People sue Apple over 'overheating' iPads

[Hum]

(ArsTechnica) -- Three iPad users claim that because the iPad will shut itself off after remaining in direct sunlight for long enough, it fails to meet the promises Apple made about using the device as an e-book reader.

The group has filed a federal class-action lawsuit in the Northern California district to "redress and end this pattern of unlawful conduct."

When the iPad's operating temperature reaches a critical level, it will force itself to shut down and display a message warning the user to let the device cool down before trying use it again. This warning is the same that iPhones and iPod Touches give before shutting down when they overheat, often after being left in direct sunlight.

The lawsuit alleges that the iPad "does not live up to reasonable consumer's expectations created by Apple insofar as the iPad overheats so quickly under common weather conditions." Apple lists the iPad's operating temperature as 32? to 95? F (0? to 35? C), so it's not hard to see that using it out in the hot sun can quickly heat up the device over the maximum temperature.

The plaintiffs seem to take particular issue with Apple claiming that "reading on the iPad is just like reading a book." This claim is patently false, according to the lawsuit, because a real book can be used in "the sunlight or other normal environmental conditions" without shutting off.

Most consumer electronic devices can be damaged from overheating if used in direct sunlight for long periods of time; not all of them have the automatic shutoff capability that the iPad does.

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[XerXis]

not an apple fan at all, but really, what did they expect ... :s

[Pam14160]

Isn't be stupid just grand. . . :whistle:

[Tekkerson]

From : Steve Jobs

Subject: RE: Overheating iPads

Dont hold it in the sun.

Written from iPad.

[Teebor]

From : Steve Jobs

Subject: RE: Overheating iPads

Dont hold it in the sun.

Written from iPad.

Yawn, old joke is old

But seriously, if the device overheated and stopped working they wouldn't be happy would they? There is no middle ground with some people

[deactivated_]

Who reads a book in 95 degree heat in the direct sun?

[Mr. Gibs]

Yawn, old joke is old

But seriously, if the device overheated and stopped working they wouldn't be happy would they? There is no middle ground with some people

I don't think they'll be happy if that happens. Most other electronics work fine in direct sunlight without overheating, so they probably expected the same from the iPad.

I don't see how they'll win this lawsuit. The iPad has pretty clear operating temperatures, going above that is at your own risk.

[Billus]

There's something called "shade", they should look into it. I doubt that many people stay out in the hot, searing sun for longer than 15 minutes just to read a book.

[RAINMAN]

There's something called "shade", they should look into it. I doubt that many people stay out in the hot, searing sun for longer than 15 minutes just to read a book.

What about the beach?

[limok]

stick some fans in it...

[e-berlin.org]

ANY electronic device with overheat protection sensor (pdas, e-readers, smartphones, etc.) WILL shut down when you leave it for more than 5 minutes under direct sunlight when it's 35 degrees Celsius outside, even a well-ventilated laptop will fail if you leave it to process something heavy for 20 minutes while in the sunlight.

[aludanyi]

Now... the fact is that we live in a lawyer's world... and if you have money, some lawyer will come after you... and Apple have tons of money, so... an unfortunate situation, because most of that money would be better used if it would ends up in the pockets of engineers and scientists instead of the pockets of lawyers. I am not against lawyers, they are an important part of any civilization, but today we have an extreme situation, this is why nobody want to be an engineer or a scientist anymore, but hey... everybody want to be a lawyer... the big problem is, lawyers make the law, so we simply can't reverse this trend until it revers itself, and it will reverse itself only when there would be less money to take from the productive, and this will be soon, because we will stay in this super-recession for a long long time.

You can expect more and more lawsuits against Apple, Microsoft, Intel, IBM... exactly because they are productive (that is why they have money), they serve the market well even in this time of recession, we should learn from them, not fight them, not make them weaker by confiscating some of their profit because we find a line or two in the law, which makes that possible.

At the end... if you don't like the iPad, don't buy it, if you already bought it, ask for a full refund, or simply sell it on ebay, you really don't need to sue a company because you are not 100% satisfied with its product, grow up, that is what we call real life.

[Elliott]

Wow, these guys are idiots.

[Pharos]

Greed sucks.

[Charisma Veteran]

These are the kind of people who make it necessary to put explicit, incredibly-obvious-to-those-with-common-sense labels and warnings all over everything.

In short...

[NeoTrunks]

Here we go again. Last year, the complaint was the 3GS melting in the sun. This year it's the iPad shutting off under these temperatures. What do they expect? A few degrees higher and you have some people dying from the heat. Oh well. I had my 3GS and my iPad under direct sun at the beach in Punta Cana this year. Both are perfectly fine.

[ericnkatz]

There's something called "shade", they should look into it. I doubt that many people stay out in the hot, searing sun for longer than 15 minutes just to read a book.

What about the beach?

Or laying out by the pool? Both seem to me some of the most probable places to find people publicly reading books/magazines. You seem like the type that doesn't get out much.

[Elliott]

Or laying out by the pool? Both seem to me some of the most probable places to find people publicly reading books/magazines. You seem like the type that doesn't get out much.

I love the iPad's screen, but if you can read it comfortably in direct sunlight, you're some sort of superhuman. Some shade is almost a necessity. Good thing shade also doubles as a way to keep the iPad from overheating...and also from you getting skin cancer. :p

[pickytech]

I think this quote is missing from at least one of the plaintiff's:

I am an absolute moron, and I cannot make anything of myself, so I am suing a big company to get money.

As everyone pointed out, if you want to read it outside then, you should find some shade and read comfortably. Not only is it bad for your eyes otherwise, but it's bad for any electronic device to get very hot.

Hopefully the suers are sterilized afterward.

[NeoTrunks]

I love the iPad's screen, but if you can read it comfortably in direct sunlight, you're some sort of superhuman. Some shade is almost a necessity. Good thing shade also doubles as a way to keep the iPad from overheating...and also from you getting skin cancer. :p

The screen can be very difficult to see under the direct sunlight (especially when you're close to the equator :p). I used my iPhone and iPad while out by the pool and beach to talk to my family via Skype while on vacation, since it was the one of the few places I could get a wifi signal at the resort. In any case, the longest I would use them would be for close to an hour, since my fianc?e and I made a few calls in a row consecutively back to the states. Never had any issues. The heat peaked at 99 degrees on some days, too.

[Neoauld]

Who takes an iPad to a beach...theres plenty of other things to do. And if an electronic device is overheating, imagine what your body is going through.

[The Gunslinger]

If what they say is true, then their lawsuit has some sort of merit...But in all honesty, these guys should have known better than to get an ipad to read in direct sunlight! Should have just got a proper e-ink ebook reader.

[ericnkatz]

The screen can be very difficult to see under the direct sunlight (especially when you're close to the equator :p). I used my iPhone and iPad while out by the pool and beach to talk to my family via Skype while on vacation, since it was the one of the few places I could get a wifi signal at the resort. In any case, the longest I would use them would be for close to an hour, since my fianc?e and I made a few calls in a row consecutively back to the states. Never had any issues. The heat peaked at 99 degrees on some days, too.

One third of the year in Arizona the average temperature is 99 degrees or higher. ;D But whatever, seems like a realistic gripe that these people are suing over. If apple claims that reading the ipad in normal circumstances is the equivalent to reading a book it is obviously not. You have to remember that most people are computer retarded and when apple sells them something without explicitly stating the circumstances in which it will operate or even the opposite - equating it to something that will operate under all extremes regardless of 'reasonable use' factor then people can file suit for it.

[Slacker]

There's other ways that an ipad isn't like an actual book either, Perhaps Apple can be sued for each way!

For example, if I get my book wet, I can just dry it out and continue reading it. I'm not sure that an ipad will allow me to do that.

I can put a book into a microwave and will still be able to read it afterwards, probably not so with an ipad.

I'm sure that there's other differences too.

[shakey]

Lol. Stupid people buying stupid things they don't need or understand, and then expect stupid things from it. Lawsuit should be thrown out. No sympathy for people who just blindly get whatever a company puts out without doing any research on how and why it should be used.