iPhone 4s, echo when using apple headset during a call

as apple advised ios 5.1 would fix the issue of echo and call dropping, this hasnt resolved the issue with has left apple tech heads scratching their heads. they simpy dont know. i have had 5 phones replaced by apple, they tried to blame my carrier o2 but their end is sweet as candy.

the latest smartpohne on the market cant even do its primary function properly, which is tomake phone calls, its pathetic. its like having a watch that doesnt tell the time.

APPLE - PLEASE FIX IT

APPLE - PLEASE FIX IT

Apple really irritates me when they say “I’m sorry you are having this problem sir, I assure you we have never had this problem reported before. Please try talking to our technical help person again to try and resolve the issue as it is highly unlikely that they problem exists on the third phone we sent you”

After refusing the third phone the apple support person assured me that the next phone would be tested and not have the echo or feedback problem. I was amazed at the statement and agreed to try one last time. Yes.... I know. I’m an idiot for believing such an outrageous statement.

The way this issue has been ignored... I've reached this dangrous conclusion.
If this was a hardware problem... Admitting to it, would cost apple many many millions... Smarter business move (although unethical) is to keep replacing it untill we give up [as is the case right now]. This way they lose just a few hundred thousands. If this was trully a hardware issue it could have huge repercussions (which woulbe be confusin, since skype and facetime do not suffer from the same issue on the 4s). I've tested iPhones 4s' of people who think this issue is gone (or not there), I've yet to find a 4s that does not have this problem.
If my especulation is true, this message could get deleted. However if they are smart they'll just leave it up here and let my possibly paranoid mind alone.

I asked them to log this problem the week the phone came out, as many other people did. I did it on the phone, by messaging them, and I even gave them the link to this discussion when they asked me for it. That was many months ago, and many people have done the same since, and they still say, "This is the first time we hear about this problem?"...This is one of hte most popular (if not hte most) discusson on the 4s on APPLE's Website! There is something up here.

Iphone 4S echo stil not solved after 5.0.1 and 5.1 every calles complains about hearing themselves echoing...On speaker the echo is gone.

Really annoying! Apple FIXIT!!!

I think it's interesting that there are two separate issues being discussed here.

The first issue is the occurrence of an echo at the receiving end while using a headset. That has been solved.

The second issue is the caller hearing their own voice on the headset.

This second issue does not affect everyone.

The bug with the person on the receiving end hearing an echo when the caller is using the headphone jack is not solved!

...and for the record, that is the first issue. The issue if people hearing an echo on thier iPhone was added by people here not understanding the original message.

Jasonbogen, please replace your headset with one that is compatible with your specific model, iPhone 4S.

The solution to your issue and others is simple to replace your current headset, which I imagine is a single button type, and replace with a three button model. This means a headset with volume rocker and a center button which controls start/stop.

This should solve your issue. Please let me know if this works for you as it has worked for many other iPhone 4S users. This issue does not affect iPhone 4 users.

It happens ont the headset Apple gives you. Are they replacing them? Anyway, I am using a chord I got for my ultimate ears headset as well as a cassette adapter with a mic adapter. These don't have volume knobs available. I have spent a ton already and heard no official response from Apple. I shouldn't have to keep buying more equipment.

Please visit your nearest Apple Store and request that you wish to try a different headset before purchasing. They will be more than happy to do this as this will solve your issue. Remember it must be a new 3 button headset, the latest headsets available for iPhone 4S. Old model headsets you are using or others not designed for iPhone 4S use are incompatible.

jasonbogen, it's ok for people to talk about multiple problems on one forum. This discussion is so big that it doesn't matter what the original post was about. There is still a common theme which is "Audio problems while using a headset". Who knows, maybe all of these problems are interrelated or caused by the same thing. Apple needs to have a tech team do extensive testing using headsets and fix ALL of the problems!

I did start another thread for the mic feedback/echo problem and posted a request for people to use that one instead, but it didn't work. They just like posting on this one.

As I see it, there are more than just two problems here. They are: 1) periodic echo/static that is temporarily solved with pressing speaker button, 2) mic feedback/echo on iphone side, 3) echo on non-iphone side. Are there more than that?

My issue is the mic feedback / echo issue. Some people claim that using other headsets solves the problem. I just don't believe it. The included apple headset causes the mic feedback/echo problem as much as any other headset. Also, I have tested many iphones and they all have the problem, even the ones on display at the Apple store.

It is true that the problem is software related because I have tested my headset on skype and it works just fine with no echo.

I have an iPhone 4s, and I'm getting the echo even after upgrading to 5.1 this morning.

I've used a BRAND NEW set of iPhone earbuds that came with the phone, thinking it must be my $50 noise cancelling headphones that went bad. Both have the problem on my 4s that neither has on my wife's 3Gs.

As a long-time software/hardware product manager I'm tempted to say hardware bug. BUT having the problem be intermittant time wise and cleared temporarily by turning the speker on and off makes me think twice about it. It's also pretty hard to cause an echo in software that comes and goes though as well.

I'm stumped a bit peturbed. Guess I'll have to go to bluetooth for my conference calls.

Adding my voice to the masses with the problems described. Soooo frustrated to not be able to use my headset while driving, and cranky that I have to buy a bluetooth device to stay within CA law. I've used both Apple and 3rd party headsets for years with my 3g, and couldn't believe there wasn't a setting to adjust in the 4s to make the problem stop. Thanks to all who have posted for saving me from wasting time looking for a solution. C'mon Apple, do the right thing.

I too have to add my voice to this thread. I hadn't realised there was a problem until I bought a set of ultimate ears 600vi's this week. They were bought specifically for use when driving so I could lower the headset volume compared to the basic apple headphones as I found I had to turn these up so loud to get over the road noise I got tinnitus!

I immediately noticed that during the phone call I heard my own voice through the headset and also the background road noise. When the call stopped, the background noise stopped. This amplified background noise is such that it often drowns out the person on the other end of the call. I thought it was a faulty headset but then stumbled across this forum. I have since been experimenting & the problem occurs with both the ultimate ears and the standard apple headset and is reproducible every time. It does not happen when either headset is plugged into my old 3GS.

I agree with other posters that this only happens in the phone app. It does not occur when talking to Siri, or making facetime/skype/viber calls (over wifi or 3G).

The phone app seems to be taking the audio signal from the microphone, feeding it to the network (since the person on the other end can hear you), but then also pumping it back to the headphones. This is easily proved by rubbing your finger over the microphone during a phone call (you'll hear the scratching in your own earphones) compared to during a facetime/skype/viber call (you won't hear any scratching). If you have an "in-ear" headset, place one of the earbuds next to the microphone during a call - you'll get the classic high pitched feedback loop in the other earbud (this doesn't work with the stock apple set, presumably because the speaker isn't as good).

Surely this is a software coding glitch if it only happens in the phone app?

It could be argued that this constitutes a health and safety issue as the problem increases the dB levels experienced when using a headset, with the associated detrimental effect on long term hearing.

If you're listening Apple, you need to fix this.