Detailed Analysis of iPhone 4 Signal Strength Dropoff

[globalist]

I remember in one of the first threads about this issue one member suggested to test the dB signal strenght instead of just looking at the bars. He said you had to dial a special number to get it shown which is basically the same thing Anandtech did.

Of course everybody ignored him amidst the hysteria and now they are amazed at how smart Anandtech is?

Anyhow, does anyone remember this "special" number?

Edit: nm, I found it: Dial *3001#12345#* to bring up the iPhone's Field Test tool, which will give you information about towers and signal strength, EDGE network, and more.

 

[lilo777]

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Considering a disabled member has posted on these very boards of their difficulties with the iPhone signal dropping because of the design fault i find your comment quite sickening.

The only consolation here is that while some people are physically disabled some Apple fanboys are clearly mental which is much worse. Have a pity for them too.

 

[ChazUK]

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I remember in one of the first threads about this issue one member suggested to test the dB signal strenght instead of just looking at the bars. He said you had to dial a special number to get it shown which is basically the same thing Anandtech did.

Of course everybody ignored him amidst the hysteria and now they are amazed at how smart Anandtech is?

Anyhow, does anyone remember this "special" number?

Edit: nm, I found it: Dial *3001#12345#* to bring up the iPhone's Field Test tool, which will give you information about towers and signal strength, EDGE network, and more.

The special number doesnt work with iOS4 which is why anandtech had to downgrade their 3gs to 3.13, enable the reading via the "special number" and restoring their iPhone 4 with the 3gs's backup to retain the inaccessable setting on the iPhone 4. That was the genius of their test!

 

[kevwright]

Anyhow, does anyone remember this "special" number?

Edit: nm, I found it: Dial *3001#12345#* to bring up the iPhone's Field Test tool, which will give you information about towers and signal strength, EDGE network, and more.

Don't think it works on any iOS4 phone inc iPhone 4.

Anandtech did it with a clever and complicated mix of restored old builds and JBs.

Kev

 

[MacFly123]

one word of warning, a lot of nail polishes contain solvents , also as it starts to chip or flake off ,, you either have to scrape it off or use a solvent like naphtha or acetone to remove it. Which could/would damage that black insulator between the antennas and possibly the seal between the glass and the antennas,
well that is unless you keep gobbing it on as it chips off

Thanks! My prediction is you will see Apple try to optimize this issue with a software/firmware update for now, but the next model will either have a coating on the antenna band, or a secondary antenna inside to compensate while being held! I will be pissed next year when that happens lol! Hopefully when my iPhone 4 gets here I won't have these issues! (Crosses fingers)!

 

[torpeau]

Maybe MJ could used.

Maybe MJ could have held it in his gloved hand and not have any problems.

 

[lilo777]

Maybe MJ could have held it in his gloved hand and not have any problems.

Are you talking about MJ or OJ (Simpson)? OJ wanted to use the glove but it did not fit

 

[globalist]

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The special number doesnt work with iOS4 which is why anandtech had to downgrade their 3gs to 3.13, enable the reading via the "special number" and restoring their iPhone 4 with the 3gs's backup to retain the inaccessable setting on the iPhone 4. That was the genius of their test!

Ah ok, that explains it then.

 

[jahman]

The design stinks. No one did it before because everyone knows not to put an antenna on the outside where it will be touched.

From the article,

The main downside to the iPhone 4 is the obvious lapse in Apple's engineering judgment. The fact that Apple didn't have the foresight to coat the stainless steel antenna band with even a fraction of an ounce worth of non-conductive material either tells us that Apple doesn't care or that it simply doesn't test thoroughly enough.​

Disagree. With the bumper the iPhone clearly has better reception according to the article than any of the other phones. My own experience with the phone backs this up. I assume you don't own one.

Cheers,

jahman

 

[ScooterLibby]

Disagree. With the bumper the iPhone clearly has better reception according to the article than any of the other phones. My own experience with the phone backs this up. I assume you don't own one.

Cheers,

jahman

You realize you're just confirming Anand's conclusion there with your bumper reply? The whole point is you should not have to use a bumper if things were better thought out.

 

[lilo777]

Disagree. With the bumper the iPhone clearly has better reception according to the article than any of the other phones. My own experience with the phone backs this up. I assume you don't own one.

Cheers,

jahman

And the reception will be even better if you attach iPhone 4 to a long pole and keep it up. Great design!

 

[wovel]

John DeLorean maybe?

Maybe he hid cocaine in each of the phones.

 

[appleseed76]

I hate to be a douche, but I couldn't resist.

Is it really that difficult for people to adjust the way they hold their iPhone? Is it physically and mentally hard to do it? All I did was move my grip up an inch as not to cover the bottom left of my iPhone and no more issues. It took a couple days for me to get used to it but now it's natural for me to hold it that way.

Instead of b!tching about it, I adopted.

I eat food with a fork most of the time. Sure I can use a fork to eat a sushi but it's best if I eat it using a chop stick..

First of all, it's adapted, not adopted. Unless you're adopting a new style of using the iPhone 4.

Secondly, and most importantly, a smart phone should adapt to the way you do things, not the other way around. At least that's how Apple bills many of their devices.

Thirdly, you can eat sushi with chopsticks, but it's also ok to eat it with your hands. It's two ways of doing the same thing, getting the sushi to your mouth. The iPhone 4 should work the same way, as long as it can make calls and access the data network it shouldn't matter how you hold it.

 

[firewood]

The design stinks. No one did it before because everyone knows not to put an antenna on the outside where it will be touched.

Lots of cell phone vendors did it before. Check out the pictures of all the old cell phones (from the bricks to the very popular Motorola StarTAC), with a pull up aerial antennas sticking up and radiating into the users head.

And people knew not to hold the phone by the antenna when on calls.

The only thing different is that Apple put the antenna on the bottom, where it would dump less RF radiation directly into your cranium.

 

[firewood]

Considering a disabled member has posted on these very boards of their difficulties with the iPhone signal dropping because of the design fault i find your comment quite sickening.

I see. So, since I've helped a friend by building some handicap access aids she needs in her house, should you be legally required to construct and/or install them in your private residence as well?

Buy a case for your friend who needs it, and get over it.

And some people don't need a case; their signal is too strong where they live.

 

[BobVB]

And people knew not to hold the phone by the antenna when on calls.

And manufacturers knew not to put the antennas where people hold. Design flaw shill.

 

[firewood]

And manufacturers knew not to put the antennas where people hold. Design flaw shill.

My interest is making sure that Apple doesn't move the antenna to an inferior location. I can make reliable calls with my i4 from places that I couldn't with my 3G or 3GS, and with a SAR rating in between the SAR ratings of the 3G and 3GS (they could improve on that).

Even if it forces people to (re)learn how to hold a device with a microwave antenna. (See the manuals for lots of other cell phones.)

 

[jahman]

That's the point, that's not a limitation. Keep arguing yourself into a hole.

There is no inherent limitation in antenna technology at work here. This is a design/engineering choice gone bad. It is very much a design flaw.

End of story.

It's not a design flaw: it's a legitimate design decision that has resulted in better performance provided the bumper is used. The flaw was not including a bumper in the price. Apple will give me a free bumper because they've broken the Sale of Goods Act in the UK: the phone must be of merchantable quality and fit for purpose. It isn't without the bumper therefore one should be provided. Then the phone will be fine. Simple.

Cheers,

jahman

 

[2005CTS]

It's not a design flaw: it's a legitimate design decision that has resulted in better performance provided the bumper is used. The flaw was not including a bumper in the price. Apple will give me a free bumper because they've broken the Sale of Goods Act in the UK: the phone must be of merchantable quality and fit for purpose. It isn't without the bumper therefore one should be provided. Then the phone will be fine. Simple.

Cheers,

jahman

I don't think it was a design decision..I think it was an oh crap. Had it been a design decision then they would have anticipated the issue and addressed it up front...with buyers and store employees that are now dealing with it...but they didn't. As I and others have said, I don't think they knew about it given the fact that the test phones were in 3GS style cases to disquise them while out in the field. This covered up the antenna and prevented the issue from happening.

I think it was about a month ago that Apple said "oh crap" but it was too late to do anything about it...and now you have emails and memo's going out about how to respond to the issue....and now telling people to buy more bumpers.

 

[firewood]

And the reception will be even better if you attach iPhone 4 to a long pole and keep it up.

I've done that. With my 3GS. In the middle of a sea of high metal walled cubicles with near zero bars of signal, I plugged in my headset, and held my 3GS over my head, upside down, and I could make phone calls. While the guy next to me, ham holding his iPhone, just complained about AT&T.

Be creative.

 

[wovel]

I don't think it was a design decision..I think it was an oh crap. Had it been a design decision then they would have anticipated the issue and addressed it up front...with buyers and store employees that are now dealing with it...but they didn't. As I and others have said, I don't think they knew about it given the fact that the test phones were in 3GS style cases to disquise them while out in the field. This covered up the antenna and prevented the issue from happening.

I think it was about a month ago that Apple said "oh crap" but it was too late to do anything about it...and now you have emails and memo's going out about how to respond to the issue....and now telling people to buy more bumpers.

No emails or memos. Just some text in a grey box with a blue line on bgr. They claim they heard it from an Apple guy. They do not even claim to have seen a memo. Lots of people claim BGR says they have a memo, but they in fact never said that. Nor can they produce one.

 

[spiritlevel]

And some people don't need a case; their signal is too strong where they live.

So conversely, you accept that some people do NEED a case?

Should one then not be provided in the box?

 

[firewood]

It's not a design flaw: it's a legitimate design decision that has resulted in better performance provided the bumper is used. The flaw was not including a bumper in the price.

A bumper isn't required. You also have the option of not holding the phone around the bottom left when in weak signal areas. This is mentioned in the manual for several other cell phones.

 

[firewood]

So conversely, you accept that some people do NEED a case?

Should one then not be provided in the box?

Should I get a free 3G microcell from Apple since I go lots of places with extremely poor AT&T coverage?

I need reading glasses to read the display on my i4. Should Apple be required to buy everybody a pair of glasses?

 

[BobVB]

Even if it forces people to (re)learn how to hold a device with a microwave antenna. (See the manuals for lots of other cell phones.)

Seriously? Please show me such a device that that requires it be held in a way different from all cellphones, gps, calculators, or other handheld devices before it to prevent a 16+db signal strength drop?

We are back to the analogy of someone suddenly deciding to put the milk carton spout on the side, or the knife blade perpendicular to the handle and just telling the sandbagged customers to just 'deal', shill.