Apple will give iPhone 4 users a free phone case to address growing complaints about reception problems that have hurt the company's shares and image.
Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs announced the news at a rare media conference on Friday, when he admitted that Apple and the phone were ‘not perfect.’
But he defiantly asserted that smartphone reception issues were a problem shared by the entire wireless industry, including devices by Apple competitors such as Research in Motion and HTC Corp.
Shares of Apple, which had fallen about 1% in the morning, climbed 1.3% after Jobs' comments.
‘This has been blown so out of proportion, it's incredible,’ Jobs told an auditorium at Apple's Silicon Valley headquarters.
Jobs said that if iPhone 4 users were still not satisfied, Apple will offer a full refund within a month. Apple has sold well over 3 million units of the iPhone 4 in the three weeks since its launch, he added.
