Clearing up the main iPhone 4 issues

[samcraig]

Brilliant. People complain about the number of threads - I make a thread to try to narrow it down, and then some abusive, batman obsessed child comes along with a dictionary

Oh, and if I wanted forum popularity do you not think I would have posted more in my year of membership? It's not as important to others as it is you, we have other things to live for my friend

The number of people accepting the thread and participating in a decent discussion outweighs the younger more obnoxious members. Just leave, put a batman DVD on or something - or is that only before bedtime?

Stop being cutesy with the winks and smileys and eye rolls for a second. (Btw - if you're going to be immature and condescending - better to just do it than try and be cute by trying to deflect with a smiley face afterwards - OWN IT).

That out of the way - forget the tone of WhySoSerious' post and listen to the message. The point, which I also said - was that this thread doesn't "solve" any thread issues on the board. It adds more noise. I'm not saying you shouldn't have posted it. But at the same time - it's just another thread. There's no "service" being done here - and if you think there is - then it is EGO. Your last comment is clear indication.

 

[andy9l]

That out of the way - forget the tone of WhySoSerious' post and listen to the message. The point, which I also said - was that this thread doesn't "solve" any thread issues on the board. It adds more noise. I'm not saying you shouldn't have posted it. But at the same time - it's just another thread. There's no "service" being done here - and if you think there is - then it is EGO. Your last comment is clear indication.

Right, so let it die then. The same applies to your reply, bumping this "useless" topic.

 

[quagmire]

To answer you with my original post:

So you're saying the Nexus One and Evo 4G's antenna's are design flaws? As I agree it all depends on location. At home my bars drop to 2 bars touching the left hand corner. Where at a baseball game I went to, it remained at 5 bars.

B.S... N1 or Evo don't lost reception that much. I haven't seen any phone which would loose half as much as iPhone 4 when you cover the antenna.

If you didn't click reply to that post so quickly, you would have seen I posted a video of the Nexus One dropping reception. The video even showed the db signal strength which is a better representation of signal strength then the bars.

Here is it again and another Nexus One video along with the Evo 4G and HTC Hero( both are bars and not db numbers).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2g5J4qPp54&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nh8tw9kHsfA

Evo 4G

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaiRxRybK9E

HTC Hero:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wCdP6v80Io

 

[WhySoSerious]

some abusive, batman obsessed child comes along with a dictionary.

I'm noT...

I'm like a dog, chasing cars. I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one! I just doooo...

 

[Sir Ruben]

BUMP!

Sorry I'll get me coat.

 

[Sixth Gauge]

That out of the way - forget the tone of WhySoSerious' post and listen to the message. The point, which I also said - was that this thread doesn't "solve" any thread issues on the board. It adds more noise. I'm not saying you shouldn't have posted it. But at the same time - it's just another thread. There's no "service" being done here - and if you think there is - then it is EGO. Your last comment is clear indication.

Whether it relieves thread congestion or not, it's still nice seeing the main issues laid out there for you. From the general tone of the forum and media, one might think there is a plethora of issues with the new iPhone.

 

[Lansing]

The green blob issue is from the CFL lighting. There was another thread with pictures that showed it happening on a 3Gs as well. Now that said, the white balance on the iPhone 4 has been sowing up very yellow, but that's a software thing that could easily corrected.

 

[marksman]

Indeed, only nowhere near as extreme in almost all cases I think you'll find. The i4 has attenuation levels up to 10 times that of other phones. It's a real problem, face it.

Yeah but there is a tradeoff. You are able to often complete and continue calls with signals that other phones would be unsuccessful with... this is the part people always conveniently leave out. Many people have talked about being able to make calls and stay connected in areas where they had very poor signals that would not work with other phones.

Phone are not all the same. In this case there is a trade-off. If it does not work for you so be it. Acting like it is a horrible problem that is only a negative for everyone is completely inaccurate.

 

[QCassidy352]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_0 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8A293 Safari/6531.22.7)

OP, you shouldn't describe these issues as if you had the definitive answers because you clearly don't. It is quite clear to me that the antenna issue is not universal as some people will not lose service no matter what the coverage is like. Additionally, some people have fixed the issue by modifying their sim cards, and others have exchanged iPhones with the issue for iphones that don't have it (same user, same location, issue gone with new phone).

None of these things are explicable if, as you claim, this is a design flaw rather than a manufacturing defect.

 

[st1ngo]

You never had an order. If you did, you're pretty stupid to cancel it. Even with these so called "compromises" the iPhone 4 is rated better than any other smartphone on the market.

Strange
My 3GS has none of the issues
in fact has no issues at all

I dont think cancelling an order makes you an idiot
I think buying one at the moment with all its very serious problems is a sign of an idiot

 

[QCassidy352]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_0 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8A293 Safari/6531.22.7)

You never had an order. If you did, you're pretty stupid to cancel it. Even with these so called "compromises" the iPhone 4 is rated better than any other smartphone on the market.

Strange
My 3GS has none of the issues
in fact has no issues at all

I dont think cancelling an order makes you an idiot
I think buying one at the moment with all its very serious problems is a sign of an idiot

I'm considering buying one now. If it doesn't have issues, great. If it has issues I can't live with, I return it and go back to my 3GS. How is that idiotic? I risk nothing but a little time to go to the store.

 

[-aggie-]

I'm considering buying one now. If it doesn't have issues, great. If it has issues I can't live with, I return it and go back to my 3GS. How is that idiotic? I risk nothing but a little time to go to the store.

That was exactly the reasoning I had when I decided to make the plunge and get the iPhone 4. So, I guess we’re both idiots?

 

[BobVB]

A problem which the Nexus One has, Evo 4G has, older iPhones have, my moms dumbphone has, etc when you cover the antenna.

Please, the tests show the iPhone 3GS when held normally is attenuated to 2/3rds its on the table strength, the iPhone 4 to 1/100 that signal strength. The Nexus One is one of the worst on the market at and it only degrades the signal to 1/10 - the iPhone 4 is ten times worse than that. Squandering 99+% of the available signal strength with normal holding is a 'feature' of the iPhone 4 alone.

Some antenna experts have chimed in and think it might be the phone's 3G 'amp' protecting itself when it sees the cross circuiting and virtually disconnecting itself from the antenna. If true, then that could be changed via a software fix by making the amp less 'protective'. The balance would be seeing if the amps will blow without this, or is there some tolerable middle ground.

But don't expect any hardware fix such as films, coatings, etc until the iPhone 5. The instant  did that they would be being honest about the problem and the various lawsuits about the antenna issues would become even more slam dunk than they already are.

I have found Ghost Armor preserves the look of the iPhone and its ability to fit in its dock and reduces the ridiculous levels of attenuation to make it functional in the situations where my 3GS was and the naked iPhone 4 wasn't. The radio IS better in the iPhone 4 as long as its not totally ignoring its antenna.

 

[tesilential]

Strange
My 3GS has none of the issues
in fact has no issues at all

I dont think cancelling an order makes you an idiot
I think buying one at the moment with all its very serious problems is a sign of an idiot

Lighten up, put in another order, the new Iphone will be better than your 3GS in every way possible.

Enjoy it, I am!

 

[quagmire]

Please, the tests show the iPhone 3GS when held normally is attenuated to 2/3rds its on the table strength, the iPhone 4 to 1/100 that signal strength. The Nexus One is one of the worst on the market at and it only degrades the signal to 1/10 - the iPhone 4 is ten times worse than that. Squandering 99+% of the available signal strength with normal holding is a 'feature' of the iPhone 4 alone.

Some antenna experts have chimed in and think it might be the phone's 3G 'amp' protecting itself when it sees the cross circuiting and virtually disconnecting itself from the antenna. If true, then that could be changed via a software fix by making the amp less 'protective'. The balance would be seeing if the amps will blow without this, or is there some tolerable middle ground.

But don't expect any hardware fix such as films, coatings, etc until the iPhone 5. The instant  did that they would be being honest about the problem and the various lawsuits about the antenna issues would become even more slam dunk than they already are.

I have found Ghost Armor preserves the look of the iPhone and its ability to fit in its dock and reduces the ridiculous levels of attenuation to make it functional in the situations where my 3GS was and the naked iPhone 4 wasn't. The radio IS better in the iPhone 4 as long as its not totally ignoring its antenna.

Do you even see the videos I posted above? Both videos show a db drop of 22-24 db on the Nexus One.

 

[tesilential]

NO Problems whatsoever here, in fact...

I cannot replicate the antenna issue at all. I have the same exact reception as I did on all my old dumb phones. No dropped calls at all since 6/24, (although I really never got them on other phones either).


Interesting Fact, I was using speedtest to see if I could affect the 3g download speeds by putting my finger on it, and I found my 3g upload speed is faster than my wifi upload speed!

I duplicated this test in many places, my house in front of the computer, a restaurant, and a friend's house.

My 3g download speed is always 2.7-4.5 Mbps, while my Wi Fi is 8.9-9 Mbps, making Wi Fi clearly superior in download times.


On upload speed, 3g won every single time over wi fi! It was exactly 1.24 Mbps almost every time, and 1.22 and 1.25 a couple times.


Wi fi upload speed has never broken 1 Mbps, usually coming in around .91 Mbps.

 

[BobVB]

Do you even see the videos I posted above? Both videos show a db drop of 23-24 db on the Nexus One.

No, I have no interest in videos that aren't from reliable sources but I'll watch yours:

the first is useless, how the phone is being held isn't shown during the test and the biggest clue is sideways isn't 'normally' for phone calls

The second is more useful but comments say the results aren't reproducible by others.

. AnandTech showed a -10 dBm drop with the Nexus One (1/10), I'll go with that until something more reliable comes along.

And if it turns out they are both equally defective that doesn't really change anything, just means they are both defective, again the 3GS had less than a 2dBm drop when held, that's only about 1/3 of the signal strength lost. Any cellphone that squanders 99+% the available signal just from being held normally is not something that people will want to use in that condition.

 

[andy9l]

So you're saying the Nexus One and Evo 4G's antenna's are design flaws? As I agree it all depends on location. At home my bars drop to 2 bars touching the left hand corner. Where at a baseball game I went to, it remained at 5 bars.

Not at all, nor am I trying to argue with you here. I'm only stating what's been proven to me personally via a number of blogs/YouTube videos. As you have agreed, the i4 problems seem to depend on location (or signal strength more likely); however, the problems seem more extreme on the iPhone 4 than any other modern day phone. A single finger can take out full 3G signal in certain circumstances; or it can have little/no effect in other circumstances. As I said in my first post, it seems to vary with location/signal strengths at present.

Phone are not all the same. In this case there is a trade-off. If it does not work for you so be it. Acting like it is a horrible problem that is only a negative for everyone is completely inaccurate.

So you truly don't believe in this antenna issue which has been confirmed by Apple (+ Applecare), BBC, Gizmodo ... etc.?

I think buying one at the moment with all its very serious problems is a sign of an idiot

So people who want to try the phone out for 30 days are idiots? If anything they'll make a $100-400 profit on eBay with a bit of luck.

 

[s8film40]

If you feel I've posted anything misleading, please mention it - politely!

Problem 1 - The infamous antenna:
Undoubtedly the most complained about 'problem' the new i4 suffers from. Very briefly, holding the bottom left corner of the phone causes a dramatic signal loss - sometimes taking full 3G signal to 'No service'. Yes, it's as bad as 'they say it is', and yes (almost?) everyone suffers from it. Now, when I say everyone, I'm including those people who don't believe that they suffer from it. Supposedly less than 7% of iPhones do not suffer from it. I for one do not experience the issue purely because I don't hold the phone (naturally) in the left corner. Experiencing the issue during normal use and your i4 suffering from the issue are completely separate things - a lot of people don't seem to understand this. I am personally yet to see first-hand, solid evidence that there are i4's out there which do not suffer from this problem. Different geographical areas/original signal strengths have an effect on how badly the signal drop occurs; but it exists - it's a fundamental design flaw.

The 'upcoming software update';
The upcoming software update will not, I repeat will not fix the problem. This update is to adjust the way the iPhone displays bars, which may make the signal appear to drop less significantly under certain conditions. The actual issue is caused by a design flaw which cannot be fixed by software updates.

The solution;
You could try waiting a few weeks/months to see if Apple slyly apply some form of non-conductive layer over the problematic area on new batches of i4's. As it currently stands, your choices are; a £25/$29 Apple bumper (or any similar case), an iPhone 3GS or an alternative phone altogether. End of.

I think it's great the way you outlined all the issues, however the way you have described the antenna issue is extremely misleading. It's not a problem for the vast majority of users during practical use. While most people can reproduce the affect to varying degrees it does not interfere with actual usage. I know from my own experience and that of other that I actually get better service with the iPhone 4 than previous models, and I use my left hand and hold the phone in a way that is most likely to cause this issue. I am not saying that the signal thing doesn't exist but if you want this to be a post that someone can come to to get a quick idea of what issues to look for you should be a little more upfront and honest. The signal thing is really more of an unusual oddity than a problem. To tell people that they should wait or will have to buy a bumper to use the phone is just silly, literally millions of people are out there happily using their phone and don't even see this problem unless they look for it.

 

[xploit]

Overblown

I have had my iPhone 4 for almost a week now and I live in Chicago and work in the burbs. I believe these issues are way overblown! I have owned some of the most expensive cell phones in the world, I have owned motorola models that are only available in Korea and I have owned mass market models as well. I am an early adopter and love new technology. I even owned the Bang and Olufsen Serene model which was over $1100.00. This new iPhone is simply amazing in all that it does. The speed, the clarity of the screen , the feel of the build quality all 2nd to none. I think people have simply started to take for granted the fact that we now have sooo much power in a tiny gadget that fits into a pocket. Perhaps Apple's own mystique has raised expectations to a level that is beyond reality.

I can tell you that this model gets better reception then the 3gs. I am making calls from places I never could. Is there a trade off with this issue of how you hold the phone? Probably. But you know what? It does a hell of a lot and most of what it does is amazing. It might not be for everyone though and maybe if you make lots of super important calls you might be better off with something that specializes or rather excels in just that. However, if you want something beautiful and made with fine materials that gives you unprecedented internet access with a screen that reacts smoother and looks better than anything else and includes an ipod and and an amazing camera with hd video in a remarkably thin form factor then this is your baby! OH and it makes calls and is great for texting but you might have to adjust how you hold it when your in low signal areas.

The iPhone 4 may not be PERFECT but it really is awfully close.

X-

 

[mgamber]

A problem which the Nexus One has, Evo 4G has, older iPhones have, my moms dumbphone has, etc when you cover the antenna.

Nope. The iPhone has that problem, too, but that's not the real issue. The real issue is anything conductive causing a short from the antenna to the rest of the metal band, detuning the antenna to the point of having NO reception. Not losing a bar or two, NONE. It's two different things.

All this having been said, it's actually a nice phone with excellent reception if you put a decent case on it. Anyone who's having second thoughts can most likely dismiss them. Reception is poor where I live yet I can have long conversations on the new iPhone and I could never do that on the old ones. In addition, I, personally, don't know anyone who's returned their phone and I have no plans to return mine. If Apple was a person I'm sure I would have been arrested for assault by now, but overall, it's an excellent phone.

 

[andy9l]

I think it's great the way you outlined all the issues, however the way you have described the antenna issue is extremely misleading. It's not a problem for the vast majority of users during practical use. While most people can reproduce the affect to varying degrees it does not interfere with actual usage. I know from my own experience and that of other that I actually get better service with the iPhone 4 than previous models, and I use my left hand and hold the phone in a way that is most likely to cause this issue. I am not saying that the signal thing doesn't exist but if you want this to be a post that someone can come to to get a quick idea of what issues to look for you should be a little more upfront and honest. The signal thing is really more of an unusual oddity than a problem. To tell people that they should wait or will have to buy a bumper to use the phone is just silly, literally millions of people are out there happily using their phone and don't even see this problem unless they look for it.

Ok, fair enough. Perhaps it is misleading in that it suggests that the problem will indefinitely occur - which is not true. It will only occur if held in such a way, true. I tried to make this clear by explaining that there's a difference between experiencing the issue, and your phone suffering from the issue. My apologies if it has come across as misleading.

 

[s8film40]

Ok, fair enough. Perhaps it is misleading in that it suggests that the problem will indefinitely occur - which is not true. It will only occur if held in such a way, true. I tried to make this clear by explaining that there's a difference between experiencing the issue, and your phone suffering from the issue. My apologies if it has come across as misleading.

Well I wouldn't even go as far to say that it occurs if held a certain way. For me I can cup mine "Death Grip" style like in all the videos and squeeze hard with sweaty palms and still have five bars. I think the false impression that is out there is that you have to hold the phone a certain way to use it and this certainly isn't the case. I know if I took all the complaints at face value and didn't try it for myself I wouldn't have bought it, knowing the way I hold the phone. I've used mine for the past two weeks and made every single phone call holding the phone the worst way possible and have not had one dropped or degraded call. I think it's maybe something to look for depending on the service area and other factors but it is very much a "non issue" for most.

 

[BobVB]

It's not a problem for the vast majority of users during practical use.

Actually it is. If you a rein a high coverage area it really doesn't make any difference because the iPhone 4 doesn't even seem to need an antenna in those locations. But if you are getting minimal 5 bars or live in a location where there is only one cell in range only using less than 1% of the available signal won't be enough. I can go 4 miles north and can't get less than 5 bars with the dang thing in a can - that doesn't mean it isn't still far less functional being held normally in the many areas without high 3G coverage.

The defect is real, that you aren't personally affected by it is luck of location nothing more. Again the 3GS had no problem in exactly the same locations that the iPhone 4 drops calls - that's certainly a misuse of the term 'upgrade'.

 

[blazer deli]

To follow up, I did cancel my order.

Wife has iPhone 4 and is experiencing proximity sensor "random dialing".

I'm going to let them work the bugs out. No reason right now to spend $200 and start another 2 year contract with ATT if I'm happy with the 3G.