iPhone 4/iOS4

[Will]

From what I've read elsewhere it will fit in the dock with the bumper on, not 100% sure on that one though.

[Dog-amoto]

MacBook GET!!

 

Managed to get quite a good deal by using my girlfriend's details as she's a part time student so got an £850 computer for £747 plus an iPod Touch 8GB. In total it came to just under £900 but I can claim back £130 for the iPod and I'll sell the iPod on eBay so probably paid about £600 for it.

 

Just waiting for my stuff to transfer over from my old Mac and will finally be able to use my phone!

[Ten10]

I bought a bumper today, not because of the reception issue I was going to get one anyways. Can fully recommend them, better than I thought they would be.

 

Only downside is the shocking price.

 

You seriously should have just got any old case from off ebay. Even some Duct tape fices the antenna issue.

 

On another downer, it seems that many users aren't getting the 38 hours - 4 days battery life as reported by Josh T Walt M and some other guy.

 

http://ow.ly/23q4b Although it would be pretty awesome if I did have up to 4 days battery life. Think I'll jump on the iphone bandwagon at 5. I need a dev unit.

[Mr_Odwin]

Just plug it into iTunes, click restore, then set up as a new iPod.

 

Seems to have done the trick. A bit of a chore but now it's all snappy again.

 

Thanks!

[Shorty]

I've read on twitter that if you ring to complain about the reception they'll practically force a free bumper on you....

[Ashley]

But still its pretty shit that just to use a phone you NEED to use a case, free or otherwise.

[Cube]

But still its pretty shit that just to use a phone you NEED to use a case, free or otherwise.

 

Why didn't they simply build the case into the phone so that it covers the exposed circuit? You know...like pretty much every other phone in existence.

[McPhee]

Because the bumper mutes the signal a little, thus killing the point of running the antenna on the surface in the first place.

 

The official word from steve is avoid holding it in a way that causes the signal to decrease.

 

http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/24/apple-responds-over-iphone-4-reception-issues-youre-holding-th/

 

Haha love it! There's no right or wrong way to hold the iPad, it fits you. The iPhone? Ohhh well that's a different story. You're doing it wrong.

 

 

[Caris]

I've tested this on 3 phones and the bars only decrease by 1 at a very push 2. This was trying to make the phone do it too, holding it like I never would in real life.

 

I still don't think this is as bad as people are going on about.

[Charlie]

I've tested this on 3 phones and the bars only decrease by 1 at a very push 2. This was trying to make the phone do it too, holding it like I never would in real life.

 

I still don't think this is as bad as people are going on about.

 

I've literally just picked mine up with my left hand as I casually would to use it and it went from 5 bars to 1 bar in a second.

 

I was out last night in a place with low reception, I was trying to text someone and whilst waiting for a reply I had to make sure I wasn't holding it in my left hand as I'd lose reception.

[Guy]

So does this difficulty only impact lefties?

[That Guy]

It will impact anyone that holds their phone in their left hand. So if you hold with your left hand and tap with your right, as I do being right handed, then you lose signal.

 

Apparently a software update is coming this week that may help. Let's hope!

[Caris]

I made a video, showing the exact same thing on 2 other phones.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WhJP8ynyMc&sns=em

[UziT]

I have a 3GS and the same thing happens with that....my brother has a HTC Hero...and same with that....creepy..

[Ashley]

So umm you use crappy old phones that would cost a few quid on the second hand market nowadays to prove that a phone that costs at least £750 isn't unique in this problem?

 

I'm sure it probably exists in other phones too but if, for example, I purchased a brand new PS3 and the disk tray stuck and I took it back to the store I would not be impressed if some guy pulled out an old PS1 and said "yeah this does it too, fuck off."

[Cube]

It's quite creepy that this problem has apparently existed for years, yet nobody has noticed it until now. Suddenly loads of phones (new and old) have the same signal problem.

[Ashley]

Well I just firmly fondled my phone (Tocco, so...apt) and no issues to raise. Nor can I ever recall either using a phone or hearing someone using a phone and noticing a decrease in signal just by holding it.

[Caris]

It's the only phones I had to try it out on. If I lived in phones4u I'm sure I could try it on more up to date hand sets.

[Ten10]

Well most phone manufactures keep the phone's antenna in the bottom of the unit. If they put them at the top, there wouldn't be any problems with your hand blocking any signal. But instead you'll slowly be frying your brain from the emitted radiation.

 

Thats' why most phones have these at the bottom away from the head. In the iphone4's case, the problem is that part of the antenna is exposed which more easily allows for the body to become an inhibitor. Seemed like a good idea at the time.

 

I believe if they were to change the design a tad it could work, perhaps not make it flush with the unit and surround that area with some translucent material.

Edited June 27, 2010 by Ten10

[Ronnie]

They'll fix the design flaw in iPhone 5 and tout it as a magical new feature

[Shorty]

New to the iPhone 5:

 

Hold your phone any way you like, left hand, right hand, top, bottom, without interfering with the signal strength.

 

App folder capacity increased from 12 to 14.

 

Emails and Facebook updates on your home screen, we call it "HomescreenTime"

 

0.0025mm thinner than the iPhone 4GS.

 

This changes everything again... again.

 

 

 

 

£799.*

 

* when you sign up to a 6 year contract and trade in your pet.

[That Guy]

So if I phone Apple customer support and have a bit of a moan about my signal dropping when I hold the phone, are they likely to offer me a free bumper?

[Shorty]

I heard that from one person, worth a try really.

[Charlie]

Well I just firmly fondled my phone (Tocco, so...apt) and no issues to raise. Nor can I ever recall either using a phone or hearing someone using a phone and noticing a decrease in signal just by holding it.

 

Yeah I'm pretty sure my 3G didn't have any issues. I hold the iPhone 4 in the exact same ways as I held my 3G too and I only get problems with the 4.

 

I'll be taking a trip down to the Apple Store on Buchanan Street tomorrow to try and get a free bumper!

[RoadKill]

I've tested this on 3 phones and the bars only decrease by 1 at a very push 2. This was trying to make the phone do it too, holding it like I never would in real life.

 

I still don't think this is as bad as people are going on about.

 

It's very, very different from other phones, because you can touch the bare antenna.

 

This gives a clean demonstration of the problem, WITHOUT USING A HAND, so instead of people whining about the way you hold it, you can see WHERE the problem occurs and WHY that could happen with a hand

 

Simply putting something non-conductive over it to stop it shorting out solves the problem. Hence the first official case for an iPhone ever made, making it bulkier, which is kind of counter to the whole design. There's no possible way to dress this up and pretend it's not a big design flaw, or that it's the user's fault, unless you're seriously deluded

Edited June 27, 2010 by RoadKill