A few days ago Apple announced a press conference to address concerns about the iPhone 4, presumably regarding the recent issues with reception and the antenna design. Today was that conference, and there was no end to speculation as to just what would happen. Rumors included everything from Jobs not showing up to a full recall of the latest hardware revision. As is often the case, it turns out the truth was nowhere near either extreme—nor was the announcement any real surprise.
As with any press conference, Jobs started out with some numbers on the iPhone 4 such as being the (arguably) #1 smartphone in the world. But that’s not what Jobs was there to talk about, and I’m sure that’s not what you want to hear about, so he moved on to the important bits.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard about the problems with the iPhone 4’s signal when a particular area was touched. AnandTech put together a great writeup on the issue, and Consumer Reports even refused to recommend the iPhone 4 until the problems were sorted out. Of course, the numbers don’t lie and Apple admitted that data from AT&T does show that the iPhone 4 drops more calls than the 3GS. That rate of increased dropped calls? Less than one additional call per 100 calls.*
The first “fix” has already been released in the form of iOS 4.0.1, which fixes the overly optimistic reporting of signal strength. It’s nice that Apple is finally using industry standard reporting numbers, but to even claim it was part of the solution was ill-advised at best.
The second fix, as has been detailed since the discovery of the problem, is to provide an insulator between the phone and the hand. Today, Apple announced that iPhone owners are eligible for a free bumper case until September 30. They are aware that this will sharply increase the demand, so they’re working to secure other sources for the bumpers. If you have already purchased a case, you are eligible for a refund, but there will be no refund for third party cases. Those outside the US will be included in the offer. Apple will start taking orders for the bumper cases starting late next week.
After the bumper was addressed, Steve moved on to another problem: The proximity sensor has had some trouble determining exactly when a user’s face is near or in contact with the display, causing an occasional button press or other random action. Jobs assured everyone that they are working on the solution and will release it as soon as it’s finished.
Jobs also used the press conference to announce that the white version of iPhone 4 will be shipping at the end of this month.
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