iPhone Alarm Bug Wreaks HavociPhone Alarm Bug Wreaks Havoc

Despite Apple's promise that the problem would fix itself by Monday, some iPhone users continue to report that their devices' alarm clocks aren't working properly.

"Apple you said the alarm bug would be fixed, but this is not true. Alarm did not go off today," wrote user "anykey_nl", in a post Monday on an online support forum maintained by Apple.

Other users echoed the complaint. "Didn't work for me either," wrote "JimmyJimmyYam." And "SaraWB" reported that the alarm, "Did not work on both of our phones this morning. At least one of the alarms was set on 1.3..11 (after midnight) but it did not go off at the set time."

Apple has acknowledged the glitch, but said the bug would self-correct on January 3rd.

The iPhone alarm problem first became apparent on New Year's Day morning, when numerous users reported that the changeover to 2011 apparently exposed a programming bug in the alarm. The problem appears to mostly affect iPhone 4 or older iPhones that have been upgraded to iOS 4, as well as models of the iPod touch running iOS 4.

Despite the billions of dollars it spends on research and development, and the fact that it supposedly only hires top talent, the company has had a history of failing to anticipate routine chronological events that can impact the functioning of clock-driven programs.

Earlier this year, many iPhone users were late for school, work, or appointments when their alarms failed to activate following the switchover to daylight-saving time.

Such problems recall fears of the Y2K Bug, a programming lapse that many IT experts feared would cause computerized systems that rely on internal clocks to fail on January 1, 2000, impacting everything from electronic coffee makers to air traffic control systems.

Remediation efforts, however, minimized the Y2K Bug's impact.

Apple's timekeeping problems have done little to bring down its high-flying stock. ISI Group on Monday raised its target price for Apple shares to $400. Apple shares were up 2.15%, to $329.49 in midday trading.