Totally agree, I never really thought it should have it in the first place.

I think the main problem with this is not that iPhone 3G has problems and bugs but that Apple continues to not even care or address any of the problems. They think they dont have to be accountable and that everyone will still continue to buy their products even though they dont work right.

I can't say I have had any 3G reception problems with my iPhone and it seems to be better then the 2G as far as reception goes. I also enjoy the fact that my iPhone does not reboot itself in the middle of a conversation like my Treo would. I also support a number of iPhones at work and I have had zero reports of this problem.

I've had my 3G iPhone for a month now, and there are 4 more in my extended family, and none of us have had any issues:
http://sparkplug9.com/2008/08/11/iphone-family/

Very odd!

I think we need to differentiate "reception problems" from number of reception bars on the phone. I notice many less bars on my 3G phone than on the MOTO Q it replaced, however, I have many less dropped calls and actually have better service than the MOTO Q in areas that were problems for me before. I am not debating that there may be a problem, I am just wondering if it is a real problem of reception or a problem of the screen indicator.

these "problems" get very hyped up in the media.

Neither mine nor the wife's have any reception problems. Of course, that's just anecdotal, I'm not minimizing people that are having problems.

Why should Apple admit any fault for the iPhone reception problems when you media guys foam at the mouth anytime apple holds a press conference?

You give them a free ride on every product they put out (even when the put out crap). If I'm apple, I just sit back and keep counting the money and dissing the nay sayers. After all, they can do no wrong.

I agree 100%.
In fact I returned my iphone to apple just yesterday after having it for only 10 days.
Apple should also acknowledge that their new firmware is really unstable.

On a different note, An ATT Customer service manager has acknowledge that they know that the coverage map is not correct and it shows coverage where there is none or very poor. There is a class issue in preparation against ATT.

As far as call service goes, my Iphone 3G works better than ANY of the half dozen or phones I have ever owned. In the building where I work I have NEVER been able to get regular service (calls or texts), but with the Iphone 3G, although the signal is weak, I can actually do both. As a side note, I have never owned anything Apple, but with it being laptop upgrade time, I am actually looking at Apples as well... After 25 years of mainstream, I never thought I would see the day.

I'm waiting for a 5th-gen iPhone that runs on the Verizon network.

I live in Houston and most of the time
I'm on the edge system with my 3G iPhone

Half the price, half the reception.

It's definitely a problem and I believe it applies to ALL 3G phones. I've had two; I traded in the first because of the problem and the second, of course, had the same problem -- no reliable phone service with 3G turned on. I love the phone, but I have to use it with 3G disabled -- WHICH MAKES THE NAME OF THE PHONE PRETTY RIDICULOUS, RIGHT? The Apple employees denied any knowledge of it. An ex-Verizon employee I met recently even knew of the problem and said Apple doesn't tell its sales people; instead it tries to control the spin through secrecy which is now surfacing to cause them problems.

Save yourself and your publication, remove the status now!

If this phone was put out by MicroSoft instead of Apple, there would be global mass hysteria. But instead, we (apple fans - me included) are nothing more than lemmings being lead off the cliff of non-productivity.

Having just re-read what I just typed has motivated me to walk across the street to the "scene of my crime" [iPhone 3G purchase], return the phone and get my "old" Palm Centro re-activated.

Sorry, Apple, but the Summer of '08 has been very rough on me. First, my beloved Budweiser is sold to a European company, then my beloved Brett Farve joins the Jets and finally Apple thumbs it's nose at me.

If people are paying good hard earned money for something and not getting it is a violation of the trust that you put in a company, be it apple or at&t it does not matter, the subject exist and if either of the two acknowledged this.They would not be charging those outrageous monthly plans in good conscience,but as long as people keep acting like mindless followers of Steve Jobs just because hey "It's an iPhone" they deserve what they are getting.

Absolutely remove it - the iPhone 3G has a horrible rep in Sweden as well which is part of the Telia telephone network.

Apple has really screwed the pooch on this one - big time!

What I think is that Apple is selling a pot load of iPhones and doesn't want to talk to the media about any reception problems -- the absolute core of any phone -- and thereby add any destructive spin to this story. So, like we assme here in DC, if you [Apple] don't rebut or deny...it must be true and maybe even worse than reported.

here in Italy iPhone works fine...

My new Iphone 3g has the worst signal ever. I have way more dropped calls than I used to get when i had the original Iphone!

I would find your observations more reliable if you had facts, not "I think" or perhaps, or assumptions based on "two" e-mails and some threads on user forums. I see you did not comment on the thousands of such comments regarding the problems with MobileMe, yet those were MUCH more serious and were completely within the fault of Apple. On the iPhone reception problems, anyone who has had a cell phone knows that reception is always a number one problem with ANY company, with ANY phone and has more to do with the signal than anything else. Yes, this is new technology for the iPhone, but it's also new to ATT and other providers, world wide. I have three phones still on the Sprint network and I have had huge issues with signal and cell coverage with that company for years. My ATT iPhone can run circles around Sprint.

I wish you could be more factual, rather than opinionated and do us all a favor.

Everyone in my family - my son, my wife and myself - started off with the original iPhones last year. My son and I had a good experience with our phones. My wife's phone had terrible reception. When I upgraded to the 3G, she switched her original iPhone to her business account, receiving a new SIM chip. Her reception immediately improved 100%. As for me, my reception has been very good with my 3G. As a side note, I work as a video editor for government and spend a large amount of time around electronic equipment. These devices affect the reception of everyones cellphone in the office - Blackberries, Motorollas, Treos - you name it. These devices react to their environment - and that is not the fault of the carrier nor the manufacturer - it is simply the reality of doing business with cellular technology.

Oh yeah! Take it off.

I purchased an outside antenna system with an inside the home transmitter because of a poor signal. That boosted my signal inside threefold. From no bars or one to 3 or 4 bars. Still no 3G whatsoever even though I'm supposed to be in a strong signal area. AND, at times my iPhone 3G still completley now and then displays NO SIGNAL.. AT&T? iPhone? I'm not sure but I really do suspect the iPhone.
No response from Apple on this issue alone, should support taking their Editor's Choice status away at least temporarily!
Let the consumer be heard!!

Take if off the list. Bought mine on 8/11, returned it on 8/13. Very limited signal and I seldom had 3G service in the heart of Los Angeles. Apple has seriously dropped the ball on this one.

Here's an experiment I conducted at the downtown Portland AT&T store earlier this week (which is supposed to be right in the center of our 3G map).

Went to the two iPhone 3G demos, turned off WiFi, and turned on 3G. Guess what? Signal strength went from full to 0-1 bars. I moved about 5 feet away from the iPhones to the 3G Samsung and LG offerings, and strangely, both of those phones had full 5 bars. I asked an AT&T sales rep about the difference between the handsets, and his reply was, "if you want full reception, either put the iPhone 3G in WiFi or Edge". I asked him what if I specifically wanted just to use 3G, and his response was "the reason those iPhones are getting lower signals in 3G is because they're demo phones". I then asked, "aren't the Samsung and LG phones on display demos too?". At that point, he said "we don't have any iPhone 3G's in stock anyway", and moved on to the next customer.

My point in all of this is that there's definitely a problem, and AT&T and Apple are stalling. My guess is it's hardware related, i.e. the chipset. I've been a loyal Apple customer for years, but I'm seriously dissapointed with their steadfast silence. It just makes Apple look stubborn and insular. Obviously it's all about the money to them, but my feeling is they are doing themselves more harm than good in the long run by handling this problem in the "silence will make it all go away" mode.

In closing, my vote would be for you to remove the "Editors Choice" award and let Apple know you are doing this; perhaps with enough media pressure, they'll finally acknowledge that something is indeed amiss with the iPhone 3G.

I'm in eastern Massachusetts. I've had the phone for 11 days and have had dropped calls every day. Used to be on Verizon network and it was much better.
Standing still, the phone goes from 5 bars to no bars and back to 3 bars and then no bars again - all in a matter seconds. 3G signal is elusive. Constantly switching to EDGE.
Work in a large building - many times get NO SERVICE when inside and away from windows.
Went to the AT&T store a few days ago. They told me to call 1-800-myiphone to make an appointment with the Apple Store in Providence, RI. I can't just walk into the Apple store to get service on this problem. What a crock of SH&t.
Going to wait one more week to see if Apple or AT&T come out with something...
I love the iPhone - it is a fabulous device - but it is simply does not work well as a phone.

The only time I've had a problem was when I was at the Orlando Airport (go figure). When the iphone switched to the Edge network I got no reception for texting and Data - I could only make phone calls.

The bugs in what is essentially still a 1.x product are understandable and to be expected. What is not acceptable is Apple's response to it. This is yet another example of how the preoccupation with secrecy, a meme that is established right at the very top of the corporation, is hurting the company. Apple's board needs to start thinking seriously about whether its current leadership remains in the company's best interest. If its leadership can't grow up and start to work with its customers as partners rather than marks, then they need to find someone who will.

got my iphone 3G 2days ago here in the uk..just never got any signal 3G on or off..it was so bad i couldn't activate the phone, o2 uk said they never heard of this problem i said what about the 125 pages on the o2 forums then!!..sent it back..

i cant use my iphone it is always No Service to get back the reception i have to restart my iphone then the reception will come back full but will loose reception again in few seconds or minutes sometimes im tired i hate my iphone

I have had my 3g for a month now and it worked great until i went out of att's coverage. My phone wont even attemp to roam. I called apple from my gf's verizon phone to see what the deal was. they ran me through a few of there fixes but no luck so now they want me to just "swing" into the att store for a new SIM card. The problem is the store is 100 miles away from home and ill only be here for 3 more days. A.My customers cant call me B. I wont be back up here for 6 months so how the heck do I know if the new sim works. (end rant)