August 11, 2010 by William Peebles
Mark Papermaster, the Apple executive who was responsible for overseeing the development of iPhone 4 has announced that he will be quitting the company. Papermaster has been head of the iPhone and iPad engineering department since 2009, when he moved across from IBM.
Experts are convinced that the decision to leave has come from the controversy surrounding the launch of the iPhone 4, which has been slated by users for being difficult to use. The Smartphone’s antenna caused problems with signal reception, when the phone was held in a certain way. This issue has led to a number of refund requests, and the decision by Apple to issue free covers to all iPhone 4 customers in order to address the signal problem.
The problem was traced to the iPhone’s use of its metal casing to house its antennas. Bridging the short gap between two antennas on the lower left-hand side of the case caused signal strength to leak away.
An investigation by the influential Consumer Reports organisation confirmed the problem and led to it declaring that it could not recommend the product.
Apple would not comment on the reasons for his departure or whether he resigned or was fired. An Apple spokesman said Mr. Papermaster’s responsibilities would be assumed by Bob Mansfield, who currently oversees engineering efforts for the company’s Macintosh products. He also has a role in guiding development of some of the components for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
Papermaster generated publicity upon his departure from IBM after twenty-five years of service, when the company stated that his leaving to join Apple in 2008 breached contract terms. As a result, he was not able to commence work with the new company until a year later.
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