iPhone 4 Inevitable Hardware Recall Coming, PR Experts Say

Back and forth. Back and forth. That's what this antenna issue has become, with Apple sitting in the middle, watching the results as they make their way from one end of the spectrum to the other. Back and forth. And it's only getting brighter in the media's eye (if that's even possible), and when that starts happening, we can surely expect it to be making waves amongst the populace. Even amongst those who might call themselves Apple fans. With a new report from Consumer Reports hot on the heels of the issue, we now get word from so-called PR experts that a hardware recall for the new iPhone is inevitable."Apple will be forced to do a recall of this product," said Professor Matthew Seeger. "It's critically important. The brand image is the most important thing Apple has. This is potentially devastating." Seeger is an expert in Crisis Communication.

What it boils down to, more or less, is basically a PR situation for Apple at this point. By now, everyone who has an iPhone 4 has either experienced the situation, knows someone who has, or has at least heard about it. And in the mean time, Apple is saying that a software fix is being tested, getting ready to deploy to customers out there that will fix the problem. However, whether or not it is a software issue is really a non-issue anymore. Through a ridiculous amount of testing, it's a pretty obvious design situation.

So, with that in mind, is this a hardware problem that deserves a recall? Considering there are other fixes, such as simply adding an Apple bumper case to the device, to fix the situation, would that be a better route for Apple to take? No one wants a recall, especially not Apple (that could potentially put a severe hole in Apple's golden PR status), so should the Cupertino-based company just start handing out free fixes?

[via Cult of Mac]