A lot has been made of how the new iPad is “significantly hotter” than its predecessor. Like in this Consumer Reports article by Donna Tapellini, which shows alarming heat graphs and claims that the new iPad “hits 116 degrees while running games”. Meanwhile, a Wall Street Journal report by Anton Troianovski claimed that a “Video Speed Trap Lurks in [the] New iPad,” which made people go “Through Data Limits in Mere Hours”.
But the “Speed Trap” in question was the iPad’s 4G data connection, which Android tablets and smartphones have had for a while before the iPad did. Meanwhile, as iPad app developer Marco Arment explains, “Most people don’t have a good idea of what a 116-degree surface feels like,” and suggested that “maybe it would have been helpful to compare it to the surface temperature of a laptop after playing a high-end, 3D game for 45 minutes.” And as PCWorld’s Melissa Perenson explains, the new iPad’s heat levels are “comparable to [those of] Android tablets.”
One gets the impression that many are looking for a “Man Bites Dog” story, and trying to find ways that Apple has failed. But there are real stories to tell about the problems Apple products face, like …
A worldwide malware epidemic
1 in 100 Macs worldwide have been compromised by the Flashback trojan, which is capable of installing itself if Mac users so much as visit certain websites. This is literally as bad as, or worse than, the Windows malware plagues of the 90’s and 2000’s. Apple is now distributing a fix for the issue, but as John Gruber noted towards the start of the epidemic, it took awhile for the media to catch on … possibly, as Paul Hoffman suggested, because most virus scares are created by hype spread from antivirus companies, which were slow to notice Flashback.
Wi-Fi “issues” on the new iPad
9to5Mac’s Mark Gurman reports that almost 700 replies have been posted to an Apple support forum thread, about how people are having trouble with their new Wi-Fi only iPads not being able to connect to the Internet. That number is now up to over 1000. Apple has admitted that some of its iPads have problems, and is replacing affected units.
Foxconn factory labor rights issues
Apple itself has acknowledged that the working conditions in the Chinese, Foxconn-owned factories that manufacture its iPads and Macs need to be looked into. The company is stepping up its auditing practices and acknowledging existing problems, in comprehensive reports which are available to the public online.
What’s often missed is how straightforward Apple’s being about it, as well as the fact that most other companies haven’t been so diligent. The New York Times’ Nick Bilton tried to get straight answers from several of Apple’s competitors, about working conditions in the factories that make their products, but was largely stonewalled. Meanwhile, problems like the use of conflict metals in electronics remain unaddressed by virtually everyone.
