Apple Offers Free Bumper Cases for iPhone 4 Customers

Apple CEO Steve Jobs on Friday said the company would provide free "bumpers," a rubber wrapper that goes around the outside of the iPhone 4, as a solution to solve the signal loss problem when the phone is held a certain way.

But first, he spent 30 minutes pounding on the press.

Jobs's disdain for the media is no secret, but today he was in full bloom. He said he had been on vacation in Hawaii all week and cut it short to come back and address the growing controversy around the iPhone 4. Since its release, customers have noted that when the phone is held in their left hand, its signal bars drop and, in some cases, the call is lost.

The lower left side of the iPhone has a seam where the two iPhone antennas split, and covering that seam (easily done by the palm of the left hand) is seen as the culprit. Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) initially saidthe problem was software-related and that signal strength was overstated with faulty signal bar graphics, and that it would issue a software fix.

On Thursday afternoon, it release iOS 4.0.1, which changes the look of the signal bars, but according to multiple Apple blogs, did nothing to address the "death grip" problem.

The issue exploded beyond tech, gadget and mobile blogs and into the mainstream when Consumer Reports issued a finding that the problem due to the hardware, and said it could not recommend the phone to its users. The respected consumer product-testing magazine said this even as it scored the iPhone 4 higher than any other smartphone for based on its display and battery life.

Jobs took the stage to say that the iPhone has sold 3 million units in three weeks of availability and, of those sold, only one-half of 1 percent of customers have called into AppleCare with a problem.

"We heard about this just 22 days ago from today. It's not like Apple's had its head in the sand for three months on this. Apple is an engineering-driven company," he said, according to reports.

He then held up a number of other smartphones, including a BlackBerry and HTC Droid Eris, and showed them losing signal strength when held. Jobs said it's a challenge for the whole industry and that "phones aren't perfect."

Continuing on the defensive, he said that the return rate for the iPhone 3GS was 6 percent, while the iPhone 4 has a return rate of 1.7 percent. The difference between the two iPhone models in dropped calls, according to Apple's carrier partner AT&T, was about 1 percent.

Later, during a question-and-answer session, someone in the audience asked Jobs about claims in an Bloomberg article that a senior engineer at Apple had warned him about antenna problems. Jobs called the article "a total crock" and said he'd spoken to the engineer in question, who called the article "B.S." -- (except he didn't say those two letters).

But in the end, Jobs said that while Apple continues to examine the situation, everyone who bought an iPhone 4 can get a free bumper by registering on Apple's home page beginning next week. Also, all future buyers who purchase a phone will get one for free at retail, up to Sept.30.

If you're still not happy, Jobs says you can bring your iPhone back within 30 days for a full refund. Apple and AT&T have always had 30-day return policies but charged a restocking fee.

Jobs said Apple is working on other problems, such as a bug in the proximity sensor that will be fixed in a future software update. He added that the white plastic iPhone would begin shipping at the end of this month, and on July 30, the iPhone will launch in 17 more countries.

Analyst Avi Greengart, research director for mobile and consumer products with Current Analysis, has maintained that the company should have given away the bumpers from the beginning, and hopes that now that a freebie is available, the issue will go away.

"A lot of the points Apple is making are legitimate. It's not affecting everyone. It only happens in this spot. Apple daring you to return your iPhone 4 is almost comical. This is a fantastic phone, easily the best phone Apple has ever made and by a shrinking margin it's the best smartphone ever made," he told InternetNews.com.

Greengart explained that there are some impressive Android phones on the market, but for overall user experience, the iPhone 4 is still the best smartphone available.

He also hopes that's the end of New York Senator Charles Schumer's interest in Apple. The powerful Democrat sent a letter to Apple earlier this week expressing concern over the issue and stressing the company offer a no-cost solution to customers.

"I'm pretty sure Chuck Schumer has better things to do than pursue issues that are overblown by media coverage. He did mention a permanent fix at no charge should be offered, so the issue has been resolved," said Greengart.

Andy Patrizio is a senior editor at InternetNews.com, the news service of Internet.com, the network for technology professionals.