Consumer Reports, the influential US-based independent product review, says it won’t recommend the iPhone because of its antenna problem.
It says the phone’s signal can diminish enough to lose a call altogether when users touch a spot on the lower left side.
“Due to this problem, we can't recommend the iPhone 4,” it said, even though the device topped its ratings.
The iPhone polled so high because “it sports the sharpest display and best video camera we've seen on any phone,” and offered better battery life and new features such as a front-facing camera.
“But Apple needs to come up with a permanent—and free—fix for the antenna problem before we can recommend the iPhone 4,” Consumer Reports said.
It said the best temporary fix solution for iPhone 4 users would be to cover the antenna gap with duct tape.
“It may not be pretty, but it works,” it said, adding that it planned to test some phone cases later this week and report back.
Apple has admitted to a glitch in the iPhone 4 antenna software and is preparing a patch.
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