If it's AT&T, explain why people in the UK are able to reproduce the problem.
AT&T has always been the scapegoat for the iPhone's RF shortcomings. Now it's finally starting to look like the iPhone will be taking the blame for it's problems.
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Jobs says Signal Strength a "non issue"
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If it's AT&T, explain why people in the UK are able to reproduce the problem.
AT&T has always been the scapegoat for the iPhone's RF shortcomings. Now it's finally starting to look like the iPhone will be taking the blame for it's problems.
I have to agree here. All things aside, I think its pretty lame that ppl go on as if the phone is unusable. I can replicate the problem yes, but I have never had a problem with it. Several big name journalists, and engadget have all tested the phone for over a week saying reception was as good or better depending on the situations. I think its the lefties that really brought the problems to light.
Kara Swisher jumps in
No one likes having their intelligence insulted, .. well, except extreme fanboys!
http://kara.allthingsd.com/20100625...w-to-hold-a-phone-heres-some-other-grip-tips/
No one likes having their intelligence insulted, .. well, except extreme fanboys!
http://kara.allthingsd.com/20100625...w-to-hold-a-phone-heres-some-other-grip-tips/
maybe its not AT&T but perhaps Apple changed their antenna from quadband to pentaband, maybe its not working right in some locations and does for some. I am just confused why the bars wouldnt go down in one location while they would in another.
"Not like Apple", really? While I don't have their complete track record in the back of my head, my impression has been that Apple is extremely unwilling to admit to any wrongdoing. Their policy of absolute silence and secrecy extends all the way to things like bugs and problems with recently released products. A year ago when I bought my MBP, I remember there were tons of issues with the June '09 MBPs such as a conspicuously slow SATA bus, intermittent spinning beachball-lockups, USB bus weirdness, BootCamp HFS+ BSODs etc. At times like those it would be very reassuring to hear "yup, we're aware of the problem and we're on the case", but instead they just stonewalled everyone until fixes were released which retroactively confirmed that there were indeed known problems. Can't they just say that instead of letting everyone pull their hair out for weeks on end? There has been so much stuff over the years with products that crack and/or fall apart, overheating, exploding iPods, yellow screens, melting magsafe connectors and what not, but Apple never comments.
In order for Apple to fess up it appears there has to be some sort of massive life-threatening situation on a global scale, immense pressure and loads of bad PR and/or a class action lawsuit, otherwise they just revert to stonewalling. If anyone can provide me with examples to the contrary I'd be happy to reconsider my position, but I won't be holding my breath. So it will be interesting to see how they handle something that makes it all the way to the mainstream media's front pages around the world... they'll have to abandon the stonewalling strategy and go to an as-yet-unknown plan B.
Just to add my two cents,
I received my iP4 yesterday with a bumper. I put the bumper on straight away. I fired up the phone and immediately noticed there was dust underneath the screen and a rattle coming from within the phone.
So I phone Apple UK and straight away they organise a replacement. I received it via UPS today 24hrs later. Cannot fault them for this solution. Having had replacement now for a few hours i actually prefer to use it without the bumper as it slips into my pocket more easily and generally feels a little better in the hand.
Although in doing this I have also become a victim of the reception problem. And may i also add to those who say that just because it shows no service doesnt mean that it will drop calls well i can tell ya that when i held the phone in my left had and the display showed no service my girlfriend who was sat beside me tried to call and it went straight to voicemail.
With that in mind I dont think a software issue will resolve this problem. Why did Apple not put the antennae at the top corners of the device?
Im really gutted as its my first iPhone. I waited 3 incarnations of the phone until it was just right and the iP4 is a real workhorse of a phone. Its an amazing device but Apple really have overlooked the most basic of functions - the ability to make and receive calls in a way that everyone is accustomed to. To say that users need to change the way you hold it is a bit unfair.
I hope that a solution is found and that we may see a massive recall of phones on the scale of Toyota if it isnt sorted fast. Apple should cease production and address it now before it finds itself out of pocket even more in a few months time. Im sure behind the scenes Apple are working like crazy to sort this issue but the least they could do is offer a statement on how they will fix it to ensure they keep there strong following.
I received my iP4 yesterday with a bumper. I put the bumper on straight away. I fired up the phone and immediately noticed there was dust underneath the screen and a rattle coming from within the phone.
So I phone Apple UK and straight away they organise a replacement. I received it via UPS today 24hrs later. Cannot fault them for this solution. Having had replacement now for a few hours i actually prefer to use it without the bumper as it slips into my pocket more easily and generally feels a little better in the hand.
Although in doing this I have also become a victim of the reception problem. And may i also add to those who say that just because it shows no service doesnt mean that it will drop calls well i can tell ya that when i held the phone in my left had and the display showed no service my girlfriend who was sat beside me tried to call and it went straight to voicemail.
With that in mind I dont think a software issue will resolve this problem. Why did Apple not put the antennae at the top corners of the device?
Im really gutted as its my first iPhone. I waited 3 incarnations of the phone until it was just right and the iP4 is a real workhorse of a phone. Its an amazing device but Apple really have overlooked the most basic of functions - the ability to make and receive calls in a way that everyone is accustomed to. To say that users need to change the way you hold it is a bit unfair.
I hope that a solution is found and that we may see a massive recall of phones on the scale of Toyota if it isnt sorted fast. Apple should cease production and address it now before it finds itself out of pocket even more in a few months time. Im sure behind the scenes Apple are working like crazy to sort this issue but the least they could do is offer a statement on how they will fix it to ensure they keep there strong following.
Replacement phone
Got a replacement phone at the genius bar (my earpiece was dead, so I didn't have to argue about the reception.) Interestingly, my old phone did the short-out trick everywhere but the apple store (even 3 feet from my microcell). The new phone SEEMS to also do it, but I need to do tests in more locations (including at home by the microcell) to be sure. On University avenue (the apple store) it didn't exhibit the problem (neither did the old phone), but it seems to go from 3 bars to 1 in my office if I just touch that spot. I won't rule out normal variation since my office always has sucky reception. If it does it by my microcell I'll see if I can bring it in and get yet another replacement, but wait a couple weeks and see if there's a new batch that solves it.
Got a replacement phone at the genius bar (my earpiece was dead, so I didn't have to argue about the reception.) Interestingly, my old phone did the short-out trick everywhere but the apple store (even 3 feet from my microcell). The new phone SEEMS to also do it, but I need to do tests in more locations (including at home by the microcell) to be sure. On University avenue (the apple store) it didn't exhibit the problem (neither did the old phone), but it seems to go from 3 bars to 1 in my office if I just touch that spot. I won't rule out normal variation since my office always has sucky reception. If it does it by my microcell I'll see if I can bring it in and get yet another replacement, but wait a couple weeks and see if there's a new batch that solves it.
Enough with the "It's AT&T's crappy service". It is beyond ridiculous.
If you actually believe that it is AT&T causing you to lose your signal, you are one diehard fanboy.
If you actually believe that it is AT&T causing you to lose your signal, you are one diehard fanboy.
What is there to deny? My phone has no issues. People are complaining about a bug and were not even 72 hours into the launch yet. Some perspective would be nice.
My husband and I both upgraded from the 3G to the 4, and we are both experiencing the antenna issue; however, my signal goes down a small amount but I am still able to use my phone while my husband's phone goes to "no service" and he can't do anything at all. This has happened on multiple occasions since we received our phones Wednesday, and it has occurred in multiple locations. My husband did not have a case on his 3G and had upgraded it to iOS4 without experiencing this issue. My 3G also never had this issue, but I always used a case anyway. As a side note, we both went out to buy cases last night, and they have NOT helped much. The signal still goes down, but it seems to take longer.
Since we are both not having the same reception problems, this seems to indicate that there is a manufacturing issue with the iPhone and it's obviously not AT&T since my husband and I are right next to each other and not having the same reception problems. Not to mentioned our old phones worked great!
Since we are both not having the same reception problems, this seems to indicate that there is a manufacturing issue with the iPhone and it's obviously not AT&T since my husband and I are right next to each other and not having the same reception problems. Not to mentioned our old phones worked great!
Ok I've had my bumper case on since launch and love it.
I also got a free iPhone 4 case from some company named Dexim which looks pretty snazzy especially for free. It's all plastic/silicone and surrounds the entire phone except the front, obviously.
Since i've put the new case on i've dropped 2 calls. I'd place a call and hold the phone, but then it'd sort of lock up, then freeze, then drop.
But then again it was also trying to connect and switch between my headset and the internal speaker.
So is the freezing up and everything what everyone else is experiencing? Or does it just drop but stay responsive.
I don't think it's related but it is very strange behavior.
I also got a free iPhone 4 case from some company named Dexim which looks pretty snazzy especially for free. It's all plastic/silicone and surrounds the entire phone except the front, obviously.
Since i've put the new case on i've dropped 2 calls. I'd place a call and hold the phone, but then it'd sort of lock up, then freeze, then drop.
But then again it was also trying to connect and switch between my headset and the internal speaker.
So is the freezing up and everything what everyone else is experiencing? Or does it just drop but stay responsive.
I don't think it's related but it is very strange behavior.
I just spoke with an Apple Senior Advisor at tech support and he said their engineers are working on the issue and that he apologizes for the problem and Apple's previous statement. He said to keep my eyes peeled for a solution which he thinks will come soon and that holding it differently or having to buy a case is extremely unacceptable, so a real solution should be coming and they will make sure no customer is stuck with defects.
Lets hope this ends up being true.
Lets hope this ends up being true.
Please view the video, i tried using a case, rubber band, and tape to try to find a solution to the reception
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPp1-LWY7Jw&playnext_from=TL&videos=jUiXmJ4Gq4Y
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPp1-LWY7Jw&playnext_from=TL&videos=jUiXmJ4Gq4Y
The 'certain way' is the natural way most people hold their iPhone (as demonstrated by Steve Jobs himself when demoing it at WWDC).
Consider yourself lucky then. Perspective? Go search Youtube for iPhone 4 reception issues. Go to Engadget, Gizmodo and several major news websites. How's that for perspective?
The point is "a certain way" shouldn't even be an issue. People have been holding their phones 'a certain way' since the iPhone was released (and, of course, even before that) and have never had this type of massive signal loss.
The solution shouldn't be change the way you hold the device. That mentality shows you really where the user stands on the totem pole.
Two things about perspective...
1) Have you ever seen more widespread reports of a problem with an Apple product? Have you ever seen dozens and dozens of YouTube videos successfully demonstrating the same flaw, coupled with worldwide mainstream news coverage by the likes of CNN, WSJ, FT, CBS, BBC, MSNBC, FOX and NYT? Have you ever seen this many Mac Rumors members reporting the same problem and being this overwhelmingly negative about it? Loyal Apple fans of 30 years saying "enough is enough"? No, you haven't. So the perspective you should consider here is that this issue is different from all those you saw in the past, where people whined for a couple of days on forums and then forgot about it.
2) In order to gain some perspective on how f***ed up this issue is, let's detach the whole thing from Apple and the iPhone. Let's instead use, I dunno, Ford and the new Ford Taurus. Let's say that people go out and buy the new Taurus and discover that if you touch the steering wheel in a certain spot, the engine stops. The Ford CEO then responds that it's a "non-issue" and that you simply should avoid touching the steering wheel there. Other drivers of the new Taurus would tell you that you can fix the problem easily by buying one of these...
...or simply wear rubber gloves when you drive.
Would you consider any of this remotely acceptable? My guess is that you wouldn't, but rather that your jaw would drop and you'd just sit there in amazement looking like a birdhouse.