In response to complaints about declining call quality with the
iPhone 4, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced that it would give bumpers or some other type of case to every owner who requests one. Jobs announced the move during a press conference in which he again sought to illustrate that the antenna issues were common with other smartphones as well.
Apple plans to give away bumpers or at least some kind of case to iPhone 4 owners who request them.
(Credit:
Josh Lowensohn/CNET)
The bumper issue is a touchy one for Apple; it had previously instructed its AppleCare employees not to offer free bumpers to owners who complained about reception.
Perhaps Apple's wake-up call came when Consumer Reports announced that it can't recommend the iPhone 4
due to problems with its reception. According to a story posted on
Consumer Reports' Web site, it was forced to withhold its
recommendation after its engineers found that when you touch the gap in
the antenna on the phone's lower left side, "the signal can
significantly degrade enough to cause you to lose your connection
altogether if you're in an area with a weak signal."
Though Consumer Reports' latest findings are significant, it is not alone in reaching them. Indeed, during testing, CNET and other outlets have discovered that the iPhone 4 call quality degrades when you touch the gap on the left side.
Some predicted the purpose of the press conference was to
announce a recall of the iPhone to fix the problem. While a recall
could be damaging to Apple's reputation, it would also be a costly endeavor.
One analyst estimated that while "a full product recall of the iPhone 4
(is) highly unlikely," it would cost Apple $1.5 billion, or 3.5 percent
of its total cash on hand.
• Report: Jobs was told of iPhone 4 antenna problem
• What we know about iPhone 4's antenna (FAQ)
• Time for an iPhone 4 recall?
• Spinmeisters sound off on Apple's communications breakdown
• iOS 4.1 update released to developers
• iPhone owners report iOS 4.0.1 installation errors
• iPhone 4 signal bar software fix now out
More headlines
The Internet, YouTube, and Twitter have changed the way Americans
consume media--and mean that the FCC's restrictions on seven dirty
words should no longer be constitutional, a federal appeals court says.
The bankruptcy of XY.com's founder, who says creditors could obtain a
million profiles largely of gay teens, has led the FTC to intervene.
Founder of file-sharing software maker Lime Wire
transferred company's funds into a trust controlled by his family. Big
music labels say the money belongs to them.
Interactive layer developed by British government lets users view side effects of worldwide temperature increase.
Also of note
• Reports: Ellison fails in bid for NBA's Warriors
• Report: U.S. finds driver error in some Toyota cases
• Alleged Russian spy worked for Microsoft
Steven Musil is the night news editor at CNET News. Before joining CNET
News in 2000, Steven spent 10 years at various Bay Area newspapers.
E-mail Steven.
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