Seriously, This Antenna BS Has Got to Stop

[futbalguy]

unfortunately, your calculations are wrong. 650,000(the amount of preorders at at&t and apple had) x .28=182,000. (now if more people bought the phone then obviously this number can move up) thats IF 28% of people are experiencing this issue. Now of course these results are skewed. Obviously the most people doing a poll in an article about iphone 4 issues are going to already have an iphone 4 issue and are looking online for it. therefore, this percentage is way off. How did you get 420,000??

Just do the math, it looks like he used 1.5 million. Why would he use 650,000 since the preorders wont even account for half the phones they have sold by now? 1.5 million is a number of sales I have seen online.

 

[detroit1]

You dont mind because you arent experiencing it to the degree that others have. I dont have to use a "death grip". I just put my hand on the phone and the signal immediately dies. I only have to touch the phone with one finger to make this happen. If I come in contact with that spot, it just stops. The speed test app goes from showing data transmitting to completely stopped instantly. The bars only go down slowly because there is some sort of smoothing of the signal over time.

dont touch that spot lmao. its not that complicated. software fix in a week, just deal with it for 5 days lol

 

[detroit1]

Just do the math, it looks like he used 1.5 million. Why would he use 650,000 since the preorders wont even account for half the phones they have sold by now? 1.5 million is a number of sales I have seen online.

no i figured that out but the percentage is still skewed so the results are inaccurate. to get an accurate percentage you would need to poll every iphone user immediately after they bought the phone. if you only poll the guys in the apple store then they will most likey be back to return a damaged phone. if you only call the guys at home, then most of them will not have a broken phone. there is no way to establish a correct percentage
sorry for the double post

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

"Doctor, it hurts when i breathe."


"Stop breathing."



Problem not solved. HUZZAH!

 

[-aggie-]

Just do the math, it looks like he used 1.5 million. Why would he use 650,000 since the preorders wont even account for half the phones they have sold by now? 1.5 million is a number of sales I have seen online.

It doesn’t matter what number he used. The percentage he used is totally in error. It could be much smaller or even larger than that. We have no idea.

 

[ouimetnick]

It won't stop until Apple fixes this design flaw. And I saw several videos showing how holding it in your left Hand will drop the call. IGM has a video showing how holding an iPhone 4 drops the call. There is another video showing how when holding the iPhone 4 in the left hand, it goes from 5 bars to Searching. Then anodes video showing how the Speed Test App slows down when holding the phone. Because this issue is real, and so many folks think it's a design flaw, and Steve Job's pathetic response, this issue will continue to be talked about until Apple resolves this issue to satafactory results.

 

[ubercool]

it's stupid to think like that. just because one poll says 28%, you're going to assume that actually 28% of the iPhone 4 owners are having that problem? okay.

No, my friend, but it does suggest that it is WAY ABOVE the 5%-and-under industry defectiveness norm.

 

[detroit1]

No, my friend, but it does suggest that it is WAY ABOVE the 5%-and-under industry defectiveness norm.

why would people having no problems search for an article about iphone 4 problems? the percentage could be extremely low, we dont know

 

[IndustrialSpace]

Calls are not my issue. Data is. I only hold the phone like this when surfing on the phone. I ran a speed test and the data transfer drops to 10-15kbs down from 500-1000kbs when I hold it.

Is your next answer going to be 'don't hold it while you surf'?

This is a big concern for me, as I'm left-handed.

I think it's very insensitive for Steve Jobs to be so cavalier in his inital response. It drives away customers.

 

[InkjetPriority]

I agree with OP...sorta. When ringing someone, it's actually physically uncomfortable for me to try and touch the bottom left side of the phone.

The problem I see, is when I'm browsing the web. I do cup the bottom of the phone in my hand to look at it, and that could be problematic.

 

[Eso]

The OP and everyone from his camp just need to be banned from these forums. Clearly they are incapable of rational thought; what business do they have being involved in a discussion?

 

[interceptor47]

Delete

 

[interceptor47]

If you're left handed, holding the phone like Apple demonstrates in almost every single damned picture of it in the hand is precisely how not to hold it and precisely the way that causes the issue because the skin is bridging the two parts of the antenna bands in the lower left hand side:

[/i][/B]

Wouldn't that person holding that be right handed?

 

[keyofnight]

First, I should say that I do have the death grip. It doesn't effect my phone calls, but it destroys my internet browsing! I go from what feels like 1.5Mbit to what feels like 200Kbit. Wikipedia takes 1-2 minutes to load when gripped, as opposed to 3 seconds when held otherwise.

Also, don't forget: I only have to graze the bottom-left-hand corner to cause the problem. I don't even know when I'm doing it. I end up thinking, "Why the hell is my internet going so damn slow?! Oh wait... I'm holding it wrong." Can't you guys see why this is a problem? The phone is finicky in its current state.

But even more so, there are problems worse than the so-called death grip. Since I received the phone (yesterday), I've had 10 dropped calls. That's right: 10 dropped calls in a 24 hour period. I usually—for comparison's sake—only get about 2 dropped calls in a month. The dropped calls happen without prompting (no choppiness or loss of audio quality) and with full signal.

Serious, guys. This is a problem, and I don't see the point in denying it.

I just got off the phone with Apple tech support. Here is what I was told regarding the current situation:

He said, "there is a problem and we are working to fix it. It is a hardware issue. The "bumper" does not fix the problem either."

I just got off the phone with Apple Support as well, and they gave me the same reassurance: "The bumpers are like a band-aid for the problem, but our engineers are working hard to fix it for good. The antenna is working fine, it's just the software thinking it doesn't have a signal when it does."

He then went on to say that Apple employees who bought the iPhone 4 are also having the same problems, "The guys at the office are using bumpers, and that helps a little, but they're waiting on that new software. The software should be coming as soon as Monday."

When the tech guy finished his script, I pushed a little harder than normal to get answers, but the guy was clearly not well-versed on the nature of the phone. I asked him if the death grip is a problem with baseband, considering it has updated recently in iOS4. He said, "Yes, it's the phone's firmware."—he might've been trying to speak code as to not give away details, condone jailbreaking/unlocking knowledge, or whatever Apple policy he might've been trying to uphold. It could be that he just didn't know what I was talking about, but my words seemed familiar to him.

(A side note: this is a huge improvement over the insolence Steve shows in his personal emails—Right? I'm sure Steve just thought the problem was just typical nit-picking over one or two bars, though. I'm willing to excuse him for now, but he is becoming more of an ass as time goes on.)

 

[AbSoluTc]

Wouldn't that person holding that be right handed?

It doesn't matter. I am left and right handed. I use the phone in both hands depending on situation and how it feels at the time.

The point of the matter is - holding it as pictured, in the left hand results in drastic signal loss/failure. Period. That's just holding it. Were not talking death grip or some unnatural thing here. Just like the picture you quoted.

Everyone does that. It's a REAL problem. It pretty much incapacitates the phone and data.

 

[ChocolateApple]

Eh, the antenna issue is "an issue," but I don't how how must other people feel about it, but here's my thoughts.

I almost never am holding my phone when I receive a call (I know crazy huh) it's almost always in my pocket, it rings, I pick it up. When I'm actually talking on the phone because I'm right handed, I don't have this problem.

The only time i have a significiant drop in strength is when I'm browsing and do hold the phone tightly, so I don't do it that way, and it's fine.

Overall, (and this is just me), it's an issue, but so are a lot of things in life. If you deal with anything you find typically that there are trade-offs, I like the size, design, display and speed of the Iphone 4 a lot. The antenna issue just isn't a big one to me. It's a highly acceptable tradeoff. I primarily use the phone as a smartphone and I'm very happy.

If it's for you it is, if it's a dealbreaker it is. To each their own.

+1

And I use my Bluetooth when making calls when I can. I don't usually hold it to my ear.

 

[Despacio]

I'm glad the OP cleared up this issue, it doesn't happen to him, so it must not be a real problem, just something fabricated by multiple major news outlets and thousands of readers in an elaborate stunt designed to hurt Apple's magical image.

 

[hexonxonx]

I'm glad the OP cleared up this issue, it doesn't happen to him, so it must not be a real problem, just something fabricated by multiple major news outlets and thousands of readers in an elaborate stunt designed to hurt Apple's magical image.

Yeah, we have nothing better to do than invent an imaginary problem.

I have a Microcell that if I stand next to it and hold my phone the way I normally do, I can't make a single call until I move my hand in a way that I am not used to. I shouldn't have to do this. It's a serious problem.

 

[AbSoluTc]

Yeah, we have nothing better to do than invent an imaginary problem.

I have a Microcell that if I stand next to it and hold my phone the way I normally do, I can't make a single call until I move my hand in a way that I am not used to. I shouldn't have to do this. It's a serious problem.

So you have a Microcell too and have this problem? Same here!

 

[hexonxonx]

So you have a Microcell too and have this problem? Same here!

Yes. Two feet away from the thing I can have five bars until I hold my phone in the way that I have been holding iPhones since June of 2007. ONce I hold it in my normal way, the call will drop within seconds or fail to even connect. I tried it for the first time today standing next to the Microcell.

 

[AbSoluTc]

Yes. Two feet away from the thing I can have five bars until I hold my phone in the way that I have been holding iPhones since June of 2007. ONce I hold it in my normal way, the call will drop within seconds or fail to even connect. I tried it for the first time today standing next to the Microcell.

That sucks but good to know I am not alone with the Microcell issue as well. Crazy.

 

[ChocolateApple]

Not a Pain to Me Yet, But Complaints are Valid

I knew this would turn into the nightmare that it has. If for nothing else, the competition and Apple haters LOVE to see the fall of the popular new toy that has eclipsed them, and will magnify the legit complaints at every chance. But they cannot use ammunition that doesn't exist, and in this case, it exists. Oh well. Those of us who love the iP4 will just have to hang on during this bumpy ride and get a new one, a bumper, a case or abandon it altogether.

That said, I am more concerned with having to retype my WiFi password into my iPad every 20 seconds (exaggerated). When my iP4 loses bars because I haven't mastered the art of the Steve Jobs magical holding method (Karate Kid style), it's not a big deal to me so far because it hasn't yet interrupted anything I have to do. If it does, I'll re-adjust until the bars return while I'm waiting on my case. So far, putting the phone down results in the bars returning fast.

I do however feel that the bumpers should be mailed to everyone who requests them, and so far that seems to be the case based on posts I've read.

 

[gehrbox]

Um, I wouldn't call 28% small, according to the TechCrunch poll. By my calculations that means that 420,000 iPhone owners have this problem worldwide. That is not "a given."

Being able to force the signal strength meter to fall and actually losing function of the cellular connection are not the same thing. I've managed to duplicate the behavior, but have not dropped calls or had degradation of call quality.

I think these polls are giving a false indication of the nature of the issue. If people say yes to TechCrunchs poll because they can duplicate the loss of bars, but haven't actually had any communications issue then the poll results are useless.

 

[gehrbox]

So its BS because YOU happen to not have dropped a call yet and therefore everyone else is lying. Narcissistic much

It's just that it's tough to determine if an iPhone call was dropped because the iPhone was faulty or that it was ATT's fault

 

[herdinoh]

Obviously you're not reading or following the story. You say, "the new iPhone did not work well," and already the entire post is false. People are finding a way to make it lose service, since it seems to be doing a great job of maintaing service under normal use.

I think everybody has his own way to hold the phone. You can not say yours is always right, other's are wrong.