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The iPhone 4 press conference offered some new (and unexpected?) declarations from Steve Jobs, including “Phones aren’t perfect. It’s a challenge for the entire industry” and “The iPhone 4 went through all of these tests. We KNEW that if you held it in a certain way, the bars would go down.”

After a presser that lasted nearly an hour and a half  and the promise to give free bumper cases, what’s your impression of how Apple handled the “antennagate” issue?

Vote and let us know your reasons in the comments below.

After laying all the data groundwork, Jobs has just announced what they will be doing about the iPhone 4 reception issues… perceived or no.

First of all, they just released iOS 4.0.1 which changes the signal display algorithm yesterday.

Second, free casesfor everyone: the bumpers solve the death grip issue, so now everyone will get one free of charge for every iPhone 4 through September 30th. In September, they’ll re-examine the issue and see if they have a better idea.

Apple will be mailing out the cases themselves, but since they can’t make enough bumpers themselves, they’ll be mailing out a selection of cases, some third-party.

Interested? You can apply for a free case next week. Pick your own case and they’ll mail it off.

Finally, still unhappy with the iPhone 4? You can still bring it back for any reason within 30 days for a full refund, no 10% restocking fee charged.

One take-away Steve Jobs wants us all to know is that Apple’s serious about antenna.

How serious? They have a state of the art antenna testing facility, with 17 anechoic chambers. It’s a $100MM investment, and employes 18 PhD scientists and engineers working in reception.

In these reception chambers, which as Leander notes, look straight out of Terry Gilliam’s Brazil, Apple noticed the death grip issue… but found it acceptable, since it is prevalent in the smartphone industry.

Apple has just kicked off a press conference responding to the much publicized iPhone 4 reception problems and the so-called “Grip of Death,” but to start things out, a dose of humor… they are now playing the iPhone Antenna Song to the collected audience.

Does this mean Apple thinks the iPhone 4 antenna issues are a joke, or just trying to lighten the proceedings? My money’s on the latter. Good start, Apple!

Retrevo created this handy flowchart predicting consumer reactions following Apple’s press conference.

Of the four types of people — two are Apple fans in varying degrees, one is a hater and the fourth doesn’t really care about tech — any one who rates themselves a fan (Campin-Tosh) won’t change their opinion one iota, even if Steve Jobs outs himself as recreational bunny torturer who financially backs the Westboro Baptist Church.

The AppleSofties — who like Apple products enough but want to keep options open — will likely “file for divorce” no matter what the Cupertino Company says.

Which apparently means that, uh, if you are a bit more committed to Apple products, you drank the koolaid and will pretty much tolerate anything.

What do you think, are the predictions accurate?

Via Retrevo

Apple will not recall the iPhone 4 at it’s 10AM press conference tomorrow, the Wall Street Journal reports:

Apple doesn’t plan to recall the phone, a person familiar with the matter said.

The story has media-management written all over it. The leak is from Apple’s PR department; the company is setting expectations for tomorrow’s event.

WSJ: Apple Knew of iPhone Antenna Risks

Apple has just issued the 4.0.1 iOS update, which includes a new formula for displaying reception bars.

The update includes a new signal strength algorithm, which is Apple’s answer to the iPhone 4 death grip issue. It doesn’t appear to improve reception strength, just the way it is displayed. According to Apple, the iOS used an old, outdated algorithm that incorrectly calculated signal strength, a problem that was exacerbated when user’s cover the external antenna.

The update fixes this problem, and is available for iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, and iPhone 3G. It can be downloaded through iTunes when the device is connected via USB. (Hit the “Check for Updates” button).

The update can also be downloaded here:

• iPhone 4
• iPhone 3GS
• iPhone 3G

Thanks Don!

A wireless expert with ties to Apple’s senior antenna engineer says the company is in a pickle. It cannot fix the iPhone 4 antenna issue without completely redesigning the hardware.

Earl McCune, a leading RF expert — and former colleague of Apple’s Sr. Director of iPhone/iPod engineering, Ruben Caballero (who is in the news today) — says the iPhone’s antenna will have to be moved.

“The only way to solve the problem is to not have your hand within a wavelength of the phone — about a foot and a half away,” said McCune, a RF/wireless consultant, author and entrepreneur. “It’s the law of physics.”

McCune is the former boss of Apple’s top antenna engineer, Ruben Caballero. Last year, Caballero tried to warn Steve Jobs that the iPhone 4’s external antenna may drop calls.

Apple has long been a thorn in Microsoft’s side, using the much-maligned Vista to sell Macs. Now, the software giant is pushing back as Apple attempts to respond to the iPhone 4 troubles.

“It looks like the iPhone 4 might be their Vista, and I’m OK with that,” Microsoft Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner told the software maker’s WorldWide Partners Conference. Apple has scheduled a Friday news conference, an occasion many believe will be used to seriously discuss the iPhone 4’s much-publicized antenna problems.

The comment would have earlier appeared that of a bully pushing the little kids around, but now as the Wall Street Journal writes, “it sounds like a company trying to play catch-up.” Along with Apple, the Microsoft executive also cast aspersions at Google, telling the crowd Microsoft won’t “read your email and invade your privacy. We’re not soliciting vans to drive your neighborhood and spy on you, snoop your WiFi.”

Although Turner admitted developing its Windows phone had “taken too long” – and that smartphones in general was a “lowlight” for Microsoft, the executive promised its unreleased smartphone will put the Redmond, Wash. company “in the game in a big way.”

[Wall Street Journal]

Apple has invited a select group of journalists to a press conference about the iPhone 4 on Friday.

The press conference will be held at 10AM at Apple’s Cupertino campus. It will likely address controversy surrounding the device’s antenna performance, which degrades if the phone is held in the so-called death grip.

It’s not clear if Steve Jobs will host the press conference.

No other information about the conference is available. According got Macworld, the invite simply says it’s a “press conference about iPhone 4,” nothing more.

The iPhone 4 Antennagate went into overdrive this week after Consumer Reports tests showed the issue is hardware related, and not a software problem as Apple had claimed earlier this month.

In a statement published on its website, Apple blamed a faulty reception algorithm for displaying incorrect signal strength. The company has promised a software fix.

Given the bad publicity surrounding the device, a voluntary recall is expected.

Macworld: Apple to hold iPhone 4 press conference Friday