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Steve Jobs made a point of making it ?clear? that other phone have similar issues with their antennas too. He announced this at the iPhone 4 conference on Friday. Nokia and RIM have since released statements that rebuke Jobs? claim.

Nokia?s statement made it clear that they ?prioritize? antenna design and function over aesthetics, ensuring that customers have the best reception possible at all times.

"Antenna design is a complex subject and has been a core competence at Nokia for decades, across hundreds of phone models. Nokia was the pioneer in internal antennas; the Nokia 8810, launched in 1998, was the first commercial phone with this feature.
Nokia has invested thousands of man hours in studying human behaviour, including how people hold their phones for calls, music playing, web browsing and so on. As you would expect from a company focused on connecting people, we prioritize antenna performance over physical design if they are ever in conflict.
In general, antenna performance of a mobile device/phone may be affected with a tight grip, depending on how the device is held. That’s why Nokia designs our phones to ensure acceptable performance in all real life cases, for example when the phone is held in either hand. Nokia has invested thousands of man hours in studying how people hold their phones and allows for this in designs, for example by having antennas both at the top and bottom of the phone and by careful selection of materials and their use in the mechanical design."

Nokia seem to have quite nicely found the balance between form and function. Signal quality is maintained and their design goals are upheld.

RIM, makers of Blackberry, have released a similar statement dismissing Apple?s claim that signal degradation is common among Smartphone’s.

"Apple’s attempt to draw RIM into Apple’s self-made debacle is unacceptable. Apple’s claims about RIM products appear to be deliberate attempts to distort the public’s understanding of an antenna design issue and to deflect attention from Apple’s difficult situation. RIM is a global leader in antenna design and has been successfully designing industry-leading wireless data products with efficient and effective radio performance for over 20 years. During that time, RIM has avoided designs like the one Apple used in the iPhone 4 and instead has used innovative designs which reduce the risk for dropped calls, especially in areas of lower coverage. One thing is for certain, RIM’s customers don’t need to use a case for their BlackBerry Smartphone to maintain proper connectivity. Apple clearly made certain design decisions and it should take responsibility for these decisions rather than trying to draw RIM and others into a situation that relates specifically to Apple."

RIM?s to the point statement pretty much condemns Apple?s external antenna as an ineffective design, points out that their phones do not need a case to maintain signal and maintains that Apple should take responsibility for their mistakes.

Both companies have asserted that their own processes do not cause the same issue?s with their devices as found on the iPhone 4. But Nokia seem to have forgotten that they did indeed suffer from signal degradation with the E71.