Maybe they should have called it the Kindle Fire?
According to early user reports, the new iPad may be prone to becoming physically warm during use, especially in the lower left-hand corner when holding the iPad upright in portrait mode. The question of whether the iPad has a temperature problem has been asked on both the Apple Discussion Boards and in the MacRumors forums, and articles on CNET, The Next Web and Gizmodo have all brought unwanted attention to the new iPad's heat.
Typical of the complaints (via the Apple Discussion Boards):
Just got my new iPad. I'm loving the screen and speed but there's something weird about it. It gets rather warm/hot after 30minutes of usage. It has never happened on my iPad 2. Do you think it's harmless or .... ?
My 64gb, wifi/LTE new ipad is 96.8 degrees currently (and must have crafty artificial intelligence because it's as if it KNEW I'd brought out my laser temperature scanner and cooled down for reading). It has been very hot to hold, lower left side, since first use. I'll continue to monitor with scanner...
Mine is a 64 with WIFi and LTE - LTE not hooked up yet - got hot enogh that I measured with infared thermometer and it was 117 degree after 10 minutes - my little boy says its too hot to hold - (Great !) but seriously its not comfortable and I will be returning to the store
In some cases, the iPad has gotten so hot that an error screen appears, according to The Next Web, rendering the iPad temporarily inoperable with a simple message: "iPad needs to cool down before you can use it." (Funny, I used to say the same thing about myself in high school).
The uncomfortable heat has been attributed to the new iPad's larger battery and larger graphics chip. The iPad's new Retina display, with four times as many pixels as the screen on the iPad 2, as well as the optional 4G LTE chip, reportedly required a larger battery in order to maintain high battery life.
Apple did not immediately respond to request for comment. Until then, we will continue to monitor the iPad's hotness, both in consumer demand and physical, perhaps discomforting, warmth.
Take a look at critics' least favorite things about the new iPad via the slideshow below. Read on to find out what were reviewers' favorite things about the device.