InFriday ’s hotly - forebode Apple press league , CEO Steve Jobs babble plenty about the iPhone 4 and its attenuating circumstances . But didthe company ’s announcementsgenuinely address Antennagate ?
To answer that , we ask to learn what Jobs said more closely — specifically , the primal points the company test to drive home Friday .
Apple and its customers, sitting in a tree…
First , Jobs continually emphasized how much Apple loves its customers — really , really , reallyloves them . Like , it want to buy them flowers and umber and take them on moonlit saunter down secluded beach .
Boy , if only Apple could have been a little more absolved about how it finger toward its customers .
An outpouring of affection is skillful and all , but that speak the sign intensity level of your nitty-gritty more than that of your iPhone 4 . What did Apple have to say in that regard ?
Falling signal strength—all the cool phones are doing it
Right off the chiropteran , Jobs emphasized that the issues surrounding the iPhone 4 are n’t unique to that model — many smartphones present identical receipt behavior , if hold in in just the right ( or wrong ? ) way . Not only did job expend a longsighted time on this point , Apple ’s also devotedan entirely new section of its Websiteto the same thought . Frankly , it ’s not a point I expected Apple to give much attention to , but the troupe was right-hand to do it .
The new Web Thomas Nelson Page provides photographic and video cogent evidence of what Apple ’s read : have-to doe with phones in the wrong places , and their signal intensity will decrease . What Apple does n’t accentuate , though , is that the iPhone 4 ’s “ risk zone ” is in a more - likely - to - be - touched spot than it is on many of its rival ’ phones . The HTC Droid Eris , for example , cavort its feeler near the rear top edge of the phone . Unless you by design — and , in my horizon , awkwardly — reach a finger up there , you ’re not going to rarefy its signaling too much . On the BlackBerry Bold 9700 and Apple ’s own iPhone 3GS , the spot to avoid touching is in the back bottom center of the telephone set — risky , but arguably still easier to avoid than the spot on the iPhone 4 .
Look , though , at how Apple project the clasp holding each phone in the “ before ” views on its site .
All of the phone are carefully held to avoid touching them in the spot that negatively impacts the iPhone 4 . Try holding , well , anythingin that ill-chosen grip . But you could carry other smartphones in more traditional grips without their signal drop the way the iPhone 4 ’s would .
That said , Apple ’s point still have : affecting smartphones can weaken their signals , due to a design fault for which physical science is to blame . Apple ’s spot here was n’t to recount its customers — whom , think of , Apple loves deeply — that their offspring are imagined . Rather , Apple ’s point was to state the pressing to shut up already about the iPhone 4 signal issuance , because in Apple ’s view it’snot specifically an iPhone 4 trouble . It ’s a fair point , and I believe Apple made it well .
Bumpers for everyone!
Finally , Apple announced the free bumpers ( or other third - party casing , since the bumper crop is low this yr ) for all iPhone 4 owners , and rebates if you already buy a bumper . I remember this is a altogether appropriate motion , as it ’s been shown repeatedly — even by new Apple nemesisConsumer Reports — that the bumper case palliate almost all of the attenuation issue .
Some , though , could conceivably look a gift bumper case in the rima oris . If you bought a different ( non - Apple ) case for your iPhone 4 , Apple wo n’t give you a refund for it . But chances are you bought the character for intellect of manner or protection — perhaps before you ’d even hear of or experience the antenna issue — so I think it ’s fair that Apple ’s not refunding the purchase in those situations .
But what if you bought the iPhone 4 not just for the debauched processor , the much - improved camera , the video recording - chatting , or the middle - popping Retina display ? What if , alternatively , you buy the iPhone 4 because of its aphrodisiacal glass enclosure and overall blueprint , and you do n’t want to see it constrain by any case ?
In that case , there ’s still good(ish ) news . Jobs specifically stated that anyone who want to render an undamaged iPhone 4 may do so for a perfect refund . The Apple CEO promised no restock fees , and even suggested that you may still be able-bodied to get out of your new AT&T contract , too . So if you bought an iPhone 4 , and its ( potential ) call for for a ( barren ) case translate that iPhone 4 less attractive to you , you may take it back . That ’s actually a jolly fair flock .
On the whole , Apple successfully addressed criticisms leveled at it by pressure and reviewers , reassured client of its great affectionateness for them , and offered a job - work case to anyone who wants one , free of bearing . If you could forget about Steve Jobs ’s infamous“don’t defy it that way ” e - ring armor , and if you could move past the bizarre“the signaling barroom are wrong”faux - solution , the company last managed to amount up with a response that deal the controversy middling well .
[ Lex Friedmanis a frequent contributor to Macworld . ]
