The New iPhone 4 - Is It A Lemon?
Those of you who know me in person know exactly how long I have been waiting to update to the new iPhone 4. The new iPhone has some amazing features as previously discussed on this post, however it seems that now that it has been officially released problems have started to arise.
The first and biggest problem in my opinion is the fact that people are having reception issues when they hold the phone in a way that covers both of the external antennas. Carrier signals start to decrease and eventually calls may be dropped altogether. I have read over 40 pages of forum posts at macrumors in which people show links to videos and newspaper articles that either deny or ratify this problem. The problem is thoroughly explained in the following video:
To make things even more dramatic, Steve Jobs himself replied to an iPhone 4 user's e-mail in which he tells the user to simply "avoid holding the phone in that way" - This was first reported by Engadget and it has caused a tremendous amount of controversy in the mobile and tech communities as no phone should ever be designed in a way that hinders usability. Apple also claims that adding a silicone case or an official bumper will resolve the problem. This has worked for some users but not for all of them.
Another issue of the new iPhone 4 is the fact that some of the units show yellow blotches on the retina display. This may be due to the iPhones being shipped out prematurely and therefore not allowing the glue that secures the screen's glass to the phone to cure properly. Some users seem to support this theory by stating that such blotches disappear over time by simply continuing to use the phone.
Lastly, two other small problems have been reported. Some users have stated that their volume buttons work properly but that the buttons themselves have been reversed - this means the increase volume button would show a minus and the decrease volume button would show a plus. As stated by TiPb this would only be bothersome aesthetically and not functionally. The other "issue" is that the glass on the iPhone 4 has already been able to be scratched by some users even though Apple claims that it is stronger than ever before. To be honest, neither of these last two issues concern me at all since I would simply get my phone exchanged if it had the buttons issue and I would not likely scratch mine as I tend to be extremely careful with my phones and I always keep them in a case that protects them.
THE VERDICT
By now you must be wondering if I will even get the new iPhone 4 when it launches in Canada. The answer is: ABSOLUTELY! - It turns out that the antenna issue has been around since the first version of the iPhone came out! Take a look at the video below and pay attention to the date in which it was posted.
A lot of people don't realize that the reception issue is non iPhone specific and that even Android phones exhibit similar reception problems when held a certain way. I am also not too worried about these problems as I plan to buy a bumper case and I never really hold my phone in a way that would trigger such problem. I am in no way denying that there are issues with the iPhone 4 but to me the benefits greatly outweigh the problems. Please feel free to leave a comment below with your views on Apple's iPhone 4.
The first and biggest problem in my opinion is the fact that people are having reception issues when they hold the phone in a way that covers both of the external antennas. Carrier signals start to decrease and eventually calls may be dropped altogether. I have read over 40 pages of forum posts at macrumors in which people show links to videos and newspaper articles that either deny or ratify this problem. The problem is thoroughly explained in the following video:
To make things even more dramatic, Steve Jobs himself replied to an iPhone 4 user's e-mail in which he tells the user to simply "avoid holding the phone in that way" - This was first reported by Engadget and it has caused a tremendous amount of controversy in the mobile and tech communities as no phone should ever be designed in a way that hinders usability. Apple also claims that adding a silicone case or an official bumper will resolve the problem. This has worked for some users but not for all of them.
Another issue of the new iPhone 4 is the fact that some of the units show yellow blotches on the retina display. This may be due to the iPhones being shipped out prematurely and therefore not allowing the glue that secures the screen's glass to the phone to cure properly. Some users seem to support this theory by stating that such blotches disappear over time by simply continuing to use the phone.
Lastly, two other small problems have been reported. Some users have stated that their volume buttons work properly but that the buttons themselves have been reversed - this means the increase volume button would show a minus and the decrease volume button would show a plus. As stated by TiPb this would only be bothersome aesthetically and not functionally. The other "issue" is that the glass on the iPhone 4 has already been able to be scratched by some users even though Apple claims that it is stronger than ever before. To be honest, neither of these last two issues concern me at all since I would simply get my phone exchanged if it had the buttons issue and I would not likely scratch mine as I tend to be extremely careful with my phones and I always keep them in a case that protects them.
THE VERDICT
By now you must be wondering if I will even get the new iPhone 4 when it launches in Canada. The answer is: ABSOLUTELY! - It turns out that the antenna issue has been around since the first version of the iPhone came out! Take a look at the video below and pay attention to the date in which it was posted.
A lot of people don't realize that the reception issue is non iPhone specific and that even Android phones exhibit similar reception problems when held a certain way. I am also not too worried about these problems as I plan to buy a bumper case and I never really hold my phone in a way that would trigger such problem. I am in no way denying that there are issues with the iPhone 4 but to me the benefits greatly outweigh the problems. Please feel free to leave a comment below with your views on Apple's iPhone 4.
it would be really interesting if we can replicate the same problem is canada. Also it is well known that At&T network is not the best... Anyways we will get them and if there is a big issue. we just returned.
ReplyDelete:)