“The complaint revolves around the defective antenna installed in the new iPhone 4, and Apple and AT&T’s refusal to correct the issue or to accept returns of the phone without restocking fees or contract penalties for attempting to void the service agreement before the contractual two year period has run,” the law firm said in a statement.
Some iPhone 4 owners began complaining of signal loss issues when their hand covered the lower left corner of the combination iPod and smartphone. Apple claimed there wasn’t an antenna issue, and then suggested that users experiencing signal strength problems should hold the phone differently, or buy a case that covers the stainless steel antenna band.
Apple has since issued a statement claiming the problem is actually the formula used in the iPhone’s software to calculate signal strength and display signal bars.
“Upon investigation, we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong,” Apple said in its statement. “Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength.”
Apple plans to release a software update in the coming weeks for the iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4 that changes how signal strength is calculated.
Carp isn’t the first law firm to go fishing for a class action lawsuit over iPhone 4 reception issues. A federal lawsuit filed in Maryland alleges Apple and AT&T have been selling iPhones knowing that there are antenna-related problems.
The lawfirm of Kershaw, Cutter & Ratinoff has been actively looking for iPhone 4 owners for their own class action lawsuit over reception issues, as well, and is presumably working on filing a case.
The Carp lawsuit is asking the court for class action certification, and an injunction blocking Apple from manufacturing the iPhone 4 “until the problem is acknowledged and repaired.”