Apple says any mobile phone has reception issues when held wrong

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  • Reply 21 of 444
    bilbo63bilbo63 Posts: 285member
    I'm willing to bet that this has been blown waaaaay out of proportion.



    http://www.reddit.com/r/apple/commen...xplained_by_a/



    The iPhone's biggest reception problem in the USA is still AT&T. They need to get the iPhone on as many carriers as they can... And soon. This is where Android is going to do the most damage.
  • Reply 22 of 444
    waywardwayward Posts: 9member
    The WWDC presentation made much of how the antennas of the iPhone4 were configured and at the time I wondered what shorting the separator would do to call quality. I am a fan of most things Apple but pretty glad to have held back for this release to wait until the cacophony of hardcore fans and haters has subsided.
  • Reply 23 of 444
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member




  • Reply 24 of 444
    shobizshobiz Posts: 207member
    Now, Apple is going to tell customers how to hold a phone? You have to be kidding???





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jrandersoniii View Post


    Defective by design. Imagine that idea that someone might actually want to normally hold a phone to place a call! How absurd of that person.



    So, if you can't use the device as your normally would to enjoy its functionality - it is defective by design. Apple should either change hardware design, or include the bumpers. Apple itself is now saying that you need the Apple Bumpers to make the best phone calls.



    Of course, give them another $29 right...



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rbonner View Post


    I disagree. Most phones have the antenna encased in plastic,



    I agree with your disagree



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post


    ISTM that there are two separate issues here.



    1. Apple is correct that all phones have issues with how they're held. I've seen variations in signal intensity on my 3G and there are lots of reports with the same problem on other phones from all vendors. If you hold the phone in your hand, there will be some attenuation of signal intensity. Apple can't change the laws of physics.



    2. However, there seems to be a specific problem related to the iPhone 4's antenna configuration. If you touch the black line where the two antennae almost touch, it can reduce signal intensity under some conditions. That this is specific to this antenna configuration and not simply absorption of radio waves by your hand is demonstrated by the fact that when I put a piece of electrical tape over that line, the problem is significantly improved. There is still SOME drop in signal intensity when I cup it in my hand, but no where near as bad. This part of the problem will be addressed by use of a case, but the part mentioned in (1) won't.



    I found a Belkin case at Best Buy that I think I'll like better than the bumpers. The bumpers are just a bit gaudy for my taste. I'm optimistic that it will make a big improvement, but I won't know until I receive it.



    Given that at least some of the problem is due to the specific antenna configuration and the ability to short the two antennas, I think it would be appropriate for Apple to find a solution and repair phones that are already in service. If that's not possible, they should offer the choice of a credit to cover the cost of a case or a full refund.







    Even phones with the antenna encased in plastic can have the problem-at some level.



    Lord, do I have to quote all of this....

    I handle various devices everyday of the week and have never seen anything close to what we see with the iPhone 4.

    So, all of the various other iPhones had this issue at some level and it was just not posted?
  • Reply 25 of 444
    wildonewildone Posts: 8member
    Great, So I spend two or three hundred dollars on an iphone, then I am told I am holding the phone wrong. Oh, but it can be fixed by putting tape on this two or three hundred dollar phone. I didn't buy the iphone yet as my current cell phone (6 years old) does not have this reception problem and the phone does not care how I hold it!!! Oops, I am on that other network though!!
  • Reply 26 of 444
    boogabooga Posts: 1,082member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Stevie View Post


    EVERY cellphone does that! "Gripping any mobile phone will result in some attenuation of its antenna performance"



    The iPhone works the same as every other cellphone. It has NO reception problems.





    I mean, yeah, if you contort yourself in some bizarre manner, yeah, there may be the same slight loss of signal, but with a normal grip on the device, it works exactly the same as every other cellphone on the planet. They ALL have an attenuated antenna performance when you stupidly hold them in your hand like a normal person.



    Have you no experience with cellphones? Everyone who has ever used a cellphone knows that the iPhone 4 has NO unusual problem. It is a non-problem. It is perfectly normal that if you hold a cellphone in your hand, it will drop your call.



    You are wrong. I've owned a lot of cellphones over the years and this is different. It is not sensitive to precise positioning and it will go from a perfect 5 bars to zero in seconds. I understand there is signal attenuation based on all sorts of things, but a rapid and complete loss of a strong signal if your left palm touches the lower left corner is orders of magnitude different.
  • Reply 27 of 444
    I call foul on that Apple! RED CARD RED CARD!!! No way in the world you can get away with that! If i buy the most expensive phone in the market, it better be working any way i hold it!!! The phone had design flaws and Apple better redesign this issue otherwise people will abandon it.
  • Reply 28 of 444
    ilogicilogic Posts: 298member
    Bad Apple!
  • Reply 29 of 444
    wildonewildone Posts: 8member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Stevie View Post


    If you hold the phone properly, with on finger on each piece of glass, you will not have any problems.



    If you want to hold the phone like a normal phone, just wear a glove. Problem solved.



    It sounds like you can drink wine from your phone. Oh, I need to get a glove to use the phone also. Apple needs to address the problem!!!!!!!!!!!
  • Reply 30 of 444
    estolinskiestolinski Posts: 140member
    You guys think you have it tough trying to hold the iPhone4 just right so that your signal doesn't degrade? Not so! Try teaching your 3 year old that he can't hold the phone in a natural ergonomic manner! His calls were dropping like flies! <- Mostly kidding, but I did let my 3 year old call his mom last night and the call dropped



    "It just works."
  • Reply 31 of 444
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bilbo63 View Post


    I'm willing to bet that this has been blown waaaaay out of proportion.



    http://www.reddit.com/r/apple/commen...xplained_by_a/



    The iPhone's biggest reception problem in the USA is still AT&T. They need to get the iPhone on as many carriers as they can... And soon. This is where Android is going to do the most damage.



    The guy says Apple make a trade off. But they didn't, they actually made a product with a design failure. Getting a case so you don't drop calls is absolute bullshit. Apple overlook this one, and it's a big one, and they aren't going to admit it. I won't be buying an iPhone 4, and I'm going to be tell everyone I know not to buy it. This is unacceptable, and Apple are full of shit on this one.
  • Reply 32 of 444
    jerseymacjerseymac Posts: 408member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Curmudgeon View Post


    That just crossed my mind. Well, actually I was thinking electrical tape.



    Oh no. Use duct tape. You can fix anything with duct tape.
  • Reply 33 of 444
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    This is turning into a very ugly product introduction and it really exposes a fundamental flaw at Apple concerning real-world testing... they simply don't know how to do it!
  • Reply 34 of 444
    plagenplagen Posts: 151member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Stevie View Post


    It is a cosmetic display issue only. We established that yesterday.



    And if it is not a cosmetic display issue only, then it is the same as what every other cellphone does.



    And if it is not the same as what every other cellphone does, then you can wrap the phone in a thick layer to keep your hand a proper distance form the antenna.



    And if that doesn't work, just lay the phone on a table and use the speakerphone.



    See? No problem here. Move along.



    There are NO reception problems with the iPhone 4.



    Uhmm... It's exactly what I'm saying
  • Reply 35 of 444
    I would imagine every cell phone might have a reception issue, depending on how it's held...maybe loose a bar or two of reception. Makes sense to me...



    But is it normal to have it drop, one by one, all five bars and then drop the call as my new iPhone will do on a constant basis right now?



    At first, I was holding out hope there might be an easy fix for this via firmware but based on the comments I'm seeing from Apple, I think that hope is fading away...Now I'm sort of trying to decide what to do? I really like this phone and honestly, I put all my phones in some sort of case anyways but...Something about Apple's tone on this issue is rubbing me the wrong way. A phone should just work, just like any other phone. I or anyone else shouldn't have to change something as basic as how you hold a phone, because of how that phone was designed. And as has been shown, Apple's own marketing stuff shows the phone being held in the same way that causes the current problem.



    I noticed on my AT&T bill that the phone can be returned by July 8th. Think I will give this until then to see if this issue sees any resolution and then make a decision. Something as basic as reception just makes me wonder now if there might be other "features" that may show up between now and then...
  • Reply 36 of 444
    lilgto64lilgto64 Posts: 1,147member
    Sounds like a delay tactic to me until they figure out what is really going on and what it will take to fix it.



    Why would tape not work if rubber does? Is the scotch tape not resistance to capacitance? maybe electrical tape?



    Maybe apple should release the iCondom for safe use of your cell phone.



    If touching the area can "short out" the signal - does that mean that well design case can boost the signal?



    should be easy enough to experiment with various resistive materials to see what works.



    If in fact the true problem is that you cannot touch that spot - it sounds like a serious design flaw to me - regardless of what the other kids in the sandbox have to play with.
  • Reply 37 of 444
    takeotakeo Posts: 445member
    I like how they use the word "gripping" as opposed to holding or touching. Nice spin Apple. It's true, I can get my RAZR to do the same thing... but I have to put it in a two-handed full coverage death grip to get it to drop from 5 to 3 bars. In the iPhone 4 videos, it seems that just holding the phone normally can make it drop from 5 bars to 0. Kind of a big deal Apple. There's "attenuation" from "gripping" and then there is complete loss of signal from holding the thing normally.
  • Reply 38 of 444
    chwhalechwhale Posts: 10member
    iPhone4 = the game of Operation. You can use the device just don't touch the sides.
  • Reply 39 of 444
    chwhalechwhale Posts: 10member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Stevie View Post


    Yeah - according to Steve, every cellphone does the same thing when held in your hand.



    Steve also says that the iPad is magical.
  • Reply 40 of 444
    technotechno Posts: 737member
    What a blunder!



    When I was an art director, I often had to keep designers in check. They fall so in love with their beautiful designs they forget about function.



    If you can't hold the phone any way you wish, then it is a bad design. It might be a shocker to some in Cupertino, but this is not a museum piece.
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