people saying: "who holds a phone like this when making a call??" all of a sudden. It's the same way everyone was holding the iPhone 4 in the videos they made showing the bars dropping! WTF. That my friends is cognitive dissonance.
Click to expand...

His video is right on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fup7fb1qIM&feature=player_embedded

You need hands the size of Lebron James to span from the bottom to the top of the Droid X and cover both antennas the way Apple did in their trumped up video. And even if you have such massive hands, there is a tactile reminder in the form of the top ridge to hold it slightly lower. And even if you are able to physically stretch to cover both antennas, the effect on the signal is small. And even Apple wasn't able to show any dropped calls (the type of video that is common with the iP4).

Maybe the next Apple video will have the tester sit on the Droid X and use a bluetooth headset. Maybe (just maybe) they will get it to drop a call that way.....or they can use the Death Tickle on the iP4 and drop call after call.

I get it...maybe the Death Tickle is a feature. A robust and easy way to end calls.
 
farmboy said:
ON 0.55% OF THE iPHONES. Zero point five five. Doesn't matter how many hits a You Tube video gets, it's still 0.55%. One phone in two hundred. 99.45% do not have the problem.
Click to expand...

Seriously? That 0.55% is referring to the amount of iPhone 4 users that contacted AppleCare regarding this. It's not the total percentage of phones that were affected by this problem. It's the total percentage of people that decided to speak up about it in an outlet other than an online forum.
 
This is a sad moment for AAPL...

I am very disappointed by this childish and whining publication by AAPL. I would have expected better. It reminds me of the mud-slinging political campaigns to which I have become accustomed in my hometown.

AAPL should have the dignity and integrity to stress its own strengths, instead of focusing attention on its competitors. Too bad, so sad, to let the debate sink to this level... :eek:
 
MarximusMG said:
It's the total percentage of people that decided to speak up about it in an outlet other than an online forum.
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Uh, what about the Genius bar, AT&T Store, AT&T's customer service, O2 Store, O2's customer service, etc.. etc.. ? ;)

It's the total percentage of people that called Apple care about the issue. That's it. It's nothing else.
 
farmboy said:
ON 0.55% OF THE iPHONES. Zero point five five. Doesn't matter how many hits a You Tube video gets, it's still 0.55%. One phone in two hundred. 99.45% do not have the problem.
Click to expand...


You need to look at that again.

0.55% was of ALL the calls into apple care regarding signal problems. That means the computers, iPods, iPads ect were included in those numbers. It throws it off.
Also does not include anything instore.

Also you might want to compared that 0.55% to another manufacture. HTC released their number of people calling in regaurding signal problems. It was 0.016% or 35 times LESS than apples. On top of that they really only deal with phones so even less items to throw off the number.

now apple 0.55% looks pretty piss poor doesn't it. It is over 35 times greater than another major smart phone manufacture.
 
MarximusMG said:
Seriously? That 0.55% is referring to the amount of iPhone 4 users that contacted AppleCare regarding this. It's not the total percentage of phones that were affected by this problem. It's the total percentage of people that decided to speak up about it in an outlet other than an online forum.
Click to expand...

Not even that. It's phone support calls. And only those calls that weren't primarily about another issue.
 
MarximusMG said:
Seriously? That 0.55% is referring to the amount of iPhone 4 users that contacted AppleCare regarding this. It's not the total percentage of phones that were affected by this problem. It's the total percentage of people that decided to speak up about it in an outlet other than an online forum.
Click to expand...

So you want the right to pluck any number you like out of your back passage, rather than use hard data?

M'kay. Looks like KnightWRX isn't the only one displaying lack of good faith.

And Knight - hurry up with that apology - my laundry is nearly finished.
 
lilo777 said:
Because Apple is into "industrial design" lately. It's all steel and glass. Having a plastic part would be an embarrassment. Well, they got embarrassed anyways.
Click to expand...

Lately? You mean for the past 13 years lately? Lol.
 
gehrbox said:
Why do you say that? Apple has updated the OS, Macbook line and Mac line with better spec's
Click to expand...
Erm... the question was why everyone was focusing on iDevices right now rather than Macs.

The answer is that this year has been all about the iPad and the new iPhone. The WWDC Keynote featured nothing about Macs, which I believe was a first. Yes, they threw the dogs a bone by releasing a new Mini but at the same time they've left the Mac Pro unattended for a record 508 days (average = 236), the MacBook Air for 411 days (avg = 255) and the iMac for 277 days (avg = 221). The last time they released a new display (the 24" LED) was 648 days ago (avg = 267) and the Cinema 30" is so old it should be in museums, not stores. The rumored 27" LED display is nowhere to be seen.

They haven't abandoned the Mac entirely but there was never a more stagnant period in the evolution of Mac products than the one we're seeing right now.
 
vaguely said:
So you want the right to pluck any number you like out of your back passage, rather than use hard data?

M'kay. Looks like KnightWRX isn't the only one displaying lack of good faith.

And Knight - hurry up with that apology - my laundry is nearly finished.
Click to expand...

Whoa there, if I'm understanding what you're saying, I'm already on your side. I'm saying that the .55% is misleading, because it makes it makes it sound like only .55% of phones were affected. Obviously, that number is only referring to customers that contacted AppleCare, so the problem is, in reality, MUCH bigger than that. Obviously that didn't come across in my first comment on this, for some reason.
 
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