!! CAUTION !! Do not use MAGNETIC case

rj5620 · 07-05-2007, 01:25 PM

I bought my iphone Friday at the (LAS) local Apple store, and Saturday morning began to use it. At first it was working OK, but my reception in my home was poor. My Motorola Q was much better in this regard, but I hoped it might get better. That day, I played with my new toy and noted that the speaker stopped working and other unusual things started to happen. If I went to utube, it would say "can not play this video...delete or Keep?" If I tried to play a song in ipod, the slider would move as the song played, but no sound from the speakers. If I put the earbuds in, utube would now play and I could hear the key clicks, the ipod songs and all sounds. What is going on here! My phone began to say "No Service" and If I did a reset, I would get a few bars, but it would not search for a signal if it went again into the No Service mode. I took it back to the Apple store and got another iPhone. Next day the exact, I mean the exact same symptoms began again. I thought that I had given my iPhone a virus or something. I spent hours and hours on the phone with Apple and ATT. I went to the ATT store and got a second sim card, still no help. I took this phone back and now I have a phone that works. I realized last night that there had to be something unique to me, my house, my car or something that is causing this dilemma. I thought that it might be the magnet in my case flap since the speakers were the first to go, as most speakers are some sort of magnet. So I did not use my case on the new phone and it seems to work OK. This could be a major coincidence, but I doubt it. So I recommend you do NOT get a case with any magnets in it. Funny thing is that I bought my case form "Everything Q" store for my Motorola Q and it never caused any problems!

http://store.everythingq.com/content...4-120--245.htm

Alexander · 07-05-2007, 01:27 PM

Thanks for the tip. No magnets for me.

spacerog · 07-05-2007, 01:30 PM

Originally Posted by rj5620

This could be a major coincidence[/URL]

Yes, it is. Sounds like you got a bum iPhone. Out of a million units there are bound to be a few duds, sounds like you where unlucky enough to get one of them. Unless the your case used an abnormally strong magnet it is unlikely that it had any effect on the iPhone at all.

- SR

wjp09 · 07-05-2007, 01:37 PM

well look what happens when you put a magnet up to a monior

JnC · 07-05-2007, 01:49 PM

Originally Posted by wjp09

well look what happens when you put a magnet up to a monior

You can't apply basic EM field theory to every situation. Particularly since the iPhone doesn't use an electron gun.

I think we need more data from owners with magnetic clasps before we jump to any conclusions.

SPCartmanLand · 07-05-2007, 02:21 PM

hope this isnt true cause i ordered a case a few days ago that has a magnetic close on it ive used them with many other pda's and never had problems so

robhon · 07-05-2007, 02:40 PM

I actually got information from Apple about this very issue. I don't think the magnet is causing what you're describing. Apple conveyed to me that a magnet located near the bottom of the phone (near the mic and speaker) could interfere with reception (as in receiving a call). There's no way it could affect those parts in any permanent way that you are describing.

Also, magnets do NOT affect flash memory in any way. Magnets should NOT be used on cases for hard drive style iPods because it CAN affect the data on those drives, but not the other hardware components.

dsuppa · 07-05-2007, 02:43 PM

Ive been using a case with a magnet on it since I got the phone the other day and I have not noticed any problems yet with it yet *knocks on wood*.

IceTrAiN · 07-05-2007, 02:46 PM

I wouldn't completely rule it out. Magnets near a cellphone are just bad ideas all around, and I would never do it. I had a nametag that was magnetic and I put in the same pocket as my cellphone and I erased all my contacts on my sim card.. Granted it was a very strong magnet and probably not nearly as strong as the kinds on cases, but still.. From that point on I started saving them on the phone... hehe

robhon · 07-05-2007, 02:59 PM

Originally Posted by IceTrAiN

I had a nametag that was magnetic and I put in the same pocket as my cellphone and I erased all my contacts on my sim card..

I'm sorry but that's not possible. A sim card does not use magnetic storage. Something else happened to your sim card.

You have to understand, mechanical hard drives store data by writing little 1's and 0's on a magnetic platter (disk). If you rub another magnetic field up against those platters it will jumble up all those 1's and 0's. That doesn't happen with flash drives or data on a chip like your SIM chip.