Posted on 06/24/2010 3:09:41 PM PDT by PugetSoundSoldier
The iPhone 4 won't be available in stores until Thursday, but the reviews are coming in from those who were able to get their hands on them ahead of time. Despite a mostly warm reception, there are already scattered reports of defective screens.
By Wednesday afternoon Gizmodo and MacRumors had reports from 20 people with a brand new iPhone 4 who say there is a yellow discolored area on the screen, or an overall yellow hue to the display even after adjusting the phone's display settings. In most cases, the users say Apple has offered to replace the phone.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.cnet.com ...
Additionally, it appears the yellowing comes and goes with device usage, indicating it is probably a heat reaction of the adhesives used in laminating the screen together. If this is the case, expect more and more yellow-screen problems to creep up as people use their new iPhones over the next few weeks.
Interestingly, this isn't the first time Apple's had problems with yellow screens; it was previously reported with iMacs and 3G models of iPhones.
Ping!
On Foxnews they were making a big deal about the phone. Didnt mention the yellow screen but did mention the stainless steel antenna on the sides of teh phone
Another potential problem that I have heard about is that the antenna is around the outside edge of the phone and your fingers can interfere with the signal and cause disconnections.
I haven’t heard any updates on the antenna reception fade issue, but the latest about the yellowing is that it seems to go away over time for many customers. Apparently, the iPhone’s manufacturer, Foxconn, is shipping them at such a fast rate that they aren’t waiting for the gluing compound that attaches the screen to the tough glass surface to dry off completely before packaging them.
Would this be considered a feature or a bug ;-)
Depends - you like yellow? ;)
but the latest about the yellowing is that it seems to go away over time for many customers. Apparently, the iPhone’s manufacturer, Foxconn, is shipping them at such a fast rate that they aren’t waiting for the gluing compound that attaches the screen to the tough glass surface to dry off completely before packaging them.
I've read that a few times, too. Some of the user reports at MacRumors, though, have the yellow dots visible only after running for 20-30 minutes, and fading away when the phone is idling, only to return after usage again.
I would understand a volatile organic compound (VOC) solvent in the adhesive curing issue a few weeks into sales, but these first units should have had several weeks - if not a month - to fully cure. Apple - like most big hardware OEMs - will batch up production in advance of a release to assure supply is available. They don't really get the JIT-manufacturing going until a good month into sales.
If the VOC of the adhesive hasn't released after 48-72 hours, chances are it will never release. In my specialty (audio and acoustics), I use a LOT of adhesives, from rock-hard epoxies and cyanoacrylates to always-soft rubber and latex based bonding agents (different glues required for different bonding locations in the same speaker), and I can't think of an EPA-approved adhesive that takes more than 48 hours to fully cure (outgas the VOC or desiccate the water).
You might find this interesting:
http://gizmodo.com/5571986/apple-support-says-yellow-tint-problem-is-residue-from-manufacturing
A ha! Adhesives strike again...:) Thanks for the link. Getting the glue right is always an issue; apparently it’s sticking it to the iPhone (pun intended).
If the VOC hasn’t evaporated after a few days, it’s not going to go away, meaning the screen needs to be replaced. And given the 25%+ problem rate so far, Apple’s looking at a huge cost in these repairs. Assuming 600,000 units sold, and $70 for the screen (a little birdy at a big contract manufacturer in South China told me...;)) they’re looking at $11 million, minimum, just to replace the raw parts. Not including future units (not yet delivered), shipping costs, replacement labor, etc. And it’s just starting, who knows how far up the manufacturing supply chain this goes. This will easily be a $100 million failure of Apple QC.
And since it’s the 3rd time there’s been a “yellow screen of pain” error with Apple in the last few years, who knows how many customers they’ll lose. Especially in the fickle and saturated-with-options cell phone market.
Now, I’m sure some of the Mac defenders will come in here and blame Foxconn, but anyone who’s ever worked big-project/big-company production at one of the Four Brothers (Compal, Quanta, Foxconn, Flextronics - the four biggest contract electronics assembly firms in China, not really brothers but colloquially called that) ultimately it is the customer who has to provide the QC equipment, training, and processes. And usually continual staff oversight as well. You get lots of fingers and hands, but QC is spotty and inconsistent, and you better sit your own paid staff at the line.
It will be interesting to hear the real “reason” proffered by Cupertino, though!
Very true. This is the crucial time for Android phones to capture the market.
Will the iPhone 4 be Apple’s Vista?
LOL!
wow the v4 iPhone looks to have some issues with launch. I’m sure they’ll fix it by v5 (I think).
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