Apple iOS 4.1 Update Fails to Fix iPhone 4 Signal Loss

July 14, 2010 By Nick Mokey

A test of the iOS 4.1 beta still shows reception dwindling to near nothing when putting the iPhone 4 in the signal-draining "Death Grip."

Sketchy as it sounded that software could somehow remedy the signal loss caused by connecting two pieces of metal together, we had to give Apple the benefit of the doubt when it claimed it could. Now that iOS 4.1 with the alleged fix is finally out, the skepticism seems well founded. The signal loss remains.

MobileCrunch recently installed the hot-off-the-press beta version of iOS 4.1 for developers, and it looks like the infamous Death Grip is still in play.

Although the video doesn’t show an actual call dropping due to the issue, or lowered download speeds, it certainly contradicts Apple’s original claim that it was a software bug with the way signal was displayed. Bars still drop significantly after holding it at the bottom left of the screen, and return when released from the hand.

It looks like Consumer Reports’ insistence that it’s truly a hardware issue still stands, whether Apple censors discussion of it on its own forums or not.

Showing 9 comments

Keegs at 2:53am 9th September 2010 It is a common problem with all aerials. for example you put your hand on the end of a car radio aerial and it distorts the signal. what is happening is that you are earthing the signal with your hand. since plastic dosent conduct well a case solves the problem.
info at 10:25am 9th August 2010 You know for sure they knew this was an issue when testing it. Again, it's ok to make a mistake just fix it and move on. For some reason they are not willing to do that. This is just another reason to get an adroid based device that you can choose what hardware platform it's on.
1. steve atherton at 5:09am 19th August 2010 how can apple giving you a new case make more signal i dont understand
Kaos2269 at 2:52am 4th August 2010 I hate my Iphone... The "Call Failed" is getting old. I am tired of my phone slowing down due to all these stupid updates. They are starting to look like Microsoft for crying out loud. I wish they would just admit there is hardware problem, which is blatantly obvious, and start manufacturing v2 and ship them out at no charge and a nice discount on everyone’s $150 cell phone bill that they pay a month to use an iPhone. It's a F'ing joke with this company. This will be that last Apple product I purchase that’s for damn sure. Steve Jobs can go F himself. Verizon I am coming home…….
Smokinsonu at 4:11pm 17th July 2010 @ioman 'result of the negative press and brand tarnishment'? Where on earth did you get that from? It's clearly Apple's fault, they should return them all or exchange them for a brand new working one. The iPhone is unfit for consumer use. Clearly someones an apple fanboy.lol
1. inquirer5 at 6:40am 18th July 2010 @Smokinsonu You sir are making some snap judgements with very little data. To say something is not fit for consumer use is a bit silly when 95% of the users seem happy with it according to Apple's figures. Have you even used the phone to make that judgement? I currently own an iPhone 4, and experienced a dropped call on the first day I got it. I could also attest to the gradual signal loss due to the "death-grip". Strange thing is, I can no longer reproduce the problem and have not any experienced any dropped calls since the first day. And for the record I have not installed the update or purchased a case. Clearly someone is an antiapple fanboy. Either that or you work for a competitor and need to spread some bad press. Please, if you're going to make statements make them based on actual data and preferably personal experience. Lets leave out the Apple hatred for now. FYI, I am not a fanboy and see plenty of flaws in Apple products. I've noted several bugs in the iOS4 already. The fact is I have yet to find a phone that does 100% of what I want 100% perfectly. The iPhone just comes closest to that, and I've tried many. I'm going to use what works best for me regardless of popular opinion or media hype.
ninagosaimas at 8:47am 15th July 2010 This does us no good. One should realize that the iPhone 4 signal problems is a hardware issue. I guess, users would just have to live with it, until the next iPhone arrives.
Guest at 3:36am 15th July 2010 To be fair, Apple never claimed that it would fix the signal drop issue, only that the true signal would be displayed accurately in the first place. Their reasoning is that every cell phone exhibits a signal drop when held (which is true), and that one should reasonably expect that a 2 bar signal might drop due to this normal effect of holding the phone (which is also true). Where it becomes disingenuous is that the design of the iPhone4's external antennae makes it significantly more susceptible to a signal drop, and a more severe signal drop, when the user bridges the two antennae. So while the updated formula by which they calculate what signal to display may indeed be *part* of the issue, it is by no means the primary issue, which remains a fundemental flaw in the design of the hardware. This is a clear case where Apple's focus on form over function has bit them in the rear. The iPhone4 looks beautiful, having the antennae pull double-duty as the outer skeleton of the phone making more room on the inside for a larger battery is a great idea. Not coating the bare metal with some type of insulating material to prevent signal loss when a user's typically moist hands come into contact with it wasn't such a good idea. We'll see on Friday how they suggest dealing with the problem. Should be interesting.
1. ioman at 4:21am 15th July 2010 Well said. I am not sure that a firmware update would help improve reception. I am surprised that Apple even mentioned that the reception signal was incorrectly being displayed by as much as two bars better than it should have been. My guess is that on Friday Apple will offer users a free iPhone case to help fix the problem. As I read on another site, it's better to give away free cases than to take a huge stock hit as a result of the negative press and brand tarnishment.