Apple's iPhone 4 explanation

 

 

Official response ... Apple blames software for iPhone 4 issues

APPLE today released a letter to owners of the new iPhone 4 as a response to recent controversy about the product.

The must-have mobile was released a week ago but many of those who bought the device - which can cost up to £599 - complained its reception dropped when it was held with fingers touching the antenna running in a stainless steel strip around its body.
The company says it was "surprised" by these reports and has identified an issue with the mobile's software that could be the cause.
It claims the phone displays the wrong number of bars showing the reception in the nearby area.
It admits the formula it uses to calculate this is "totally wrong" and Apple will be releasing an updated version of the software to the handset in the coming weeks.
The letter states: "For those who have had concerns, we apologise for any anxiety we may have caused."
Apple also writes how the the iPhone 4 has been the most successful product launch in its history.
But it adds: "We were surprised when we read reports of reception problems, and we immediately began investigating them. To start with, gripping almost any mobile phone in certain ways will reduce its reception by 1 or more bars.
"This is true of iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, as well as many Droid, Nokia and RIM phones. But some users have reported that iPhone 4 can drop 4 or 5 bars when tightly held in a way which covers the black strip in the lower left corner of the metal band. This is a far bigger drop than normal, and as a result some have accused the iPhone 4 of having a faulty antenna design."
It continues: "We have discovered the cause of this dramatic drop in bars, and it is both simple and surprising.
"Upon investigation, we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong. Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength.
"For example, we sometimes display 4 bars when we should be displaying as few as 2 bars. Users observing a drop of several bars when they grip their iPhone in a certain way are most likely in an area with very weak signal strength, but they don't know it because we are erroneously displaying 4 or 5 bars. Their big drop in bars is because their high bars were never real in the first place."
Apple adds since the mistake has also affected devices since the original iPhone, this software update will also be available for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G models.
It ends: "We hope you love the iPhone 4 as much as we do. Thank you for your patience and support."