iPhone 4S antenna fix may breach patents

Apple may soon find itself embroiled in yet another patent dispute with Samsung over its new iPhone 4S antenna system, according to a report.

The so-called "antennagate" debacle that plagued the launch of the iPhone 4 last year was an issue that occurred when iPhone 4 users touched a small area on the lower-left side of the iPhone 4 where there is a gap in the iPhone 4's external antenna. This pressure caused the signal to drop out. Apple dismissed most of the criticism, saying only 0.55 per cent of iPhone 4 buyers had complained about the issue, but nevertheless issued free bumpers to all iPhone 4 buyers as a solution.

To rectify the problem, Apple unveiled a new dual-antenna design in the iPhone 4S launched last week that would allow the phone to switch between the two antennas to send and receive.

This new design may be an infringement on patents developed by Danish professor Gert Frølund Pedersen and sold to Samsung, according to Danish news site ComON.

The iPhone 4S will likely violate Samsung's patents when it determines which of the two antennas has the better signal strength at any one time, Pederson told ComON.

"You can quite simply do it by measuring the signal strength. But you can also make it a little smarter — which one could imagine that Apple has done. For example, smartphones register whether they are being held in portrait or landscape position. The problem is that if they make calculations based on the type of smart registrations, they will violate a patent that I have which I have sold to Samsung," Pedersen said.

It is not clear at this point whether Samsung intends to challenge Apple on these patents; however, the Korean technology company has already sought to block the launch of the device in France and Italy. This attempted block is unrelated to the patents in question.

Samsung Australia was not immediately available for comment at the time of publication.

Apple and Samsung are currently waging a number of legal battles across the globe over alleged patent violations. In Australia, Apple is seeking to block the sale of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, alleging it copies the iPad in a number of respects. The Federal Court is expected to hand down its decision on whether to block the launch of the device. If it is not able to be launched in October, Samsung has said it is unlikely Australia will see the Galaxy Tab 10.1 arrive at all.

The iPhone 4S is scheduled to go on sale in Australia this Friday. Apple has been taking pre-orders on the device since 6pm on Friday, but customers who wish to order one now face a one- to two-week wait on getting the iPhone 4S direct from Apple. Optus and Vodafone also began taking pre-orders over the weekend, and Telstra is expected to announce its plans soon.