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Apple iPhone 4

The Cupertino, Calif.-based company's senior engineer and wireless expert, Ruben Caballero, who briefly gained notoriety when reports surfaced that he had tried to warn Jobs about the antenna problem, gave a tour of its 17 anechoic chambers. The rooms, which cost around $100 million to make, are all specifically designed to optimize the antenna performance of its products, including the iPhone 4, in real-world situations.

"This lab is unique in all the world," he said. Lined from floor to ceiling with "spikes" that scatter and disperse energy, the chambers are shielded to prevent signals from bouncing back to the stand in the middle of the room -- resulting in a "clean" environment, free from sound or electromagnetic interference, to rigorously test its devices in free space.

Caballero said simulations can take up to 25 hours to run through all frequencies. In all, Apple has 18 Ph.D. engineers that spend thousands of hours performing antenna and wireless tests in the labs.

"The iPhone antenna went through all of this," Jobs said. "We knew if you gripped it in a certain way the bars would go down a little bit, just like any smartphone."

The behind-the-scenes look comes in the wake of Apple's press conference to defend the wraparound antenna design of its iPhone 4. In recent weeks, growing criticism has mounted regarding dropped calls when the device is held in a certain way. The spate of complaints and lawsuits has pushed Apple to give away free cases and update its software.