Swedish firm tests iPhone 3G antenna

A wireless testing firm based in Sweden has set out to quash the numerous claims that the recently launched iPhone 3G is defective.

Over the weekend, Bluetest, which builds wireless testing chambers for devices with small antennas, carried out a signal test on an iPhone 3G and compared the results to tests of a Sony Ericsson P1 and a Nokia N73.

Bluetest supplies chambers to the likes of Motorola and emissions certification body TCO.

At 3G frequencies the Apple device operated on a par with the Sony Ericsson and Nokia gadgets for both sending and receiving signals to and from a simulated base station.

The values attributed to the iPhone 3G are “completely normal”, according to Magnus Franzen, an antenna engineer at Bluetest.

The test results will probably only serve to fuel debate over the iPhone’s reported connectivity issues. Last week the Californian firm released a significant firmware update to fix a number of bugs in the device, although another major update is thought to be in the pipeline.

One US consumer, Jessica Alena Smith, has also filed a lawsuit against Apple over the connectivity issues and has applied to get class action status for her claim.