New iPad Gets Flak For Hot Temps, WiFi Service

Apple has sold a record 3 million iPads and counting since the new tablet’s launch last week. But despite the rate at which it’s flying off the shelves, complaints about the new iPad’s temperature and WiFi services are already starting to surface.

Consumer Reports put out a study this week claiming Apple’s third-generation tablet reaches temperatures as hot as 116 degrees Fahrenheit when performing multimedia-intensive tasks, like playing games. The 116-degree temperature was reached after 45 minutes of game play, while the iPad was plugged in and WiFi was enabled. The test room temperature was about 72 degrees, and the device’s 4G capabilities were disabled at the time.

When Consumer Reports performed the same test unplugged, the tablet reached a slightly lower 113 degrees Fahrenheit. The study showed that the heat was concentrated near the back corner of the iPad, rather than evenly distributed throughout its backside.

[Related: Apple Sells 3 Million New iPads Following Weekend Launch ]

It also concluded that the new iPad runs about 12 degrees hotter than the prior-generation iPad 2. But Donna Tapellini, the Consumer Reports writer that put the study out this week, didn’t find the 116 temperature to be a major flaw.

"During our tests, I held the new iPad in my hands," Tepellini wrote. "When it was at its hottest, it felt very warm but not especially uncomfortable if held for a brief period."

After reports of the new iPad’s temperature continued to emerge this week, Apple addressed the issue in a statement to The Wall Street Journal’s All Things Digital: "The new iPad delivers a stunning Retina display, A5X chip, support for 4G LTE plus 10 hours of battery life, all while operating well within our thermal specifications," said Apple spokesperson Trudy Miller. "If customers have any concerns they should contact AppleCare."

But heat wasn’t the only new iPad spec brought under fire this week. The Wall Street Journal called out Wednesday a potential short-coming with the new device’s video streaming and data allotment policies. The report said that a new iPad user "burned through" his two-gigabyte monthly data allotment in less than 24 hours, after streaming live March Madness games onto his new iPad.

To continue streaming or even just browse the Web, the user will have to pay an extra $10 for every gigabyte he uses, on top of his $30 base subscription, the report said.

"It's kind of a Catch-22," the user told the Journal. "It streams really fast video, but by streaming really fast video you tend to watch more video, and that's not always best."

The report concluded that new iPad users simply need to plan on paying more as a tradeoff for faster, higher-quality media content, or that carriers will eventually face pressure to change their monthly pricing plans.

Video content aside, general complaints about the new iPad’s WiFi capabilities are scattered throughout Apple’s online support forum. Users’ posts suggest the new device can only accesses WiFi for a "few minutes," has a signal that is consistently weak, and a connection that is sub-par compared to the first- and second-gen tablets. A few disgruntled buyers even said they were returning the new device.

"If this is the tradeoff for the better display, it’s just not worth it, and the new iPad will be returned for a refund," one user wrote. "I'll give it a few more days to see if Apple releases any updates that might help, but for the first time, the hype of the new device just hasn't stacked up."

But the new iPad actually isn’t the first device from Apple to receive not-so-positive consumer feedback upon its launch. In 2010, users complained about the iPhone 4’s antennae leading to dropped or poor-quality calls. Eventually those complaints turned into class action suits, and Apple responded by offering users free phone "bumpers" designed to improve call quality.