Q: Static in Iphone 4s

I fear you are completely right, lada0513. I was thinking of upgrading everyone in my family to iphone because I thought Apple were a reliable company that produced quality products. They've never let me down before. I bought a case and iphone screen protector even before my phone 4s arrived because I was under the impression that I'd receive a product that worked well like the macbooks and ipads.

Never again. I feel so let down by them. It's not so much the hardware or software glitches that is the issue. These things do occur in electronics and telecommunications. I have returned many defective products in the past because 100% QC is not going to happen.  It's the fact Apple are not admitting there is a critical problem that is so disappointing and frustrating, especially after you have spent so much money. I've only ever recommended Apple but now I'll think ten times.  This is most definitely a lesson in how to lose your most loyal customers a la Nokia.

6th iPhone 4S all have the same issue. ALL.

I have to admit that on the 6th one the issue is not always present, it comes and goes.  I have been dealing with someone at Apple support, and although she has not been able to solve my issue,she is very helpful.

I have completely given up on going to the Apple store; I won't pay for someone to insult me.  Thanks Apple for that by theway. Sell me a faulty, un-returnable product then have Genius insult me when I try to describe the issue.  I actually had a genius tell me that obviously the problem is me and that I don't know how to use the phone.  Let me see: speak here, listen here; I think I got it, thanks genius.

The 3rd phone I exchanged was sent directly tothe engineers at Apple.  I was told that Apple is fully aware of the issue and is working on fixing it.  I don’t think a problem of this size would go unnoticed by Apple.  Truth is they are probably trying to keep the problem from getting too much media attention.

ya honestly in my experience the "Geniuses" are just horrible. it may not always be their fault, the managers at my local Apple Store are really awful (Altamonte Springs, FL). they talk down to EVERYONE though. let that "genius" title go to their heads i think. based on those i've dealt with i think i have more tech knowledge than that whole store combined.

Apple phone support on the other hand is always great, that's who i'm dealing with from now on. i'd rather send an item back and be without it than deal with the friggin Apple Store. what skin is it off their hides if someone wants to return the phone for a new one?

i've tried different headsets and bluetooths. All have the same issue. I did switch out my iphone and it actually helped a little, I think, but I still notice it. It's the phone, not ur headsets or earpieces

lada0513 wrote

This is exactly why Apple is not talking about it.  They have plenty of bright engineers and I am certain they have found the faulty component a long time ago.  The problem is that millions of phones have already been made and millions have already been sold.  This problem cannot be fixed with the software update. And it cannot be fixed with some kind of bumpers that would cost them 5 cents per phone.  If Apple decides to accept that it is a real problem they would have to address it by having every single phone go through the Apple support or replace them with the new ones.  Either way it will cost Apple a lot of money plus bad publicity.  With iphone 5 being released less than a year from now or possibly even 6 month they figured it's better to just pretend the issue doesn't exist and just let it go.  Those customers who want to exchange the phone can keep exchanging.  Those who want to return recently purchased one, can just return.  And those who didn't notice the problem to begin with won't notice it anyway.  In any case this is a much easier way out for Apple and the least expensive.

It would be very expensive for them to replace all those phones but many people don't notice and prob. wouldn't want to go through the hassle of backing up their phones and replacing them and then having to restore them. For the thousands of us who do notice, it would be very prudent for Apple to dip into their $70+ billion and just fix the phones. I, too, think they know what the issue is already but I don't think it would be bad publicity.

On the contrary, I think it would be very good publicity to show that Apple cares enough about their customers and believes enough in their products to dip into their cash and fix such a major issue (come on, if I can't use my phone as a phone, then what's the point??). If they don't own up to this issue, I will be much less inclined in the future to purchase Apple products b/c, to me, they're a company that is not worthy of my trust or investment. However, if they fixed this issue, even at a loss, I would be much more willing in the future to purchase their products with the hope that, if the issue is major enough (I realize that every minor issue can't be rectified), they would be willing to address the issue in a timely fashion (which they have not here, obviously) and fix it even at a greater cost than 5 cents per.

Apple is like the girl in high school that all the boys want(ed) to go out with but all the other girls (Google, Microsoft, Samsung, etc) hate(d). If Apple admitted to such a widespread failure, the other "girls" would have a field day. You would have them coming out with commercials such as, "Window Phone 7, it just works... without the static."  or "Android, it's an ice cream sandwich, minus the snap, crackle, pop." This would put a big question mark on Apple's future products and raise some doubt on their "one hardware & one software" policy.  Also, this is the last device that the late Steve Jobs released. I don't think Apple would want the words "mass failure" & "snap, crackle, pop" to be associated with the Steve Jobs legacy (I wouldn't want that either, I want my phone to "just work"). Apple will fix the problem in a future batch, and will keep on exchanging our phones until then (also costing them a lot of money). Because for every one of us that complains, and eventually says screw this, there are a 1 thousand more waiting to buy the 4S or the next iPhone in other countries (China & India are two major markets). Strategically, Apple is doing the right thing for Apple. They might be screwing us, but what's the loss of $800 compared to the future gain of $800 thousand ($800 * 1000)?

Any solution for this guys? my syptoms are

these three.

-Reception performance

-Static noise

-Home button rattle

before this new phone i had iphone 4 and i didn't notice any reception issue (death grip wasn't a problem for me) but with iphone 4s text keeps fails and even though there are 2 bars, I can't send text or make phone calls. call drops more often than iphone 4. also 4s has 3g network issue. i know it is faster than 4 but seem to me it doesn't catch the signal seamlessly so if i go to the mall where there are many people I can't use 3g network. with 4 yes i was able to use.

by the way I live in canada toronto and use fido/rogers network I did call them to reset my line, I did update/restore my phone, I did reset my network, talked to fido and checked my signal. I read many forums and did what I can do. Talking about Static noise issue, I'm pretty sure apple  receive many calls and email in terms of this issue.  I want to know what cause this and what would be the solution. is it because of dual antenna? or the software bug? third problem is home button rattle's left to right and it is very annoying. I know apple has changed home button for the iphone 4s to improve the feel of touch, I agree touch feel is well improved but there is "tick tick" noise.

*I've notice text failure accours less if I turn off data network in setting.

     Yep. I have the static/digital noise (buzzing bee) problem, also. I'm on my 5th 4S. First one had no incoming audio on about half of the calls I made. Applecare sent a refurb, which had a scratched screen. Sent that one back. Apple store gave me a refurb that had a tiny chip out of the front glass. Got a refund. Bought a new one, again, and it had a terrible echo of everything that went into the microphone. Returned it and bought another a couple of weeks later.

     Now, the only problem this one has is the static/digital noise. I don't remember hearing it until the 4th phone that I got. If it was there on the first one, I didn't notice it. The 2nd and 3rd ones, I didn't even really use them. The 4th phone definitely had it and that's where I noticed the noise for the first time. When I bought the last one, I said, to myself, that I was going to keep it no matter what; because I was so tired of dealing with customer service and trying to explain what was wrong each time. And, at one point, Applecare said they were going to charge me if I sent a phone back with a scratched screen (luckily, they didn't). I don't want to go through that, again. So, I just got tired of dealing with it all. But, this static/digital noise is getting really annoying. Sounds like all 4S phones have it, so I think that I will just have to live with it, for now.

     One thing that's very strange: it seems like the noise goes away if I use the phone on the left side of my face. Switch back to the right side and the noise is back. How in the world would that make a difference? Is gravitational pull from the left side of the phone causing the noise to go away? The only difference I can think of is that the phone is flipped 180 degrees. I have a Candyshell case on it, so only rubber touches the antennas. I almost always use a phone on the right side, but I'm learning to use the left side. It's pretty bad when you have to think about these things when making a call, just to not have some strange buzzing in your ear. So, if you have this noise, try the left side and see if it goes away. Even though I shouldn't have to use the phone a particular way for it to be good, using it on the left side has been the best solution for me. Try it and see if it works for you! And let us know if that's working for you!

Hey, anybody read news about the static mess in online magazines? Would be great to share some links.

@Smileyhead

How is your iPhone now ? I bet it still produces static noise.

Just an update from my side:

1. Weeks ago I went out in cold weather, turned on GPS, walked for some minutes and then I found my iPhone suddenly unresponseable, tried to turned it off, but it hang, after several trials it was off but I was not able to turn it again on until arrived back home. It wasn't that cold, just around -1 degree and my iPhone had problem with that.

2. Everything went fine after cold weather incident, but later I noticed that the volume during call was too small. Never had this problem before. I could not fix it, even after spending hours for resetting it. Then i replaced the handset with new one at Apple Store, glad that they immediately replace it. As I already expected the new one suffers from static problem as well. I talked with the Genius from App Store about this static problem. At first, he didn't admit the problem, but after showing him this thread, and all my experiences with ALL 4 iPhone 4s then he finally admitted it, and he said Apple is working on it. I asked him if I can put the iPhone for service to fix that annoying static just like Smileyhead advised. But they rejected it, he also didn't want to replace my static error iPhone again as he believe that will not solve the problem (so he indirectly admitted that ALL iPhone 4s has static problem).

3. Today, just met another friend of mine, she is lack of technical knowledge. She got iPhone 4s as well just because of Siri. I talked with her if she has problem with it, but she said that it was ok. I described the static problem and she admitted that she has the same problem and wonder why it could happen. She told me she already went to apple, and there they just blame her for her connection problem.

Honestly I already give up with this problem. I am totally disappointed with Apple but I could not really do anything more. I don't want to spend more time and money on this problems, I just try to live with it and make use with my money spent on this crappy iPhone 4s.

yes, Apple, you won the battle with this iPhone4s, you've sucked my money and time, but for sure my next smartphone will not be Apple product anylonger. I have checked Android 4.0, it seems far far better than Android 2.2 which I used to have. Honestly speaking Android 2.2 is crappy OS, but 4.0 really changes my mind.

I am now on the 3rd iPhone4s due to this Static Noise issue. I Changed the SIM card, configured as a new phone, tried to restore the phone as suggested by Apple support and after all these, I still got the same noise. Worst part is, I have to make sure that my monthly payment for this crap is made every month without fail.

Apple iPhone4S *****!!!

crimedog73 i too have the same static noise that it seems to go away only when speaking with left side of my face. at first i thought i have a hearing problem with my right ear, i'm glad it's just problem with the phone itself. even though it really seems wierd to hear this static only on one ear.

i tried a few sim cards of different carriers and i've noticed that i can hear

the staic only when the iphone goes from 3G to edge during a call so i guess its a hardware prob of the new antenna chip.

@shay1234. Yeah. I thought I was going crazy, until I saw a post on another site where someone else said the same thing about hearing it in the right ear, but not the left. I can't figure that one out. I hear well out of both ears, so I knew it had to be something other than my hearing. I can hear the noise, even if I have it load a web page and hold it to my ear (without being on a call). Others have stated the same thing. Who knows? It's a crazy problem.

@crimdog74. i tried to load something on 3g and i couln't hear it.

it happens only on edge during calls.

can u describe the noise? and what is ur carrier?

ty.

I was getting minor static issue on my white 4S. Wasn't anything deal breaking. But I decided to swap mine out (first swap) last week. Went to the Apple store. The Genius was very helpful. Walked out with a perfectly functioning unit. I have tested this one both on 3G and wi-fi and it will be appropriate to say that I don't get static. If I do a data poll and hold the back of the unit to my war, I do get a mild buzz. But nowhere nearly as bad as before especially when I'm on voice calls. Thats what I care about.

AT&T White 4S - 16 GB.