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Blog: Infineon Drivers May be Cause of iPhone 3G Dropped Calls

Tuesday, August 19th, 2008 at 3:00 PM - by

In the recent flap over the iPhone 3G dropped calls, AT&T said it's not their problem. Instead, sources have suggested that the problem is Infineon's driver code for their 3G chip, according to Chuq Von Rospach in his blog on Tuesday.

"What I was told was that 90% of the disconnects are initiated inside the phone, which would exonerate AT&T. Most of the disconnects are being generated by crashes in the driver code for the 3G chip, which comes from the chip vendor," Mr. Von Rospach was told by a source.

It's not Apple's code, and that would get Apple of the hook as well.

The immediate problem is that the vendor turnaround for fixes is running 2-3 months, and there may be a lack of a sense of urgency.

If this is true, it could sour the relationship between Apple and Infineon. The blogger, an ex-Apple sysadmin with good connections, suggested that Apple's investment in PA Semi is designed to eliminate such problems in the future.

"The best aspect of this rumor (if true) is that the hardware is fine; once they can get the drivers fixed (or replaced), the units should be fine, Mr. Von Rospach wrote. "Thinking 'recall' is unecessary and overkill, the real question seems to be how quickly Apple can beat the fixes out of the vendor."

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A guest said: (hide)

Tue Aug 19, 2008 3:42 pm

I would think that Apple WILL convince Infineon that fixing the problem is their number ONE priority. I can see Steve giving Infineon CEO Peter Bauer a call telling him that they need to fix the problem NOW, not siz monts from now and Peter saying Yes Sir.

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A guest said: (hide)

Tue Aug 19, 2008 3:45 pm

I bet the semiconductor company that Apple purchased is looking at low-power 3G chips too.

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Sir Harry Flashman said:

member since 08 Feb 2007 with 792 posts, unranked, send him a message or view his profile

Tue Aug 19, 2008 4:05 pm

Well it won't get Apple off the hook, they will probably always be blamed for the problem by their critics and the public general.

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A guest said: (hide)

Tue Aug 19, 2008 4:48 pm

It is a problem for Apple. The consumer didn't buy a product from Infineon - they bought it from Apple. My iPhone constantly switches between Edge and 3G in areas where 3G coverage is supposed to be good and a number of incoming calls go straight to voicemail when I've got 3G turned on in the settings. I suspect the call from Steve Jobs to Infineon has already happened.

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A guest said: (hide)

Tue Aug 19, 2008 5:06 pm

Don't worry they will put out another iPhone Firmware described as "Bug Fixes" and all will be better...

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