NEW YORK - An Infineon chip could be at the root of
complaints from around the world that Apple Inc. 's new iPhone drops calls and
has unpredictable Internet links, according to a research report from Nomura.
BusinessWeek also reported on its website that the iPhone is
suffering from faulty software on an Infineon chip, and that Apple plans to fix
the problem with a software update.
Representatives for Apple and Infineon declined comment.
One of the key attractions of the latest iPhone, which went
on sale in July and sold 1 million in its first weekend, is faster,
third-generation (3G) Web connections when compared to the first iPhone that was
launched in mid-2007.
However, users have complained on websites and blogs that
Internet speeds have been inconsistent and that the phone often reverts to a
slower technology known as Edge even in 3G areas.
Nomura analyst Richard Windsor wrote in a research note that
the problem likely involved a 3G cellular network communications chip made by
Germany's Infineon.
"We believe that these issues are typical of an immature
chipset and radio protocol stack where we are almost certain that Infineon is
the 3G supplier," Windsor wrote in the report dated August 12.
"There are too many instances on iPhone blogs and Apple's own
website for it to be coincidence. Furthermore, it is not just the US but other
countries as well," he wrote.
BusinessWeek's online report cited an unidentified source as
saying the problem lay with Infineon technology, which it described as "fairly
new and untested in high volumes outside a lab setting."
BusinessWeek reported that Apple had set up the Infineon chip to demand a
more powerful 3G signal than it needed, resulting in a switch back to the slower
network if there are too many people in the same area trying to use their iPhone
at the same time. - Reuters
