Avi Greengart is the Research Director for Consumer Devices at Current Analysis (Mobile Phones, Connected Devices, and Digital Home). He also regularly writes for Slashgear, sporadically blogs at Home Theater View and Tweets far too often as @greengart. Avi's expertise lies in understanding consumer electronics marketing, consumer behavior, and technology adoption patterns: where new technologies meet the mass market. 

 

 

back to June 2010

July 2010

7/2/10: iPhone 4 "Broken Gauge" Admission

Apple now claims that the problems with the iPhone 4 reception are, in fact, a case of a broken signal meter, which Apple will fix in an upcoming software update. I will not be writing a formal report on this, but here are some quick thoughts:

bulletBased on its initial sales rate, the iPhone 4 is one of the best selling consumer electronics products of all time. Any problems Apple have not affected sales, nor do I expect sales to be affected in the future. The problems do, however, damage Apple's brand, and play into a long line of often legitimate complaints against the iPhone.
 
bulletThe iPhone 4 is the best performing iPhone we have ever tested. I am getting reception in areas that did not work with the iPhone 3G S. Some of this may be due to AT&T network improvements, but the fact remains that, when held without contacting the bottom left antenna area, the iPhone 4 gets significantly better reception than past efforts.
 
bulletIf the reception bar gauge is broken, fixing it will provide a more accurate picture of what reception the iPhone is getting. However, it will not change the fact that Apple designed a phone with an antenna on the outside of the phone where skin contact can attenuate the signal. This design may contribute to the iPhone 4's improved reception overall, however, users still must remain careful to hold the phone without covering the antenna gap on the bottom left of the phone or risk signal loss. This problem is easily solved with the use of a case, and I continue to recommend that Apple simply include a bumper case with every iPhone 4 as a matter of course, as many of its competitors do.
 

My initial report (clients/journalists) on the iPhone 4 reception issue is here: Apple iPhone 4 “Death Grip” Problem: It’s Real, It’s a PR Disaster, but It Won’t Affect Sales

My report (clients/journalists) on the iPhone 4 overall is here: Apple iPhone 4: Apple Extends its Lead Over the Competition

 

I'll be at Steve Jobs' WWDC keynote tomorrow morning; clients and journalists seeking my reaction afterwards should email me at agreengart@currentanalysis.com, or call me at +1 (201) 677-8AVI.