I don't understand what the big problem is. So, my iPhone 4 has a small hardware flaw. I found this out weeks ago. It hasn't made a difference to my life and I am certainly not going to return it.
Does it drop calls? Yes. Does it drop less calls than my 3G? Yes. Does it have better reception in general than my 3G? Yes. Am I happy with 02, my network? No - but they have always been pretty bad where I live. (But also bare in mind the walls to my house here in Scotland are made of damp sandstone and are 3ft thick.)
I think that my iPhone 4 is not just the best phone I've ever owned its the single greatest consumer electronics device that I have ever owned. If it was recalled you'd have to prise it out of my cold dead hands (or replace it with an iPhone 5).
Nobody I know that owns an iPhone 4 cares about this issue - they all think it's funny. The only people that seem to care are either people I know who own android devices (who gloat) and tech journalists who seem to be very, very angry for some weird reason.
A lot of the press gets by by writing snark-filled criticism of anything and everything. Bigger names make for better press: the snark that pulls in the most eyes is the snark about the fall of the biggest Goliath. So, this segment of the press has wanted an excuse to tear into Apple for years—it's a very big name—but Apple has Done No Wrong (from their fans' perspectives), so they haven't been able to.
Now that there is something that consumers could, theoretically, get mad about, they're going to attack Apple full-bore, no matter how irrational it is on an objective scale.
Anyone who would expect this story to blow over doesn't understand the media. It's pretty much the same situation as happened with Toyota. Market leader stumbles, that is news.
