Does the bumper really help the iphone 4 with signal and the metal band?
Many people have said that the bumper helps with the signal and the metal band going around the iphone 4,is this true? I am thinking about getting the iphone 4 but if it loses signal based on where you hold it then i will not.so id the bumper the key to the sigan problem?
The answer to the rubber bumper is simple electronics one on one. The phone has a 360 degree antenna, and the human body is a conductor of current as well; and depending on the chemistry of each individual the antenna of the phone reacts differently in its capability to receive a signal while the phone is in your hand. Stainless steel isn't the best conductor for electrical current, perhaps aluminum or copper would have made a better antenna choice, but someone at the engineering table thought they could kill 2 birds with one stone by making a durable frame that acts as an antenna. When you have one signal and two items competing for the signal the better conductor always wins. Your hand is competing against the stainless, and salt water, which is in your hand is a better conductor than stainless steel, so when holding the phone the body conducts signal to it rather than the phone. The rubber between the hand and the phone reduces the conductivity between the hand and the phone, reception may be restored and it may not affect it at all, but the signal to the phone is interrupted any way you look at it; ergo your bars are going all over the place and your browser is slowed dramatically. The bumper may and may not help at all, actually a marketing waste of money. The bottom line a software update may not fix this issue at all. The engineers may have to go back to the drawing board, and Steve Jobs may be giving out a lot of refunds.
I realise that I am the only one, but I have held the iPhone 4 every which way, for a minute or two, bridging the gaps in the steel band or not, and my signal strength shows no change. Guess I've always been lucky?
Beware - on these boards intended for and inhabited by people suffering problems, are the odd few lurkers who represent the rest of Apple's clients (dare I suggest the majority?) who have
not had any problems. 🙂
Bumpers? No thank you! On www.apple.com iPhone is presented as is and I intend to use it that way. Hopefully by the time it gets to mainland Europe the problem will be fixed. The discussion about how to hold a phone is useless. What do they mean "do not touch certain part of the device". If a part is not meant to be touched than it should not be exposed. If I can't hold iP4 the way I hold iP3GS then what's the point.
Engineers knew, as they always do, but who are they to tell marketing people how to run the business.
Don't be so sure. I too thought I had no issue until I was in a semi-marginal 3G area. It was only then that sure enough, holding the phone in my left hand caused my signal to go from 5 bars to no bars within 30 seconds.
Most areas I've been in have stronger signals even though they too show 5 bars. So not all 5 bar signal areas are the same. Go to a relatively weak signal area and you too may change your tune.
Yes, I'm getting good reception with the bumper. I did notice that before I put it on, there weren't so many bars, but since I've had it on, I haven't noticed any reduction in bars. It could be different for others depending on the location. I know that my daughter's house is a dead zone for AT&T, and I don't think the bumper will make any difference in that location.
