An online news source for technology consumers is reporting today that an Apple Inc. firmware update that’s designed to fix connection problems for the new iPhone (News - Alert) isn’t working as planned.

 

According to NewsFactor.com writer Jennifer LeClaire, Apple’s (News - Alert) firmware update release yesterday is yielding dropped calls, bad reception, service interruptions and sudden network switches.

 

“The glitches were reportedly related to a chip inside Apple’s music-playing cell phone,” LeClaire writes. “BusinessWeek reported last week that Apple was working on a remedy through a software upgrade.”

 

The latest setback follows a series of problems with the new iPhone, whose unveiling industry insiders are still calling the major telecom event of this year.

 

Yet Apple chief Steve Jobs reportedly has admitted that his company took on too much when it launched dozens of applications for the iPhone 2.0 simultaneously last month, saying in particular that the introduction of a new auto-syncing service was “not up to Apple’s standards.”

 

According to online industry magazine AppleInsider, and reportedly first seen by Ars Technica, Jobs admitted in an e-mail sent to employees yesterday that MobileMe was launched without proper testing and even mapped out a different launch strategy.

 

“It was a mistake to launch MobileMe at the same time as iPhone 3G, iPhone 2.0 software and the App Store,” Jobs said, according to the magazine. “We all had more than enough to do, and MobileMe could have been delayed without consequence.”

 

The consequences were considerable, leading Apple to apologize almost immediately after the product’s launch and even to offer a service extension.

 

According to Apple’s blog, the transition from .Mac to MobileMe presented unanticipated problems, leaving iPhone and iTouch users without a service and leading the company to offer an extension.

 

“We will be extending subscriptions by 30 days to customers free of charge to express our appreciation for their patience during the transition period,” Apple posted on its blog.

 

MobileMe is one of the dozens of new applications for the much-hyped iPhone that are designed, essentially, to turn the mobile device into the only piece of telecom equipment a human will need to get through the day.

 

But until the most recent firmware problem is resolved, many iPhone years apparently won’t get through an hour.

 

According to LeClaire, Apple declined to offer details about its iPhone 2.0.1 update, other than saying it included “bug fixes.”

 

“However, comments in Apple’s support forum say plenty about the latest attempt to rectify poor user experiences,” LeClaire writes. “In fact, the update seems to be causing new issues, apparently interfering with the GPS function, among others.”

 

The writer says that some iPhone users reported having no issues with the original firmware, but now having problems with Monday’s so-called “solution.”

 

“One user reported the firmware turned the iPhone into a virtual brick,” according to LeClaire. “Many users are trying to reinstall the original firmware to avoid the new issues, opting for what they see as the lesser of two evils.”