While the iPhone 4 was initially heralded as one of the most successful product releases in Apple's history, the firestorm over reception and antenna issues has brought extensive critical commentary, says international research network, Changewave.
The firm recently conducted a survey of 213 iPhone 4 owners to find out what they really think about the smartphone.
In comparison with its predecessor, the iPhone 3GS, the survey says: “The satisfaction ratings for the iPhone 4 show a high degree of customer approval - with 72% of owners saying they're very satisfiedand 21%somewhat satisfied with their new phone”.
However, it adds that despite these good scores, the initial ratings were not as extraordinary as the early iPhone 3GS satisfaction numbers seen in the Changewave August 2009 survey.
Overall, the survey says the biggest Achilles heel for the iPhone 4 was AT&T, with 27% of the respondents saying they don't like the requirement to use the network. According to the survey, issues related to the iPhone 4 antennae are the number two dislike of the smartphone, with 24% of the owners revealing they do not like the gadget's antenna settings.
Third on the list of dislikes were the excessive dropped calls, at 23%. The survey says July featured an unprecedented level of media focus on the issue of the iPhone 4's reception when the phone is held a certain way.
During a 16 July conference, Apple CEO Steve Jobs confirmed that the problem occurs when a user inadvertently obstructs the antenna with their hand, causing signal loss. The survey attempted to gauge the impact of the antenna obstruction issue, and found nearly two-thirds of the owners said they haven't experienced such problems, while another 14% revealed it wasn't much of a problem.
Nonetheless, the survey found that for 7%, it was a very big problem.
The survey also discovered that besides the concerns about the antenna issue, iPhone 4 owners report experiencing slightly fewer dropped calls on the average than do iPhone 3GS owners.
On the positive side, the survey reveals that by a wide margin, screen resolution (49%) ranks as the top feature iPhone 4 owners like best. The five-megapixel camera with LED flash came second, at 31%, followed by the touchscreen interface, with 30%.
The survey concluded that despite the controversy surrounding the iPhone 4, the latest Apple release is holding its own in the smartphone industry in terms of overall customer satisfaction and meeting owners' expectations.
In SA, network providers Vodacom and MTN are set to start selling the iPhone 4 in early September, though an exact date could not be confirmed at this stage.
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