Apple faces lawsuit over wobbly 3G claims

Where there's blame there's a writ

Posted in Mobile, 21st August 2008 11:13 GMT

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An Alabama woman is suing Apple for claiming its latest iPhone offers 3G connectivity when she can't get connected most of the time, despite AT&T having decent coverage where she lives.

The complaint is aiming to become a class action suit, as just about everyone with the latest iPhone has been complaining about levels of coverage; and the complainant is claiming sustained monetary and economic injuries from being unable to get a 3G signal.

Apple's problems aren't unique. Many 3G handsets suffer poor performance, particularly the first model from each manufacturer. But manufacturers have learnt how to pick up a 3G signal while network density has improved, so there's more often a signal to pick up. Apple has come late to the game, and their lack of radio experience is showing. Still, O2 is telling punters that the boys in Cupertino will have a software fix out real soon now.

It seems unlikely that Apple will end up being guilty of being "unjustly enriched at the expense of Plaintiff and Class members" as the claim asserts, despite their advertising. But the case could prove an unwelcome distraction if enough unhappy iPhone buyers join up, and the attendant publicity isn't going to help Apple achieve their aim of shifting ten million devices by the end of this year. ®

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