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

same problem with my new iPad (64gb):

I commute every day between two cities in Germany and everytime the 3G connection interrupts and the iPad is not able to recover. Only a complete restart allows me to use the 3G internet connection again, which is very annoying.

On the weekend I traveled from Cologne to Lepizig via train and it happened 6 times that the connection was lost and I had to restart my ipad also 6 times.

Does anyone know if there is a hardware defect regarding the 3G module which is built in the new Ipad?

Actually, you've just answered your question. If reset is your remedy, this is iOS problem. I recommend to wait and see if next iOS will bring any improvement. Many people here have exchanged their iPads already without success.

This is happening to me too.

Uk 32gb 4G

Thought at first it was my cut down giffgaff sim, but this thread disproves that.

My new iPad was a fresh setup, not restored from an ipad1 or 2 backup.

I have also tried restoring the firmware, still the same issues.

Will report to Apple now I have seen this thread.

Not a chance Bertieuk. Even if you gonna press F11 restore your PC/Laptop to original factory default condition and installed only iTunes afterward, it is still going to bne the same headache. It is the new iPad radio chipset hardware and it driver issue. There's pretty much nothing we can do. Maybe Apple release a fix to it in the next iOS 5.2. No guarantee, just maybe.

I have an additional symptom that is interesting. I live in Denver - 4G (it is ATT 4G, which is really 3G) and work in Chicago - 4G LTE.  This problem occurs frequently (maybe every time) in Denver, and never in Chicago.  It could be that the iPad tries wi-FI first (makes sense), then it tries to find 4G LTE, then it goes for 3G (4G not LTE), probably all the way down to Edge.  Maybe it just gets stuck trying to find 4G LTE.

In my case (on my iPad and my wife's iPad) switching to airplane mode works every time. 

Yes, this is interesting. In my case when i leave a wi-fi zone, the Ipad switches to the 3G symbol but there is no real connection as i get the "No connection to internet message" in safari. When i move outside a zone with 3G the Ipad loses the 3G symbol and the EDGE symbol appears, but still there is no real Edge Connection.

Conclusion:

To me it seems the new Ipad is struggling to switch between the different connectivity methods, sure, it detects the reception strengths, but it is unable to switch between the bands.

I replaced my German Telekom 3N MultiSIM with a A1 ( newest SIM version ) version, but without any success. The problem that my iPAD 4G/WiFi loose the internet conncetion  when switching from 3G to Edge or vice versa still exist.

you have to turn wifi off for it to work

No, switching off the wifi doesnt help.

I have the same problem here in Germany (near Frankfurt)

at home wifi connection and a bad 3G, switching off the wifi in my house result in a frozen 3G connection.

When I switch off the wifi while in house the result is the same like wlking outside and losing connection to wifi.

The interesting part is driving the autobahn and using the update of mail is not a problem (dont do this, while driving by yourself ;-) )

Same issue in Austria with brand new sim Bfree (A1) 3G

Doing this by yourself however is probably quite safe on the autobahn around Frankfurt...

I'm looking out the window now, wandering how bad the traffic is going to be with everyone trying to escape Frankfurt for the Easter weekend - It's going to be Europes biggest car park I guess ;-)

@Lord Vader UK, did a "clean install" solve the problem??

Same problem in Finland, 4G 64 GB, DNA sim. Nothing works except a reboot.

There are already a couple of long threads here. Hopefully there is some news soon. I don't really want to waste time messing around getting a replacement if it won't help.

Seeing so many people post topics of this exact same problem really gets me to start wondering if this could be a problem that actually everyone is suffering from, but some may just not be aware of it yet?

To me this problems occur not only when going from Wi-Fi to 3G but also when switching from 3G to Edge.

I tried switching the simcard with the one from my Iphone (1 year old), but it did not change anything. The next step is to get the operator to send me a brand new Sim card.

Another Case:

When restoring as a "new Ipad" I also discovered that the Ipad refused to reconnect to my Wifi whenever I went outside og range or disabled/enabled Wifi or Flight Mode. I actually have to rewrite the Wifi passcode everytime I lose connection.  I tried restoring from the Ipad 2 safety backup, and then it started to automatically reconnect again. I read in a post that the workaround was to choose "other" and manually insert the SSID and password to make it remember and I recently found out that this actually works.

But this is ofcourse not a acceptable in the long run as it will cause problems when trying to connect to other networks. Sure hope they will fix this in a update real soon.

This is known problem by Apple and it will be fixed by the next iOS update. I called apple support today (in the Czech Republic) and they told me, that it's well known problem and they are working on a fix, that will be released with the next iOS. I usually resolve this by switching to the airplain mode and then back on.