Antenna

Not Satisfied With Your iPhone 4? You Can Return It For Free

Sébastien Page ∙ July 2, 2010

Not satisfied with your iPhone? Apple's phoney fix for the antenna issue won't do it for you? Then you can return your iPhone at no cost as Apple dropped the 10% restocking fee in a move aimed at calming down angry iPhone customers, and possibly to try to avoid lawsuits.

Me? I don't want to return my iPhone 4. I just want it to work. Sneakily incriminating AT&T and taking a cocky stance while telling me I can return my iPhone 4 if I'm not satisfied is not what I expect from a company like Apple.

What do you think?

[via Computer World]

Apple Finally Acknowledges iPhone 4 Antenna Issue, Offers Phoney Explanation

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated March 5, 2018

Apple hadn't officially talked about the iPhone antenna issue until today. Steve Jobs had had a few email exchanges with angry customer, but the company's position on the matter hadn't been made official, until this open letter was published on Apple's website this morning.

While I read this open letter for the first time, I couldn't help thinking an intern had written it. It's indeed poorly written and gives an explanation of the issue that is barely believable:

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.

Dude, the formula was "totally wrong"! That sure sounds like some surf bro from the North Shore typed this is. Besides, Apple seemed to have the formula totally right in the past, so why this sudden change?

The rest of the open letter reads:

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.

So let me decipher this for you. Apple is going to release a software update that will display the accurate number of bars on your iPhone. You might have never had any issue with the old iPhones (3GS, 3G amd 2G), but now, you will have even less problems.

When you do performance tests after the update, results will be the same, but at least your iPhone will display the correct amount of bars.

Like I foresaw last week, Apple will not fix the antenna issue, it will just hide it with a software update.

First Action-Class Lawsuit Filed Against Apple and AT&T Over iPhone 4 Antenna Issue

Sébastien Page ∙ July 1, 2010

It was only a matter of time until this happened. The lawsuit that obviously focuses on the iPhone 4 antenna issue, makes several claims:

General Negligence (APPLE and AT&T) Defect in Design, Manufacture, and Assembly (APPLE) Breach of Express Warranty (APPLE) Breach of Implied Warranty for Merchantability (APPLE and AT&T) Breach of Implied Warranty of Fitness for a Particular Purpose (APPLE and AT&T) Deceptive Trade Practices (APPLE and AT&T) Intentional Misrepresentation (APPLE and AT&T) Negligent Misrepresentation (APPLE and AT&T) Fraud by Concealment (APPLE and AT&T)

I don't like lawsuits as they usually don't solve the issue, they just compensate it. In this case however, Apple's audacity and lack of action is such that I can understand why a few people would want to sue the company.

Thank god MacGyver has a fix for this antenna issue.

[via Gizmodo]

If MacGyver Had An iPhone 4, This Is How He Would Fix The Antenna Issue

Sébastien Page ∙ June 30, 2010

Welcome to episode #649 of the iPhone 4 antenna issue program. Since Apple doesn't seem to be doing anything to fix this annoying issue, we have to be inventive and figure out our own way to get things to work as they should.

A discussion in the Mac Rumors forums suggests that the issue could actually be from the SIM card itself.

I just tried this. My sim contacts were under the edge of the tray too. I cut a piece of electrical tape to exactly cover only where the gold contacts of the sim touched the tray. I went back to the exact location in my house where I had 1 signal bar. I now have 3 signal bars. Unreal, I can't believe this did anything. Tested before and after with a bumper on the phone. I'll keep an eye on the performance outside the house tomorrow. I don't want to jump to conclusions that this helped my iPhone reception without more data. Looks promising so far though!

What seems to work for this guy didn't work for others, me included. Hey Apple, we're still waiting for an official statement from you about the issue!

Apple’s iPhone 4 Antenna Troubleshooting Procedures Leaked

Sébastien Page ∙ June 30, 2010

By now you must have heard about the whole iPhone 4 antenna debacle. In case you don't know about it, let me give you a short recap. Basically, when held with the left hand, connecting the two antennas, the signal drops significantly, often cutting off cell signal. Steve Jobs' official statement on the issue: hold it different!

I personally think Steve-o is full of it on that one and apparently, Apple might be working on a software update that will hopefully fix the issue.

Now you might have called Apple or even visited an Apple Store about this issue. According to an internal document leaked to BGR, this is the answers you probably received:

1. Keep all of the positioning statements in the BN handy – your tone when delivering this information is important.

a. The iPhone 4’s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped. Our testing shows that iPhone 4’s overall antenna performance is better than iPhone 3GS.

b. Gripping almost any mobile phone in certain places will reduce its reception. This is true of the iPhone 4, the iPhone 3GS, and many other phones we have tested. It is a fact of life in the wireless world.

c. If you are experiencing this on your iPhone 3GS, avoid covering the bottom-right side with your hand.

d. If you are experiencing this on your iPhone 4, avoid covering the black strip in the lower-left corner of the metal band.

e. The use of a case or Bumper that is made out of rubber or plastic may improve wireless performance by keeping your hand from directly covering these areas.

2. Do not perform warranty service. Use the positioning above for any customer questions or concerns.

3. Don’t forget YOU STILL NEED to probe and troubleshoot. If a customer calls about their reception while the phone is sitting on a table (not being held) it is not the metal band.

4. ONLY escalate if the issue exists when the phone is not held AND you cannot resolve it.

5. We ARE NOT appeasing customers with free bumpers – DON’T promise a free bumper to customers.

When I exchanged my iPhone last weekend, I asked the "genius" if she could give me a Bumper for the antenna issue. She said she would have given me one but there were all sold out. I guess she hadn't had the memo yet...

Now you'd better come with a software fix for this antenna issue, Apple, because buying a case or holding my iPhone differently won't cut it for me.

What's your take on it?

Is Apple Full of Sh*t About the iPhone 4 Antenna Issue?

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 23, 2016

Are you familiar with the iPhone 4 antenna death grip? Basically, when held with the left hand, connecting the two antennas, the signal drops significantly, often cutting off cell signal. It's a big deal as many people reported experiencing this issue, me included.

Someone has been emailing Steve Jobs about this issue, who sent the most moronic email reply of all times:

If you ever experience this on your iPhone 4, avoid gripping it in the lower left corner in a way that covers both sides of the black strip in the metal band, or simply use one of many available cases.

Ok, so you're telling me to hold my iPhone a different way, or, to buy one of your cases? Seriously, is that your official statement? Anyways.

Now there are rumors that Apple might come up with a software upgrade to fix this issue. So why did Steve Jobs sent this moronic reply if it can be fixed with a software update?

As Mongstradamus pointed out to me, someone needs to call out Apple on this. Steve's email clearly makes it seem like it's a hardware issue and a software update wouldn't change a thing.

Is it just me being too skeptical? What do you think?

iOS 4.01 to Come on Monday to Fix the iPhone 4 Antenna Issue

Sébastien Page ∙ June 25, 2010

By now you probably have heard of the death grip of the iPhone 4 antenna that causes reception issues on the new device. Apparently, the problem is more of a software issue that might be fixed this monday with a software update to iOS 4.01.

It took me a day to realize I had the same issue as thousands of new iPhone owners had reported. When I hold my iPhone a certain way, I lose a few bars of reception. Sometimes, it goes as far as completely dropping the signal.

Apple issued a somewhat official and idiotic statement via an email sent by Steve Jobs himself to an unhappy customer. Steve Jobs recommended we hold the iPhone in a different way or that we should buy a Bumper case, which avoids the issue. Krapps wrote a funny article about it should you want to learn more.

iPhone 3GS owners who have upgraded to iOS 4 have a similar issue, which might prove that the problem comes from the software and not from the hardware.

According to Apple Insider, a fix is in the works and should ship on Monday:

Readers report that Apple's tech support forums originally confirmed that a iOS 4.0.1 software fix addressing the issue would ship early next week (as early as Monday), before the comments were subsequently taken down along with all the other related discussion about the matter.

The fix is expected to address a issue in iOS 4 related to radio frequency calibration of the baseband. Readers who saw the original forum discussions say that the issue is believed to occur when switching frequencies; because the lag is allegedly not calibrated correctly, it results in the device reporting "no service" rather than switching to the frequency with the best signal to noise ratio.

I just hope Apple will not "hide" this issue with a software update but will actually fix it. Thoughts?