Apple hit with new lawsuit over iPad overheating in direct sunlight
A new lawsuit takes aim at Apple over the temperature of the iPad when left in direct sunlight, alleging that the company's multi-touch tablet overheats and turns off too quickly when in the heat.
Filed in a U.S. District Court in the North District of California last week, the lawsuit accuses Apple of falsely advertising the iPad as a reading device when, the defendants claim, it cannot be used outdoors due to overheating.
"Using the iPad is not 'just like a reading book' at all since books do not close when the reader is enjoying them in the sunlight or in other normal environmental environments," the complaint reads. It alleges that Apple's iPad advertising, which claims that reading on the iPad is "just like reading a book," is false.
The suit alleges that complaints about overheating of the iPad "have become prevalent across the Internet and within technology circles." Despite these complaints, it says, Apple has taken no action to warn consumers about use of the iPad outdoors.
"The iPad overheats so quickly under common weather conditions that it does not function for prolonged use either indoors, or in many other warm conditions, for a variety of common uses such as, but not necessarily limited to, an e-reader, e-mail tool, Web browser and/or game/entertainment unit," it states.
The plaintiffs, Jacob Baltazar, Claudia Keller and John R. Browning, have filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple. They have asserted that all consumers in the U.S. who have purchased an iPad are parties in the suit.
Apple is accused of numerous misdeeds, including fraud, negligent misrepresentation, deceptive advertising practices, intentional misrepresentation, breach of warranty, and unfair business practices under the Unfair Competition Act.
The case asks that a jury award the plaintiffs damages, and also assign punitive damages to Apple to "punish" the company and "deter others from engaging from similar misconduct in the future." It was filed on July 23 by attorney Scott Edward Cole with Scott Cole & Associates.
Filed in a U.S. District Court in the North District of California last week, the lawsuit accuses Apple of falsely advertising the iPad as a reading device when, the defendants claim, it cannot be used outdoors due to overheating.
"Using the iPad is not 'just like a reading book' at all since books do not close when the reader is enjoying them in the sunlight or in other normal environmental environments," the complaint reads. It alleges that Apple's iPad advertising, which claims that reading on the iPad is "just like reading a book," is false.
The suit alleges that complaints about overheating of the iPad "have become prevalent across the Internet and within technology circles." Despite these complaints, it says, Apple has taken no action to warn consumers about use of the iPad outdoors.
"The iPad overheats so quickly under common weather conditions that it does not function for prolonged use either indoors, or in many other warm conditions, for a variety of common uses such as, but not necessarily limited to, an e-reader, e-mail tool, Web browser and/or game/entertainment unit," it states.
The plaintiffs, Jacob Baltazar, Claudia Keller and John R. Browning, have filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple. They have asserted that all consumers in the U.S. who have purchased an iPad are parties in the suit.
Apple is accused of numerous misdeeds, including fraud, negligent misrepresentation, deceptive advertising practices, intentional misrepresentation, breach of warranty, and unfair business practices under the Unfair Competition Act.
The case asks that a jury award the plaintiffs damages, and also assign punitive damages to Apple to "punish" the company and "deter others from engaging from similar misconduct in the future." It was filed on July 23 by attorney Scott Edward Cole with Scott Cole & Associates.
Comments
"The iPad overheats so quickly under common weather conditions that it does not function for prolonged use either indoors, or in many other warm conditions, for a variety of common uses such as, but not necessarily limited to, an e-reader, e-mail tool, Web browser and/or game/entertainment unit," it states.
Maybe they need to learn how to ready before they start using the iPad as an eBook reader.
Environmental requirements
Operating temperature: 32° to 95° F (0° to 35° C)
Nonoperating temperature: -4° to 113° F (-20° to 45° C)
Relative humidity: 5% to 95% noncondensing
Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m)
Maybe Apple will be sued for skin cancer since the iPad encourages people to sit in the sun
Maybe they need to learn how to ready before they start using the iPad as an eBook reader.
Correct. It's not the temperature outside as much as it's the temperature outside lowering/raising the temperature of the machine outside it's operational threshold.
This lawsuit is going nowhere.
Other problems - pages cannot be torn out and used to start a fire - drawing on it with pen, pencil, marker, etc is nothing whatsoever like writing on a book.
Obviously - the marketing "treat it like a book" has to do with the logical interface and or content of a book - not the physical manifestation of the material from which a book it made. Well, okay it must not be obvious.
Maybe I should sue God - I have problems operating correctly and a shortened lifespan when I am left out in the sun for too long - sounds like a serious design flaw to me.
Now I am thinking there is a good reason why Apple's (and in fact a lot of commercial advertising) has little or nothing whatsoever to do with the product - because anytime you say anything that is not designed to be utterly meaningless some moron is going to sue you because the G4 is not really a SuperComputer.
Correct. It's not the temperature outside as much as it's the temperature outside lowering/raising the temperature of the machine outside it's operational threshold.
This lawsuit is going nowhere.
Another attempt by Bloomberg to piss off Apple by making an issue of this. They were the ones who broke the story that Steve Jobs had died by publishing his obituary and also were the ones who claimed that Apple engineers had prior knowledge of the iPhone antenna issues (which Steve described as "total Bulls**t"
That's definitely a reason to sue!
What happened to end user responsibility for the reasonable care, maintenance and upkeep of purchases?
The world has officially gone crazy. Hope this one is thrown out in a hurry.
Seriously though... all of the frivolous lawsuits have an impact on Apple earnings and shareholder equity. I think what is needed is a class action suit by Apple shareholders against all these people who file these frivolous suits. Some are justified, but ones like this are beyond intelligence.
"Normal environmental environments" - seriously? What kind of lawyer wrote this?!?
The kind that knows if he puts the actual specific temperature in the documents he filed that he wouldn't get the case heard at all.
In other words, a corrupt shyster of a lawyer.
It doesn't say "it acts just like a book". I can't tear a page out of it, I can't lose the dust cover, I can't write with a highlighter (well I can but that damn text keeps moving around when I read the next bit and the glass keeps highlighting the old location on the glass, damn!), I can't reliably prop up a wobbly table leg without likely puncturing or fracturing the glass cover, I can't make sure all the words don't change into some other book than the one it originally contained, and it doesn't swell up when it gets wet.