A variety of PR experts have chimed in on the possibility of a hardware recall because of iPhone 4’s well-documented Death Grip, which drops calls when the handset is held so the gap on the bottom-left side is bridged. Chris Lehane, who handled some big PR fires at the White House under the Clinton Administration, Matthew Seeger, a communications professor, and Dr. Larry Barton, an old VP of Crisis Management at Motorola, were all in agreement that an iPhone 4 recall was the most prudent course of action for Apple at this point. Of course, the basis for such a statement was that it was the only way to keep iPhone and Apple’s brand image in pristine condition, rather than the severity of the actual reception problem.
Consumer Reports calls the issue a full-blown design flaw, while even in admitting there’s a problem and they’re fixing it, Apple maintains the iPhone 4 is the bestest designed phone in the whole wide world. Despite the fact that the Death Grip is consistent and reproducible, a full-blown recall seems excessive. An overpriced bumper, or hey, even a Livestrong bracelet can fix the problem, although neither are really an elegant solution. What seems more likely is Apple ensures that future iPhone 4 production runs include some kind of insulating coating around the outside, and anyone who comes in to an Apple store complaining can swap out their older hardware for a newer one.
For those just tuning in, the iPhone 4 packs an impressive 960 640 display, 5 megapixel camera with LED flash and HD video recording, a forward-facing camera for video calling, and a revamped operating system complete with multitasking.
Go ahead and take a look at our unboxing and impressions of the iPhone 4 and let us know if you think that one fatal flaw is worth giving up on all of the other goodness packed in there.
[via Cult of Mac]