The Smartphone Thread

[mack 44]

That could happen to any phone with AT&T's overall shittiness.

[Gummer12 134]

This is freaking terrible! I can't believe they would let this happen...

So they can sell you a Bumper for $20 that costs a $0.25

[Race4LastPlace 31]

^^ i thought bumpers were $30? :)

[Gummer12 134]

My bad..$29 officially..plus your first born

[Rustpot 1]

It just pours concrete over the fact that Apple is probably the WORST company to be a first-adopter for their releases. If you wait a few days for software and a few months for hardware you let all the lemmings sort out things like not being able to use a phone left-handed, or an all-in-one media tablet that has no WiFi, or white phones that crack for no reason, or screens that break from sneezing, or battery issues, or all the other problems at launch.

[IniNew 51]

This is not strange at all. The band around the phone is the phones antenna (per Engadget review).

Apple has made the stainless band around the phone essentially a couple of big antennae, and they seem to be doing a pretty good job at hanging onto radio signals. The big question is obviously whether or not this fixes or helps with the constant dropped calls iPhone users on AT&T's network have gotten used to. Well in our testing, we had far, far fewer dropped calls than we experienced on our 3GS.

As you can see, they also have reported fewer dropped calls. The person in that video is obviously in a low coverage area, where something as little as covering up the antenna with your hand could cause the calls to drop.

I picked up my iPhone 4 yesterday and am happy to report that I have better signal than what I did with my 3G it replaced.

[phonak 0]

not being able to use a phone left-handed

I thought it was the bottom left corner you couldn't cover with your hand. I don't know how you are holding your phones but it seems to me that it would be easier to touch that corner holding the phone in my right hand.

[Rustpot 1]

I thought it was the bottom left corner you couldn't cover with your hand. I don't know how you are holding your phones but it seems to me that it would be easier to touch that corner holding the phone in my right hand.

I hold it by planting the bottom corner in the center of the palm. For the left hand this is the left bottom corner of the phone.

[Race4LastPlace 31]

^^ typically it's in the left hand in a so called 'death grip'. The gap on the lower left of the antenna is bridged by your palm/ the pad beneath your thumb. To me it seems to be quite the design flaw. Coupled with apple/Steve Jobs response seems a well known issue to them, but doesn't want to make it right so far. Not necessarily a dealbreaker. I have seen a few other problems but that's expected with a new release.

Fortunately for me though, AT&T just screwed up my account and their handling of my business discount/account has been so terrible lately that no matter how cool that iPhone is, my savings of going to verizon is a no brainer.

Looks like bestbuy started their preorders for the motorola droid x. Official release is July 15.

[Rustpot 1]

^^ typically it's in the left hand in a so called 'death grip'. The gap on the lower left of the antenna is bridged by your palm/ the pad beneath your thumb. To me it seems to be quite the design flaw. Coupled with apple/Steve Jobs response seems a well known issue to them, but doesn't want to make it right so far. Not necessarily a dealbreaker. I have seen a few other problems but that's expected with a new release.

Death grip? Idk, I use my phone in this manner, support on 2/3 sides, index on the back to press it into my head and soak up all the radiation goodness.

My iPod touch in my gorilla hands;

[Race4LastPlace 31]

Yep, that's what is considered the 'death grip' as apple forums refer to it. Right there where the antenna gap is, you have your palm/base of thumb. The conductivity of your skin kills signal when bridged

[Rustpot 1]

I guess I don't understand why that's a 'death grip'. Is the consensus on Apple forums that this is popular? If so Apple really screwed the pooch. If not, how the hell do people hold their phones? Maybe me having large hands leads me to need to grip it in this manner.

[camhockey16 5]

yeah, isn't that the way most people hold their phones? that seems to be a pretty big oversight - and the smugness with which steve jobs replied to the question is exactly why people are getting a little frustrated with apple..

i'm sure its still a great phone - just annoys me a little

[Race4LastPlace 31]

I guess 'death grip' as in grip of death on the reception. Steve Jobs response is what kills me. "Just avoid holding it that way". So if you are experiencing this problem (and others as millions are), buy the 30 dollar bumper, avoid holding it like a 'phone', or congrats on your new iPod touch purchase...

[JR Boucicaut 3759]

I guess I don't understand why that's a 'death grip'. Is the consensus on Apple forums that this is popular? If so Apple really screwed the pooch. If not, how the hell do people hold their phones? Maybe me having large hands leads me to need to grip it in this manner.

They call it a death grip because they look at all ways to deflect blame off of Apple. Quite pathetic, really.

[Rustpot 1]

I guess 'death grip' as in grip of death on the reception. Steve Jobs response is what kills me. "Just avoid holding it that way". So if you are experiencing this problem (and others as millions are), buy the 30 dollar bumper, avoid holding it like a 'phone', or congrats on your new iPod touch purchase...

Millions of upset people, and they still line up around the corner to buy it. Apple knows they have approximately X number of fanboys and gotta-have-its, so they're raking in the cash hand over fist either way.

I mostly want an iPhone so I can stop carrying my iPod, and Magpul makes a case for it. I've lasted this long without one, and I might be changing carriers if I ever get a god damn job.

It makes me drool. My ballistic calculator and shot timer apps will be right at home.

http://extremetolerance.com/img/magpul_iphone.jpg

[TBLfan 25]

I guess 'death grip' as in grip of death on the reception. Steve Jobs response is what kills me. "Just avoid holding it that way". So if you are experiencing this problem (and others as millions are), buy the 30 dollar bumper, avoid holding it like a 'phone', or congrats on your new iPod touch purchase...

From Yahoo! news(from this article: Yahoo! news)

"a reader over at TUAW (The Unofficial Apple Weblog) who asked Jobs via e-mail whether the iPhone 4 reception problem was due to a "design flaw" got a similar response: "Nope. Just don't hold it that way.""

This is why I have an issue with Apple. I bought the 3GS because it was the best available phone and it made the most sense... likely it is the last Apple product I will ever own. It's never Apple's fault, it's your fault, it's Microsoft's fault. They scream and cry over Microsoft being the big bad, evil company but at least they aren't arrogant, cry-baby cocks that design their products handcuffed so they can re-release the same product for years with minor updates they should have done from the start.

The iPad has a place designed in the housing for a front facing camera, so why don't they come with a front facing camera? Because Apple is run by a bunch of cocks.

[Gummer12 134]

http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/25/hey-app...lding-it-wrong/

[goaliemanshark 6]

Epic! Go engadget!

[phonak 0]

Stop complaining and buy a case.. There's no other smartphone on the market today that comes close to the iphone, performance or UI.

[Krev 86]

Stop complaining and buy a case.. There's no other smartphone on the market today that comes close to the iphone, performance or UI.

Oh my! You've totally convinced me to an iphone with a case!!

[Race4LastPlace 31]

Here's Motorola's ad out today for the Droid X:

My favorite part: "And most importantly, It comes with a double antenna design. The kind that allows you to hold the phone any way you like and use it just about anywhere to make crystal clear calls."

[EBondo 232]

Love it. REALLY makes me wish I was eligible for a new phone this year, because I'd be getting the Droid X no doubt.

[JR Boucicaut 3759]

HP/Palm merger complete as of tomorrow. Hoping for webOS 2.0/hardware announcement. Or they can wait for all of this iPhone/Droid crap to die out.

[phonak 0]

Oh my! You've totally convinced me to an iphone with a case!!

Cool

Here's Motorola's ad out today for the Droid X:

My favorite part: "And most importantly, It comes with a double antenna design. The kind that allows you to hold the phone any way you like and use it just about anywhere to make crystal clear calls."

Problem is though, that it doesn't matter how many phones they pump out on the market when they can't make it "right". They got the hardware but it's still a pain to use it..