In what is probably the most creative excuse a mobile phone maker has ever made, Apple has made an open letter to the public discussing how the iPhone OS’s signal strength meter is the culprit to be blamed for all the issues regarding the antenna of the Apple iPhone 4.
According to the folks at Cupertino, the iPhone’s signal strength meter was not programmed properly and lacked the accuracy to depict real signal strength. This badly programmed meter apparently showed much higher signals when the phone was in areas of low reception. With the signal meter showing up to four to five bars, users would be led to believe that they are in area of good network reception. The graphic would not correct itself until users actually tried making a call and the bars would suddenly drop to show the actual signal in the area.
While somewhat believable, many iPhone 4 owners are calling foul on Apple’s unapologetic open letter detailing why the new smart phone is having issues. The letter goes on to indicate that the problem has been around since the first iPhones and they have only discovered the problem now.
Many, however, doubt the validity of Apple’s claim for two major reasons. The first argument is the statement where Apple insists that the problem has been around for three years with their other handsets. Had this been true, then the issue would have been brought to light later on. With the sheer volume of complaints regarding dropped calls and signal drops for the iPhone 4, it is unlikely that the problem existed with the earlier models, like the 3Gs.
Also, Apple has also acknowledged the fact that holding the iPhone 4 with the left hand is more likely to cause a drop in signal strength. This symptom can be traced to hardware issues with the ergonomic design of the handset –as the antenna placement certainly did not account for how users would hold the phone.
Tags: antenna, Apple, Apple-iPhone, signal-strength