Smartphone manufacturers bristle at Apple's claim that the iPhone 4's reception problems is a norm across the whole industry. In a press conference, the electronics company likened its troubled phone with models from Research in Motion (RIM), HTC and Motorola.

Rival manufacturers are hitting back. Mike Lazaridis, joint CEO of Research in Motion says that Apple's attempt to draw his company into its "self-made debacle" over iPhone connectivity "is unacceptable."

"Apple's claims about RIM products appear to be deliberate attempts to distort the public's understanding of an antenna design issue and to deflect attention from Apple's difficult situation."

"RIM's customers don't need to use a case for their BlackBerry smartphone to maintain proper connectivity. Apple clearly made certain design decisions and it should take responsibility for these decisions rather than trying to draw RIM and others into a situation that relates specifically to Apple," Lazaridis added.

Sanjay Jha, Motorola's Co-Chief Executive Officer, says his company's phones don't have the same reception problems as the iPhone 4. "Phones with the antenna on the outside of the chassis - the design used by Apple's latest model - are more likely to have reception issues if they're held a certain way" Jha said.

"It is disingenuous to suggest that all phones perform equally... In our own testing, we have found that Droid X performs much better than iPhone 4 when held by consumers."

A Research in Motion executive warns that customers in Australia who plan on purchasing an iPhone 4 when it is released in the country face the prospect of reception problems with or without a bumper case.