Apple tells staff to 'capture' iPad 3s with Wi-Fi troubles
No-quibble replacements offered
Apple is investigating the growing number of claims that the New iPad - aka the iPad 3 - suffers from weak Wi-Fi woes.
Information provided by Cupertino to support staff and Apple Store employees across the US, snapped by a worker and send to 9to5Mac, shows the company is now replacing iPad 3s brought in by customers who claim to have found the device's wireless networking facilities wanting.
Thinner one on the right has better Wi-Fi?
The intranet page shows Apple is focusing on the Wi-Fi only model. Probems that will trigger a replacement - a "capture" in Apple argot - include "intermittent connectivity, slow Wi-Fi speeds [and] Wi-Fi network not seen".
Since the release of the iPad 3, a trickle of complaints about the tablet's Wi-Fi performance on the Apple Support Forum has become a flood. Typically, the new iPad will show a lower signal strength than an iPad or iPad 2 held at the same distance from a wireless access or router. Some punters have also said they experience much lower data throughput. ®
COMMENTS
Can't knock customer service
Is this a change of managent style from Apple? To admit when things are less than perfect.
Under Jobs, customers would have been told they were holding it wrong, it was down to sun spots etc.
Don't get wrong Jobs was a very good visionary, but how can you say this.. a trifle arrogant.
Re: Can't knock customer service
No change in style, their replacements have been almost no questions asked for some time - had some corrosion on the port of an iPhone 4; no questions just "Ok, I see its corrosion, here's your new phone".
Similar experience with replacing a keyboard on a 2yr old Macbook pro - laptop ready next day for pickup.
Re: LOTS of iPad3's coming back.
Can we have proper nested comments and the grey lines back? I was replying to Jeebus.
Whoever thought this curly arrow BS was a good idea needs to have their head examined.
Engineering / Science
Surely, it must be possible to set up a test rig. Bring your iPad in, run a test, it fails or passes.
OK, so this is radio and there could be interference, but if you can run a comparative test with say an iPad 2 this will be better than a "feeling" that the throughout is slower.
Good to see Apple responding in this way. I think the hate is stronger than then fanobiism (new word).
