The new iPhone has a flaw. It's a pretty simple one, the antenna is placed in such a way that it's easy to touch it and drop calls. It's also easy to fix, cover the antenna, so you can't touch it and accidentally lose reception. The obvious solution is to provide free cases to people experiencing the issue - a $30 value - and make a running change to make the problem harder to replicate. It would cost a bit of money in the short term, but customers would be happy and the company would look like it cares.
It's pretty standard practice that, if an unanticipated flaw shows up in a product, a company will provide a fix to affected customers. When early users of Nintendo's Wii happened to accidentally throw their controllers into their televisions when the wrist band broke, Nintendo happily sent them new, stronger wrist bands. In that case, it was partially user error, but the company stepped up and fixed the problem. The fix kept consumers happy, an important goal.
Apple's solution to the problem is somewhat less consumer focused, however. The initial solution was to tell people that they were holding the phone wrong. It might be accurate, but the antenna is placed where people - especially people using their left hand - would naturally be holding it. Then they said their software had the wrong number of bars displayed. Again, if it worked it would be fine, but people were still dropping calls, even with the more accurate signal reading. The final solution, buying a case, was curious, since this is a flaw affects a vital function. People were buying a phone, then being forced to buy an accessory so they can call people?
Of course, it's a popular product, and people are still buying it. Plus, due to the way people use it, not everyone has the problem. Regardless, the solution is not to just dismiss them and tell them they're holding it wrong. If the solution is as simple as offering a free case to those who want it, why not do that? It might cost money, but that cost is regained through repeat sales to satisfied customers.
Now, this is not to say the issue is killing the company, but it's a risky stance to take when competition is becoming more intense in the phone sector. Google's Android operating system is getting steadily more popular - it outsold the iPhone in the first quarter of the year - and issues like this might drive more consumers in that direction.
Certainly it's having an effect. Apple's share price is decreasing the longer this problem plays out. If they keep being arrogant about the issue it could cause their share price to decrease even more. While there are people who will buy the device no matter what happens, every dissatisfied customer is a customer who might decide to go with a competitor's phone next time around.
The thing is, in all other areas, the phone itself is a marked improvement over the one that preceeded it. Without the frankly ridiculous antenna issue, Apple could be riding high on a wave of good publicity. However, in their refusal to do something as simple as giving a free case to affected customers who want it, they are coming off as a company that cares little about its customers and one which is unwilling to look critically at its own designs. This might not kill Apple, and doubtless the next iPhone will fix the problem, but it certainly doesn't help them.
