It seems that some Apple iPad users are having problems connecting their iPad to Wi-Fi and have been flooding Apple forums with their worries.
Some are complaining that the Wi-Fi signal is very weak and others are finding that they cannot connect to their network again after the iPad has been on standby.
However, it has to be said that other users are saying they have experienced no problems at all.
The fact that some are having issues has led to speculation that it might have something to do with the position of the Wi-Fi antenna on the device or perhaps a software glitch. Apple reckons it’s a router problem.
“Under certain conditions, iPad may not automatically rejoin a known Wi-Fi network after restart or waking from sleep. This can occur with some third-party Wi-Fi routers that are dual-band capable when: Using the same network name for each network or using different security settings for each network,” said Apple.
Apple says that if you encounter this issue you should try creating 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” Apple said in their support bulletin.
You should also ensure that “both networks are using the same security type (WEP, WPA, WPA2 and so on).”
If this doesn’t resolve the problem then you should try resetting your networking settings.
However, as Adam Leach, principle analyst with Ovum told the BBC, “If you are using public Wi-Fi, then you are not going to be able to make changes to router settings”.
Apple says you should also make sure that your Wi-Fi router firmware is up to date.
Apple sold over 300,000 iPads when it launched in the US last week and with it launching in other countries in a few weeks, the last thing Apple needs now is any major iPad hassles or worse, iPad returns.
“If the Wi-Fi problem is hardware-related, it will force a number of returns, which will be costly for Apple and ruin the experience for the first adopters” Leach told the BBC.
Later this month there will be a 3G version of the iPad available.
