“Attenuation” has become a buzzword after the release of iPhone4′s, when the issue related to touching the antenna was first reported. Indeed, on June 24, 2010, Apple fortified itself by saying that attenuation is “a fact of life for every wireless phone“. Apple said, “Gripping any phone can affect antenna performance depending on the placement of the antenna”.
Apple is not the first manufacturer to caution against resting your hand on an antenna. Mobile handset designers have begun to use internal antennas. Such phones include warnings in the user manual or a sticker that is removed before use. Users aren’t told that poor reception will result from touching the antenna, they’re just told to avoid the area.
Yet, that doesn’t mean that Apple gets off the hook. Just consider handsets that place antennas at the bottom end, a trend that largely started with the Motorola Razr V3. Users typically don’t hold such a device with their palm or fingers resting against the antenna area. Rather, they hold the phone by either side. With the iPhone 4, however, the cellular antenna runs around the edge of the phone, right where left-handed users tend to rest their palm. There is a gap between the antennas on the left spine. This means that not the attenuation rather phone’s design is actually creating a problem.
Definitely, squeezing a phone firmly may cause problems with reception, but touching the antenna area of other phones hasn’t had as much of a negative effect as seen in the iPhone 4. Blaming it on the improper grip by the users, unfairly blames users. So, be ready for poor reception and call drops if you are going to buy iPhone 4. So, why spend around 1 Lac rupees to buy a phone whose design is even defected.
