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iPad 3 Why 3G does not work after being on WiFi

When I take my iPad 3 out of my house, I have to reboot it to get a 3G connection. The 3g icon shows that it is connected but when I try and access any connection it says no internet connection. My iPad 1 seemed to work ok. I've also tried putting it in Airplane mode and back again but this has no effect.

Any suggestions please? Many thanks.

iPad (3rd generation) Wi-Fi + 4G, iOS 5.1

Posted on Mar 21, 2012 2:24 AM

Reply
406 replies

Apr 12, 2012 9:35 AM in response to ongmk168

I can assure you that this is not a carrier problem, and if I were you I would give it a day of testing before rushing to conclusions. Previous experience has learned me that this problem can surface at very unpredictable times. Sometimes you can provoke it to appear just by turning of wi-fi and other times it can take longer depending on if you just used the "reset all network settings", switched sim-cards or rebooted.


Please, the next guy who calls apple support, if you are told that this is a Carrier/telecom problem, make sure to ask them to send you this confirmation in writing so that you can ask for a compesation when Apple crawls out and admits they are to blame. The fact is that most Apple support staff do not know s*it about what`s causing this problem. Most of them are actually just blaming the carriers because when they hear the words like "3G" or "internet connection" they automatically draw the amateur conclusion that this cannot be the Ipads fault.


Also, I see there are a lot of people trying to figure out whats causing the problem with some wild conclusions regarding, batterylevel and how the 3G connectivity model works...etc. things that we cannot do anything about anyway. I suggest people stop wasting energy on researching for a new wheel, and simply return your device from where you purchased them and get a refund, YES, A REFUND not a REPLACEMENT. When purchasing a device for this amount of money, it is not your job to use several weeks to disect this device, it is Apple`s responsebility, they are the ones getting paid for this with your money, dont forget that.

Apr 12, 2012 12:39 PM in response to Torqen

Yeah, like Torqen said, this is not a carrier problem. I sold my Samsung Galaxy 10.1 to get the new iPad and it never gave me any problems with connection; and that's what I told the Apple tech person when I called for support just to let her know that it is not my carrier. I'm going to be out of my "home" area this Monday and Tuesday and I'm going to try out a few of the solutions others have posted that have worked for them. Hopefully one of them will work. I will post here if they worked or not for me.

Apr 12, 2012 12:51 PM in response to guitartabman

Same here,


I live in the UK and am now on a second "New iPad" with an unstable 3G connection. It tells me I am connected to T-Mobile via 3G with plenty of reception but I cannot access any internet sites, internet enabled apps, etc. I keep getting a box telling me that it can't activate cellular connection.


In order to regain a 3G connection I have to either: Power down the iPad, take out the sim card, reset network settings, and even, dare I say it, Restore to factory settings! Now, having to do this several times a day is more than an inconvenience. I have even gone to the trouble of getting a replacement sim card from T-Mobile just to factor out the possibility of it being a problem. Which I managed to swap yesterday. 3G was ok up until 30 minutes ago and; HEY PRESTO! the problem is back again!


The iPad works absolutely fine over wifi with lightning fast connection. But the 3G is, well non-existant.


What's going on?

Apr 12, 2012 1:30 PM in response to richardbridge86

Todays visit at the Apple store in Oberhausen....

This Problem is totaly unknown! Even the technician from the Background Service didnt know.


Dear Apple Guys

Please inform your People at the Shops, it is a shame that customers Need to inform your sales and technical workers.


@donhuebi

This issue isnt only a Tmobile problem

Have a Look at this Page:

http://www.macuser.de/forum/f136/probleme-3g-verbindung-631968/index117.html

117 Pages of People Discussing this issue and many different provider


I Really like my ipad but this policy of Information Handling is really disappointing and a shame!

So I think, next time start your Beta testing without me!

Apr 12, 2012 2:03 PM in response to Cooper_S

@ Cooper_S Tanks for the link and that you have told the guys in Oberhausen about this problem. I will visit them on Thursday, wonder what they tell me than. That the problem is a T-Mobile only problem is wrong your are right. A T-Mobile Techniken told me that T-Mobile and Eplus have the Problem. Vodafone hat the problem after the first weekend but they fixed it he told me.


I'm totally with you about the handling by apple it *****.

Apr 13, 2012 12:58 AM in response to inbrand

Inbrandi,


Why not put it this way.... If your New BMW have fault and the mechanic can't find any solution. Finally , you change the battery and your problem solve, so is the battery or the car?


I have no problem using my ipad1 but after upgrading to new IPad, all 3G connection issue arises..but I have change my Sim Card using another telco ( Starhub ) , I have so far no issue with the 3G connection.


I think is the compatibility issue with the 4g and 3G from the telco.


Why not give a try by switching with your friend using another telco.. .?




Just my opinion.....

Apr 13, 2012 3:57 AM in response to Cooper_S

I met Cooper_S at the store in Oberhausen and I wholeheartedly agree. It.'s a shame for a company like Apple to deny a problem istead of facing it. Ok, according to other forums Apple is working on a solution, but there has been no official statement by Apple, so far. I've bee facing this problem for four weeks now and the reply I received has alias been the same, namely, that they had never heard of this problem before. To my mind there are two possible explanations. First, the staff has to lie to The customer, due to company's policy or secondly, they really don't know anything, which would indicate that they don't even know what's being discussed in Apple's very own forums, not to speak about multiple other forums discussing the same problem. Having confronted the staff at the Apple store in Oberhausen before, both possibilities are inacceptable. If that's the great support by Apple, i have to say: "No thanks!"


Furthermore, according to what wie were told at the shop, the only thing thy can do, anyway, is to replace your device. Appart from that Apple Inc. has to be contacted. So, what's the point of going to an official Apple store if there is nothing they can do?


@ donhuebi: Please, let us know, what they told you!

Apr 13, 2012 6:33 AM in response to guitartabman

Thank god it's not only me going nuts over this. I was ready to take mine back and get my money back as I only got my SIM card yesterday and was straight on the phone to Singtel to complain it didn't work (although it does in my iPhone 4). The only thing I have found so far to work today is I reset my network settings, then turned off wifi totally, then back to airplane mode (because as soon as I turned it back on it picked up a wifi network and 3G wouldn't work again!), then I turned off airplane mode. And at the moment 3G is working okay albeit slow. Taking bets to how long this lasts!

If Apple cannot resolve this issue then I will have to consider getting my money back. I don't want to, I have waited a long time for this. But what is the point in paying a large sum of money for a sub-standard piece of tech.

Apr 13, 2012 6:50 AM in response to jmgg0025

What I've found to work recently to get my connection working again instead of doing a network reset (which is annoying, resets wifi passwords...) is I do the following:


- Go into Cellular Data

- Set "Enable LTE" to off

- Wait for the 3G symbol at the top of status bar to dissapear and re-appear (takes a second or two)

- Set "Enable LET" to on again.


This has worked for me latetly to get 3G working rather than doing the longer reset network settings.

Hopefully Apple fixes this soon, it is getting annoying.


I am in Canada on Rogers, my iPad 1 has no problems at all on the exact same network.

iPad 3 Why 3G does not work after being on WiFi

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