Apple keeps antennagate alive with Droid X's 'kill switch' (video)
By Ross Miller 
posted July 23rd 2010 7:20PM
posted July 23rd 2010 7:20PM
posted July 23rd 2010 7:20PM
Motorola DROID X
Apple iPhone 4
Google Android 4.0
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@Ellianth the issue occurs in areas that have a low signal strength to begin with. the people that can't reproduce it are probably in areas with a good signal strength.
There are plenty of people that aren't Apple that have reproduced it too
@BrandonHarris Because there all tools
@Seven2k
You guys are completely missing the point of this issue. Nobody cares about this but android fanboys on tech blogs. Has Apple seen mass returns of the iPhone 4? Has Apple seen mass cancelations on the waiting list for iPhone 4s? Nope. For everybody person that decides they don't want an iPhone 4 due to the antenna issue there is somebody else waiting in line to get one. Honestly, besides giving all you guys something to grumble about this is almost a non-issue.
@Greg7388 This isn't Fox News no one is making it up. That being said probably not as big a deal as its being made out to be, but Apple and it's fans are making it worse. I think its pretty and would just wear a bluetooth all the time like I do anyway. Great device with a livable flaw, I think if you really like it, hold it different!
@Colrath How did this get downranked?
Oh right, Endaget is made up of nothing but Fandroids
X's Score is all around better in signal attenuation in testing at Anandtech.com
http://www.anandtech.com/show/3826/motorola-droid-x-thoroughly-reviewed/14
hope they fix that Wifi n rating business... and where was the g test on the X?
@Ellianth Mr. Jobs you are such a dussy. It doesn't change the fact that the best antenna u ever made is horrible and u had to defend it. I have a evo now not a iPhone. Act like u are the big dawg and rise above this. U r acting like a baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@Seven2k
Either way, if the droid X antenna issue were true. I would still much rather have a phone with nicer screen like the Droid X than the iProne 4. I can't wait for HTC to do some real research into the the iPhone and find some more crap that can be posted in Youtube.
@Seven2k This is just a terrible move by Apple. Not only are they not doing anything about their -24db attenuation, they are saying that its perfectly normal, deal with it. That's really not how Apple ran things a couple years ago.
As for this "test"... of course you're gonna be dropping bars when you're blocking the antenna in a place where you dont get good signal, I get that with my 4 yr old Nokia flip phone. We really dont care how many bars it drops, Apple can mod their software to read full bars at -131db attenuation.
A more conclusive test, hell, the only test that proves anything of value would be for Apple to test HOW MUCH ATTENUATION is there. See if any other phone matches the -24db of the i4. Seriously Jobs, this is not good business practice... doubt you'll find any business school teaching to you shift blame to save face
@Ellianth AT&T could clarify everything as they have data for iPhone and other phones, inlcuding Motorola Android phones, used on their network. 1% diff that Apple says is between iPhone4 and 3GS is HUGE! Drop call rates are around 1-3% so 1% diff could be 50%-100% worse.
BTW, nobody holds their phone like they show it. WIth normal grip that most ppl use iPhone4 has problems and most other phones don't.
@Seven2k
Did anyone notice that the droidx looks REALLY small in that pic/video...the droidx would only look that small in Paul Bunyan's hands. I think this is still the iPhone 4 with a android-skinned dialer, no wonder it drops bars.
@OMGTECH
Ahahahahha
@RawlsRorty "I'm a professional electrical engineer and these "ads" don't seem malicious or pointless to me. "
I hate people lying about their qualifications in comment threads.
If you were an electrical engineer, you wouldn't say that, because the external antenna IS a hardware design flaw. Even old analog cell phones with external antennas warned of lost reception if you touched the antenna.
Apple decided to put two antennae side by side, right where the majority of people hold their phones, which causes a far greater loss of signal than any phone on the market that's properly shielded from direct contact with the skin.
In short, they sacrificed engineering for aesthetics. For the vast majority of people, that's fine, but for others who, by luck of average signal strength or the galvanic response of their skin, the iPhone 4 is almost useless. That's a very small minority, but to defend Apple as anything but malicious on the issue is misleading.
@ac2913 I was gonna say there is no way that is a Droid X because in the Engadget review the phone barely fits in the reviewer's hand. It was one of the issues Chris had with the phone. This must only be a problem if you are a giant.
@Seven2k Well, the issue is this. Its a fact that, if you cover your any antenna with a non conductive material, e.i. your hand, antenna reception will suffer, that´s as truth to the iphone as it is to any other phone. So if you cover your phone´s antenna with your hand, it will drop bars, apple discovered the hot water, in those 21 days of braking their asses off ¬ ¬. it´s also a fact that cellphone manufactures are well aware of this issue, so they place their antennas in smart places, where your hand wont normally grip the phone e.i. at the very top or at the very bottom, or they will use a double antenna, nokia for example put some insulating material to their antennas so users wont suffer this kind of problems that´s why you don´t hear anyone complaining about nokias reception, and their cellphones has normally more reception than average. I have an old BB 8900, and if I cover the top of the phone, it will loose signal, but the thing there is no reason to hold the phone in that way, and I never do it, it would be awkward, so its a good place to put your antenna. What the iphone4 has, its a bad antenna design, ofcorz Apple won´t come out and say, hey! my antenna design its crappy, so come up and buy my phone!. but as someone mention, they are just dragging this longer by shooting out at other cellphone that don´t have the same problem, cuz their antenna design its superior, so that´s make me see alternatives,if i wanted and iphone, after seen that add, I would go and check a Droid X and compare it to the iphone and see if it really has the same problem, and guess, what it wont, and I would probably second guess my self, if I really should be looking into a phone of a company that plain lie to my face.... Apple give it a rest, u made a mistake, other manufacturers have done so in the past, but nobody remembers, nobody really care, you already have tried to Fix, so please just stop this Drama its hurting you!!!
@Seven2k
APPLE YOUR HOLDING IT WRONG LOL. WHO THE HELL WOULD HOLD A DROID X LIKE THAT. O WAIT I KNOW, SOMEONE WHO IS DESPERATE TO TAKE THE ATTENTION OFF THEMSELVES. JUST SOME ADVICE. LET IT GO AND FIX YOUR OWN ISSUES!!!!
@benerrol
I guess you're right, internet site commenter. My company does fail.
Seeing as we're a completely failed business, I will give it up on Monday when I'm back in office.
Thanks for the enlightenment and recommendation.
Steve.
Sent from my iPed
@kchase731 1) They owned the issue last Friday by offering free cases and refunds 2) Other companies (Motorola, Nokia, etc.) have openly MOCKED Apple for this issue, claiming that you can hold their phones any way you want without attenuation 3) The average consumer does not know anything about cellular antennas, and is only informed about this issue from the 30-second iPhone 4 stories on the evening news.
Apple has every right to defend itself, and has done everything reasonable. If people are still unsatisfied, return it for a full refund.
The evo is still hard to get.
@rmbrown09
Fact of the matter is... They tried to skew your perception of those number by ONLY providing "AppleCare" numbers. How about calls to AT&T, and all the other international carriers??? And since they want to try to show that the "same issue" (it is indeed NOT -- what other phone has an external antenna that can be TOUCHED and detuned??), how about to show us more numbers on the changes of those CS calls to AppleCare AND all the carriers?? How about more return rates, because I know for a fact more ppl have returned their phones because of the BS they spoke during the press conf, and Apple's/Steve's attitudes abt this whole issue, INCLUDING their continuation of trying to ruin other companies reputation because THEY FAILED.
Yet, most of you "loyalists" are still backing Apple?! WHY??? I dont care if you like ur phone or not, but please tell me you are not approving of their attitudes and actions right now?? SMMFH
@XChrisX I know, this issue offends people so personally that FIRST-HAND observations to the contrary get down-ranked because it goes against the bias that others have built up. I am waiting for my iPhone 4 to come because I've heard great things about its features. If reception is bad, I will return it. If not, I will keep it. CRAZY!
@MrFluffyThing
OH yea... why not conduct all these tests.. OUTSIDE so all the phones can have the best signal possible, and not worry abt degradation do to walls, appliances, etc.
Apple is bunch of LIARS and CHEATERS! Aside from issues, I think they make(MADE) great products. Now, they have been caught with their pants down, and instead of taking the embarrassment that would shortly go away, they continue to try to embarrass others so they dont look as bad.. ONLY that they are making things WORSE! smh.
@1 Infinite Loop Cupertino CA
Definitely not true. This story has reached the average consumer and had some effect. Not huge, but many of them are aware of it and I know a few that steered away from the iPhone 4 because of it. I agree that these videos are pointless, though. Anyone who is convinced by these videos was probably already a fan to begin with and hasn't changed.
@Ellianth
Watch the video once more, you'll see a person, out of focus, walk directly behind the phone when the signal drops to zero.
@cannoli That's exactly what the vast majority of iPhone 4 owners say too, they cannot recreate the issue because it only happens in places with a very weak/poor signal. Same situation here... Do you understand Apple's reaction to this whole thing better now?
@Seven2k
Talk about pathetic.
Apple, you are a joke.
@Ellianth I can't believe this is one of the highest rated comments.
The only alternative to the videos being 100% real, is that Apple faked them. Doing so puts Apple in a *criminally* liable position to the tune of multiple *billions* of dollars, yet most of the people on this thread seem to think this is the likely explanation?
Not to pick on you specifically as most of the people here seem to believe the same thing, but you'd have to be a card carrying moron to believe Apple willingly faked this. Even after the criminal charges settled, half the board would probably have to step down. It would be the end of what we know as Apple.
Anyone who seriously believes that Apple would fake this video and thus endanger the future of the entire company needs to have their head examined.
@Seven2k
My iPhone 4 dropped zero calls.
@RawlsRorty
What does being an electrical engineer have to do with the post or your response?
@auneakeffect
Well, actually, it was tech blogs who took the first shot. Very few actual customers have had any problem.
You must be in an area with immense signal strength.
@Seven2k Actually, it is more pathetic than sad. Highlighting the others' weaknesses is a coward move however Motorola started bulling Apple with the "Droid does" campaign so they got justice served.
The best phones from every manufacturer were blown away when Apple introduced the Iphone. They were are still trying to catch up. I owned many of those phones and some of the had better features, but it was never easy to use the features due to a clunky interface. Face it, they are all copying Apple now. Oh yeah, record quarter revenue of $15.7 billion.
@BrandonHarris
For the same reason iPhone owners keep telling me how much better their screen is than my Evo screen. Until they compare them side by side!
@Seven2k can steve jobs and apple get more pathetic? my god this is truly painful to watch
@Seven2k
Heyyy now... Let's just all love our phones (some more than others) and tell jokes and talk about the one product we just can't get enough of. Paper.
@dscollan Then isn't the top bar supposed to be flashing green? That's what my Droid X does whenever I go to the home screen while in a call.
Also I am not able to reproduce the "death grip" on my Droid X, and I have pretty big hands lol.
Hey Apple, thanks to your mess-up I found a "super" feature of my HD2 when held "wrong". Thanks! ;)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86Bk3Qz0XOA
@Seven2k
Android on the rise? Are you kidding me? 9% of the phone share market is android lol. Yeah on the rise... Pfft
@XChrisX
Because of their iSheep mentality. They dismiss the obvious design flaw simply because they can't duplicate the symptoms. Why don't they hand their phone to somebody else and see what happens? people are different and some of us are more conducive than others, just like some of us sweat more than others and so on. Apple is shameless and so are those who support this farce.
@Seven2k What's sad is that fanboys like you brought Apple to defend itself and now you aren't happy your phone exhibits the same issues as the one you fault Apple for.
That's sad. Truth hurts.
@BrandonHarris omg yes
@Seven2k
That's because you were holding it wrong.
@XChrisX Because, the problem doesn't affect all iPhones, we all know that, but it does not make a valid argument against those who do have the problem. Apple said this would solve the problems from the 3gs, and yet, (although slightly) the problem got worse. Apple needs to solve their own problem, because all these videos don't help any of the unhappy iPhone owners
@Seven2k - So wait if I deliberately hold my cell phone in an unnatural way it will drop bars. Well look at that, if I deliberately and uncomfortably hold my cell phone to completely cover the bottom back of the phone where the antennae is it drops bars. ....and that somehow makes it better that when you hold an iPhone 4 is a completely normal natural way and it drops the call.
So when Steve said, Hold Different, he meant it. So all competitors users should hold their phones the Apple way - squeeze the bottom in a completely unnatural way until your hand hurts. Then you too can have that Q U A L I T Y - Apple experience.
@benerrol Interesting that Apple posted this on a website owned by Google. I wonder if Apple would allow Google to post something like this on one of their websites.
@Volker You hit it on the head. If the problem was only .5% what's with the constant, "See, this phone does it too" videos? Apple is not being as forthcoming as they should about the problems. I suspect the numbers are even higher. If there truly is no problem then why offer every buyer of the iPhoney 4 bumpers? Now that I think about it....maybe the problems he was having during his introduction of the iPhoney was a result of how he was holding the phone.
Couldn't make it happen. Almost broke my phone trying.
Shut up Apple and let it go already.
@rmasilionis How did you almost break your phone?
@gittenlucky
Probably from gripping it so tightly.