If Apple CEO Steve Jobs thought other phone companies would just sit idly by while he attacked them during Friday’s press conference, he’s got another thing coming.
Last Firday, Jobs held a press conference to try to dispel any qualms that users had about the iPhone 4’s design flaw that makes it easier to drop calls than in previous iPhone models. Instead of admitting any real failure, Jobs said the issue was being blown out of proportion and claimed that Apple’s newest phone is no worse than other smartphones on the market.
Specifically, Jobs called out Research In Motion’s Blackberry Bold and HTC’s Droid Eris, saying they were no better than the iPhone 4. Maybe I’m missing something, but I haven’t seen any outcry over reception issues with either of these phones. Well, neither have their respective manufacturers, and they’re being very vocal with their displeasure about Jobs’s statements.
“Apple’s attempt to draw RIM into Apple’s self-made debacle is unacceptable. Apple’s
claims about RIM products appear to be deliberate attempts to distort the public’s understanding of an antenna design issue and to deflect attention from Apple’s difficult situation,” said RIM in a statement.
The company then attacked the iPhone 4 design, saying, “RIM has avoided designs like the one Apple used in the iPhone 4 and instead has used innovative designs which reduce the risk for dropped calls, especially in areas of lower coverage.”
HTC also piped in, though its comments were far less stinging. It simply wanted to point out that the number of Droid Eris owners who have called in about signal problems represent, “Approximately .016% of customers. We have had very few complaints about signal or antenna problems on the Eris.”
It was indeed remarkably bold of Jobs to deflect attention away from his company’s very real problem by attacking some of the top-selling competitors’ phones, without knowing hardly anything about their design process and dropped call numbers.
There’s an easy way to tell the difference between the iPhone 4 and the Blackberry Bold or Droid Eris – only one of those phones has a flaw that is so blatant that the company behind it is now offering free bumper cases to make the phone work properly.
