Antenna Tester Says iPhone 3G Checks Out OK

by , 10:30 AM EDT, August 25th, 2008

Following complaints that Apple's iPhone 3G offers inferior 3G voice and data support compared to other cell phones, The Gothenburg Post decided to put the combination iPod and smartphone to the test and found that it's in line with other devices. The new paper took an iPhone 3G to Bluetest, a company that manufactures wireless device test chambers, where Apple's handheld performed in line with Sony Ericsson's P1 and the Nokia N73.

The iPhone 3G's transmitting and receiving performance landed right where Bluetest expected it to. "The values are completely normal," said antenna engineer Magnus Franzén.

The P1 performed slightly better at receiving 3G signals, and the N73 was slightly better at transmitting 3G signals. The sensitivity difference, however, was small enough Bluetest considered all of the handhelds to be in line with each other.

While some users may disagree with Bluetest's findings, especially Jessica Alena Smith and her lawsuit against Apple, the results seem to support Apple's claims that there aren't any widespread issues with iPhone signal performance. Base on the number of complaints appearing on the Internet, however, Apple appears to have a public relations issue that iPhone Software 2.0.2 didn't fix.

[Thanks to TMO reader Hamourabi for the heads up.]