Consumer Reports: signal issues not unique iPhone 4, no reason not to buy

1568101123

Comments

  • Reply 141 of 451
    giosacconegiosaccone Posts: 121member
    Exactly!!! There is no reason not to buy iPhone 4!
  • Reply 142 of 451
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by shadash View Post


    I'm happy that AT&T is good in your area. For me, it has been horrible. So because I have had a bad experience with AT&T I chose to go with a different carrier. I couldn't get an iPhone on Verizon so I went with the next best thing. Why does that bother you so much?



    It doesn't bother me in the least. I don't go over to Android blogs and say how great the iPhone is. I'm sure the Droid Whatever is a wonderful piece of kit, but since this forum is about the iPhone 4 and people's issues with the antenna, it's not relevant.



    If you have your shiny new Android and are a pleased as punch, then I stand by my original comment - you have what you deserve. Why does that bother you so much?
  • Reply 143 of 451
    onhkaonhka Posts: 1,025member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by shadash View Post


    I'm happy that AT&T is good in your area. For me, it has been horrible. So because I have had a bad experience with AT&T I chose to go with a different carrier. I couldn't get an iPhone on Verizon so I went with the next best thing. Why does that bother you so much?



    You are absolutely right. There isn't any reason why it should bother anyone.



    But having heard your story, realizing your concerns and concurring with your choice, I think you will agree that there is no real reason for you to participate further in these iPhone discussions.



    Now everyone is happy.
  • Reply 144 of 451
    bigmikebigmike Posts: 266member
    "Using a cover, iPhone 4 performed even better"... Design flaw (one shouldn't have to use a cover). Apple really? I'm not even going to get into it.
  • Reply 145 of 451
    newbeenewbee Posts: 2,055member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ireland View Post


    Right, Gruber. Boom? Give me a break.



    Be happy to oblige ... honest ...... which leg?
  • Reply 146 of 451
    ivan.rnn01ivan.rnn01 Posts: 1,822member
    Post of the month!



    ************************************************** ***********************************************

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by hill60 View Post


    You could rotate the phone so you are now holding it by the top right corner.



    ************************************************** ***********************************************
  • Reply 147 of 451
    iandeaniandean Posts: 23member
    how much did apple pay him for this tripe?
  • Reply 148 of 451
    dfilerdfiler Posts: 3,420member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post


    Hold it from the sides rather than cupping it in your hand. Problem solved. Or, if you really aren't bright enough to change the way to hold your phone, turn the phone upside down.



    Umm, and how would the speaker and microphone line up to our ears and mouth?



    This consumer reports article is factually flawed and thus the conclusions are wrong. The reception problem is real and reprodeable. There is plenty of video evidence. And yet they're using the term "alleged"?



    I won't go do far as to claim deceit on the part of the shareholding author. But he has just added to the confusion by publishing incorrect speculation as fact.
  • Reply 149 of 451
    brucepbrucep Posts: 2,823member
    i just found major cracks in my cube
  • Reply 150 of 451
    brucepbrucep Posts: 2,823member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dickprinter View Post


    It's sad to me when I read the AI forums and witness Solipsism and Ireland, the two whom I consider the mavens of the AI forums, as adversaries. I come here to be informed and instead I get a couple of guys arguing. I'm not taking sides but, in my opinion, Solipsism is keeping an objective head about the whole thing. Never have I seen Ireland so....hardnosed, for lack of a better term.



    For the record, I am both a shareholder and an iPhone 4 owner, and proud owners of both. I can duplicate the bar issue, but NEVER had a problem with dropped calls or slower data transfer. I, also, have better reception and less dropped calls than I had with my 3G iPhone, which I handed down to my wife after loading 4.0 on it.



    I do have a few issues with the 4.0 software, though. I'm not getting push notifications when the phone is in standby in certain open apps. I've noticed that I don't get a text notification when I put the phone in standby after viewing the recent calls list. Anyone else notice this? Not a big deal for me, I know Apple will make it so "it just works" in 4.1



    Try to remember one thing. No matter how good one's intentions are to be perfect, and no matter how much one wishes that new, cutting edge technology will be perfect, it doesn't always happen the first time around. Patience is a virtue, and I believe in this company. One way or another, Apple will make it right for 99.8% of their customers. The other .2% will NEVER be happy, no matter what.....and that's sad.



    nice post

    i too used to consider ireland and soli TOP guns here

    but ireland has had a real bad week

    real bad

    steve send me a letter the other day

    >>>>>>>>>> reprint below from apple corps >>>error type 11 code >>>

    Letter from Apple Regarding iPhone 4



    Dear iPhone 4 Users,



    The iPhone 4 has been the most successful product launch in Apple?s history. It has been judged by reviewers around the world to be the best smartphone ever, and users have told us that they love it. So we were surprised when we read reports of reception problems, and we immediately began investigating them. Here is what we have learned.



    To start with, gripping almost any mobile phone in certain ways will reduce its reception by 1 or more bars. This is true of iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, as well as many Droid, Nokia and RIM phones. But some users have reported that iPhone 4 can drop 4 or 5 bars when tightly held in a way which covers the black strip in the lower left corner of the metal band. This is a far bigger drop than normal, and as a result some have accused the iPhone 4 of having a faulty antenna design.



    At the same time, we continue to read articles and receive hundreds of emails from users saying that iPhone 4 reception is better than the iPhone 3GS. They are delighted. This matches our own experience and testing. What can explain all of this?



    We have discovered the cause of this dramatic drop in bars, and it is both simple and surprising.



    Upon investigation, we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong. Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength. For example, we sometimes display 4 bars when we should be displaying as few as 2 bars. Users observing a drop of several bars when they grip their iPhone in a certain way are most likely in an area with very weak signal strength, but they don?t know it because we are erroneously displaying 4 or 5 bars. Their big drop in bars is because their high bars were never real in the first place.



    To fix this, we are adopting AT&T?s recently recommended formula for calculating how many bars to display for a given signal strength. The real signal strength remains the same, but the iPhone?s bars will report it far more accurately, providing users a much better indication of the reception they will get in a given area. We are also making bars 1, 2 and 3 a bit taller so they will be easier to see.



    We will issue a free software update within a few weeks that incorporates the corrected formula. Since this mistake has been present since the original iPhone, this software update will also be available for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G.



    We have gone back to our labs and retested everything, and the results are the same? the iPhone 4?s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped. For the vast majority of users who have not been troubled by this issue, this software update will only make your bars more accurate. For those who have had concerns, we apologize for any anxiety we may have caused.



    As a reminder, if you are not fully satisfied, you can return your undamaged iPhone to any Apple Retail Store or the online Apple Store within 30 days of purchase for a full refund.



    We hope you love the iPhone 4 as much as we do.



    Thank you for your patience and support.



    Apple







    Press Contacts:

    Natalie Harrison

    Apple

    [email protected]

    (408) 862-0565

    Steve Dowling

    Apple

    [email protected]

    (408) 974-1896







    >>>>



    from the horsed mouth
  • Reply 151 of 451
    hill60hill60 Posts: 6,992member
    Oh man, why did you go and post common sense facts for?



    The Apple haters are partying like it's nineteen ninety five.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by brucep View Post


    nice post

    i too used to consider ireland and soli TOP guns here

    but ireland has had a real bad week

    real bad

    steve send me a letter the other day

    >>>>>>>>>> reprint below from apple corps >>>error type 11 code >>>

    Letter from Apple Regarding iPhone 4



    Dear iPhone 4 Users,



    The iPhone 4 has been the most successful product launch in Apple?s history. It has been judged by reviewers around the world to be the best smartphone ever, and users have told us that they love it. So we were surprised when we read reports of reception problems, and we immediately began investigating them. Here is what we have learned.



    To start with, gripping almost any mobile phone in certain ways will reduce its reception by 1 or more bars. This is true of iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, as well as many Droid, Nokia and RIM phones. But some users have reported that iPhone 4 can drop 4 or 5 bars when tightly held in a way which covers the black strip in the lower left corner of the metal band. This is a far bigger drop than normal, and as a result some have accused the iPhone 4 of having a faulty antenna design.



    At the same time, we continue to read articles and receive hundreds of emails from users saying that iPhone 4 reception is better than the iPhone 3GS. They are delighted. This matches our own experience and testing. What can explain all of this?



    We have discovered the cause of this dramatic drop in bars, and it is both simple and surprising.



    Upon investigation, we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong. Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength. For example, we sometimes display 4 bars when we should be displaying as few as 2 bars. Users observing a drop of several bars when they grip their iPhone in a certain way are most likely in an area with very weak signal strength, but they don?t know it because we are erroneously displaying 4 or 5 bars. Their big drop in bars is because their high bars were never real in the first place.



    To fix this, we are adopting AT&T?s recently recommended formula for calculating how many bars to display for a given signal strength. The real signal strength remains the same, but the iPhone?s bars will report it far more accurately, providing users a much better indication of the reception they will get in a given area. We are also making bars 1, 2 and 3 a bit taller so they will be easier to see.



    We will issue a free software update within a few weeks that incorporates the corrected formula. Since this mistake has been present since the original iPhone, this software update will also be available for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G.



    We have gone back to our labs and retested everything, and the results are the same? the iPhone 4?s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped. For the vast majority of users who have not been troubled by this issue, this software update will only make your bars more accurate. For those who have had concerns, we apologize for any anxiety we may have caused.



    As a reminder, if you are not fully satisfied, you can return your undamaged iPhone to any Apple Retail Store or the online Apple Store within 30 days of purchase for a full refund.



    We hope you love the iPhone 4 as much as we do.



    Thank you for your patience and support.



    Apple







    Press Contacts:

    Natalie Harrison

    Apple

    [email protected]

    (408) 862-0565

    Steve Dowling

    Apple

    [email protected]

    (408) 974-1896







    >>>>



    from the horsed mouth



  • Reply 152 of 451
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    Watch the iPhone 4 work just fine up here in Canada with Rogers.



    I feel sorry for you good folks down South.
  • Reply 153 of 451
    nvidia2008nvidia2008 Posts: 9,262member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post


    Watch the iPhone 4 work just fine up here in Canada with Rogers.



    I feel sorry for you good folks down South.



    The Southpaws down South LOL
  • Reply 154 of 451
    shobizshobiz Posts: 207member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Onhka View Post


    You are absolutely right. There isn't any reason why it should bother anyone.



    But having heard your story, realizing your concerns and concurring with your choice, I think you will agree that there is no real reason for you to participate further in these iPhone discussions.



    Now everyone is happy.







    <-- Still trying to find in the forum rules that state you have to own an iPhone and/or Apple stock to post here or to just have an opinion.
  • Reply 155 of 451
    If you are close to a cell tower it doesn't happen. When further away from the cell tower the phone is "reaching" for the signal and when you touch the band that "reach" gets shorter and weaker. At the Mall of GA where the signal is beefy, I can't make this phone lose a bar no matter how I hold it. However, at my house, it is a different story. My data transfer rate will drop from 2000kbps downstream to 200kbps just by holding the phone by the metal band. Bridging the two pieces of the band by the "death grip" results in no data connection at all. Doesn't mean that a call will be dropped but I like my data connection! lol
  • Reply 156 of 451
    tbelltbell Posts: 3,146member
    In case you are wondering, go to a place where they sell a lot of different phones. You will notice that all the smart phones have antennas on the outside. It is the nature of the beast. My family has two iPhones (the 3GS and the new iPhone), and two different Droids (the HTC one and the Motorola one). The antennae is exposed on the outside on all the phones. That is necessary to get the phones so thin. Further you have to put the antenna on the bottom because that is the safest place to put it.



    Holding the Droids a certain way will also cause a drop in bars. My brother and I did quite a bit of experimenting with this yesterday. Apple is being unfairly picked on. With the Droids the problem varied depending if you were using the 3G network or whatever Verizon and T-Mobile calls their slower networks.



    In case people haven't noticed, there are other places you don't touch on the phone either when talking (e.g. the hang up button). My guess is the only reason this is an "issue" is because Apple's competitors are cleverly making it one. I wouldn't be surprised if HTC or Google are influencing the complaints and lawsuits. It is an old trick. Microsoft used to pay people to write negatively about Apple when they were still fighting for OS dominance.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Wiggin View Post




    "That interference is exacerbated if the phone's antenna is not insulated from human contact. And that seems to be the case with the iPhone's external antenna" . . .



    So CR is, in fact, saying that Apple's decision to expose the antenna was a bad one. . .



    Is the iPhones increased sensitivity enough to overcome the increased signal loss? This remains to be seen/proven.



  • Reply 157 of 451
    onhkaonhka Posts: 1,025member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SHOBIZ View Post


    <-- Still trying to find in the forum rules that state you have to own an iPhone and/or Apple stock to post here or to just have an opinion.



    Same here. In the meantime, I will start updating my 'Ignore List'



    As the saying goes, "If you can't beat them, disjoin them."
  • Reply 158 of 451
    ozexigeozexige Posts: 215member
    SHUT UP!



    My 3G, in low signal area, will show a signal

    until I pick it up.



    I am so sick to death over this non- issue.



    SHUT THE F...K UP!



    :-)
  • Reply 159 of 451
    fuwafuwafuwafuwa Posts: 163member
    iPhone users hate Android phone because Android sucks,

    Android phone users hate iPhone because Android sucks.
  • Reply 160 of 451
    hands sandonhands sandon Posts: 5,270member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Xian Zhu Xuande View Post


    Then you have a defective phone.

    But that should be painfully obvious.

    Mine has served me well, and I depend on it for business.

    I hope your replacement works out great for you.



    After a long time spent talking to AppleCare and calling the Apple store they said they won't replace the phone, that the issues like all other phones blah blah blah. Vodafone are replacing it though and I should get one next week when they have them back in stock. I'm glad your phone works properly. I'd be interested to see one that works properly next to mine on the same network and see if it still does fine. I have a feeling the phones will all behave exactly the same way under the same circumstances but hopefully I'm wrong about that.
Sign In or Register to comment.