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Health risks from new antenna?

B

Bodhi395

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 23, 2008
817
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Are there any possible health risks due to the fact the new iPhone antenna is on the outside of the device and you actually hold it in your hand?

It sounds kind of a stupid question, but would be glad to know if someone has any scientific reason why holding the actual antenna in your hand is either completely safe or could be a problem.
 
The signals, which are the part that people think could be harmful, won't be traveling through your body any more or less whether the antenna is on the outside of the phone or on the inside. So my answer would be no.
 
You can Google it and go back and read 15 years worth of debates on whether cell phones are harmful or not.

Having the antenna be outside changes nothing, so all of those article and posts and blog are equally relevant here as with any other phone.

Nothing new to worry about here.
 
STEVESKI07 said:
The signals, which are the part that people think could be harmful, won't be traveling through your body any more or less whether the antenna is on the outside of the phone or on the inside. So my answer would be no.
Click to expand...

I'm sure we'll get a visit from our little friend who thinks the iPhone is the source of all ailments, especially brain cancer.

My biggest laugh was when he posted the link to some guy who said you should leave your iPhone on a table and not touch it while talking (you know all that radiation to the hands is a no no).
 
I find the new antenna kind of bizarre. You're going to radically change the characteristics of the antenna when you touch it. But, then again, you're going to radically change the characteristics of any cell phone antenna when you hold the phone, even without actually touching the antenna.

(Remember touching the rabbit-ears to get a better TV signal? "OK, honey, just stand there...")

In the presentation, the point was made that the trim is part of the antenna system, though. I assume there's still some kind of patch antenna inside the case. The "case is part of the antenna" might just be so much fluff.

As far as potential cellular (I'm talking biological cells here...) damage I doubt it would make much/any difference. So, the antenna is a couple of millimeters closer to your body.

The power output of a cell phone is too small to be concerned with RF burns or electrocution, if that's what you were thinking...
 
jtara said:
I find the new antenna kind of bizarre. You're going to radically change the characteristics of the antenna when you touch it.
Click to expand...

Just curious...wouldn't you actually change the characteristics of the antenna for the better? Your body conducts electricity. So wouldn't direct contact with the antenna actually turn you into an antenna so to speak? Thus improving signal slightly? Could be completely off base, but it seems somewhat logical.
 
enough of anything will kill you, i wouldn't worry about the iPhone antenna, i doubt you'll get iCancer. Anywho, everyone dies from something
 
STEVESKI07 said:
The signals, which are the part that people think could be harmful, won't be traveling through your body any more or less whether the antenna is on the outside of the phone or on the inside. So my answer would be no.
Click to expand...

I heartily disagree. The south, where TV antennas are still prevalent, boasts some severely compromised individuals.

Time for tin foil gloves in addition to tin-foil hats. I'll run the marketing, you get the website up.
 
Life expectancy after owning your iPhone 4 and using it is estimated to be 6 Months Max, you then start loosing your hair, get cancer, and your skin starts disintegrating, you need to read the fine print on the apple website...
 
Bodhi395 said:
Are there any possible health risks due to the fact the new iPhone antenna is on the outside of the device and you actually hold it in your hand?

It sounds kind of a stupid question, but would be glad to know if someone has any scientific reason why holding the actual antenna in your hand is either completely safe or could be a problem.
Click to expand...

There are enough things that can fry our brains WITHOUT buying an iPhone 4. Stay away from Cellphone towers, don't listen to radio, soon as you switch on the microwave oven (run to the next room), don't use cordless phones at home, don't use TV remotes, no wifi, no wireless anything. All of those are killing all of us slowly every single day.
 
actorkid said:
wouldn't you actually change the characteristics of the antenna for the better? Your body conducts electricity. So wouldn't direct contact with the antenna actually turn you into an antenna so to speak? Thus improving signal slightly?
Click to expand...

Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

At the frequencies used for cell phones, the antenna effectively becomes a "random wire", or "long wire" antenna. (Technically defined as a wire longer than one wavelength long.)

Most antennas are "tuned" to a specific frequency, and the designer at least hopes that they will stay something close to tuned when in their environment.

Tuned antennas have the advantage of rejection of unwanted frequencies, and can have greater efficiency.

The cell phone environment is a difficult one, though, so it may be that any antenna in that environment is going to act as a random wire anyway...

But a rooftop beam antenna left unmolested is probably going to do better than either Dad holding on to the rabbit ears or climbing up onto the rooftop to add mass to the antenna.
 
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