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Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it

J

JayLenochiniMac

macrumors G5
Original poster
Nov 7, 2007
12,819
2,390
New Sanfrakota
Remember the freezing iMacs in 2007 and again in 2009? Many were convinced it was an unresolvable hardware issue (graphics card) until Apple came out with a software fix. Some machines exhibited the symptoms whereas others didn't, despite having the exact same graphics card, to the frustration of affected owners who started threads collecting serial numbers to no avail.

Same thing with the macbook random shutdown syndrome, which was a hardware issue that was fixed via software.

If you have a defective iPhone 4, be reassured Apple will find a solution one way or another. Likewise, if you have a perfectly working iPhone 4 and are unable to reproduce the reception loss, it doesn't mean it's not a real problem for the affected owners.

So if history is any indication, there will be a software fix in the near future.
 
Don't forget the intermittent screen flickering on the 27" iMacs. IMO that was a much, much more worrisome problem than this antenna debacle. Widely varying degrees of flickering, blackouts and vertical screen shifts involved. It was fixed (after one unsuccessful attempt) by a firmware patch.
 
Also remember the observations that have come up in the last few days about the subtlety (or lack thereof) of the bars display. It's not a pure signal strength meter. And for good measure, recall the speculation about alleged difficulties in the iP4's baseband software with picking the clearest frequencies. This latter angle gives me confidence we'll see a software fix over the next few weeks.

Don't worry people, Apple's got a lot of money in the bank but not enough to be able to afford to permanently piss off 1.7 million early adopters. Breathe. It'll be fine.
 
So few responses to this thread, huh?

I guess people are doomed to repeat history, as there are quite a number of posters claiming it's a design flaw and all iPhone 4s have the reception issues in the last hour alone.
 
I can also remember so many Apple products with hardware defects, and an alarming number of those that Apple has swept under the rug.
 
JayLenochiniMac said:
So few responses to this thread, huh?

I guess people are doomed to repeat history, as there are quite a number of posters claiming it's a design flaw and all iPhone 4s have the reception issues in the last hour alone.
Click to expand...

If Apple releases a software update, you'll get people screaming that all it does is hide the problem, whether it fixes anything or not. :)

Daveoc64 said:
I can also remember so many Apple products with hardware defects, and an alarming number of those that Apple has swept under the rug.
Click to expand...

We always have the option of returning a product and waiting to see if an issue gets addressed to our satisfaction. Holding onto a product with a problem and hoping makes no sense to me.
 
I had my 3GS replaced 4 times and every one of them would go into a coma and require a hard reboot to come back. Regardless of OS or firmware. Still loved the phone. Gadgets have issues, all of them, not just Apple.
 
All true, but to what speed Apple will make the fix is the question. It's been silent since Job's famous email. Apple still has not issued a fix for the iPad WiFi issue, which it has acknowledged as a real problem, unlike the iP4s reception.
 
JayLenochiniMac said:
Remember the freezing iMacs in 2007 and again in 2009? Many were convinced it was an unresolvable hardware issue (graphics card) until Apple came out with a software fix. Some machines exhibited the symptoms whereas others didn't, despite having the exact same graphics card, to the frustration of affected owners who started threads collecting serial numbers to no avail.

Same thing with the macbook random shutdown syndrome, which was a hardware issue that was fixed via software.

If you have a defective iPhone 4, be reassured Apple will find a solution one way or another. Likewise, if you have a perfectly working iPhone 4 and are unable to reproduce the reception loss, it doesn't mean it's not a real problem for the affected owners.

So if history is any indication, there will be a software fix in the near future.
Click to expand...
Believe what you want to believe. Have 'faith' it will be fixed by ignoring evidence and test results.

This is a hardware design problem. There is no simple fix.
 
dmelgar said:
Believe what you want to believe. Have 'faith' it will be fixed by ignoring evidence and test results.

This is a hardware design problem. There is no simple fix.
Click to expand...

Actually yes there is, just buy a skin like Invisible Shield and cover the antenna. Fixed....by the user.
 
nikhsub1 said:
Yeah it's sad really. People don't like to talk rationally on MR, they like hysteria and "PICS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN!!!". Since this thread makes too much logical sense, it will go ignored. :)
Click to expand...

There's logic in this thread, inductive logic and that's incredibly flawed.
 
diabolic said:
Or just put it in a case, which is probably a good idea for a glass phone in the first place.
Click to expand...

Pretty much, I just said skin because someone is bound to say they hate bulky cases, which is understandable.

However a simple skin along the side would take care of the interference caused by bridging the antenna. The user should still try and avoid covering the antenna in a low signal area.....which again makes sense.
 
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