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Andy Ihnatko, over at his personal blog:
- Does Consumer Reports understand the nature of the problem? They claim to have tested the antenna scientifically but haven’t (as far as I can tell) broken any new ground beyond “If you bridge the gap, you lose bars.” Is it a hardware issue? A software issue? A mere ergonomic issue?
- It’s a repeatable, reliable demo. But are iPhone users likely to encounter an actual problem? I did a 20-minute phone interview with PBS this afternoon and I did it on an uncased iPhone 4. I didn’t even think twice about it.
- Assuming that a specific consumer regarded the antenna problem as a dealbreaker: if there were a way around the problem, would the iPhone then be worthwhile? I say yes, absolutely. Take away “there’s a slightly greater chance that it might drop a call” and you’re left with a phone with a huge laundry list of advantages over every previous iPhone and most other phones. Including, might I point out, better reception than the iPhone 3GS.
- Is there a way around the problem? Yes. Put it in a case, which is something lots of people (myself included) were going to do anyway.
On that basis, I think Consumer Reports’ stance is extreme. Though in their defense, there’s a difference between “we’re not recommending it” and “we’re recommending that people not buy it.”
Reading their followup coverage, it appears that they can’t evaluate how well “iPhone with a case” works until they develop a separate test protocol; their standard test policy is to test the phone as-shipped by the manufacturer.
This is why I have occasional problems with Consumer Reports reviews. I think this is another instance in which the magazine is showing more loyalty to their standardized test procedures than to their readers.
Exactly what I thought all along when reading Consumer Reports’ motivations for the non-recommendation. Also, make sure to read Ihnatko’s take on yesterday’s conference at SunTimes.
Oh yeah people, get ready for every cellphone maker that was mentioned by Apple yesterday to respond with an official statement.
Of course first is RIM. You know, those behind Blackberry. They’re saying that Apple’s attempt to show a common issue is unacceptable, that RIM is a global leader in antenna design and that Blackberry users don’t need to wear protections on their phones.
Check out the full statement below.
Brian X.Chen, reporting for Wired:
“Led by Ruben Caballero, a senior engineer and antenna expert at Apple, the tour gave about 10 reporters and bloggers a peek at Apple’s custom-built wireless testing lab, which consists of several anechoic chambers to measure frequency of each device in various settings.
Apple called the lab a “black” lab because it was a secret facility that even some employees were unaware of. The company made the lab public to show the world that Apple takes antenna design and wireless testing seriously.
“This is the most advanced lab for doing RF studies that anyone in the world has,” said Phil Schiller, vice president of marketing at Apple. “The designs we do wouldn’t be possible without it.”
Each test chamber is lined with blue pyramid-shaped styrofoam designed to absorb radio-frequency radiation. A robotic arm holding gadgets such as iPads and iPhones spins 360 degrees while a piece of analytics software (ironically running on Windows XP) visualizes the wireless activity of each device.
“To do the most challenging design in the world, this is what we have to do,” said Bob Mansfield, Apple’s senior vice president of Macintosh hardware. “This is hardcore stuff.”
When Federico passed this application onto me, I was virtually told nothing about it. And without any precursor I sat looking at a rather drab icon on an iPad homescreen thinking, “This is going to be really lame.” Already I had judged a book by its cover, and that was a mistake. Terminology for the iPad is a dictionary, thesaurus, and all around word browser for the English language that’s become useful in my daily workflow.
I’ve just finished watching today’s Apple press conference about the iPhone 4, and I can’t help but being totally surprised about the mess we created about this antenna issue.
After watching the cellphone videos Apple posted on the antenna page, I think we should all shut up for a second and think about the material we post on our blogs.
Ever since Hulu announced its plans for Hulu +, a premium subscription service that gives you access to full HD content and mobile apps, we all applied for an invite. I know you did, and I did too. I still haven’t got mine.
But, my good friend Matthew Rex was able to get in and he posted some screenshots and impressions about the overall service and video quality. He’s got some interesting findings to share, too.
I really appreciate Apple’s honesty when it came to this press conference, which was backed by real acquired data. TUAW and The Next Web have put Apple’s figures into perspective, so let’s review.
Following the official apple.com/antenna webpage, Apple has also introduced a section dedicated to its Antenna design and test labs.
