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News >> Technology >>
Apple keeps silence over Consumer Reports review
By siliconindia
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Wednesday, 14 July 2010, 20:53 IST
Seattle: After a poor review of its latest iPhone 4 from Consumer Reports Magazine, Apple has remained silence. The company has not responded to the widely observed report. Consumer Reports has said that it could not recommend the device, which sold 1.7 million units globally in its first three days, after its tests confirmed concerns about signal loss when the device is held in a certain way.
The report urged wide spread discussion about the possibility of the iPhone 4 recall and shares of Apple has slid down more than 4 percent on Tuesday after the review.
Consumer Reports said it won't endorse the iPhone 4 as "recommended" because tests show that simply holding the gadget can cause reception to fade. Although Consumer Reports only recommends a handful of phones that it considers exceptional, this was the first time the publication isn't giving an iPhone its "recommended" stamp of approval.
The company has all cellphones suffer some signal loss when cradled in different ways, and suggested that a software glitch might have misled users by overstating signal strength.
Analysts thought a recall unlikely but said the world's most valuable tech company needs to move quickly to avert longer-term damage to its widely respected brand, which allows it to charge a premium for products like the iPad and iPod.
Hudson Square Research analyst Daniel Ernst pointed to speculation that Consumer Reports' article might induce a recall.
"There's nothing to recall. There's people lining up in droves to buy this phone," said Gleacher & Co analyst Brian Marshall. He said he could not replicate the antenna problem on the iPhone 4.
Shares of Research in Motion, which makes the rival Blackberry, climbed 3.4 per cent to $55.62. Google, whose Android operating system for smartphones is gaining traction on multiple devices, also rose, by more than 3 percent to $490.35, along with tech stocks overall.
Analysts said Apple needs to take quick action to avert any lasting damage to its reputation for quality products, an image honed by iconic gadgets such as the iPod and iPad, though they did not see sales being hurt for now.