Posted on 07/02/2010 7:03:12 AM PDT by Yo-Yo
Because the earlier models don't have the antenna built into the case like the new one. I think there's clearly a greater issue with reduced reception with the iPhone 4 because of it.
In retrospect, the "incorrect bars" doesn't sound so far-fetched to me. I either have "full bars" or nothing on my 3GS most of the time. I can't remember ever seeing a 3-bar signal since getting it 5 months ago.
Two friends walked into a bar. The third one ducked.
I read a post here that nokia tried the same thing and eventually did find a fix HOWEVER apple does not want to pay for the right to use the fix.
Instead they want you to buy a “bulk up” phone case.
I use one of those moronic bluetooth ear pieces, but it makes it so that I don’t use my hands when I’m on my iPhone4 (because of driving). I haven’t had any issues.
I like the thing. Someone showed me their Android the other day. No thanks.
Makes you wonder how much else is totally wrong doesn't it? I have to admit I thought this letter was a sick joke until I looked at my browser's address bar and it showed apple.com. Can anyone imagine the howls from the media if Microsoft issued a letter like this?
Only someone young enough to believe in Santa Claus would buy this tripe:
1. This happens to all mobile phones when held in the hand.
2. But we get letters from lots and lots and lots of people that say it doesn't happen to OUR phone.
3.We just discovered the bars have always been wrong for all of our phones all the time (we somehow missed that for years), and we're issuing a software patch that will show lots of bars all the time, no matter what. That will fix the no-bars problem.
Sounds like a lawyer trying out one lame argument after another until some gullible judge bites on one.
remember when full bars meant happy hour on friday after work?
not a oprahfied eunach sitting home twittering/facebooking a simulated life.
I think you nailed it right there. The only reason I am avoiding the ipohne is that you can only use AT&T. Verizon has much better coverage where I live.
That is exactly what this is, and absolutely nothing else.
To think this is about customer satisfaction, performance, or any other tripe is to be clueless as to how Silicon Valley really works.
This might explain why with no signal at all I have 4 bars but that 4 bars was really for several minutes ago when I did actually have a signal before I walked into a building.
Apple screwed up the programming but wants to claim it was a simple mistake partly to blame on AT&T.
“... the iPhone 4’s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped.”
So if the software is always adding a couple of bars, does that mean EVERY iPhone reception has NEVER been as good as the competition ?
Are we supposed to believe that Apple or AT&T have NEVER done side by side lab comparision testing with competitors phones ?
I suspect when this “fix” is sent out, it will be found that holding your iPhones many other ways results in a poorer signal also - it just never showed up on the bars.
Right now the cell service is horrible. It is almost impossible to make calls. I am not being overly dramatic here. AT&T is really blowing this bad. I have a 3Gs and have never experienced such bad cellular service. They are clearly way over subscribed at this point.
LOL! That's funny!
Also, I just LOVE the spin from Apple about how there is no problem, they're just showing the bars wrong... Maybe they can explain these following images, then, because it doesn't at ALL corroborate their latest attempt to manage the story:
From Wired Magazine. Lower numbers are better. We see the 3GS was stellar, and did not lose anywhere near equal levels as the iPhone 4.
Also, for the not-as-technically included, dB for RF measurements is a 10 log scale. Meaning a change of 3 dB is a HALVING of value. Going from 9 dB to 24 dB means you lost 97% of your signal strength.
From Gizmodo. Here's the information:
speed test with the phone sitting down, with his hands on the phone, and one with his hands on but with a leather case on it. They're in order, and the one with his hands on the bare phone is really bad times
I'd call zero upload and a 17 second ping time a REALLY bad time. Much more than going from 5 bars to 1 bar would indicate.
Apple's trying to weasel out by changing the way they show bars, and hope that the public buys the message (which it probably will, because it's Apple after all). But the actual hard-core measurements PROVE there is a problem, and it's NOT related to the way antenna strength is shown. It's an actual, real-world problem.
This kind of technical data will kill Apple in a lawsuit. You cannot answer it with just "we showed bars wrong". It proves at a physical level that the iPhone 4 has significant reception problems if you just hold your phone in the left hand.
For the not-as-technically included (sic), dB attenuation is relative to a signal, not an absolute measurement. A higher dB attenuation doesn't necessarily mean a lower signal if you are starting with a higher signal strength in the first place.
“A higher dB attenuation doesn’t necessarily mean a lower signal if you are starting with a higher signal strength in the first place. “
So the iPhone has a higher signal strength? Do you have anything showing its signal strength vs that of other devices?
For the actual relationship between decibels and signals, including what antiRepublicrat wrote:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decibel
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I'm not having a problem where I live in Stockton, California. But I think with the addition of 1.5 million 3G iPads in the last two months... and the addition of 2 million iPhone4s, you may be on to something, especially in urban areas with lots of devices.
It's not signal strength to individual devices, its crowded cell towers handling too many signals, dropping connections as they switch around from computer to computer and tower to tower.
Anybody but Apple’s fault.
Who will it be next?
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