iPhone 4 problems plague Apple launch
iPhone 4 problems mount as users report reception issues and faulty screens. Welcome to another iPhone launch, warts and all.
iPhone 4 problems ran rampant today, even as many users said their iPhone handsets were working just fine. Here, consumers line up outside an Apple store in New York, waiting to get their paws on an iPhone 4.
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Griping is a tradition when it comes to an iPhone launch, so perhaps we shouldn't be too shocked that Twitter and Facebook are deluged with reports of problems with the sleek new iPhone 4. Still, the alacrity with which Apple fanatics have begun bashing the iPhone 4 is notable, especially considering the rabid hype surrounding the device's launch.
(Lost? Check out our iPhone 4 review roundup.)
The bulk of the complaints surround two key issues: Reception problems and some sort of display malfunction. Over at Gizmodo, blogger Jesus Diaz has pulled together a gallery of user-submitted photographs that appear to show a yellow blotch under the iPhone's screen glass. Gizmodo has plenty of these images, although Apple defenders are arguing that the yellow tint is glue residue that will eventually disappear.
Possibly more egregious is the reception problem. As iPhone enthusiasts will know, the latest iPhone 4 is equipped with a steel antenna that encircles the handset. Apple has said that the antenna will help improve reception. But several reviewers have found that if they hold their iPhone 4 by the bottom left corner – or with their left hand – the reception quickly tails off.
In an otherwise positive review of the iPhone 4 in the Wall Street Journal, Walt Mossberg wrote that reception on the handset was a "mixed bag."
"[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," Mossberg wrote. "Neither Apple nor AT&T could explain this. The iPhone 4 quickly recovered in these situations, showing service after a few seconds, but it was still troubling."
Got your hands on a shiny new iPhone? Experiencing iPhone 4 problems? We want to hear from you. Drop us a line in the comments section – and keep it civil, folks.