UK carriers response to Apples iphone 4 refund announcement

lily89

i went into the o2 store yesterday to enquire about the iPhone and the person said they are still getting deleiverys later this week even though there is o2 announcement later today so it must mean that there gonna continue selling it and thers no real issue with the antenna and just have to deal with it.

Exhortation

Oscartheposcar wrote: »

Maybe, just maybe, it really isn't a problem for using the phone for most people? It isn't for me. Most of the people complaining on message boards don't actually have an iPhone 4...

The clearest way of thinking about it is that instead of putting a small antenna inside a phone, Apple have put a small phone inside a large antenna. The antenna is susceptible to attenuation, but it gets a stronger signal in the first place due to being outside the phone. It can get a signal in places where other phones cannot at all (apparently it can work at -120dB signal strength or something technical like that). This design also allows for a larger battery etc while keeping the phone very thin, which is important for those of us who want our phones to fit in our pockets easily.

All that more than compensates for being able to make bars appear to drop. No dropped calls in my usage.

It must be annoying for people who really are unable to make a phone-call using the phone, but I'm really not sure how many people that affects - a self-selecting poll on a website like this is pretty meaningless.

Anyway, I'm guessing that a huge majority of people are enjoying using an excellent device.

There is a return rate of 0.55%, apparently. That means that somewhere in the region of one in every one hundred and eighty units are being returned and that's before this whole 30-day returns policy wrangle is sorted out. I suggest that those figures hint at a genuine problem with the device. Giving out bumpers just fudges the issue and is the very least Apple can do given today's first quarter sales figures that show a 61% year-on-year increase in iPhone sales.

Someone in a position of genuine authority needs to take both the networks and Apple to task over this. The design is proven to be flawed. People who have issues should have their contracts cancelled without charge and if that means that the networks take a hit then they should take that up with Apple.

Oscartheposcar

Exhortation wrote: »

There is a return rate of 0.55%, apparently. That means that somewhere in the region of one in every one hundred and eighty units are being returned and that's before this whole 30-day returns policy wrangle is sorted out. I suggest that those figures hint at a genuine problem with the device.

Really? What are the return rates for other gadgets? Without data to compare I don't see how your argument stands up. ~1 in 180 seems very low to me.

Exhortation wrote: »

Someone in a position of genuine authority needs to take both the networks and Apple to task over this. The design is proven to be flawed. People who have issues should have their contracts cancelled without charge and if that means that the networks take a hit then they should take that up with Apple.

I don't feel the need to justify myself through my choice of phone (!) but the iPhone 4 design clearly gets a better signal than internal antenna, at the cost of attenuation if you hold it in one place. Not flawed, just a design decision to allow a thinner phone, bigger battery and to get a connection where other phones can't get a signal. Still good luck in your search for a hero in "genuine authority" to stand up for your rights....assuming you do actually own an iPhone 4? If not I'm a bit confused about why you're so upset. Calm down, and enjoy whichever phone you actually own. :beer:

MissKeith

So that's my 5 hour shift over. Two faulty exchanges for two entirely different issues with iPhone 4s and still have not had a single one back because of this design fault.

I am absolutely dreading the backlash from customers over this.

Andyblizz

MissKeith wrote: »

So that's my 5 hour shift over. Two faulty exchanges for two entirely different issues with iPhone 4s and still have not had a single one back because of this design fault.

I am absolutely dreading the backlash from customers over this.

Out of interest what are the issues ?????

MissKeith

Andyblizz wrote: »

Out of interest what are the issues ?????

The speaker had blown on one, the other wouldn't read a sim card. I have also seen faults of unsynching itself from iTunes at random, freezing, powering off and the display going blank. I am sick to the back teeth of doing faulty exchanges on these phones whilst other customers clamour for them. We rarely get stock as it is and the clamouring customers steadfastly refuse to believe me when I say they are not as reliable as past Apple models.

Andyblizz

Touch wood my iPhone4 is working fine. No dropped calls. death grip etc.... Only had it 10 days so there is time !!!!!!

I did have to return my 3GS handset twice. One within the 30 day period (blank screen and un resposive) so i got a brand new one from the O2 shop i got it from. And the other was a replacement from an Apple store (Wifi issues). But since then i had the 3rd handset about 9 month before i sold it for £250

gjchester

swilliam wrote: »

I did ask Trading Standards with direct reference to the current iPhone problems. They said they have received many calls regarding this
and have looked into the current legislation. They have deemed a refund is within the boundaries of the SOGA.

Correct for the phone. As I said under the SOGA you should be able to return the handset for a full refund, replacement or repair. You should also note that under the SOGA it's the retailers choice to make, NOT yours. They could replace it with another phone of the same make and model, although in this case that may not be much use.

However the airtime contract is a seperate legal SERVICE agreement not related to the purchase of the phone (which is a GOODS Contract) . Some of this is historic, before the mobileco's opened shops they were all through agents, but also because it divorces loss or failure of the phone from the continuing need to pay for the airtime. The airtime agreement is that they give you access to the network, not that the phone will work correctly at all times and in all locations.

Orange Contracts are clear on this (Section 14 says your device is not part of the Contract), Vodafone say (section 2) this Agreement does not cover the buying or maintenance of any mobile equipment that has also been provided to you. I'm sure all the other companies have similar clauses.

This is a grey area, Yes the SOGA covers the phone but the airtime agreement as its a contract for a service not goods. Until it's proven in a court of law it's anybodys guess. You'd probably have to prove that the airtime company knew at the time of the sale that the phone was faulty and that *may* be grounds to terminate the contract, but it's very unlikely.

gjchester

Andyblizz wrote: »

Touch wood my iPhone4 is working fine. No dropped calls. death grip etc....

I've had mine since launch day. Yes I see bars drop off if I use "death grip" but in actual use I've not had any dropped calls and actually get a better reception than my last phone.

Due to local topology I never got a 2G signal on the ground floor of our house on my old Xperia X1 (Mobile signal wasn't an issue in the new house choice process), but with the iPhone 4 I can have a conversation and surf the web there, albiet sometimes breaks up a little and the surfing is slower than upstairs.

It's hard to see how this is a huge issue / fault when the phone seems top performs as good or better than my old X1 (although I always thought the radio was pants in that anyway)

Nostromo

Still Stalling.
http://shop.o2.co.uk/new-iphone/iphone4press.html

"

We’re going to be open with you: we said on Monday that we needed time to work out details with Apple and this work is continuing. We appreciate that no one likes to wait, but we ask that you be patient for just a bit longer.

Bumpers and cases

• Apple will announce its plan for providing free bumpers to iPhone 4 owners soon. We will post a link on this web page when we have it.

iPhone 4 returns

• We’re still working on the plans for how this new Apple process will work for our customers.

For now, our usual returns policy still applies and here's a reminder of the terms of the Early Upgrade Offer, if you took us up on it."