Poor wifi reception on new iPad

My wife has the iPad 2 and I have the new iPad 3; she has consistent access and if I get access it drops within 2 minutes.....I'm returning mine!!!! Very disappointed with Apple.

I'm finding that if you use the iPad in portrait mode with the home button at the top, you will get consistent wifi connectivity and good reception. If you have the home button on the bottom is drops out and has poor reception. Must be an issue with the placement of the internal antenna.

The ipad 3 is a joke. Apple is a joke. Apple can not get wifi to work in a third generation device. What the ****? You think returning you device will fix the issue? Another joke. Fanboys can not deny, Wifi does not work, Wifi is an issue that needs to fixed by Apple.

I think the joke here is that you assume all 4 or 5 million new iPads are plagued with the problem. Returning the unit may fix the problem or it may not if you are unlucky enough to get one from the same batch. This problem will be fixed but some people may not have the patience or the foresight to see that.

I would bet that at least half of the new ipads are plagued with the problem. Most consumers just put up with issue or they are fanboys who would rip their eyes out before the complained about an Apple product. I am on my third new ipad. I got one from the Boston area, one from West Virginia and the latest one from South Carolina. All three have the same wifi problem. We should not have to wait for a fix, it should work, this is a third generation device. We also do not need patience or foresight waiting for the fix, we have no choice but to wait. Main point being, no one can deny there is a wifi problem with the new ipad.

Good post clipper!

The only FIX is to return and exchange till you get a good one or (like I did after 4) take a refund and try again in a month or so. I do agree that if proper quality controls were in place or if they are in place were followed properly this should not have happened to the extent it appears to have. I still think they will get the hardware fixed but, to fix you still have to get another device in the end. I own lots of apple stuff as well as Windows, Netgear, and Dell so I'm not a "fanboy". If you are waiting for software to fix this issue you are wasting your time, if it were software the every iPad would have the problem as they all run IOS 5.1.

Got it replaced today, so far so good, changing DNS didn't help at all in my previous iPad....

Clearly, most buyers of the new iPad are NOT experiencing all the wifi problems you describe - most are working just fine. I'm sorry - you have a serious credibility problem with me when you tell me that FOUR iPads you have purchased don't work. One - okay - any product can have a lemon now and then, but not four in a row.

Something is wrong here and I don't think it's the iPad!

You may call me a "fanboy" but if I am, it's because I have over 20 yrs of experience with Apple products (even owned a "clone"!) and I have never had trouble with any of them. My wifi works on this one, my SmartCover works just fine, and it is not getting too hot either. Somehow I doubt I was a lucky minority...

Wow, you're delusional. Any complex piece of human engineered hardware can have issues, even your beloved Apple.

Stop sipping so much kool-aid. Apple may be good but it does not have a zero defect rate.

When you pay a lot for something, you expect a lot. Read some engineering texts.

This is my first iPad, the screen color is very clear,white, no yellow tint, there are no heating up issues and my very old router puts out a signal that my new iPad can easily get out in the middle of my back yard, through several walls and about 30-40 feet of space, looks like I will soon be selling my hardly used Toshiba Thrive tablet. I had my iPad engraved, ordered very late the first day of pre-order, had my delivery on the wrong local area truck but it all worked out well. The iPad works well, and I am gaining on that learning to use it.

I have NEVER said that Apple (or any other company or product for that matter) has a zero defect rate!!!! I'm saying that my experience with them has been this - they worked just fine right out of the box. I have had battery problems after a year or so with both my iPhonne 3GS and my original iPad - wouldn't hold a charge. Apple replaced them immediately with new ones - one can't ask for more than that.

What I'm tired of is people saying that these ALL (or nearly all) have wifi problems. That just isn't so! Believe me, I expect a lot, no matter what I have paid, and I expect even more when I pay alot. That's why I've been an Apple customer for over 20 years - I got what I paid for and was very happy. I wouldn't continue buying their products if I were not.

No, I'm not an engineer but I know my way round technology pretty darned well. And remember, Apple is supposed to be the product "for the rest of us" who do NOT want to have to have a degree in engineering or computer science in order to be able to use their products to their fullest!

I'm very sorry for those who are having trouble - it's VERY frustrating and disppointing. Just don't assume that the entire line is deeply flawed.

My laptop (hp) finds 10 wi-fi networks. My ipad only gets 3-5 laying next to my laptop.

Anybody find simmilar results?

Also I can do the deathgrip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB9nI-Fv2o0&feature=youtu.be

Hope I don´t have to use the deathgrip to get a return.

I'm in Italy in my house and I have big problems with Ipad3 WiFi connection....my old Ipad1 is perfect :(((

What can we do??

Adding my reply just to help document this problem is real. I purchased a new iPad primarily in hopes of better WiFi performance over the iPad II. Unfortunately spotty and dropped connection experience with new IPad is significantly worse than iPad II (compared side by side). Orientation does not seem to really have that much effect. Both are 64G, iPad II is Verizon. New one is ATT. Both iPads WiFi performance is well below all other WiFi devices I own. Love the iPad, but agree with others who have expressed surprise that Apple couldn't get this right in a 3rd gen product, especially for a feature that is so fundamental to the device's value.

Plan to return new one for exchange, but don't really expect it will help. Will return for refund if no solution emerges before the 14 day return policy expires.

One thing I do notice is the reception fan usually (but only temporarily) jumps a notch when I remove or attach the cover. Could Apple be throttling the radio to conserve battery? if that's what's happening I'd sure like the option to make my own trade off decisions. It never stays at 3 bars for more than a min or two...in fact I'm sitting 4 feet from my access point right now, with only 2 bars showing.