# The SBHonline Community Daily > Digerati Discussions! >  >  iPad on Union Square

## JEK

W union square : one martini in 												 

I love this bar.  Three web designers drinking coffee and working on a music website. Big dude on his iPhone looking frustrated.  Edgy dude on the phone talking long and hard.  Cute server. Sunny. Lots of passersby.  I love this bar.

Sent from my iPad

The web designers came over to admire my iPad and I insisted on a test drive. I love this bar,

Sent from my iPad

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## BBT

Agree, wherever I go people want to see touch it. With most devices people want to see it, that's the difference. This screen does have an amazing feel.

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## Petri

Just think all the diseases you'll get on the screen from people's fingers..

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## BBT

Only if you lick it :p

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## Petri



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## JEK

I see that there are a ton of WiFi complaints on the Apple Discussion boards. I haven't experienced any of the dropping problems, but at my office I show a much weaker signal on the iPad than on my iPhone and my MacBook Pro. I think we will be seeing a 3.2.1 before the end of the week.


*Early iPad User Complaints: Weak Wi-Fi, Charging Issues*
Tuesday April 06, 2010 10:33 AM EST
Written by Eric Slivka


With the iPad's U.S. release to the masses on Saturday, several complaints have arisen from users experiencing difficulties with their new devices. Two of the highest-profile complaints in the early days have been weak Wi-Fi signals and confusion over USB charging of the device.

Apple's discussion forums have received a significant amount of activity regarding the Wi-Fi issue, which typically results in users receiving a significantly lower signal than computers or iPhones held in the same location relative to the access point. The reduced signal is resulting in slower performance and smaller range for many of these users. Users have also reported seeing significant fluctuations in signal.

Speculation has centered around the iPad's external shell and power-saving measures as possible reasons for the Wi-Fi performance issues. While Apple has strategically placed the iPad's Wi-Fi antennas to provide optimal reception, the device's aluminum rear enclosure almost certainly shields reception to some degree. Additionally, some users have wondered whether Apple is supplying reduced power to the Wi-Fi hardware as part of its power-saving techniques that have enabled the iPad to meet or exceed its stated 10-hour battery life in many cases. Regardless of the cause, Apple has yet to comment on the Wi-Fi situation, although it has in the past quietly addressed similar issues through software updates when possible.

A second issue experienced by users has been difficulty with charging the iPad via USB. A number of users have discovered that their iPads refuse to charge when connected to USB ports on some computers, an issue that Apple has stated is due to the required power draw for the device. In a support document posted on the issue, Apple recommends that users charge their iPads by using either the included power outlet adapter or high-power USB 2.0 ports.
When attached to a computer via a standard USB port (most PCs or older Mac computers) iPad will charge, but only when it's in sleep mode. Make sure your computer is on while charging iPad via USB. If iPad is connected to a computer that?s turned off or is in sleep or standby mode, the iPad battery will continue to drain.

The iPad's charging demand stems from its large battery that drives a significantly hungrier device than most mobile handhelds users are accustomed to charging via USB. Consequently, lower-power USB ports have difficulty keeping up with the iPad's draw, especially when the device is not in sleep mode.

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## BBT

Its odd but I show stronger everywhere on iPad and BB or iPhone. Hope the upgrade is not a downgrade for me.

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## BBT

Great Pic Petri.

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## JEK

More from Cupertino:

*Apple weighs in*

On Monday, Apple posted a Knowledge Base article, pertaining to these issues. Not only does the article make suggestions for a remedy, it gives legitimacy to the fact that Apple considers this a very real issue. The article states that having a third-party Wi-Fi router that supports both the 2.4-GHz and 5-GHz bands may be subject to a connectivity problem. It suggests that users can setup different SSID's for each band's network and to ensure that each network uses the same security type (WEP, WPA or WPA2.)

*What you can do*

If you're an early adopter experiencing connectivity issues there are a few things you can do to until Apple comes up with a more definitive explanation and fix for this problem:

*Update Your Router's Firmware*. Before attempting to connect an iPad to a home network, make sure that you have the latest version of the firmware to ensure that the router is functioning at full capability. This is usually done within the router's included software.
*Change The Router's Location.* Do you have your router positioned in close proximity to equipment that could be causing interference? Microwaves, cordless phones, baby monitors, wireless keyboards, and Bluetooth devices can muddy a W-Fi signal.
*Set Your Router To Operate On One 802.11 Standard*. Most current routers support not only 802.11n, but a, b, and g as well. Set your router to operate exclusively on the greatest standard available, and do the same with the wireless devices on your network. The iPad ships with support for 802.11n, so you should have your router match that if possible.
*Change Your Router's Security Encryption.* Typically, security isn't something that should be experimented with, but when attempting to boost network performance, it may be necessary. There's no question that WPA and WPA2 encryption is more secure than WEP, but the jury's still out about which encryption method can slow a network down more (some believe it's WEP and others WPA). If you have either currently deployed in your home network, try changing to a different encryption setting and see if that makes any difference in your connectivity. Apple also recommends that you use the same security settings across the entire network.
*Rename Your Networks.* Apple makes the somewhat odd suggestion that users rename their networks. "Create separate Wi-Fi network names to identify each band. This can be done easily by appending one or more characters to the current network name. Example: Add a G to the 802.11b/g network name and an N to the 802.11n network name."
This is surely the so-called pea in the princess' mattress, at least where the iPad's launch is concerned. It's hard to know where the blame lies at this time. While it's understandable that Apple is bearing the brunt of the complaints for their device's perceived connectivity issues, the problems could very well be an issue with third-party router vendors not releasing or pushing out firmware updates in time for the iPad's release. Here's hoping for a true fix from router vendors and/or Apple in the immediate future. In the meanwhile, try the tips above, and let us know if they helped you.

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## Petri

Hopefully it's a software thing, and not "iPhone 2G" again.  The first iPhone had such a crappy wifi reception and it's no surprise that the 3G(S) has plastic instead of aluminium.

The iPad 3G might have better WiFi reception if they use the black plastic strip for WiFi antenna as well, not just 3G/GPS.

PS. Not planning to buy iPad until a trip to HK in June..  Apple's pricing in HK seems to match US so it's quite a big saving against the  prices.

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## JEK

I can ship some "books" to you at any time. I think I'm going to get the 3G as I missed the connectivity yesterday riding in the car to NYC with my son driving.

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## GramChop

> Only if you lick it :p



TWSS!    :Wink:

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## Peter NJ

> 




Thats Hot! :p

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## JEK

TWSS

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## RickyG

I LOVE Olivia Munn.....only reason to watch Attack of the Show

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## Petri

> I can ship some "books" to you at any time.



Thanks for the offer..  the 22% VAT will kill all the savings, and I'm pretty sure there's already some Apple-fanboy showing off his iPad in the local cafe's ;-)

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## JEK

I'm in Paris on the 15th of May. Another iPad wouldn't take up much room in the bag.

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## Petri

> I'm in Paris on the 15th of May. Another iPad wouldn't take up much room in the bag.



Tempting..

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## BBT

And JEK does not even have to remove it from his bag for TSA

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## JEK

Don't believe that. I got busted for my Kindle (remember them?) on a trip not long ago. YOU DIDN'T TAKE YOUR LAPTOP OUT OF THE BAG!!!! It's not a laptop, it is a Kindle. IT IS LAPTOP. TAKE IT OUT OF THE BAG AND STEP AWAY . . . .

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## BBT

I read yesterday that TSA had issued a statement that it did not have to come out. It must be the orange feathers. I never took my Kindle out. the fun part was going on Amazon on Manday and cancelling my 3 newspapers on the Kindle.

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## Petri

> I read yesterday that TSA had issued a statement that it did not have to come out.



And how many TSA employees can recognize an iPad?

A friend lives in the US, couple of years ago he noticed that he had a carpet knife in his jacket pocket that went through the airport security.  Since then he has thrown the knife to his carry-on bag or pocket every time he has been flying.  Last year alone he went through the airport security 90 times.  Water bottles have been taken but never the knife.  He has plenty of pictures of the knife in various airport lounges in his blog..

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## JEK

What's his name we can get him on the no-fly list :)

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## BBT

I know of not one incident that we have been spared by TSA, it is all in the optics. The British seem to find stuff all the time but can you remember one time that TSA has stopped anything. They have shut down the airports numerous times when their employyee missed the person walking in the out line.

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## KevinS

TSA's Blog on Ipads, Kindles, and Netbooks

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