Sam OliverKershaw, Cutter & Ratinoff LLP posted word of a new "consumer investigation" on its website this week. The firm has asked iPhone 4 owners with reception issues to speak with them.
"KCR is currently investigating potential problems with the release of iPhone 4," the law firm, dubbed "injury attorneys on their website, wrote. "If you recently purchased the new iPhone and have experienced poor reception quality, dropped calls and weak signals, we would like to hear from you. Please call us toll free at (888) 285-3333, click "live chat" above to immediately speak with a KCR representative, or email us for more details."
The same law firm also filed a suit last November against Facebook for what it has argued are misleading advertisements found in games like Mafia Wars and FarmVille from Zynga. That federal class-action suit was filed in a district court in Northern California, and alleges that some ads found in the online games trick customers into signing up for recurring text messages with monthly fees, or mail-order products tied to a subscription.
Reports that Apple's latest handset can lose reception when gripped wit the left hand began to gain traction last week. On some devices, covering or even just touching the point on the metal perimeter antennas meet on the bottom left corner of the phone can cause loss of signal and even dropped calls.
When Apple announced the iPhone 4 earlier this month, the company revealed that the metal band around the outside of the device has breaks in it to allow the multiple antennas inside the device — for cellular service, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and more — to establish connections. The larger metal piece on the right side of the phone serves as the GSM/UMTS cellular antenna, and the smaller portion on the left side is responsible for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and GPS.
Apple publicly responded to reports and said that any mobile phone has reception issues when held improperly. The company suggested that customers avoid gripping the handset in the lower left corner, or use "one of many available cases" to prevent one's skin from touching the metal band.
This week, rival handset maker Nokia even attempted to poke fun at the publicity over iPhone 4 reception, asking customers to share how they hold their Nokia. But evidence of Nokia's own reception issues when some handsets are held has also surfaced, demonstrating the issue lies in many phones beyond the iPhone 4.
Wesley Hilliard
Christine McKee
Malcolm Owen
Amber Neely
William Gallagher
318 Comments
Maybe we should give them a rev to fix the issues before suing them. Yes, having a few issues, but still the best phone I have ever used overall.
I wonder what new invention out there won't make it to market because the inventor is scared of getting sued back into the stone age.
Yep have to love it, technology ambulance chasers.....
As many people have pointed out, this affects all phones, and even further, radio devices.
So are they doing a class action against every manufacturer of radio equipment which doesn't get 100% reception everywhere and under every circulstance?
Phil
As many people have pointed out, this affects all phones, and even further, radio devices.
So are they doing a class action against every manufacturer of radio equipment which doesn't get 100% reception everywhere and under every circulstance?
Phil
Nope, they're just going to sue Apple because being anti-Apple is the new fad. But then again, I wouldn't trust them to hit the broad side of a barn with a bulldozer, what with them suing Facebook for Zynga's ads.
As many people have pointed out, this affects all phones, and even further, radio devices.
So are they doing a class action against every manufacturer of radio equipment which doesn't get 100% reception everywhere and under every circulstance?
Phil
While I think the lawsuit is ridiculous, there IS a problem for quite a few people. Holding my iPhone 4 normally in my left hand results in 1 bar or "No Service" within 30 seconds and I can't make calls or connect to the internet. I don't even have to do a tight "death grip" on it, I just merely need to place it slightly cupped in my hand.
If I do this with my wife's 3GS, I might see one bar drop, but I can still make calls and the download/upload 3G speeds are barely affected.
Now, those are just my results. Other people have mentioned similar findings -- so instead of everyone blindly defending Apple, can some of you at least acknowledge that something is going on that is not the fault of the customer?