The Reader

Mine either...and I've been messing around with it since yesterday.

Sent from my iPhone 4

On Jun 24, 2010, at 10:16 AM, Mark <hargrme@gmail.com> wrote:

> Tried it. Doesn't happen with my iPhone 4.
>
> Mark
>
> On Thu, Jun 24, 2010 at 10:25 AM, rkkeller8 <thekellergroup@gmail.com>wrote:
>
> >
> >
> >
> > http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/06/iphone-4-loses-reception-when-antenna-band-is-touched-firmware-issue/
> >
> > Got an iPhone 4 yet? Hold it carefully by the glass, avoiding the new steel
> > antenna band that runs around the edges. Note the number of signal-strength
> > bars you have. Now, touch the steel band with your other hand, preferably
> > the left and bottom sides together. You will almost certainly see your
> > signal disappear, or drop by three or four bars.
> >
> > The problem is being so widely reported that Gizmodo has managed to add 16
> > videos of the phenomenon, along with many, many user reports. The problem is
> > also repeatable, making it look like a lot more than simple coincidence.
> >
> > If you have ever touched a bare-metal loop antenna for a TV, you'll know
> > that the water-filled human body has an effect on the reception, although in
> > that case it usually improves the picture.
> >
> > This, it turns out, is not entirely unexpected. Just two weeks ago, Jens
> > Nielsen of Danish blog ComON quoted Professor Gert Frølund Pedersen of the
> > Department of Electronic Systems at Aalborg University:
> >
> > [H]uman tissues will in any case have an inhibitory effect on the antenna.
> > Touch means that a larger portion of the antenna energy turns into heat and
> > lost. This makes the antenna less efficient to send and receive radio
> > signals. [Translation by Google]
> >
> > Simply holding the new iPhone in the hand is enough to kill the signal.
> > Even Walt Mossberg, in his review of the iPhone 4, had an eerily
> > similar-sounding experience:
> >
> > [O]n at least six occasions during my tests, the new iPhone was either
> > reporting "no service" or searching for a network while the old one, held in
> > my other hand, was showing at least a couple of bars. Neither Apple nor AT&T
> > could explain this. [emphasis added]
> >
> > Is it possible that a problem like this would make it into the wild? You'd
> > think that it would have been discovered in testing. On the other hand,
> > maybe this is what caused Steve Jobs' connection woes at the WWDC keynote
> > where he demoed the new handset?
> >
> > One possible answer is in the way the new antenna works. Instead of just
> > picking the strongest signal, the iPhone 4 picks the highest quality signal,
> > the frequency with the least amount of interference. In the current iPhone
> > firmware, this is not yet reflected in the signal display, which still
> > indicates actual strength. Apple has said that this is known bug which it
> > plans to fix. If true, then you shouldn't actually drop a call, even when
> > your apparent signal-bars drop to zero.
> >
> > Or perhaps it is all a sinister plot from Apple to sell more of those
> > insulating rubber Bumper cases?
> >
> > If you have an iPhone 4, please test this out for us, and send the results
> > to us at gadgetnews@wired.com <gadgetnews%40wired.com> or post them in the
> > comments. Specifically, check to see if a decrease in displayed bars
> > corresponds with an actual drop in call quality.
> >
> >
> >
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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