At today’s event, Steve Jobs gave the audience a glimpse of the the space-age chambers that Apple uses to test its prototype iPhones. Apple posted the pictures and, as MG Siegler said, it’s basically Professor X’s brain scan room.
Jobs said that the test chamber is the “biggest room” on Apple’s campus and explained that “you have to build these rooms or you don’t get accurate results”. The one shown above, according to the picture’s file name, is actually called the “Stargate Chamber”.
Apple invested over $US100 million to construct 17 of these anechoic chambers which “are connected to sophisticated equipment that simulates cellular base stations, Wi-Fi networks, Bluetooth devices – even GPS satellites.” Apple has a pretty remarkable video tour of the facilities over at their new Testing Labs site.
In today’s press conference, Jobs said that tests in the chambers are administered by 18 PhD-holding scientists and engineers to evaluate new phones. I’ll bet they all look like the dudes from Avatar. [Apple - thanks Mario; Engadget]
boc
Saturday, July 17, 2010 at 7:17 PMSo after spending $US100 million they come up with a flawed antenna design?
Money well spent.
The cynic in me would say showing off these test chambers is just a distraction so people will forget that they royally screwed up.
chris h
Saturday, July 17, 2010 at 10:33 PM$100 million, 18 PhD’s and not one of the 18 were left handed? Forget that, what about ontological economy? Surely, there has to be a reductive set of functions were the simplest problems may be detected.
The adage of being so far up your own …….. that can’t see or hear anything you don’t want to appears to be true then.
Jamie Carl
Monday, July 19, 2010 at 8:52 AMI want a test chamber like that so that I can design a phone with a bad antenna as well.
Wok
Monday, July 19, 2010 at 1:09 PMYou actually have to listen to the scientists and engineers though.
iPhone 4 = Fail
Cootified
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 6:25 PMSo what are you saying?
Apple spent $100m to design a phone with the antenna that sits on the outside of the phone so that its prone to attenuation..?
If that is the case, than its either the worlds biggest like or the people with PhDs that Apple hired were bluffing to purposely destroy the company.
Now there’s a rumour!
Michael
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 at 12:28 PMThat’s hilarious! I previously posted on a YouTube video, laughing at the irony of spending so much dough on a testing facility, yet they gained nothing with their super advanced antenna. Absolute joke. I own and love my new MBP, but this is a shocker. All show no go, they might as well put some 3D LCD screens, 3D glasses and turn it into an over priced chill out room.
gromit
Tuesday, August 10, 2010 at 9:25 AMI don’t know what all you guys are complaining about. All you have to do is to refit your living room to look like those photos and you’ll be fine.