Steve Jobs has commented on the iPhone 4 antenna issue, a problem that may be affecting a large number of the recently released smartphones.
Apple’s CEO took part in an email exchange with a disgruntled iPhone user, the conversation later appeared on the user’s blog. Here’s how it began:
“Hi Steve,
So, um, just got my iPhone 4. Its lovely and all, but this ‘bridge the two antennae to kill your reception’ thing seems to be a bit serious. If I bridge them with my hand or with a piece of metal the bars slowly drop to ‘Searching…’ and then ‘No Service’.
Its kind of a worry. Is it possible this is a design flaw?
Regards
- Rory Sinclair”
To which Steve replied:
“Nope. Just don’t hold it that way.”
Not a design flaw Steve? Okay. Another email was sent:
“Actually, it’s not calls that concern me, but i’ve just been writing a text and its very natural for me as a right-handed person to hold it that way, with the part of my hand at the base of my thumb covering the point the antennae meet, and it kills the reception each time.
I mean, pretty much as soon as i move my hand it comes back, but its pretty crazy… is this the reason Bumpers exist?
- Rory”
Ready for another Steve Jobs one-liner? Here it is:
“Just don’t hold it that way then.”
Interesting. Seems like Steve’s embracing this design flaw/feature as being something acceptable, something manageable, something normal. The emails continued:
“Well, yeah, thats what i’ll do, but you have to admit thats a workaround, yeah? I mean, normally there aren’t limits to how you can hold a phone.
I seriously dig the phone, its totally amazing, but I think this is what many would call a design flaw.
- Rory”
Steve Jobs, the man who can’t be moved, put an end to the conversation by legitimizing his previous claims – explaining that the iPhone 4′s antenna issue isn’t something extraordinary.
“Sure there are – every phone has these areas of sensitivity, depending on the location of the antenna. Some phones even ship with labels warning customers to not cover certain areas with their hands.”
Before you start pulling out clumps of your own hair, and making blood oaths never to buy another Apple product again, check out the image below. Steve’s right.
Even though this picture came from the instruction manual for a Nokia 6230i, it does prove that other phones have suffered from a similar antenna issue. If Apple knew there was an issue, or there could be an issue, shouldn’t they have done something to eliminate it?
You can check out a screenshot of the email conversation below, which was posted on Engadget:
Additionally, Apple also released an official statement addressing the issue:
“Gripping any 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.”
So what sort of conclusion does this bring us to? Apparently, the problem is hard to reproduce, with some stating that it only occurs if both bars are covered (which often does not result from a natural phone-holding position).
Steve’s advice? Hold your iPhone like this:
If you’re looking for a more expert opinion, Spencer Webb of AntennaSys, a company that designs custom RF solutions, has made a few statements that have also appeared on Engadget. Spencer has worked on making quad-band transceivers for AT&T, so he knows a thing or two. After explaining that most modern mobile phones house their antennae at the bottom of the phone, Spencer stated,
“The iPhone 4, however, moved the antenna action from the back of the phone to the sides. This probably improves the isotropy of the radiation pattern, but only when the phone is suspended magically in air.”
So, even though the iPhone’s antennae could test very well, in reality they don’t always. But, as Spencer himself put it: “sometimes an antenna is not great, but good enough, is good enough.”
Let us know what you think in the comments box below. If you’ve got an iPhone 4 with antenna issues, we want to hear about it. We also want to hear your thoughts on the above email conversation and statement. Should Steve be more apologetic, or do you agree with what he says? Why is it that this “fact of life” issue seems to be so much more noticeable on the iPhone 4?
Whatever your opinion is, let us know!
Umm, i dont know if its JUST me, but i got my phone wednesday and have been holding it like everyone else has when they lose the signal, but i dont! i even TRIED to block the antenna and it STILL didnt work.. guess i got lucky.
Whatever happened to “you don’t need to change, the phone fits you.” Looks like that’s not the case anymore.
I have had every new version of the phone and love much of the new phone, but…… My reception has become a major issue with more dropped calls then ever before : (
Next will be reports of people overly dropping their phones because they are holding them in some retarded unnatural fashion in order to follow Steve’s advice. And how may I ask is holding it top to bottom conducive to holding to your ear or typing?
This is some bullshit. If Apple is going to release a phone with this big of a design flaw and then merely say to “hold it differently” then we have just gone backwards about ten years in the mobile device market. This is an issue, and it should have been fixed. This is absolutely ridiculous that we are paying up to $300 (WITH a discount) for a phone that can’t even get appropriate reception. Yes, the iPhone 4 is the best one yet, but when you can’t even hold the phone in a comfortable position for fear that you may lose coverage (in the few areas that AT&T offers it)? Really? This is absolutely unacceptable. Apple, get your act together, or we’re giving you the hook and the little red-head girl with the tap toes is going on.
It’s a design flaw, certainly. Bad on Apple.
But as design flaws go it has to be one of the most user friendly in recent smartphone history. Usually you have no choice but to wait for the manufacturer to fix it and/or live with the problems it causes. In this case all you need is a case, or if you’re too cheap, or waiting for just the right case, a piece of clear scotch tape should do the job.
Apple obviously didn’t discover this flaw until it was to late, hence the production of the bumper case, and is definitely trying to downplay the situation. Even without the case I seem to always have plenty of bars on my iPhone 4 just not covering the spot on left
I havent had any trouble either with my iphone 4.
..It seems any case for the iPhone prevents this…and most folks I personally know need a case for multiple reasons..i.e, kids playing with it in the car/accidently dropping it while at the checkout grabbing for wallet out of purse/night out on the town and few too many beers….
On my 2G iPhone it did this and in the case, presto, full bars anyway you held it.
My LG something phone seem to do this as well outside of a rubber case.
Show me something that is perfect I will will show you something that isn’t:)
Peace
I’m getting the phone this week.Just like Leon said apple needs to fix this issue becuase the way Steve
is holding it is just amazingly
stupid I think.apple needs to fix it as soon as possible otherwise the iPhone fans will drop.and with the reply of his with the emails I think they deserve more then one sentence ,and make it look like he cares
I haven’t experienced this issue at all. I’ve been handling he device the same way I did my 3G. Interesting.
I don’t have the issue even if i try. But I can tell you this is normal with any antenna. I keep my phone in a case all the time so no issue anyways.
I can’t believe that anyone would use this ultra delicate fingerprint magnet without a case in the first place. Maybe the fact that a case improves reception will pursuade people to use them. My phone seems to work fine all the time, no dropped calls, and it isn’t going to look like a used hockey puck in a week. On the other hand, I think we have less tolerance for imperfections in Apple products because of the high standards that Steve Jobs continually tells us his company has. When you have to jump through hoops just to get a damn phone (ATT being a huge one), you want zero hassles at the other end. Are you hearing me Steve???
Why on Earth would I need a case? I take good care of my phone so I don’t need one. It is your own fault you throw it like a brick.
If the antenna is such a big problem, I’ll just skip iPhone 4. If next iPhone doesn’t fix the flaw (don’t know what they were thinking about in the first place), I’ll just skip iPhone 5. If iPhone 6 doesn’t fix it, well I guess I’ll switch to some other product. It’s that simple, Stevie.
Also the way they blocked custom ipcc is just pathetic. I am on a carrier that isn’t officially supported by Apple (nor is any other in the country), and will never see a working tethering without a jailbreak, even though other phones supported tethering for over a decade now without any limitations.
I don’t have the issue but I also always use a case. This has happened with other phones I had a Treo with same issue. If you hold the phone midway on the sides no discomfort or issue
Jobs is too proud to admit he what he design isn’t perfect.
Personally I think buying the first line of any product is stupid, especially the iPhone. There have been problems with every one of the iPhone models when they were first released. And it’s no surprise that Steve jobs isn’t apologizing, that would imply his amazing device is flawed. Just like he kept his mouth shut about the “stolen prototype” incident. Obiously anything Steve writes in an email is public info, he knows that. He’s not gunna publicly state device is flawed without some serious forethought and collaboration with apple’s other stakeholders.
There’s no doubt about it, the iPhone 4 is the most impressive smart phone in many ways. I want one, I plan to be one of if not the first in line in my country (Canada) when it arrives. However, these responses from Apple, both the emails from Steve and the press release depict an Apple I’m very wary of associating myself with.
Apple’s goal/mindset is to build the best right? The best computer, the best phone, the best portable music device etc. The best experience flat out for any of these. This design flaw, this serious design flaw cannot be considered the best. Simple as that.
Rather than admit that a flaw exists, and assure the public that a fix is coming, they return with a childish response akin to “It’s not our phone, it’s your hands!”. Seriously Apple? Grow up, admit your mistakes and take responsibility.
I totally see how this caught them off guard. The test units out in the field were covered in 3GS look-alike cases (as discovered with the “Gizmodo phone”) and of those that used it without a case, what percentage were lefties holding the phone in that fashion?
I guess my opinion is that we must all be aware of the persona this company is starting to take on. We’ve loved them, and now with their fame, at least I am starting to see a side I don’t think represents “the best”. I do hope they change. The hard part is, to speak with my wallet I must go without the iPhone 4.
The problem is AT&T not iPhone 4 or apple. Every one in England I know don’t have the problem!
And I can hold it in any way without any problem and I dont use any case on mine.
No problem whatsoever. I’ve actually tried my best to cover various hot spots, on the sides, on the bottom, on the top. Zero issues. For the most part, 3-4 bars all the time. On calls, no problem hearing or being heard.
So to all the whiny haters out there. I’m sure you’re all within the time period of which you can return your phone if you’re not happy with it and get your money back . Nobody says you have to own an iPhone. If you’re not happy with the new phone or AT&T go ahead switch to someone else. All carriers drop calls and have spotty service. Go ahead and get a droid. I’m sure next month there’ll be another new model. I don’t know how many there’s been in the past year all trying to do better than the iPhone but all never coming close. Steve Jobs creates beautiful devices and if you find it so difficult to operate them maybe you shouldn’t own one. Oh by the way this whole commentary was dictated to my iPhone but I guess a simple minds out there don’t understand how to do simple things as such. Steve keep doing your great work. Can’t wait to receive my new iPhone4.
you sir, are a complete idiot, your probably right tho, we as consumers should be eternally greatful for this additional end call button
No need for Old man Jobs to man up to his precious iPhone design flaw, when his fanboys will make excuse’s for him and his perceived flawless iPhone. Yeah “just buy a case for it”, problem solved, “just don’t hold it that way”, problem solved…Classic Jobs and fanboy response…LOL
Fanboys aside, if you don’t hold Apple to the fire and demand some kind of action to rectify this situation then Apple will continue to ream you everytime. If anything Apple should be handing out them “bumpers” for free.
I don’t have the problem. In fact, my signal is the best it’s ever been with any phone. Seriously. My drive home used to have several dead spots, but no more. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve REALLY tried to make the issue they’re describing happen, but alas my iPhone 4 appears to be perfect.
So… for all you skeptics… I can reproduce the problem with almost 100% accuracy. And listen… I LOVE APPLE Products. I have had every iPhone, macs, AppleTV, etc. This antenna issues IS REAL. If I just hold my phone normally as I would to make a call or type a text, my bars go down from 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1 – NO SERVICE. If I put it down, then all come back. Only takes about 30 second each way.
It may not be a design flaw…. more a manufacturing problem? Since some of us have the problem, and ther do not. Maybe some of us carry more static electricity than others which makes us affect the phone more. But the issue is 100% real.
- Michael
Hmmm, being as women naturally have smaller hands than men, attempting to hold the phone in the position modeled by Steve Jobs would invariably lead to a lot of dropped (onto the pavement) calls for me.
That why they have the Bumper???
Its not that other phones dont also suck, it’s just that people expect more from (and pay more for) an Apple product. My nexus one had a similar problem but it just affected 3G, not calls. This problem is much more serious but it is also much easier to solve. Put some scotch tape over problem area.
so it dropped call 100% of the time then?
I wonder how Steve would respond, after taking delivery of pre-ordered Mercedes and finding the driver’s seat sub-standard, being told by the dealer to just cover it with any available seat cover?
Good call Emungle, you (or someone) should write an email to him posing that exact question.
OR you could ask him a question along the lines of: “What would you do if you purchased an expensive car that would stall every time someone was in the drivers seat?”
Steve’s response: “Drive from the passenger seat”
LOL… Also did they NOT think that all the 3g owners who could not upgrade to 3gs due to the 2 year contract thing, plus all the first timers wouldn’t be a lot???? There are none left??? Silly as hell. Plan ahead.
Steve is right that most phones have antenna attenuation when touched, however, if the phone is easy to attenuate through normal use, that’s a problem. Apple has “trained” us to interact with the iPhone in a certain way, and now his response is “don’t hold it that way.” His response seems a bit defensive to me.
Immediately upon seeing that Apple planned to offer bumper cases, I was instantly suspicious, particularly regarding the design (ie: specifically covering the sides). Now that the antenna issue has exploded onto the internet, it all makes perfect sense. Apple knew this could be a problem, and crafted a $30 solution to sell to those who discovered the problem.
Why not offer a free case with an iPhone4 purchase? They included a dock with gen1 iPhones. Offer a case. Problem solved.
iPhone 4 statment / announcement about antenna failure
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3P3aCQoD334
Yeah, some of it does have to do with a person’s body. I have a friend that has the “issue” but if I hold his iPhone4 as I did testing mine, it doesn’t act up.
I understand people being upset but like one of the earlier poster’s said if you’re not happy, take it back and get your money and then go buy a droid or whatever. Sooner or later you’ll find issues there too.
If Steve says “hold it this way bla bla bla……. or use one of the many available cases”, I think then Apple should provide a bumper case as standard, included equipment.
That’s a good point… Or you could just have someone pay $30.00 for it??? WTF is that? Does it come with a charger or do you have to pay for that too?
it seems the phone works fine for some people, instead of bumpers, we could just hire those people to use our iphones for us, sort of like hiring a driver
im all for being a hater just for the shear joy n it but…. i havent noticed it… at all
If i tried to make the problem happen I could however it doesn’t happen to me in normal use. I think people are making a bigger deal of it than it really is. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an iPhone in the wild not covered in something anyways.
I’d happily put a case on my new phone. IF there were any cases available!!!
Apple obviously knew this was going to be an issue, hence the bumper. If you need a bumper for your phone to operate in any way like a phone, why should you have to pay an extra £30 for it? Add to that apples reluctance to release any spec to case manufacturers and you get a million frustrated apple customers.
It isn’t a design flaw. It is a usability flaw. They are two different things. That said, I think it is a big usability flaw. But nothing scotch-tape cant fix in a pinch. Apple probably looked at coatings, none were up to snuff.
It is these lessons why I wait a little before getting my new phone. I plan on ordering a white one, when they are available. I have already ordered my bumper.
Amazon.com has several different cases available for the iphone 4. Like the iLuv SPECTRUM.
I’ve noticed this really only happens at my home where I already have network issues with AT&T. When I try to replicate this at work I’m unable to lose any bars but at my house it’s a big problem. Even with my apple bumper cover it stil does the same this and it doesn’t help out at all. So I’m not sure if it’s the phone or the location of where I live.
I can mostly reproduce it when I try but has never made for a problem during normal use and handling.
“Apple has gone a step further and tuned the phone to utilize whichever network band is less congested or has the least interference for the best signal quality, regardless of the actual signal strength. Early reports suggest this feature, while buggy in its early stages, will greatly improve the phone’s reliability on AT&T’s fragile network.”
… From the iFixit iPhone 4 teardown makes me think that it could likely be fixed or extremely reduced by a software / firmware update. This could explain why it only affects certain conditions at certain times. As noted http://appadvice.com/appnn/2010/06/ios4-upgrade-coming/
People please understand, steve jobs doesn’t care what you say about the antenna situation, cause he already has your money in his pocket from you buying the iPhone 4. His quacking all the way to the bank !!!!
Peace !
Haters never quite! I got my iPhone on the laughing day and haven’t experienced anything like that, I’ve even tried to block the whole antenna with both hands and still works 100%
I’ve tried and tried and tried to reproduce this. Holding my phone and bridging the gaps any way possible. I still have 5 bars of 3G.
Till yesterday I was thinking about getting an iPhone 4 but today when I read about the issue, I have now changed my plan. Apple should be apologizing for this issue. It’s an antenna issue from apple’s iPhone Design Flaw. Previous iPhone never had this issue. Apple has to fix it or find a solution to it.
I don’t recall Apple having a “case” or “bumper” ready to sell with the launch of a new phone before. If the bumper will alleviate this problem why am I expected to pay for it? I’m still under Apple Care!
I’ve had iPhones since the beginning. The 4 I have has more reception and connection problems than the others ever had. I use a gel case, best buy had no bumper cases in stock and I have one ordered from apple. I don’t like to hold the phone in a non-typical way to use it. I often use a headset and am not even touching the phone and the reception and connection is not as good as the 3G was.I think they wil fix it as they are producing millions a month and they need to sell them. So I am thinking it isn’t really a hardware problem but something else that will be fixed in an update. I love everything else about the 4.
So we hear from apple that if we put one of their ‘bumpers’ on our new iPhone 4′s we will not have our cellular antenna degredation? Can someone please test this hypothesis?
I am an Antenna Engineer. The manner in which an user interacts with (holds) the wireless device is a basic design parameter. The user’s tissue in close proximity to the antenna will normally pull its tuning significantly, causing the reduction in perfromance described by the many users’ field reports.
In this regard, the iPhone 4 antenna design practice did not perform to an Apple standard, or was an afterthought. . . Unfortunately, Apple’s responses so far and antenna job offerings suggest the latter.
I would think they would rely on a digital quarts oscillator, not a direct LC receiver. right?
That would be a huge tuning issue otherwise. However, if the antenna are emitter coupled, it could be an impedance issue.
I have been an apple enthusiast for a long time. I have done some research, and I think apple is completely in the wrong here. Although the iPhone 4 is a revolutionary phone, It was never brought to its fullest extent. This problem is simply a matter of a short-circuit. Apple can try their “quad-band receivers,” but all they really need to do is either integrate the antenna, or simply laminate the sidebar.