Kaufman says Apple using hardware, firmware tweaks

Kaufman Bros. analyst Shaw Wu this morning provided possible insight as to any fixes Apple might offer for the iPhone 4's reception problems in its press conference today. Talks with suppliers lead him to believe Apple is both changing the hardware and producing a firmware upgrade that, together, should reduce the signal drop when covering the antenna gaps on the iPhone. Wu wasn't told exactly what it would detail but was certain that iOS 4.0.1 was not the only software Apple had to offer.

The last-minute claims have been anecdotally supported by others. Rodman and Renshaw analyst Ashok Kumar was the first to mention a hardware fix and believes Apple has a way of reducing the attenuation inside the phone casing without affecting the outside appearance of the phone. An unusually detailed leak also referred to the second firmware fix coming at an undefined point in the future that improves how the iPhone behaves when the signal is blocked.

Repeated rumors, a handful of which are suspected of being seeded by Apple to manage expectations, have suggested Apple won't issue a recall and may at most allow for voluntary exchanges as well as free or heavily discounted bumper cases. It may help avert a temporary but significant fiscal crisis for Apple, as unofficial estimates have put the cost of a full-scale recall as high as $1.5 billion given the sheer number of iPhone 4 units already on the market.

By Electronista Staff