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iPhone 4 Signal Strength Indicator Issue Alleviated by Use of Bumper or Case

mattman5786 said:
TRY IT!
it really works...
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Try putting a nickel on the lower left corner of the phone. It really doesn't work!

You got the run around from a tech support guy at Apple who was reading a script. Apple has not officially announced a solution. The only thing we know is that Apple told Walt Mossberg they're going to release a software update with respect to a software bug effecting how many bars the phone has.
 
SooneratND said:
If the problem really is only appearing on some phones and not others, then basic troubleshooting logic tells me the design itself is not the issue, as all phones share the same design.

That tells me the problem is probably not in the design, but in the manufacturing process. The widespread supply shortages, combined with the rumors about the phones being shipped with glue still curing tells me they are producing these things day and night on the fly and shipping as soon as possible.

I'm betting there are a couple factories in China where quality control has slipped and something isn't being done correctly that is resulting in the antennas not being properly isolated from interference, per Apple's design.

Apple had to hit a release date deadline and these phones were likely rushed through straight from manufacturing to shipping, with very little quality control testing going on.

I may be way off base here, but it seems logical to me. I don't see how you get an intermittent problem like this otherwise.

Unfortunately, the first day adopters are getting screwed. People buying in a month or two, when the supplies are back to normal probably won't be seeing this issue.
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This is the most logical post I've read so far.
 
Coated steel?

As a former electronics technician and and Air Force communications specialist, I'm quite surprised that Apple didn't realize that touching an antenna would change the impedance of the antenna, affecting the signal strength--unless they assumed it would help improve signal strength as has been demonstrated numerous times with AM and FM antennae on radios and television. The problem is that even with those older technologies, it depended on where you touched the antenna and how tightly you held it. There's also the possibility that, by bridging the insulating gaps with your fingers/hand, you create a high-impedance short which would further affect the overall impedance of either antenna.

However, by insulating the steel rim with a non-conducting material like the silicone 'boot' or a leather/vinyl overall case, you eliminate the contact with the skin and retain the engineered-in impedance. It is possible that using some sort of plastic coating or maybe even an anodizing process like that used on the iPods could offer not only that insulating property needed, but also allow Apple to colorize the iPhone in the same way.

Again, I'm surprised that they missed this quite simple issue during their testing.
 
igirlca said:
on the day of the iphone launch, the droidx release article on cnn.com has more reads than all of the iphone ones. tale of the times...these times they are a changin.
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I have yet to see a droid luach mess up three major company networks. Or see 100s of people line up around the world to buy one.
 
SooneratND said:
Could be... but what about the posts stating they have no problems at all? You can't just assume that the large number here complaining means that everyone is affected. People who have a problem are far more likely to post about it. If there even just a few with no issues posting here, then there are likely many more.
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As I mentioned earlier, AT&T uses two different frequency bands (800 & 1900). This issue might only affect one of these bands. Hence why some users don't experience the issue.
 
Terrible. Next time I hold my phone covering all sides of the antenna I'll let you know... You cover a TV antenna you get no picture. Same $!@#. Just made 3 calls on my "spankin' new" iPhone 4 and everything was perfect. How about enjoying your new gadget before blasting it. Infact please return yours if you have a problem with it. They're in short supply and there are PLENTY of other people that would be happy with their new phone.
 
acidfast7 said:
i am waiting until they have these problems worked out with iPhone5.
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I was thinking, I was going to give in to my iPhone 4 envy and upgrade from my cracked screen, 3G and get a new one when the lines are gone in August.

But I already live in San Francisco, the land of no AT&T reception. Adding in a phone that can drop calls (if you can even make on) if you hold it incorrectly... why bother at all? Might as well get an iTouch!

Since I love the way my phone does exactly the things I need and integrates with my MPB, I won't be heading to the land of Droid, but seems pointless to do anything but keep my 3G until they figure out how to fix this issue. And you know that won't be until next year... and a redesign of the case.


Sorry Mr. Jobs, while the iPhone 4 is great in theory, you've had some serious issues this time around. And I'll just have to wait this one out I think.


Anyone know where to send a phone to get a screen replaced???
 
i've tried this in a couple of places. seems like where my signal is weak (my employment is in a metal building) is where it will get even worse if i hold the bottom left seam/corner. outside where the signal is stronger, i don't have any problem while holding bottom left seam/corner.
 
spazzcat said:
I can't get it to do this outside, so it maybe a software issue with lower signals.
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this is exactly the issue,

i cannot get it to drop in 3G / 5 bar hot zones but when i leave the city a bit and hold it it will drop like a rock,

definitely has to do with lower signal area's
 
Apple raped me once with their phone that can't function as a phone when I simply hold it properly, I'm not about to let them get me again with their overpriced piece of plastic. If they want to fix my phone with one, I'll gladly take it for free and try it. Otherwise my phone is being returned for a full refund.
 
Mine doesn't seem to drop from 5 bars, even when holding in my left hand with my palm straddling the two antennas. Of course, after hearing this story I got a bumper with my phone this morning, and all they had were black ones. I probably would have gotten a bumper eventually, but I might have gotten a different color.
 
tevans333 said:
I wish Apple would put out a statement in layman’s terms for the benefits of this design so people wouldn't be so worked up.

I'm an RF engineer with an EE degree and 10 years of experience. By touching the antenna your body becomes part of the circuit essentially making one large antenna. This improves reception considerably. Remeber old rabbit ears on your tv? You use to move them with your hands, when you touched them the picture was clear, as soon as you let go it got worse? It made it hard to tune them in. Same thing applies here. The bars decreasing when touched is a software glitch because the impedance has changed on the circuit, the software is simply calibrated to not being held.

As far as shorting it out, some simple isolation barriers take care of that, so
no worries.
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If you were actually an engineer you would know that bigger is not always better. Its all about proper resonance, if touching this antenna changes its resonant profile than the reception will get worse.
 
wentwj said:
still wondering if this is just one bad line in a factory. Are people who are picking them up in stores seeing this issue?

I picked up two iPhones this morning, and can't reproduce it with dry, sweaty, clammy, damp, or any other hand conditions on either device.

At most i've gotten it to drop a single bar, but that could have just been random fluctuation, as it didn't continue to drop and didn't happen consistently.
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I got a 32gb in Florida this morning and I can EASILY replicate the signal drop. Have yet to try it while on a call but will update when I do.
 
nycdesigner said:
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)



I totally agree. Part of owning the iPhone is appreciating the gorgeous industrial design. I would never want to muck that up with a cheap bumper or case that ruins the whole look. I won't be able to enjoy the phone with a case of any kind.
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Ya muck it up anyway via fingerprints and scratches...don't tell me your iPhone/iPad/iPod (ESPECIALLY THE BACK OF THE IPOD) stays perfect/pristine/gorgeous/adjective despite usage in your hands, in your pockets, and anywhere that can cause aesthetic damage. I always wonder why some people have iPhones and iPods that look like absolute trash in comparison to mine, and I can tell you that it certainly isn't because they have any kind of protection on them - they don't. Unless you wipe your device down after every time you use it as well as protect it at least while it's in your pocket, I can guarantee that it will look bad in a matter of months if not weeks.
 
Pwned said:
I just got my iphone 4 and I notice if I lightly tap on the back near the camera lens I hear a clicking sound, sounds as if something is loose, anyone else have the same thing?
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Ever think that might be the focusing lens? Remember, iPhone now lets you have active focus for your photos. This seems an extremely logical reason for that sound.
 
I got really tired to read all the critics based on no evidence at all. And all those warfare things between droid and iphone and Zune and... Such nonsense. I will just pick up my iphone 4 tonight, and see whether there is a real problem or just illusive crap that saves some haters from shutting up for a few minutes.
 
Vulpinemac said:
As a former electronics technician and and Air Force communications specialist, I'm quite surprised that Apple didn't realize that touching an antenna would change the impedance of the antenna, affecting the signal strength--unless they assumed it would help improve signal strength as has been demonstrated numerous times with AM and FM antennae on radios and television. The problem is that even with those older technologies, it depended on where you touched the antenna and how tightly you held it. There's also the possibility that, by bridging the insulating gaps with your fingers/hand, you create a high-impedance short which would further affect the overall impedance of either antenna.

However, by insulating the steel rim with a non-conducting material like the silicone 'boot' or a leather/vinyl overall case, you eliminate the contact with the skin and retain the engineered-in impedance. It is possible that using some sort of plastic coating or maybe even an anodizing process like that used on the iPods could offer not only that insulating property needed, but also allow Apple to colorize the iPhone in the same way.

Again, I'm surprised that they missed this quite simple issue during their testing.
Click to expand...

Quoting for impact. People are not reading the posts from the engineers who have actual working knowledge of how antenna work (I'm not an engineer).

I've been assuming that Apple knew about this but a bug in the software is partially screwing it up.
 
LotuSviLLe said:
Terrible. Next time I hold my phone covering all sides of the antenna I'll let you know... You cover a TV antenna you get no picture. Same $!@#. Just made 3 calls on my "spankin' new" iPhone 4 and everything was perfect. How about enjoying your new gadget before blasting it. Infact please return yours if you have a problem with it. They're in short supply and there are PLENTY of other people that would be happy with their new phone.
Click to expand...

Just wait until you get farther away from the cell tower. Then you'll get it. Then you'll be able to really enjoy your new gadget.
 
Lord Vader said:
In my opinion it's a design flaw if all units are effected and that's not the case here. It simply could be a problem with assembly or some faulty materials. Time will tell i guess.
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I guarantee you it's an issue with every single phone. The only difference between people seeing it and not is the signal strength in their area. If we took someone who claims they don't see it and put them in my house, they'd see it on their phone. Whatever the fix is going to be will be applied to ALL iphone 4s. If I'm wrong, you can mock me over and over. But I'm not wrong.
 
What is the practical effect of this issue? Is this one of those "Doctor, it hurts when I move my arm like this" problems, or are people really not able to use the phone because of it?
 
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