The latest twist in reception woes for Apple's (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone 4 is a doozy. In a Friday press release, the Cupertino tastemaker admits that it has been overestimating the signal strength that owners in areas with spotty coverage are receiving.
The initial complaints alleged that gripping an iPhone 4 southpaw style would result in lower reception bars. Motorola (NYSE: MOT) and Verizon (NYSE: VZ) are even alluding to the flap in their latest ads for Motorola's Droid X.
Holding your hand over a phone's antenna will naturally diminish signal strength, but admitting to bogus bars is a big deal. Apple plans a software update to fix the bug in coming weeks, but I'm guessing that class action lawyers will be scrambling just as quickly for their own resolution.
Briefly in the news
Now let's take a quick look at some of the other stories that shaped our week.
- Tesla Motors (Nasdaq: TSLA) went public on Tuesday, bucking the market malaise. The stock opened higher on its debut and closed even higher. Story stocks are apparently still alive and well, judging by investor enthusiasm for the electric car maker.
- Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) is buying Woot.com, the sticky website that provides a daily deal for a single marked-down product. Going by the reportedly low price on the transaction, it seems as if Amazon may have picked up a Woot-esque kind of deal.
- Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) also went shopping, buying airfare manager ITA Software in a $700 million deal. Regulators may have something to say about that one, though.
Until next week, I remain,
Rick Munarriz
