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[/left]Jobs says Apple has sold well over 3 million since its launch 3 weeks ago. Numerous publications have praised it, and consumer reaction has been the best ever. But people have been having problems with the antenna
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it doesn't seem like a good idea if you can grip your phone and the bars go away. But you can find videos on YouTube of other phones from Nokia, Blackberry and other phones doing the same thing.
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Yesterday Apple released a bug fix that addressed the signal bar issue
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Jobs says Apple is going to give everyone a free case. If you've already got a bumper, you'll get a full refund for the bumper. Apple will give users a choice of cases. You can apply on the website for a free case starting next week.
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When people criticize Apple, Apple takes it really personally. (If a user's have a problem it's our problem, Jobs says.)
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The heart of the problem is, smartphones have weak spots.
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Did Apple consider a recall? "When you love your customers as much as we do, nothing's off the table," Jobs says, but Apple looked at the data. Apple sent Apple engineers to the homes of people who emailed Jobs about antenna issues (with permission, Mansfield notes) and wheeled equipment in. (So he's saying that Apple looked closely at the problem and determined that it wasn't warranted.)
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If you're still not happy before or after getting the free case, bring the phone back for a full refund, no restocking fee, within 30 days. "We are going to take care of everyone. We want every user to be happy."
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First question: How's Jobs's health? He says he's fine.
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What has Jobs learned that will change the way Apple does these phone launches? Jobs says he's not sure yet, he needs to get some distance. But he offers that while Apple knew it cared about its users, and was stunned and upset by the Consumer Reports rating, he didn't have the data any earlier about what the problem was (or wasn't)
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Jobs is asked whether he'll apologize to investors for the hit the stock has taken over this. Jobs says he apologizes to the customers who are having problems over this. "As far as investors go, we want investors who are in it for the long haul," not people who are trading quickly. So no, he's not going to apologize for that. "It's just like having kids," he says, from the perspective of, "things happen, and you roll with it."
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Did Apple consider a recall? "When you love your customers as much as we do, nothing's off the table," Jobs says, but Apple looked at the data. Apple sent Apple engineers to the homes of people who emailed Jobs about antenna issues (with permission, Mansfield notes) and wheeled equipment in. (So he's saying that Apple looked closely at the problem and determined that it wasn't warranted.)
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Is there possibly a hardware fix for the iPhone 4? Jobs says this is an industry-wise challenge, and so this isn't a unique issue for Apple....
