iLounge is reporting that Verizon iPhone 4 also suffers from signal attenuation problems that was first reported when Apple launched the GSM iPhone 4.
iLounge reports that the Verizon iPhone loses substantial cellular signal strength when held in a ‘death grip’ position like the GSM iPhone 4. They have also noticed that Wi-Fi reception is affected when the Verizon iPhone is held in a different position referred to as the “death hug” something that hasn’t been observed on the GSM iPhone 4.
iLounge reports:
As seen in this Verizon iPhone 4 antenna attenuation video, the CDMA iPhone 4 can still lose substantial cellular signal strength when held in the prior "death grip" position, as well as Wi-Fi signal when held in a different position, in each case noticeably slowing or completely stalling the reception of data. The problem with Wi-Fi reception appears when the device is held snugly in landscape orientation with two hands, a position common when playing games or using the widescreen keyboard. Prior to the Verizon iPhone 4's launch, sources told iLounge to be on the lookout for the issue, which was being referred to as the 'death hug."
Last year, Apple held a special conference to discuss the iPhone 4 antenna problem after it received a lot of negative publicity and explained smartphone antenna performance and their weak spots. Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs claimed that every smartphone lose signal strength if you hold it in a certain way and it is not something unique to iPhone 4. Apple had provided the following explanation:
The opposite of amplification, attenuation happens whenever a signal is obstructed. All antennas — including television, radio, GPS, and cellular antennas — can experience attenuation. And with most antennas, the density and composition of the human hand can cause attenuation to a greater degree than some other materials. On a mobile phone, signal loss typically occurs when your hand attenuates the most sensitive part of the antenna. In the photos and videos below, we demonstrate how different grips cause attenuation on many popular smartphones — including iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS
Apple had also demonstrated how smartphones like RIM’s BlackBerry Bold 9700, HTC’s Droid Eric, Samsung’s Omnia II lose signal strength when you grip them in a certain way. But to address the situation and to ensure that its customers are happy, Apple had announced free bumpers to all iPhone 4 users who had purchased their phones by September 2010. After reviewing the situation again in September 2010, Apple decided to discontinue the free iPhone 4 case program as it believed that iPhone 4 antenna attenuation issue was even smaller than it originally thought.
It is strange that early reviewers of the Verizon iPhone 4 did not notice the issue but as iLounge points out the issue is not noticeable in areas with stronger signal strength.
You can checkout the video of Verizon iPhone 4’s antenna attenuation video below:
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