An overwhelming 98% of new iPad owners are either “very satisfied” (82%) or “somewhat satisfied” (16%) with their Apple tablets, a recent survey conducted by ChangeWave has determined. This is hardly a surprise, and BGR called the slate not one but two steps ahead of its competition when we reviewed the new iPad in March. Also not surprising is the fact that the majority of iPad owners don’t seem to care very much about the supposed heat issues that constantly pop up in the media’s coverage of the tablet. When ChangeWave polled 200 new iPad owners and asked what they disliked most about the third-generation Apple tablet, 7% listed excessive heat. A majority named the cost of the device as their biggest dislike (26%), and the cost of wireless data plans (23%) was the second-most disliked thing about the iPad. Despite being widely praised for its battery performance, 6% of those polled said short battery life was their most significant dislike. ChangeWave’s full press release follows below.

New iPad Owners Weigh in on the Latest Apple Tablet

BETHESDA, MD – April 2, 2012 – Two weeks ago, the new iPad hit the market with a bang. But now that the Apple tablet is in the hands of consumers, what is their initial reaction towards the new device?

A March 22-28 survey of 200 new owners looked at their impressions of the new Apple iPad, including overall satisfaction with the device, key likes and dislikes, and the impact of the heat issue. ChangeWave Research is a service of 451 Research.

Customer Satisfaction

User satisfaction with the new iPad is even higher than previous iPad ratings from a February 2012 ChangeWave survey.  More than four-out-of-five new iPad owners (82%) say they are Very Satisfied with the device.  Another 16% say they’re Somewhat Satisfied.

Here is a head-to-head comparison of the new iPad user survey results with previous iPad user results from the February 2012 ChangeWave survey.

Top iPad Likes and Dislikes

We also queried new iPad owners on the specific features they liked best and disliked most:

What do you like best about the new iPad?  (Choose No More Than Three)

By a landslide, the High-Resolution “Retina” Display (75%) is what new iPad owners report they like best about the device. Long Battery Life (22%) comes in a distant second, followed by 4G LTE Capability (21%) and the Faster Processor (20%)

New iPad Dislikes

When asked what they dislike most about their new iPad, users cited the Cost of the Device (26%) and the Cost of the Wireless Data Plan (23%) as their two biggest gripes.

And what do you dislike most about the new iPad?  (Choose No More Than Three)

Two other issues were each cited by 8% of owners – the iPad’s Size/Weight and its Amount of Flash Memory Storage.

Additional dislikes mentioned include its Integration with Other Devices (7%), Excessive Heat Coming From the Device (7%) and Battery Life (6%). No other issue was cited by more than 5% of new owners.

A Closer Look At The iPad ‘Heat’ Issue

In a recent release, Consumer Reports stated that the new iPad can heat up to as much as 116 degrees Fahrenheit when plugged in and continually running a game. While the consumer publication considered this to be “very warm,” they said it wasn’t especially uncomfortable if held for brief periods and they didn’t consider it to be a safety concern.

To gauge new iPad owner reaction to the heat issue, we presented respondents with a brief summary of the Consumer Reports findings on the new iPad and asked how much of a problem the issue of excessive heat was for them.

Since the release of the new iPad, the Internet has been overrun with concerns that Apple’s flagship tablet was overheating. The complaints led Consumer Reports to conduct a heat test, which determined the device ran 12 degrees warmer than its predecessor during heavy gaming. The Cupertino-based company, however, maintains that the new tablet is “operating well within our thermal specifications.” Raymond Soneira, president of DisplayMate Technologies, spoke with CNET on Tuesday and said that the LED backlight is most likely the reason for the new iPad’s heating issues “The LED power at maximum brightness is 2.5 times that of the iPad 2. They had to jack up the number of LEDs so the peak brightness is the same as on the iPad 2. That absolutely makes it warmer,” Soneira said. “So, not only do the LEDs need two and a half times more power but the battery is going to run warmer.” The display expert continued, “Look at it this way, the [number of] LEDs is 2.5X compared to the iPad 2, and the battery is 1.7X [larger], so what happens is that if you run your new iPad at full brightness, the battery run time is less because you only put in 70 percent more battery but you’re using 150 percent more power.”

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Following a number of reports suggesting Apple’s new iPad may have issues with overheating, non-profit buying guide Consumer Reports conducted a new round of tests to see just how hot the new iPad gets during usage. The organization ran popular game Infinity Blade II for 45 minutes with a new iPad plugged in and the device’s 4G LTE connection disabled, and it found that the iPad got as hot as 116 degrees Farenheit. Apple’s previous generation iPad 2 only climbed to 104 degrees during the same test. BGR reported on Monday that some users have experienced shut-downs on the new iPad due to overheating, and a much larger number of new iPad owners report that the device heats up significantly, but not to the point of overheating. Apple responded to the growing concern on Tuesday, stating that its new iPad operates “well within our thermal specifications.”

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Numerous reports claiming Apple’s new iPad was overheating or running significantly hotter than its predecessor hit the web shortly after the tablet was released last week. Apple on Tuesday provided The Loop with the following statement: “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,” Apple representative Trudy Muller said. “If customers have any concerns they should contact AppleCare.”

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Sony Corp. on Wednesday confirmed that it is recalling approximately 1.6 million Bravia-branded LCD televisions. Sony said it has received 11 reports to date, all from within Japan, from customers complaining that their TVs have overheated or begun to smoke. The problems are caused by a defective inverter transformer used with the LCD backlighting assemblies in the Bravia TVs, and the part is found in televisions sold both locally in Japan and overseas. Sony told the Associated Press it will issue local recall information in each market that sells the affected television models, which include the Bravia KDL-40X5000, KDL-40X5050, KDL-40W5000, KDL-40V5000 and KDL-40V3000.

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Apple may have delayed the iPhone 5 launch until next year due to an overheating dual-core A5 chip, a new report from Sohu.com suggests. Rumor has it (and it’s purely a rumor right now) that Apple will instead launch the iPhone 5 later this year or early next when the A6 chip is available — or after it figures out the A5 overheating problems. Sohu.com also said Apple will instead introduce a slightly upgraded “iPhone 4S” device, with the same form factor as the iPhone 4, in September or October. The device is expected to feature an 8-megapixel camera, and it will also sport a faster dual-core processor, two specs that are on a par with earlier reports. With all the recent chatter surrounding a more significant iPhone update due later this year, it’s likely that Sohu.com is working with old intel in this instance.

[Via 9to5 Mac]

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It looks like four bands of HSPA is too much for a BlackBerry to handle as Japanese carrier DoCoMo has suspended all sales of the Bold due to overheating issues. Since its February 20th launch, DoCoMo has sold approximately 4,000 Bolds but after receiving more than 30 complaints about overheating keypads while charging, DoCoMo decided it was best to halt sales while RIM investigates the matter. RIM is being quite tight-lipped on the matter and would only comment with, “This issue appears to be specifically limited to the BlackBerry Bold devices sold in Japan since last week and sales of BlackBerry Bold devices in other countries are unaffected by this matter.” RIM went on to clarify that faulty batteries are not to blame. For those of you scoring at home, this brings the number of carriers that have suspended sales of the Bold up to two thus far. Anyone taking bets on who might be the third?

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Listen up Quickfire owners, AT&T just made a pretty major announcement: Your phone is going to self-destruct in exactly five days! Just kidding, sort of — if you don’t follow the proper procedures for charging your device, it just might. On Monday we broke news of the Quickfire being pulled off shelves and being cut from sales indefinitely without any public statement from AT&T. Now Big Blue is saying there have been reports of significant overheating when the charger is forced or incorrectly inserted into the phone. While there is usually only one way to get a charger in, sometimes phone designs allow for some wiggle room and these bad connectors appear to be the culprit of the Quickfire’s dismissal. If you own a Quickfire and haven’t received a notice already, you’ll soon receive an email and SMS that reads:

Please take special care when charging your Quickfire GTX75 mobile phone. There have been a few reports of significant overheating of the phone when the AC Charger adapter is inserted incorrectly and forced into the phone. The clearly marked, embossed arrow on the AC Charger adapter should always be face-up on the same side as the display screen of the Quickfire when it is inserted into the phone. See the diagram below for proper positioning and insertion of the AC Charger adapter into the phone. You should never force the AC Charger adapter into the phone.

This goes without saying but be sure to take note of this to avoid any injuries or serious damage to your phone and property. At least now we know why such a cool little device was suddenly yanked from store shelves and we hope the problem is remedied soon.

Thanks, Craig!

[Via Phonescoop]

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