June 26, 2010. USA came out of Football hangover after the victory of the 2-1 team against Chile This allowed him to qualify for the 16 of the World Cup in South Africa, championship that we would finally win. On the other side of the puddle, Steve Jobs received complaints in his personal mail on the coast of the famous antennagate Suffering the brand new iPhone 4 launched a few days before.
For those who do not remember or do not know this case directly, it was essentially a problem of construction of the iPhone antennas which prevented the device from receiving good blanket when its antenna placed in the lower left corner was covered. This happened not only when putting on the cover, but also when you catch it with the hand (even more serious). This Initial was something that Apple denied. Regarding his CEO at the time, Steve Jobs, he was himself responsible for responding to some of the first users who complained.
“I love everything about my new iPhone, except coverage problems”
With this subtlety, the macrumors reader nicknamed as “rfbandit” addressed Steve Jobs by e-mail. The CEO, Tim Cook, has acquired a good reputation as a person close to the public for having practically responded to all the emails he receives. Jobs never said that although he responded exceptionally and the best proof is that rfbandit He obtained an answer from him. Although he didn't like what he said.
Response from jobs to a consumer who complained about the reception problems of the iPhone 4 (Image: RFBandit in MacRumors)
“There are no reception problems. Continue to awaken.”
Only seven words in two sentences (eight and two in the translated version). Jobs have not tried in the response, although it is somehow planned. Apple denied the beginning that there was such a problem on the iPhone 4. However, He indicated a certain change of internal opinion in the companyFor a few days before their launch of generic communications in which users have simply been invited not to enter the iPhone from the lower left corner.
These Apple may already start to be aware of the problem and that they thought that their solution could start from a software update or something. Therefore, “being aware” could come for this. Although at the end, it is only a hypothesis.
Apple and Jobs recognized the error. Although it …
The iPhone 4 and its reception problems were probably The first great controversy in the history of the iPhoneOnly three years after the launch of his smartphone for the first time and in which he was already the fourth generation.
As we said at the beginning, the origin of the problem came due to a bad placement of the antennas of the device, which made it difficult to receive a good sign when the iPhone was seized in covering the lower left corner. In addition, when he was presented on a case that was something robust. Were hundreds of customers who complained Seeing how the signal received by its smartphone decreased considerably when covers these antennas.
The problem was not recognized and yet free bumpers were sent with which there was no problem. The culmen of the absurd at that time.
Apple wanted to make deaf ears and that harmed sales of its brand new iPhone. We soon see the consequences. In August 2010, the head of the iPod division and the iPhone left the company. Mark Papermaster assumed the error in the first person, although almost 15 years later, we still did not know if it had been pushed, if it was a mutual agreement or if it was really A voluntary walk.
The fact is that From the doors, Apple has maintained a posture at least contradictory. On the one hand, he denied the problem, but on the other, he asked not to cover this part of the antennas or to use bumper instead of covers. In fact, they came to launch a program with which the people concerned could request free bumpers.
In search of perfection (in post-sales service)
“We are not perfect and the phones are not perfect,” said Steve Jobs for later urges those to return their iPhone 4 and receive the integration of money. However, yes, within the legal time of 30 days and not as an exception. So yes, the error was recognized, but they did not end up finding a solution that solves the problem.
A software update finally changes part of the problem, but not everything. Apple finally apologized and said that from the first iPhone, the antennas had been placed in this lower left corner and that it was never a problem.
In any case, The next iPhone has ended up rethinking the antennas And free up any type of problem to its buyers. As the iPhone 4S was launched, Steve Jobs had already died, which supervised the development of the device anyway until the end of August 2011, he left his position for the disease that He suffered.
Jobs have also left without seeing part of the legal and economic consequences of antennagateAs in 2012, the Californian company was forced to compensate some of the complainants. In fact, the battery This also meant a huge disbursement of more than 500 million dollars.
An old version of this article was initially published on 08/02/2024.
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