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iPhone 4 update won’t fix reception issue

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by Chris Moor on
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Well, in case you’ve been under a rock lately, the iPhone 4 has issues with holding reception when it’s held a certain way. Mr. Jobs’ has even addressed the issue with an ever-so-helpful tip “Don’t hold it that way.”

Apple’s latest update for the iPhone was “blamed” for this recently because of an issue with how the signal was being displayed. When users were in an area with low reception to begin with, grabbing the phone in the “bad way” made it even worse and the call is dropped. Supposedly the way that the iPhone displayed how many bars you had was wrong, so it displayed better reception than you actually had.

In some not-so-shocking news, AppleCare has acknowledged that the update won’t actually do anything fix the issue.

“We called AppleCare three times today to confirm it. We told them that we were experiencingvoice quality problems and call drops, as well as problems with internet access. Their response was immediate and unequivocal, the same in the three cases:

• There is an antenna interference problem when you hold the iPhone 4 in a certain way (the tests by Anandtech and many demonstration videos in the internet show that the signal dropwill happen every time when you touch the phone’s dead spot, on the left bottom corner).

• One solution is to hold the phone differently, avoiding to touch the left bottom corner of the phone (coincidentally, this is how models hold the iPhone 4 in most of Apple’s promotional material).

• The other other solution is to buy a case or one of Apple’s $30 bumpers (we are hosting a petition to ask Apple for free cases. You can sign it here).

• The incoming software update will not fix this antenna problem, only change the way the phone displays the available signal, make it more accurate.”

Shocking right?

[via gizmodo]

iPhone 5 possibly on the horizon?

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by Chris Moor on
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IPhone 5

With all of the negativity surrounding the issues plaguing the release of the iPhone 4 and the rise of the Android OS in the worldwide market you have to wonder what is next for Apple.

If you look at the market share around the world of iPhone versus Android for the last 12 months, Apple has been bouncing all over the place with a drop in on their overall share from this same time last year. Android has doubled its market share in just the same 12 months. That shows how the Android platform is giving its users what they want and Apple is not.

From what I have been seeing around the net, the iPhone 4 just does not deliver what the buyers were expecting and a lot of 3GS owners are not happy enough to make the switch. What does that leave Apple to do?

Top everything off with recent release by Apple agreeing to waive the normal 10% restocking fee and now several lawsuits pending for the release of a product not providing what was promised.

In my opinion the most likely course of action is to release a new phone with what was promised in the first place. Could Apple be secretly developing a weapon? Could this device be the next iPhone 5 and Apple once again try to battle for the majority. The iPhone 5 would have to compete with the likes of the HTC EVO and offer their buyers the features and design that they want. Apples best move would be to listen to the public and design something that they want.

We will have to see, but I am sure Apple has something up their sleeves.

Is Apple making way for more Android sales? No restocking fee for iPhone 4 returns

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by Chris Moor on
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Restocking fee

With so many disgruntled Apple followers and lawsuits now looming over them, Apple is making a move to “curve” the hurt that customers are feeling. They are currently allowing IPhone 4 owners who are not happy with their purchase the ability to return their phones without having to pony up the normal 10% restocking fee. What does this mean for some of the owners who took a chance on Apple? Maybe they will turn to the aging and outdated 3GS or even better yet they might even cross to the dark side of the Android world.

It will be interesting to see how this pans out with the way Apple let so many down. I would like to see how many actually do switch to Android based phones because of this. If anything else this is a big blow to Apple and a win for the Android community. What is your take on the situation?

[via mobilecrunch]

iPhone 4 disguising caused antenna issues to go unnoticed? Think again.

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by Dustin Karnes on
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By this point, I’m sure you’ve heard all the stories going around about how the genius of Apple’s brilliant new antenna design on the iPhone 4 can be shattered by simply holding it. When you bridge the two antennas together on the top and bottom of the device, the bridge creates a major disturbance in frequency. And Apple’s response to it? “Simply avoid holding it in that way.”

According to an article over at the NY Times, it is possible, and even likely, that the issue was not caught before release because of a a couple key issues:

  • Apple’s HQ is obviously going to have wonderful reception, given the relationship between Apple and AT&T
  • Whenever the phone was taken into the wild, it always had a case on it to make it look like a 3GS

This writer’s opinion? Bad testing, coupled with pure laziness. The idea that a company could create this state-of-the-art new antenna design on speculation alone and not only neglect to consider the bridging of the two antennas, but also never test it the way it would be held without a case, is ridiculous.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments.

Go Figure, Research Confirms the Obvious. Developers Prefer Android in the Long Runy

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by Chris Moor on
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Android iOS Apple Google number 2

So it kind of just makes sense, but in case anyone had any doubts it is official: More developers prefer the openness of Android and it’s Market than prefer Apple’s overlord reign. The boys at Appcelerator, a mobile-software tools provider, decided Android has the most long-term potential among operating systems. They went and surveyed 2,733 developers and found that around 40% think iOS has the best long-term outlook, and the other 60% stood by Android. The team took into account the fact that there are around 60 devices running Android currently which have access to more than 60,000 apps, and that the number of android users is increasing at more than 100,000 people daily! Gartner Inc., a researcher said that Android will eclipse iOS as the world’s second-most popular mobile OS in 2012. That’s assuming the world doesn’t end and we are all still living at that time of course.

The vice president of marketing at Appcelerator, Scott Schwarzhoff, (now say that ten times fast) was quoted comparing Google and Apple to players of a huge mobile chess game, with everyone else just playing catch-up.

Android poses a huge threat to iOS for a few reasons, the main reason being that while iOS has the iPhone and the iPad, Android is preparing tablets, netbooks, set-top boxes, e-readers, and even televisions themselves that will be running Android. In Ken Dulaney’s opinion, Android is the best alternative to iOS out there. He is the vice president at Gartner. I for one, have to agree with him, but what are your thoughts? Check out the full report over at bloomberg and let us know in the comments!

iPhone 4 Reception Solution: Don’t Hold it That Way

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by Michael Murphy on
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A LOT of people stood in line for hours today to get their hands on the hot new iPhone 4.  Yes, I know, not YOU – you rock your Android phone – but we all know that a ton of people couldn’t wait to get their hands on Apple’s newest device.  And if you’ve read anything about it at all, you’ve probably read that it tends to have issues with reception, especially if you…well, hold it:

But good news to those having problems!  Apple has acknowledged the problem, and has offered the following statement:

Gripping any mobile phone will result in some attenuation of its antenna performance, with certain places being worse than others depending on the placement of the antennas. This is a fact of life for every wireless phone. If you ever experience this on your iPhone 4, avoid gripping it in the lower left corner in a way that covers both sides of the black strip in the metal band, or simply use one of many available cases.

Basically, “You’re doing it wrong…don’t hold it that way.”  And just in case that isn’t what you took from that statement…

Note that’s an email from Jobsy himself. I am sure they have the best of intentions, and I will not pretend that this phone is the only phone that’s ever had such a problem, but had I bought one I couldn’t help but feel like they were blaming me when this is really a design issue.

Reports indicate that the cases for sale do actually help a lot, so at least there’s a solution, but it hurts that the only solution is to buy an accessory.

[via engadget]

signal solution, signal fix

Some iPhone 4 displays have yellow discoloration & bands

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by Chris Moor on
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Say it ain’t so! I can practically hear the iUsers’ tears hitting the floor. Gizmodo originally reported they were receiving multiple reports of the issue on the new iPhone. Now that they’ve written the article, reports and pictures are flooding in from other iPhone 4 users of their tainted devices.

Man, I’m glad Android devices never have any problems. (That’s sarcasm by the way)

Check out Giz for the rest of the pics

Google becoming “second Apple” with UI control? Think again.

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by Dustin Karnes on
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Android Not Apple

According to an article over at Ecommerce Journal, Google is looking at following in Apple’s footsteps by gaining full, universal control over the Android user interface… but this writer disagrees.

We have mentioned before that Google was looking at improving user experience in Android Gingerbread, since they are now almost completely satisfied with what’s going on under the hood. Google wants a unified interface to be spread out to all their devices, put a stop to the fragmentation that has been plaguing them, and make third party UI overlays like HTC Sense “as pointless as possible” by bringing their UI experience up to snuff with what users want. Some developers are stating that this move is the first in Google becoming more like Apple, by gaining control over the Android interface.

To say that this is Google becoming Apple in the dictatorship department is ridiculous. All Google is trying to do is improve their product to the point that consumers won’t want to use a UI overlay, thus moving the market by demand to utilize a stock experience. I, for one, look forward to the changes to the UI that will come with Android’s coming releases, and applaud them for what they have already done.

What do you think? Is Google headed down Apple’s path, or simply trying to appeal to consumers? Let us know in the comments.

[via Ecommerce Journal]

Guide: iPhone to Android – Making the transition

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by Dustin Karnes on
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As we all know, there are a LOT of iPhone users out there and it may (or may not) surprise you that a lot of them get more and frustrated with their phone or their carrier (ahem AT&T) every day. So what’s an iUser to do? Obviously they’re used to the big screen and lots of apps, so switching to a BlackBerry is out of the question and Palm’s offerings aren’t much better. That leaves Android.

With how attached people get to their precious iPhones and the features it has, making the switch without knowing what you’re getting into can be rather daunting. Hence, the point of this guide. Hopefully it will help you to make the switch as smoothly as possible. So go check out the guide and leave your comments here.

Guide: iPhone to Android – Making the switch

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