The Verizon iPhone 4 has a problem that could cause the phone to drop calls, or be unable to place calls, in weak signal conditions, "Consumer Reports" says (http://macte.ch/HSWwl).

"Consumer Reports" engineers say they've found in lab tests that the problem is similar to the one we confirmed in July with the AT&T version of Apple's newest smart phone. It can occur when you hold either version of the phone in a specific but quite natural way in which a gap in the phone's external casing is covered.

However, the phone performs superbly in most other respects, and using the iPhone 4 with a case can alleviate the problem, says "Consumer Reports." Still, "CR" says: "We are not including the Verizon iPhone 4 in our list of recommended smart phones, despite its high ranking in our Ratings. Although Apple no longer offers a free case to buyers of the iPhone 4, as it did for a time after the problem was first discovered on the AT&T version, the company has said in the past that it will consider requests for a free case from customers who buy the phone and subsequently experience reception problems."