Yes folks this is to do with the iPhone 4 antenna problems, and it appears that according to a Ph.D in wireless network planning believes the iPhone 4 is “a fantastic device, but a lousy phone.”

According to an article over on Gizmodo by Jesus Diaz, Richard Gaywood is a Ph.D in wireless network planning from Cardiff University and has put the latest Apple device through some tests which “analyse the network throughput of the device.”

It’s all very technical and geekish with tests to see “how fast the iPhone 4 could transfer data measured in megabits per second under different conditions,” such as Flat on Hand, Covered Grip by using a cloth, and Care Grip.

If you wish to check out the entire article head over to Gizmodo, but the upshot is Richard Gaywood reckons it doesn’t feel like a software issue and thinks, “There’s some deeper problem here.”

According to the Gizmodo article the tests show that the iPhone 4 suffers from a design problem which affects the core functionality of the iPhone 4, receiving data and making calls.