Apple iPhone 2.0.2 not the fix most users hope for

Stephen Withers
Thursday, 21 August 2008 02:59

Your IT - Mobility

Apple's latest iPhone software may provide a fix for one or more of the underlying issues affecting 3G reception, but it has proved far from the comprehensive cure that users were hoping for. The software update has done little to curb calls for Apple to address perceived hardware issues with the latest version of the popular phone.

Users around the world seem to be reporting similar connectivity issues, suggesting the problem does not lie with the carrier networks as some have asserted. On the other hand, reports of individual iPhone 3Gs that struggle with one carrier yet work properly with another in a different country make the opposite case.

Other users say their iPhone 3Gs are not suffering from connectivity problems. Since they are using the same networks and software, some observers suggest this is evidence of quality control issues with the hardware.

Version 2.0.2 of the iPhone software was released earlier this week. Apple spokesperson Jennifer Bowcock has told various US news outlets that "The iPhone 2.0.2 software update improves communication with 3G networks." While that is slightly more informative than Apple's original statement that the update delivered "bug fixes", it still leaves users in the dark.

A few iPhone 3G owners have reported that the update has improved their 3G connectivity with faster data transfers and reduced call dropouts, but a greater number are reporting no change.

Version 2.1 of the iPhone software is in beta test. The new push notification features and changes to the location services had been removed from the latest beta, leading to speculation that Apple has decided to concentrate on bug fixes and will introduce the new capabilities in a subsequent release.

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