@Mark 2000: They never admitted it was hardware. In fact, they never really acknowledged there was even a problem.

@viditbhargava: Apparently not. Otherwise you would know that software can affect the frequencies the antenna is transmitting, and the amount of power being pumped in to compensate for interference.

@ryancoke: Except we don't know that its a hardware issue yet. The loss of reception may be a SYMPTOM of the problem, and not the problem itself.

@dennis636223: Not necessarily. If the antennas are not increasing power or rerouting to different frequencies when encountering interference from hands, then that could be a big part of the problem.

Uhm. How about no. This idea is not a reasonable one. It is a simple answer to a relatively complex problem, probably come up with by the NYT as an 'easy way out'.