As users have taken the latest Apple iPad out of its trademark white box and begun to fool around with its touted Retina display, high speed processor, hotspot capabilities, and 5-megapixel camera, they have overwhelmingly been impressed -- in fact, cnet.com has reported that over 3 million third-generation iPads have been sold since its March 16 launch, and a full 65 million units are predicted to be sold before the end of the year.

The virtues of the device’s enhanced graphics have been espoused Internet-wide, as has the customized full-page formatting feature that reduces the amount of zooming and scanning that has to be done for documents, books, and magazines.  But the same components touted as upgrades from the iPad 2 have been shown to have minor downsides. 

• Personal tech blogger Edward C. Baig writes on USAToday that the iPad’s allotted data can be used up more quickly than you realize.  

"Less than 24 hours after purchasing the Verizon Wireless version of the iPad + 4G — and choosing a $30, 2GB monthly data plan from Verizon — I was shocked by the notification on my iPad's screen: 'There is no data remaining on your current plan.'"

Video Streaming, large and frequent downloads, and data usage when Wi-fi isn’t available are classic culprits.  Users who make the iPad a primary source of connectivity, as well as gamers, sports, or movie watchers can certainly pony up for larger available data plans.

• Users have noticed that they have warmer-then-usual lap when using the new iPad, a side effect of the larger screen, Retina display, and all the nuts and bolts underneath.  Apple wasn’t bothered by the concern murmuring, saying:

“The new iPad delivers a stunning Retina display, A5X chip, support for 4G LTE plus 10 hours of battery life, all while operating well within our thermal specifications. If customers have any concerns they should contact AppleCare.”

• The new iPad also won’t charge while its in use, according to reports on The Next Web and Gizmodo.com. 

It seems that the processor is doing all it can to keep up with demand during use, and there it draws the line. From The Next Web: 

"...not only is the Retina display adding to the load but its beefier quad-core graphics, the Backlight consumes 2.5 times as much it does in the iPad 2 and the display uses more LED bars.

So while, ordinarily, the new iPad battery charges fine when active (clearly showing that it not down to the increased physical size of the battery) but when the device is used for intensive games and apps, the demand of the processor and high resolution screen outstrips the power that its 10W adapter can provide while charging the battery."

A more powerful charger may do the trick; otherwise users will have to power down the device to charge it.

These drawbacks, other than the data usage issue, don’t amount to anything more than inconveniences to the user. Apple has the world's heart, and we can’t do much more but chalk them up to technological facts of life.

 

Reach Executive Producer Leslie Velez here.