FuglyStick

Anyone here get one? Anyone have reception problems? Is the problem being blown out of proportion?

LordEden

I read somewhere that if you put a piece of scotch tape over the gap, it fixes the issue.

I didn't buy one and right now, I'm glad I didn't.

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FuglyStick

There seems to be a lot of tizzy about it, but everything Apple does seems to be surrounded by a lot of tizzy. That's mostly due to Apple's aggressive marketing; they like to crank the hype knob up to eleven, so when something goes wrong, it goes wrong full blast.

But they are still the industry standard, and the cutting edge of mobile technology and innovation. Which is why this glitch slipping through the cracks is so surprising; it seems like a very basic engineering issue that should have been caught very early in development and resolved before the phones went out to the public.

LordEden

Seems that if you use a case or "bumper" that it negates the problem. If the finding of the iphone in that bar in WA is true, then most of the real world testers had iphone 4s with "fake" iphone 3g cases built around them. Something that would not cause the problem to happen. It has to be held with the bare hand.

IPhone 4 lawsuits pop up: let the games begin! | TG Daily

Lawsuits are being filed... I'm just glad I didn't upgrade, the service with AT&T is shitty enough already.

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Jinn

Leaked Internal AppleCare Memo on this issue:

Leaked: Apple’s internal iPhone 4 antenna troubleshooting procedures Boy Genius Report

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FuglyStick

The lawsuits are silly. If you buy something, and it doesn't work, you take it back and get a refund, you don't sue. The only difference in this case is the contract involved with AT&T. If a person is dissatisfied enough with their iPhone to return it, they should be released from their contract with AT&T penalty-free as well.

And it IS an easy fix. Most people I know with an iPhone use a bumper anyway, and reception will never be an issue, as it relates to this particular flaw. Still, an egregious error in design.

The good news is, there seems to be indications that Verizon will begin offering the iPhone as early as January. But they've been saying that for years now.

ratbastid

I can knock a couple bars off mine by holding it "wrong". I haven't dropped any calls that way though.

Generally I'm very very very happy with it. The display is GORGEOUS.

Redlemon

I can't wait until September and the next iPod Touch, which I can't imagine won't have the new display. If they increase it past 64GB, I'm all over it. Reasonable rumors indicate that the cameras will be on the Touch as well, which would rock.

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Shauk

New Droid ad even takes a jab at the iphone reception issues.

Apple = full of fail.

FuglyStick

I don't think that's really accurate. Apple is still the standard of innovation in the smartphone market. But it is an incredibly boneheaded engineering misstep by a company that claims to be vastly superior to any competitor. It's like building a fantastic Italian sports car the performs beautifully but dies if you do something as innocuous as turning on a turn signal. The rest of it is impressive, but how does THAT make it under the radar?

I will say that the pro-Apple/anti-Apple war amuses me to no end. The cognitive dissonance employed by both sides is hilarious. On one side, you have the die hard Apple loyalists, who insist that Apple can do no wrong and that Apple products are STILL leagues ahead of any competitor, in spite of "trivial" engineering glitches (they're not); on the other hand, you have the Job haters who insist that Apple phones are nothing more that smoke and mirrors, driven by a rabid, delusional fan base, and that Apple doesn't set the standard and benchmark for smartphone technology (they do).

In this particular case, yeah, there is an obvious, blatant snafu in the engineering of the iPhone 4--a snafu that is, in some ways, inexcusable from a company that enjoys touting its "superiority"--but other than that fuck up, it's still a great product, one that the overwhelming majority of users will be very pleased with.

Shauk

as I said, full of fail, give it another 10 years, Apple is on it's way back down to the bottom of the heap. Just like they have been in the home computer market, they will be eclipsed in the mobile market. They continually mismanage their asses into a hole in the ground. Granted, it's still a very profitable "prestiged" hole that loyalist will continue to empty their wallets in to

The original generation of iPhones, yes, everything since then? no. They're behind the curve in features now by far. They stifle innovation in favor of censorship or standardization of platforms in which it only stands to benefit themselves instead of the overall marketplace.


anyways



The existence of the iPhone doesn't bother me, it's a solid phone and can hold it's own, it just pisses me off when people tout is as "best" or "standard of innovation" when that's just bullshit. It's a middling phone in a sea of options, it's not the fastest, it's not the most feature rich, it's not the cheapest, it's not the most reliable, and it's not worth the goddamned fanboy worship.

LordEden

I am not a mac fanboy, I fall more into the mac hater category. Up until buying a Ipod, I told myself I would never use a mac unless I had too. They have their uses but I wouldn't use one unless I had no other option.

That said, I love my Iphone. Holding it for the first time, I thought I made a big mistake, but I grew to love it. I haven't played with a droid but I would if I could. I've used blackberries and I don't really like the way it's setup. The whole droid vs iphone thing is silly to me, but then again, I really don't give a fuck. I hate AT&T not my iphone.

Is apple the best of the best in computer/electronic products? Hell no. Do they make really simple and easy to use electronic equipment? Yes. They are good at making simple to use items that people like to show off.

Other than that, fuck the fanboys (apple and droid fanboys alike). Where is Glory's rectum at? I feel the urge to kick him in the nuts.

*****

From shitmydadsays:

"Son, no one gives a shit about all the things your cell phone does. You didn't invent it, you just bought it. Anybody can do that."

Yep, pretty much sums it up for me.

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Willravel

Ars Technica did a great article on this.
Source

The bottom line is that, yes, bridging the antennas will detune the 3G signal, but you shouldn't expect dropped calls or data unless you're already in a poor reception area.

Also, it's very easy to hold the iPhone 4 correctly. Simply try to avoid making contact with the bottom left part of the phone. That's it.

Edit: And there's always this way:

FuglyStick

"bumpers"

SecretMethod70

It's only mildly suspicious that this is the first time Apple has sold a case for the iPhone (so I've read) and it's also required for a lot of people to get good reception with the phone. A cynical person might see this as more than a coincidence.

I read an article a few days ago written by a mobile engineer regarding the iPhone reception issues. I don't remember the link, but the main point was that the issue does exist, and it is worse than what one would normally expect from a phone. While it's true that all phones will take some reception hit from your hand getting in the way of the antenna, the iPhone 4's exposed antenna combined with a bare hand has a much more significant impact than normal. This can be demonstrated by using an iPhone 4 with a cloth between your hand and the antenna and then using it with no barrier between your hand and the antenna.

iPhones are generally good devices. Hardware-wise, I like them. In some ways the hardware is behind the curve, while in others it is ahead of the game. It's really the software I dislike, and the company philosophy. Of course, that's a great thing about the market: choice. People who would rather have something that "just works" provided they accept the limitations imposed and them and use the accompanying "just works" applications like iTunes can go for the iPhone. People who don't mind putting a little more thought into their device in exchange for the freedom and power it gives them can get something else, with Android being a great alternative. What annoys me is not that people like the iPhone, it's that many iPhone users act like their phone's superiority is objective rather than subjective.

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Martian

... Which has a lot to do with the cellular phone's elevation from simple tool to indicator of social status. There are people out there, so I hear, who will assert that you're nobody if you don't own an iphone. Or at least a smart phone.

In fact, I seem to recall being accused of being a luddite in the recent past.

If your antenna is so fundamentally broken that finger placement is a key issue, that's bad design. A simple piece of plastic would've resolved this. This is either laziness or stupidity in action, and that's all there is to it.

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pixelbend

My iPhone 4 is on order, so I don't have any firsthand experience with it, but what I am not hearing from anyone is that holding the phone "wrong" makes you drop calls. Only that it makes you lose a bar on the signal meter.

The bars mean next to nothing in my experience. I have made plenty of calls with my iPhone 3G with just one bar and I have lost a couple with full bars.

I plan on slapping a case on mine as soon as it comes out of the box anyway. Most people do the same.

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Jove

I think I am going to wait for the IPhone 5 before upgrading.

Jinn

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Baraka_Guru

If you haven't already read Ulysses, do so. You don't have to understand it on a fundamental level, you just have to read it. Enjoy it in your own way if you can.

Now, the next time you run into this situation where someone derides you for being socially or technologically backward, ask them if they've read Ulysses. When the response is either confusion or no (which it almost invariably will), simply smirk and call them a philistine.

If you run into a situation where they say they have read it, ask them what they love most about it. When they can't answer that or when they say they hated it, call them a philistine.

If in the rare instance they say they loved it, ask to see the ebook version on their smart device. When they can't produce it, call them a philistine.

* * * * *

Oh, and about the OP. Sorry about the tech glitch. I hope they fix it. It's a bit frustrating that this sort of thing happens in this day and age. You'd think they'd have worked all possible things about by the time of launch.

/doesn't-own-a-smart-phone-...-yet...

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FuglyStick

*disclaimer* I don't own a smartphone--of any brand. I've got an old Nokia brick that serves all my mobile communication needs. For me, a smartphone would be a frivolous item. I know there are people who use them, like them, even need them, but I don't.

SecretMethod70

Don't confuse teasing with accusation... I didn't own a cell phone of any type until 2008 As noted, it probably depends on what signal strength you're starting from. I've seen a lot of complaints about actual dropped calls on the internet, and from people who otherwise love the iPhone. So, the issue isn't just with the # of bars displayed, but if you have good enough coverage in your area it may not be as big of a problem.

Jinn, LOL.

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Martian

I could turn that around on you, sir.

I long ago decided that it was in my best interests to not take anything on the internet personally. The above was a jab at you, simply because I am mean-spirited like that and thought it was funny.

And because I knew you'd catch it.

Anyhoo, a timely article posted over on some other site claims that a fix is forthcoming. Apparently the problem isn't with the phone itself, but rather with how it reports signal strength. So, y'know, no problem. It's the carrier's fault. Apple did nothing wrong.

Bizarrely, Apple also claims that the problem affects the earlier iphone models, despite no noted issues of increased call drops on the 3GS and earlier. Hmm.

So their software 'fix' changes reported signal strength, but will in no way reduce the number of dropped calls. If you had a 3G or (god forbid) a dumb phone that got reception in a location your iphone 4 does not, Do Not Be Alarmed. Mr. Jobs says all is well.

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I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept
I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept
I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head
I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said

- Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame

Jinn

don't be smarmy, technophobe!

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SecretMethod70

How frustrating. HTC seems to be pulling the same thing with poor WiFi reception on the Evo 4G. I don't think they're closed off to the idea that it's a hardware issue, but right now it seems like they're focusing on the (false) idea that the problem is just incorrectly reported signal strength. When will these companies learn that I'd rather have an imperfect product that they admit has a problem and then fix than listen to them deny any problem exists until they're forced to admit it?

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Lasereth

FIXED

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Shauk

*gigglesnort*

ratbastid

It's early days yet, but I feel much more confident about my signal on my 4 than I ever did on my 3G. I haven't dropped a call on this thing no matter how I held it.

pixelbend

Got mine last week. The only place I have had any trouble has been in my basement where cell reception is spotty anyway. But the speed, display and overall experience is awesome. Now I just need a case for it, I am deathly afraid of dropping the thing. I'm waiting for the Otterbox Defender case to ship. Loved the Defender for my 3G.

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Rekna

Consumer reports has now confirmed there is a hardware issue with the phone and they suggest using duct tape to fix it! Apple has been feeding people a ton of BS saying this is a software issue.

clavus

Consumer Reports does not recommend buying the phone. Congratulations, Apple. You made a Sazuki Samauri.

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Rekna

What is interesting about all of this is not the fact that the iphone 4 has a fairly serious defect. It is that Apple denies there is a defect despite the fact that it has been shown over and over by numerous sources. Instead they act as if nothing is wrong and everyone should be happy. This makes me believe the company will not take care of its customers unless forced to. That is to them the customers come last.

pixelbend

AppleInsider | Consumer Reports ranks Apple's iPhone 4 best smartphone available

The same Consumer Reports that, today ranks the iPhone 4 as the "Best Smartphone".

Welcome to Corporate American Economics. Shareholders #1/ Customers #2. Apple is not going to issue a recall, and send their stock price into a tailspin, unless this becomes more than a "vocal minority" issue.

Plus, if this is such a major issue for all these people, why aren't we seeing more people using the 30 day return policy with AT&T?

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SecretMethod70

As Robert Scoble said,

---------- Post added at 03:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:37 PM ----------

Exactly. The defect is no big deal; devices are rarely perfect the first try. Apple's response, on the other hand, is a problem. Rather than admit and address the problem, they instead insist it doesn't exist for fear of popping the Steve Jobs Reality Distortion Field bubble. All they have to do is give away the bumpers for free to affected customers. Then again, it's kind of suspicious that the first time ever that Apple has decided to make a case for the iPhone, it's for a version that requires a case to get the best reception and it's a case that is designed specifically to only cover the problem antenna. I'm not saying it was intentional, just that it was probably intentional.

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Rekna

I think apple probably discovered the problem mid way through the development process but had to go forward with the phone despite the flaw because of how hard android is pushing them. If they wouldn't have released a new phone this year the ev0 and friends would have taken large chunks of their market.

SecretMethod70

Then release the phone, act like the antenna thing is a surprise so people don't think you intentionally released a faulty device, and then fix it by giving away free bumpers. That way, Apple gets to release a new phone and it seems like they're responsive to their customer's needs. Instead, now it looks like they decided the flaw was an easy way to make more money by charging for the fix.

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clavus

My contribution to the debate / Apple mockery -

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Rekna

Here is a bit more hilarity

Craven Morehead

that's great

Confederate

I've had mine a few days. Zero issues.