Tag Archives: iPhone 4

Apple’s answer to iPhone 4 deathgrippers: free cases

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Today Apple held a press conference to address the iPhone 4 antenna problem that’s been making waves in the news recently.  Just to recap, the antenna problem occurs when an iPhone 4 user grips the lower left side of the phone.  AT&T signal strengh drops from five bars to none at a rapid rate when the user touches and/or grips that specific part of the phone.  An official statement from Apple advised users to hold their phones differently or slap on a case.  A case would cover the vulnerable lower left side and result in better signal strength during day-to-day use.  Today Jobs announced that Apple will begin offering their Bumper case for free for all iPhone 4 owners who purchase their device before September 30.  In regards to extending the free case offer Apple says they will evaluate the situation again in late September.  If you’ve already purchased a Bumper case, you can receive a full refund on it.  Since Apple cannot manufacture enough Bumpers fast enough, they will offer a choice of free cases to choose from (these have not been specified yet).  Starting late next week you can apply for a free case at Apple’s online store.  And if you’re totally unsatisfied with your purchase you can get a full refund on the phone; Apple’s got a 30 day return policy and a restocking fee will not be applied.

What led Apple to making this decision to offer free cases?  Read on to find out. Continue reading Apple’s answer to iPhone 4 deathgrippers: free cases →

iPhone 4 sales, international ship date, proximity sensor update & white model get discussed [Update: White iPhone delayed until end of year]

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At the press conference that formally addressed the iPhone 4 antenna problem Apple alloted some time to discuss other news surrounding the magical (if it’s in a case) phone.  Apple has sold over three million iPhone 4s since it launched three weeks ago.  He also says the 4 has received “the highest customer satisfaction of any iPhone or smartphone.”  Next up, the iPhone 4 will ship in 17 more countries on July 30, including a bunch of European countries, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and Hong Kong.  Noticably missing from the list was South Korea who was on the late-July shipping list back at WWDC.  Apple also addressed the problem some users are having with the proximity sensor; it involves intermittent malfunctions where the display stays on during a device-to-ear phone call, and this results in accidental hang-ups when the phone is pressed up to the face.  The next iOS 4 software update promises to remedy it.  Lastly, you can expect the white iPhone 4 to ship at the end of this month, a tad later than expected.

Update: Today (7/23) Apple announced in a brief press statement that the white iPhone 4 model will not ship at the end of this month.  Due to manufacturing problems, it “will not be available until later this year.”

[Via Engadget, here & here]

Check out Apple’s $100 million phone test labs

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To prove that they invest a lot of time, energy, and money in making sure their phones are ready for launch, Apple showed off their state of the art testing facilities.  Apple spend $100 million to create 17 anechoic chambers.  These buildings are the largest on the Cupertino campus.  These chambers are “designed to stop reflections of either sound or electromagnetic waves”, and this makes for the perfect environment for cell phone testing.  “You have to build these rooms or you don’t get accurate results,” Steve Jobs pointed out at today’s press conference regarding the iPhone 4’s antenna problem.  The chambers are “connected to sophisticated equipment that simulates cellular base stations, WiFi networks, Bluetooth devices – even GPS satellites” to ensure that all aspects of the phone are tested properly and thoroughly.  Apple also said that they have 18 PhD scientists and engineers on hand when it’s testing time.

Apple released three stills of these strikingly designed sound proof rooms; check ’em out in the gallery below.  Also head over to Apple’s site to watch a brief video that takes you into some of the chambers and does a great job of describing how they’re utilized.

Update: Apple uploaded the behind-the-scenes video to their YouTube page.  I went ahead and embedded it for you; it’s sitting after the break.

[Via Apple; Engadget]

Continue reading Check out Apple’s $100 million phone test labs →

Consumer Reports says they “can’t recommend the iPhone 4” due to the antenna problem

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Today Consumer Reports updated their original review of the iPhone 4 after properly testing the device’s antenna.  In their original review, CR recommended the iPhone 4: “The iPhone scored high, in part because it sports the sharpest display and best video camera we’ve seen on any phone…”  They go on to praise the improved battery life, front-facing camera, and built-in gyroscope.  During their time with the initial review test unit, they were “unable to replicate the [antenna] problems” that so many other iPhone owners seemed to be complaining about.  For some reason or another, CR decided to bring the iPhone 4 into their labs to test the antenna problem head-on.  (Why they didn’t do this in the first place is beyond me.)  Their findings:

When your finger or hand touches a spot on the phone’s lower left side—an easy thing, especially for lefties—the signal can significantly degrade enough to cause you to lose your connection altogether if you’re in an area with a weak signal. Due to this problem, we can’t recommend the iPhone 4.

The tests were conducted inside a radio frequency isolation chamber, a room “which is impervious to outside radio signals.”  After connecting “the phones to our base-station emulator, a device that simulates carrier cell towers” they concluded that all of their iPhone models were affected with the antenna problem.  They also tested other AT&T smartphones (namely the iPhone 3G and Palm Pre) and “none of those phones had the signal-loss problems of the iPhone 4.”  Boom.

CR goes on to say that these tests call into question Apple’s forthcoming software quick update which promises to fix the way the signal bars are displayed on the phone.  After coming to this conclusion, they hint that the antenna problem is almost certainly a hardware issue, and a software update and blaming AT&T’s less than stellar network will not pave a way out of this sticky situation.  Speaking of sticky, CR recommends that those affected with the antenna problem can remedy it by applying a small piece of duct tape over the antenna gap.  Not only does this make the phone look downright ugly, it’s going to leave sticky residue and you just don’t want that on your hands (and mind).  Go out and get a bumper case if you can’t manage to hold your phone differently.  CR parts with these glum words: “Apple needs to come up with a permanent—and free—fix for the antenna problem before we can recommend the iPhone 4.”  If the antenna problem is truly hardware-based (and it’s really starting to seem like it is), Apple needs to come out of hiding, admit their design flaw, fix it interally, and offer those affected with a free swap-out of updated models.  Like stat.

[Via Consumer Reports]

Fring update allows 2-way video calling over 3G with iPhone 4 (and more) [Update: Skype support is gone]

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I’m just as surpised as you are when I found out that the boys of Cupertino allowed Fring, a voice/video/IM client app, to update its services to give its users the ability to make video calls over AT&T’s 3G network.  Up until now, iPhone 4 users could make video calls using Apple’s FaceTime feature, and this is restricted to WiFi only and other iPhone 4 users.  With the latest version of Fring, iPhone 4 users have multiple options when it comes to video calling.  They can video chat over WiFi & 3G and with non-iPhone 4 users (it’ll work with any mobile device that carries Fring in its App Store).  And since Fring allows you to connect your Skype account to it, now you can video chat with friends and family from iPhone 4 to a PC/Mac running Skype.  Among other new features, Fring now supports iOS4 multitasking and offers a new “social stream” and a “smarter address book”.  Give it a try now–the updated Fring app is sitting in the App Store for $0.

Some clarification: If you have an iPhone 4, you can use Fring to make video calls with other iPhone 4 users as well as users of other devices.  If the user you are calling is using an HTC EVO 4G, two-way video calling should work just fine since both the iPhone 4 and EVO 4G have front-facing cameras.  If the user you are calling has a phone that does not have a front-facing camera (say, the Droid Incredible), video calling will only work one-way (from iPhone 4 to the Incredible).  Having a front-facing camera is a requirement to send out video; your backside camera will not suffice.  Get it?–got it?–good.

Update: Since the update was pushed out last Thursday, tons of iPhone owners have been testing it and this resulted in “network stress” for Fring’s servers.  For the time being, Fring is “temporarily reducing support to 3rd –party Skype.”  This means that many of your cell phone to PC/Mac audio/video calls mediated by Skype may not go through at this time.  Fring says they’re working on the issue, and they hope the temporary shut down will open up the ether for Fring-to-Fring video calling.

Update 2:  When Fring decided to temporarily pull the Skype service from its app due to “network stress” issues, Skype swiftly insisted that this action was a breach of their API Terms of Use and End User Licence Agreement.  Skype goes on to say that the Fring’s decision to remove Skype functionality “damaged the Skype brand” and reputation.  In a blog post titled “Skype Cowardly Blocks fring“, Fring goes on the defensive and claims that Skype removed itself from the app, while Skype refutes this claim and calls it “untrue.”  Two can play this he said/she said game all day long, but what does this all result in for the end consumer?  No Skype (voice/video) capability with Fring.  And that’s a major disappointment because for that very short period of time, Fring was the only way to make iPhone 4 to PC/Mac video communication.  Blast!  Look after the break for the official statements from both parties involved.

[Via Fring, here, here & here; Skype] Continue reading Fring update allows 2-way video calling over 3G with iPhone 4 (and more) [Update: Skype support is gone] →

Stop-motion teardown of iPhone 4 proves it’s beautiful on the inside, too

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The fellas at TechRestore are back with a new teardown.  Yup, it’s the iPhone 4.

1784 hi-res photos combine to make a stop-motion expose of the iPhone 4, revealing every detail of construction, from packaging, down to the chips on the logic-board. Set to a custom electronic/glitch soundtrack, with fast paced action, this is no ordinary unboxing and take-apart video!

Well said.  Now watch.

[Via Gizmodo]

iPhone 4: 600,000 preorders, 1.7 million sold, reception & screen issues addressed

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iPhone 4 launch day has come and gone so let’s discuss how it all went down.  At WWDC ’10Apple CEO Steve Jobs called iPhone 4 “the biggest leap since the original iPhone”, piquing the interest of his most devout followers, so much so that they lined up in droves to preorder and purchase the latest gadget to come out of Cupertino.  On June 15, Apple, AT&T, and other authorized Apple retailers begain taking preorders for iPhone 4.  On that single day, iPhone 4 preorders maxed out at 600,000.  According to AT&T, that’s ten times as many orders as it took for last year’s iPhone 3GS.  Due to this insanely high number of preorders, Apple and AT&T were forced to halt all preorders until the phone hit store shelves one week and two days later.  And that brings us to launch day.  On June 24 iPhone 4 launched nationwide and in the UK, France, Germany and Japan to an excitable population ready to get their hands on the shiny, sleek new handset.  At Apple Retail Stores those who preordered waited in line to nab their guaranteed iPhone while overnight campers tried their luck at receiving the leftovers.  The latest tallies reveal that Apple sold 1.7 million iPhone 4s through June 26 (that’s just three days on the market!).  In an official PR, Jobs stated, “This is the most successful product launch in Apple’s history.  Even so, we apologize to those customers who were turned away because we did not have enough supply.”  According to the Apple Online Store, more iPhone 4 units will ship in about three weeks.  Soon enough, Apple Stores will be chock full of new iPhones for everyone who missed out on the initial launch supply.

What began as a cheery launch quickly turned into a melancholy situation when iPhone 4 users started to cry foul about reception and screen issues.  Let’s start with the latter issue that has seemed to disapate as of late.  A number of iPhone 4 users are discovering slight yellow spots at the bottom right-hand corner of their retina displays.  An AppleInsider forum poster has come up with the best explanation for this:

Apple is using a bonding agent called Organofunctional Silane Z-6011 to bond the layers of glass. Apparently, Apple (or more likely Foxconn) is shipping these products so quickly that the evaporation process is not complete. However, after one or two days of use, especially with the screen on, will complete the evaporation process and the yellow “blotches” will disappear. How do I know? I was involved in pitching Z-6011 to Apple.

Since the time this explanation was outed (just a couple hours after the launch on the 24th) the desperate cry for help has waned.  It appears that those affected with the yellow spots will notice them disappear after a day or two of use.

The same cannot go for the next (and more dire) iPhone 4 problem: the tale of reception woes.  iPhone 4 users first noticed this problem when they gripped the phone in a certain way (in a very common way, mind you).  On the affected devices, if you hold the phone in any way that covers the lower left-hand side where the black strip is located (pictured above) you will notice your signal drop almost immediately from five to zero bars.  Preposterous!, you’re thinking.  But it’s true, so let’s dive into this a bit more.  At WWDC ’10, Jobs announced that the new iPhone packs a new antenna system that actually wraps around the outside phone so as to provide better signal strength.  The metallic band that wraps around the phone contains one piece for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS and the other for UMTS & GSM.  When you cover the bottom left-hand side of the phone where the GSM band wraps the phone all signal is lost.  What’s rather ironic is that what Jobs called “brilliant engineering” has turned into an engineering EPIC FAIL in the minds of many iPhone 4 users. Continue reading iPhone 4: 600,000 preorders, 1.7 million sold, reception & screen issues addressed →

WWDC ’10: All about iPhone 4

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This year’s World Wide Developers Conference in San Fransisco *officially* introduced the world to the next super phone from Apple dubbed iPhone 4.  Want all the details from the Steve Jobs hosted keynote?  Read on.

Jobs ignited the introduction of the next phone with this choice quote: “It’s the biggest leap since the original iPhone.”  It packs over 100 new features, but per usual, Jobs offers a glimpse into arguably the nine most exciting new features.

(1) All new design

Jobs compares iPhone 4’s design to a “beautiful old Leica camera.”  The phone features a glass surface front and back for optical quality & scratch resistance (plus it’s 30x harder than plastic) and a stainless steel band around the perimeter for strength and antenna integration (plus it provides for extraordinary build quality).  The band is “the primary structural element of the phone.”  It’s used as part of the phone’s antenna system.  Jobs says this is all part of “brilliant engineering.”  There are three slits in the band; one piece is for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS, and the other piece for UMTS & GSM.  Now here’s what buttons and levers you’ll find on the phone.  Left side: volume +, volume -, mute; Right side: micro SIM tray; Front: home button, receiver, front-facing camera; Back: camera w/ LED flash; Top: 3.5mm headset jack, second mic for noise cancellation, sleep/wake button; Bottom: mic, 30-pin connector, speaker.  iPhone 4 is just 9.3mm thick, that’s 24% thinner than iPhone 3GS.  Jobs is happy to say “it is the thinnest smartphone on the planet.”

(2) Retina display

That’s the name for Apple’s latest display technology.  iPhone 4’s display contains packs four times the number of pixels into the same 3.5-inch screen found on older iPhone models.  At 326 pixels per inch, Jobs claims that 300ppi is the limit of the human retina and so iPhone 4’s display is “comfortably over that limit.”  This results in incredibly sharp and precise text, images, and video.  Jobs compares it to how text looks in a fine-printed book.  He also throws out this stat: “the retina display has got 78% of the pixels on the iPad, right in the palm of your hand.”

iPhone OS 4 (renamed iOS 4) makes it so that your apps automatically run full size on the retina display.  Apps will look even better on an iOS 4 device because the software automatically renders text and controls in the higher resolution.  So in other words, developers do not have to do any work on their apps to make them look better for the new display.  However, Jobs points out, if devs choose to open up the hood of their apps and add higher resolution artwork “then they will look stunning.”

Here’s some hard specs for you.  iPhone 4 features a 3.5 inch display, 940 x 640 resolution (4x more than iPhone 3GS), 800:1 contrast ratio (4x more than 3GS), and IPS technology for “superb color and wide viewing angle.”  Jobs: “The display is your window into the Internet, into your apps, into your media, into your software. .. We’ve got something here that’s the best window in the planet.”

Continue reading WWDC ’10: All about iPhone 4 →