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More interesting info on antenna......

DannyBoy

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AnandTech have done some more scientific testing of the problem and come up with a few interesting results. Turns out the iPhone 4 actually performs slightly better inside a case than a phone like the Nexus One, which has had similar issues crop up, but it's slightly worse when held in the hand, reporting an average signal drop of 20dB. Here's where it gets a little wacky, though: the signal meter in iOS 4 uses a highly compressed range, so that 20dB drop can either leave you looking steady at five bars or drop you all the way to zero, depending on what the actual signal level in the area is. The range of values between one bar and four spans just 23dB, while the range for five bars is 40dB. That means holding the phone in an area with a strong five-bar signal will have no apparent effect -- you can lose 20dB at full signal and still see five bars -- but holding the phone in an area with weaker coverage will easily drop the meter to one bar, since the 20dB signal drop covers almost the entirety of the remaining 23dB scale.

Of course, that's just the on-screen display, which Apple can and likely will tweak in a future iOS update. The real question is whether the reported signal has anything to do with performance, and Anandtech agrees with our general experience, saying that the iPhone 4's improved signal to noise ratio means it actually does a better job of hanging onto calls and using data when there's low signal than the iPhone 3GS. In their words, "this iPhone gets the best cellular reception yet, even though measured signal is lower than the 3GS." However, there's no getting around the fact that we've definitely dropped a couple calls with the iPhone 4 by holding it the wrong way, and Anandtech says the only real solution to the antenna issue will be for Apple to either subsidize free bumpers or add an insulative coating to the antenna band. We'll see what happens -- we've got a feeling an iOS update is on the way.

Source: AnandTech
 
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Hope it is okay to cut & paste from another website -- Macrumors:

As noted by Engadget, Apple has been busy posting job listings for engineers to work on design and testing of antennas for the company's iPhone and iPad. While Apple typically posts a number of new job listings each day, the fact that the company has posted a total of eight antenna-related positions over the past two weeks naturally leads to speculation that it is beefing up its staff to investigate and deal with signal issues being experienced by iPhone 4 users.

The eight job listings comprise three separate job titles, with the most relevant being three "Antenna Engineer - iPad/iPhone" positions. The three listings, all posted on June 23rd, are looking for individuals with a high level of qualification including 10+ years of experience in RF technology and a preference for PhD-level training.
Responsibilities: Define and implement antenna system architecture to optimize the radiation performance for wireless portable devices. The candidate should be able to design antennas suitable for wireless handheld devices with excellent radiation performance, including TRP, TIS, SAR, and EMC. Work closely with other RF and antenna design engineers, mechanical and industrial designers, and EMC engineers to integrate the antenna design in our products.
Also posted on June 23rd were two listings for "iPhone OTA Wireless Systems Engineer" to focus on validation of antenna radiation performance. And just one week earlier, the company posted three listings for " RF Systems Validation Engineer iPhone" positions also focused on testing the iPhone's RF systems, noting that "as we add more and more capabilities to the iPhone, testing the radios becomes more and more complex."

It is unclear exactly what role these new hires might play in addressing the current issues, as it typically takes some time for a hiring process to run its course and new employees to arrive and get up to speed. The job listings could suggest, however, that the company is looking to bring on additional hands to work on designs and testing for future models as some of the unit's staff is absorbed in addressing issues with the current model.
 
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