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Is it official that iPhone 4 is a disaster and blunder for Apple?
- Thread starter JD914
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The PR disaster can hurt sales and eventually become a consumer disaster. They are ahead at the moment but the tide can turn at a blink of an eye.
You are right that they will try (and likely succeed) in putting the best spin on sales and the positive points of the product launch.
Press conferences are seldom for the customers....they are for the stockholders. Apple's valuation as a publicly traded company has little to do with happy customers. We like to think that as consumers because it makes us feel like we are the center of the universe. For a publicly-traded company with obscene stock-to-asset valuation ratio's, customers really don't matter other than as sales numbers. If sales are good, stockholders are happy. The noise from customers complaining is just that....noise.
I'd say it was a success for many, disaster for some, and PR debacle for Apple.
The way people are talking, it would seem it was a disaster though (i.e. friends coming up to me and bashing my phone because "the antenna doesn't work", when in actuality I have better reception than previous iPhones).
The way people are talking, it would seem it was a disaster though (i.e. friends coming up to me and bashing my phone because "the antenna doesn't work", when in actuality I have better reception than previous iPhones).
Because there are a bunch of arrogant jerks in this forum that think that what they have to say is so much more important than what everyone else has to say.
ok fine don't let the door hit you on the way out and you will not be missed
I'm not the arogant jerk that started a new thread. SO why don't you GTFO?
Apple holding a press conference addressing the antenna issue is not some poster on a message board "blowing it way out of proportion"
You're very hostile in this thread. very angry. at least that's how you are coming across. I say this will all due respect. You should probably skip threads like these or take a break from reading the boards until you can put things into perspective and instead of getting heated - realize it's not that big of a deal.
samcraig, I don't think he is hostile. He is tired of people posting the same thread over and over and over and over and over. I think we all are. Aren't we?
People like him need an outlet to vent their frustrations. No one here but this guy is getting his panties in a bunch. Good advice, I hope he takes it.
I know I am...
Apple doesn't owe you people anything return the phone if your not satisfied. It sounds simple because it is...
If anyone's panties are in a bunch, they are yours. Unknot your panties and just wait until tomorrow's announcement. You'll be OK. We'll all be OK.
It's not the worst PRODUCT they've ever released, because it's actually a great product.
It IS the worst product RELEASE they've ever done. It's a PR nightmare that should have never happened. Even if they do a really good job of fixing things on Friday, I'll never forget the lies they've tried to hide behind with this thing, and my confidence in Apple has definitely been shaken now.
I will probably continue to buy their products, but I doubt I'll be buying any on launch day ever again. I'm going to wait until others test them. Maybe that doesn't matter to Apple, but they may never have these huge launch day numbers again.
If I even catch a whiff of a faulty product like this again I'm going to steer clear of it until I'm confident there is a fix, or just not buy it at all.
It IS the worst product RELEASE they've ever done. It's a PR nightmare that should have never happened. Even if they do a really good job of fixing things on Friday, I'll never forget the lies they've tried to hide behind with this thing, and my confidence in Apple has definitely been shaken now.
I will probably continue to buy their products, but I doubt I'll be buying any on launch day ever again. I'm going to wait until others test them. Maybe that doesn't matter to Apple, but they may never have these huge launch day numbers again.
If I even catch a whiff of a faulty product like this again I'm going to steer clear of it until I'm confident there is a fix, or just not buy it at all.
True, and it's in direct response to the OPs comment:
I've been avoiding the forum, that that's the problem...I don't want to avoid it. I like coming here and having useful discussions in this forum. However, even the comment of going to Page 2 is false since we have several pages deep of 50% of the comments talking about if the iPhone 4 is a failure or not. Similar to the pre-launch repeating threads of "Am I upgrade eligible" or "This is BS, why am I not eligible?"
Why are people so self-centered that they can't continue the discussion in an existing thread? THIS is what pisses me off.
Says the OP of a thread that complains about the iPhone 4.....as if nobody else has noticed?
I don't think the iPhone 4 has been a "disaster" or a "blunder."
In the first three days Apple reportedly sold 1.7 million iPhones.
Now, from what I've read on these forums it sounds like some people do not have an issue. It maybe the people making the claims have the issue but don't see it, or they actually have a good working phone.
Obviously it's hard to gauge how many people are affected by basing the number soley off the internet forums, but lets say 50,000 iPhones have this issue. That's still less then 3% of all iPhones. Is 50,000 enough people to cause a ground swell big enough for the media outlets to pick up on it? Maybe. If 5% of iPhones were bad, that'd be 85,000 people.
Then of course you have media outlets picking up the Consumer Reports line about adding duct tape - which I think in itself was blown out of proportion. The sentence in which they recommend that is skewed. (It was like "it worked if you covered the bottom corner with a heavy non-conductive tape like duct tape . . oh, and a cover would work too.")
Now you have senators writing Jobs . . . it's getting blown WAY out of control.
I expect at the presser tomorrow Jobs will review the sales of the iPhone, say something about the white iPhone then say that a certain small percentage of iPhones aren't up to Apple's standards. They are working on a fix - have a nice day.
In the first three days Apple reportedly sold 1.7 million iPhones.
Now, from what I've read on these forums it sounds like some people do not have an issue. It maybe the people making the claims have the issue but don't see it, or they actually have a good working phone.
Obviously it's hard to gauge how many people are affected by basing the number soley off the internet forums, but lets say 50,000 iPhones have this issue. That's still less then 3% of all iPhones. Is 50,000 enough people to cause a ground swell big enough for the media outlets to pick up on it? Maybe. If 5% of iPhones were bad, that'd be 85,000 people.
Then of course you have media outlets picking up the Consumer Reports line about adding duct tape - which I think in itself was blown out of proportion. The sentence in which they recommend that is skewed. (It was like "it worked if you covered the bottom corner with a heavy non-conductive tape like duct tape . . oh, and a cover would work too.")
Now you have senators writing Jobs . . . it's getting blown WAY out of control.
I expect at the presser tomorrow Jobs will review the sales of the iPhone, say something about the white iPhone then say that a certain small percentage of iPhones aren't up to Apple's standards. They are working on a fix - have a nice day.
In regards to your edited OP- These issues have been present in all iPhones, and, for the most part, only bother members on here who nitpick about every little thing!
Easily scratches- All iPhones are scratch-able. But the 4 is no more than others. The 3G and 3GS with the plastic backs were incredibly prone to scratches! The glass actually prevents scratches more.
Shattered glass- Same as scratches. All iPhones have been susceptible to shattering. It's glass. When it meets pavement, you know what happens.
Yellow screen- This has always been an issue as well. The 3GS especially caused an uproar about the yellow screens, with Apple defending it saying that it caused the colors to be more vivid and "pop!"
Now as for the antenna and proximity sensors, those are new issues. However, just as other issues before, they don't affect everyone with an iPhone 4 and have been dramatized SO MUCH by the media. I have yet to drop a call on my 4. I understand it's different for everyone, but the iPhone 4 is far from a failure, or the worst product ever. A lot of people are thoroughly enjoying theirs. The other "failures" have been around for years now, so stop trying to dramatize the entire situation.
Easily scratches- All iPhones are scratch-able. But the 4 is no more than others. The 3G and 3GS with the plastic backs were incredibly prone to scratches! The glass actually prevents scratches more.
Shattered glass- Same as scratches. All iPhones have been susceptible to shattering. It's glass. When it meets pavement, you know what happens.
Yellow screen- This has always been an issue as well. The 3GS especially caused an uproar about the yellow screens, with Apple defending it saying that it caused the colors to be more vivid and "pop!"
Now as for the antenna and proximity sensors, those are new issues. However, just as other issues before, they don't affect everyone with an iPhone 4 and have been dramatized SO MUCH by the media. I have yet to drop a call on my 4. I understand it's different for everyone, but the iPhone 4 is far from a failure, or the worst product ever. A lot of people are thoroughly enjoying theirs. The other "failures" have been around for years now, so stop trying to dramatize the entire situation.
Totally minor, and issues that have impacted every iPhone product launch since version 1.
Dropped calls/Low Signal/No Signal = every iPhone in existence, some due to AT&T and some due to the phone itself. Net result is identical....sub-optimized voice and data communications. This is a MINOR issue as it doesn't impact everyone in all cases at all times.
Proximity Sensor Issues = Been through this with the original iPhone (1 return) and the iPhone 3 (returns again, same issue). Don't have this on my iPhone 4, but I've seen the posts here on this and saw them last year when the 3GS was released as well. Again, minor issue...worst case scenario is wrong buttons get pressed or accidental disconnects...and poor battery life if screen won't turn off during calls. How are these major if they've been here since day 1 release of the product line?
Yellowing/Screen clarity = Minor issues, in no way impacts performance of the phone.
Minor. All Minor. Not like the damn things are causing sterility or anything like that.
haha, really? Must be nice living in never land. You're clearly only trying to justify your purchase.
I guess Apple sees it differently since they're holding a press conference tomorrow.
It's not simple - nor is the decision to return or not to return an easy one.
Speaking for ONLY myself - I love my i4. I have it in a case and so far so good. But the phone itself (without the case) is flawed. And if Apple does a recall and replaces it with one that I can have a case on OR NOT that works to spec, all the merrier. You'd be a fool to keep the current phone if an alternative becomes available. And if they don't offer a recall - then no harm no foul in my eyes because I'm keeping mine. I ACCEPT its limitations and I can live with them.
That doesn't mean for a second I think the iPhone has NO ISSUES. It means I have decided the good outweigh the bad.
THAT'S WHY - I imagine - people are not just returning their phones despite your call to action. But that doesn't mean people can't call into question Apple's responsibility here.
If consumers didn't speak up about their issues, much more would be at stake. Maybe not because of a luxury device like an iPhone - but the process is still important.
Apple - whether you want to believe it or not - has an obligation to it's shareholders and its customers. That's what this whole "antennagate" is about.
Actually what's really funny is what a mess Apple's got itself into. You know SJ's feeling the heat when he calls a press conference. After all he's the one that blows things out of proportion. He's the master of delusion. It's Magical & Revolutionary... ha... ha...
Apparently all the money they've made from the millions of phones can't get them out of this jam. He's tried every trick in the book to pin it on someone else like AT&T... Oops, that didn't work, now what ?
"Let's call a press conference, yeah that's it. ...ha... ha
Not at all. It would be a disaster if everyone suddenly stopped buying the phone, but I doubt that would happen.
It really isn't.
The antenna issue is quite major - I can hold my iPhone 3G in my left hand and experience little if any signal drop. Where as I do that with my iPhone 4, and it goes from full bars 3G to barely 1 bar of GPRS. I let go again, and full 3G reception.
Every phone has signal deduction when held, but the iPhone 4's antenna design means that aside from normal signal deduction, touching/bridging the two antennas means that you experience a significant signal loss.
I'm not in the best 3G place and signal varies greatly. You obviously live in somewhere with a very strong 3G signal, thus bridging the antennas doesn't do much.
This issue affects people differently. But saying it is very minor is just ignorant. No phone when held should go from full 3G reception to none.
I would be willing to bet the press conference is more for the benefit of their stockholders than us as customers. Overall I really don't disagree with what your saying, but I also don't understand why people feel entitled to have apple fix a problem. It is ultimately their product and if they leave it that way people will have to choose, it wouldn't be a smart business decision but they really have no obligation to improve the product when every single person who purchased it is within their return window.