The only thing I wanted out of the press conference was for Apple to without inferring, without requiring reading between the lines, simply and clearly flat out state the following:
1. The iPhone 4 suffers from the same problem as other phones when covering the antenna. It also suffers an additional problem that no other phone does due to the external antenna design. Specifically, a light touch from one misplaced finger can introduce significant interference to the signal.
2. The reason a bumper corrects the problem is because the particular issue that is unique to the iPhone 4 is that it is caused by your skin making physical contact with the antenna. This is prevented by the bumper.
They could then justify or explain their decision making, pointing to improved signal strength at the expense of this vulnerability. This would be fine - but if a trade off was made then just say it.
The problem I have with the presentation they provided is that at no point did they discuss any of this. Every time the existence of a problem was discussed it was presented as an issue with all phones. They never directly, flat out said that the iPhone has a problem that is unique to its design. To say otherwise is heavily reliant on inferences and reading between the lines and inherently makes any conclusions something Apple did not say.
I can reproduce the effect on my phone. I can not reproduce it on others. This is where my personal perspective is coming from. To hear Apple say they aren't seeing what I'm seeing indicates that I can expect more of the same in future versions. If they said it's a trade off, they could change their mind. If they said it's a problem that they are working on and expect to resolve at a definate point in time then I can expect the solution. If they flat out state their experience isn't my experience I can really only realistically expect them to take no real action. That's what is most disappointing to me.