A day ahead of a hastily called Apple press conference on the iPhone 4, Bloomberg is reporting that the company’s senior antenna expert raised concerns as high as CEO Steve Jobs that the iPhone 4’s antenna design could cause reception issues. Citing two persons
“familiar with the matter,” Bloomberg indicates that similar concerns were also voiced by a carrier partner prior to the launch.
Apple did not respond to Bloomberg’s report but is widely expected to discuss the matter during tomorrow’s press conference.
While the Apple iPhone 4 has been its fastest selling iPhone (1.7 million sold in the first three days alone), Apple is now facing a PR nightmare as evidence mounts that there is a design issue that it has so far refused to acknowledge. Instead, it has suggested that people hold their phones differently and has admitted to a software issue that incorrectly displays the wireless signal strength.
Tomorrow’s press conference could go a long way to determine whether Apple’s brand will suffer any long-term damage from this issue.