Bad technology news for the iPhone 4. Çonsumer Reports says the device is flawed and will not recommend it to consumers for purchase. Tell us about your own experience in the comments below and your odds on an iPhone recall.
This is a Right Pundits open talk thread in which you are welcome to discuss this topic or any other of your choosing today. I am choosing to discuss the iPhone 4, the review by Consumer Reports, and my own PDA woes.
My own device is a Motorola Q which was acquired two years ago mainly for the large (at the time) display screen. It has some nice features but I cannot say it is rugged. The wife backed over the sucker a year ago (her fault for sure) which cracked the case. Luckily it was still under warranty. The kids spilled water on the replacement which turned the white dot into that dreaded pink color which invalidates the new warranty on the device.
I’m okay with that because I’m tired of it. In fact I had been eying the iPhone4, waiting for prices to come down just enough to make the upgrade worthwhile. Now what am I suppose to do?
The iPhone 4, consumer reports claims, is flawed. The heart of the matter is the antenna problem, which leads to poor reception that was reported last week by Apple itself. According to Apple Computer, a software fix is all that is needed to fix the reception problem. The world awaited the fix.
But according to Consumer Reports’ own Mike Gikas, that is not going to do the trick.
We reached this conclusion after testing all three of our iPhone 4s (purchased at three separate retailers in the New York area) in the controlled environment of CU’s radio frequency (RF) isolation chamber. In this room, which is impervious to outside radio signals, our test engineers connected the phones to our base-station emulator, a device that simulates carrier cell towers. We also tested several other AT&T phones the same way, including the iPhone 3G S and the Palm Pre. None of those phones had the signal-loss problems of the iPhone 4.
Apple needs to come up with a permanent — and free — fix for the antenna problem before we can recommend the iPhone 4.
You can read more about this story here and here and here.
Since this story broke people are now speculating about an iPhone recall. So what are your thoughts on the Apple iPhone 4 – Consumer Reports’ knockdown punch, your own tales of technical woe, or anything else on your mind today.
July 13th, 2010 at 1:15 pm
I just got my iphone 4 yesterday and what as I thought there is a huge problem with the antenna placement. Holding like I have before with my 3G I lose all signal in a matter of seconds. This is very poor planning on apples part. My guess is they did not figure out the issue until it was too late and decided that the user would just have to deal with it. Buy a 30 dollar case after I already spent 200 on the phone. I remember when the Wii first came out and people were having problems with the remote slipping out of there hands and breaking their tv. The soloution was to send a soft gel case with every new Wii console and remote. We will see what Apple does
July 13th, 2010 at 1:21 pm
I got an iphone4 day of release and I love it. No complaints at all. It functions just as I would have expected. No signal loss issues on my end. I really enjoy the folder creation and multitasking capabilities. Face time is good as well. I really hate that so many are having issues. Sincerely. I understand that a fix is forthcoming and I hope that it is enough.
July 13th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
I got my iPhone 4 the day they hit the market and truly I have had no issues with the reception and if anything it’s better than my other phone. That being said I have had in in a protective case which everyone does anyway, and no problem. The fact is that NO phone is perfect but this phone is damn near it and I am very happy with it, besides people look for stuff to complain about.
July 13th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
So, what you’re saying Corey is that Consumer Reports was just looking for something to complain about?
Apple’s mad dash to market before the product was ready is not a new phenomenon. Hell it’s the same way my IT department works at my place of employment.
Bottom line is Apple was looking to capitalize on the market and they did that, unfortunately they’re going to come up short if other credible reporting agency refuse to endorse their products. Consumer Reports is well respected and this news is a shot through the heart for Apple and IPhone.
Android is taking over the world, take a seat and enjoy the show!
July 13th, 2010 at 2:08 pm
No I’m not saying anything like that, those are your words… I said PEOPLE, not Consumer reports… obviously you’re a droid fan and I think thats awesome. My best friend has a droid phone and I think it’s just as nice. All I am saying is I Love my iPhone just as you love your Android phone….
Have a Great day and take care
July 13th, 2010 at 4:29 pm
I’m happy with my two Dixie cups and a string.
I love you all, I get it. I’m really into stereo that blows paint off walls but this sht with the next newest phone every 2 months is a little pathetic, dontcha think ?
I mean c’mon ! These morons camp in front of stores and mob each other for these things.
And then they’re fcked up anyway ?
i’m no green freak but all these passe` models have got to be creating some kind of mess somewhere somehow.
July 13th, 2010 at 11:12 pm
I’m with you on this one Micky!