iPhone 4 Problems

Is the iPhone 4 All It's Cracked Up to Be?

Apple stock is at an all-time high, iPads and iPhone 4's are flying off the shelves. In fact, there were way more iPhone 4 orders than Apple (or AT&T) were prepared for. This should bode well for Apple, right? Yes, as long as the iPhone 4 works as intended. During testing done by various industry professionals and reviewers, the iPhone 4 came out with glowing praise. But now that it's in the hand of millions of users, the verdict is not all that Steve Jobs might have hoped for.

The Author Finally Joins the Apple Bandwagon with the iPhone 4

I had finally decided to suck it up and join the Apple bandwagon. Since my AT&T agreement was up, I was eligible for discount pricing. Combined with the new data plans offered ($15/ month for 200MB/ month, $25 for 2GB/ month) I felt like this would be a good time to finally try out an iPhone. That, and our friends constantly signing in all over the place with four square (a GPS app that lets you track where your friends are), made me want to join in on the fun.

Since I'm not a complete "Appleholic," I didn't think it was necessary to wake up at 12:01am to pre-order on June 15th, or even camp out in line at 5am on June 24th with the hopes of landing the new iPhone 4 a few days or weeks before everyone else. I was perfectly content placing my order online with the Apple store and waiting until my projected July 15 - 19th delivery. That is, until I started hearing about everything that was going wrong with the new iPhone 4. Turns out, the iPhone 4 has more than its share of problems.

iPhone 4: Problems, Problems, and More Problems

I don't know if I'm the only one, but I actually canceled my iPhone 4 order (16GB Black for $199 - my card hadn't even been charged since it hadn't shipped yet) after hearing about the plethora of problems it was experiencing. Sure, they'll probably be ironed out in the near future, but I didn't feel like becoming Apple's free consumer tester, at my own expense. After canceling my iPhone 4 order, I went on to purchase a refurbished 16 GB black iPhone 3GS from the AT&T online store. It should arrive within a week, and from what I hear from friends, family, co-workers, and online reviews, it's a solid phone without any of the problems iPhone 4 is currently experiencing. So, without further ado, here they are.

Problem 1: Lost Signal/ Connection

The first bunch of reports that started pouring in from the first batch of people that could get their hands on a shiny new iPhone 4 revolved around reception problems. According to reports, if you cover the steel antenna that surrounds the iPhone 4 with a finger by holding it in the wrong way (specifically, if you hold your iPhone with your left hand (sorry lefties :( ), or by the bottom left corner), your connection may get killed and your call dropped/ Internet connection severed.

Problem 2: Display Malfunction/ Discoloration - Resolved?

The other problem the iPhone 4 appears to be suffering from is an issue with the display screen. According to reports, yellow discoloration is occurring on parts of the display, particularly the lower left portion of the screen. According to Apple, this is part of an evaporation process that normally takes place before a consumer gets their hands on the device. In this case, this problem might resolve after a few days. Please comment below with your findings.

Problem 3: Rear Camera Malfunction

Another report coming in is that for some users the rear camera is not working. According to complaints, the shutter stays closed, and none of the buttons do anything.

Problem 4: Switched Volume Controls

According to reports, if you increase the volume, it decreases, and vice versa. It seems like a software update should be able to handle this problem.

Problem 5: Case Scratches Easily

According to some users that have only had the iPhone 4 for a couple days, their case is already suffering from some visible scratches. We're not sure if this problem is specific to the iPhone 4 or simply a problem that applies to every smart phone but normally isn't brought into the lime light.

Do You Have an iPhone 4? What's Your Experience?

We want to hear from you! Are you one of the lucky (or unlucky) users to get their hands on a new iPhone 4? Please share your experience below, and make sure to mention specifically from where you received your iPhone, how long you've had it, which model it is (16GB or 32GB), and what color it is, plus anything else you want to share.