Apple has released a patch for iPhone users: version 4.0.1 of the iOS is meant to bring in some side features such as a color change for the Apple games center, and of course, the infamous signal bar edit that shows a better “measure” of signal strength in the area.

Steve Jobs and his team at Cupertino seems to believe that iPhone 4 users have the uncanny knack of always being in locations that have little to no signal which is why, they explain, that calls are bring dropped in the middle of a conversation.

However, further investigation and research into the situation has revealed that he problem is not based on having a faulty meter, but on the fact that Apple’s antenna was really badly designed in the first place. This means that the first users who complained about the issue were right, and that Apple was only trying to distract people from the real issue by bringing up the signal meter problems.

The big catch here is that this is one solution that no simple patch or software update would ever fix. No matter how Apple reprograms the software for getting a signal or reception, the fact remains that the antenna has a major exposed weak spot that severely lowers the value of the handset –after all, using a phone where most calls are likely to be dropped is not really something that smart phone owners want to have.

According to reports, many existing users are trying to find solutions for themselves –as Apple is indignant about not supplying users with free cases or bumpers. Some would simply buy a casing or a bumper (which, as stated, Apple should be giving out for free), other would opt to cover the exposed area with a strip of tape, a coating of nail polish and similar other substances.

All eyes are on the Cupertino company’s next move to rectify the problem caused by their inaccurate signal displays. In an open letter, the mobile industry titan revealed the truth behind the numerous dropped calls, unsent SMS and connection problems experienced by iPhone 4 owners. The clincher is that Apple seemed to be well aware of the reception issue years before they even started working on the iPhone 4.

In July of 2008, version 2.0 of the iPhone 3G platform was released to the public and was reportedly full of bugs. A fix all patch was then released in August, a month after version 2.0 went live. The patch notes indicated that a number of performance related issues would be corrected upon installation of the patch. The description was very vague, but the noticeable improvements included improved keyboard responsiveness, quicker backups and less lag in the Contacts app. According to ZDNet’s observation, the update also resulted in an improved reception:

“One major improvement that I am seeing is that the reception capability has improved with the working 3G/EDGE data auto-switching”.

Or so we thought. The signal bar formula they used for the current operating system may have remnants of the old update, causing it to display one to two bars more than the actual signal reading of the device:

“Their big drop in bars is because their high bars were never real in the first place”.

So was this something that the Apple company neglected? Probably so. After all, there are more important wow factors to focus on such as its HD recording capabilities or its spiffy new Retina Display. The Cupertino company failed to check the basics including the signal bar display. The iPhone 4’s screen adhesive did not even have enough time to dry before it was out the door.

At least the problem can be corrected by yet another software update. Hopefully Apple is not out to give quick cosmetic fixes this time around.