4G Confusion Reigns: Apple in Hot Water Over iPad Labeling Abroad

The iPad is available in Wi-Fi and 4G LTE flavors. Photo: Ariel Zambelich/Wired

The iPad's super-speedy 4G LTE capabilities may be a no-go for some international users. New iPad owners in Australia and Europe are finding this out the hard way, highlighting the continued confusion about consumers' understanding of 4G.

Apple has been embroiled in a legal battle Down Under over whether Australian consumers were misled about 4G compatibility with the country's Telstra network. Apple insists it has been clear about LTE availability with the device, but conceded to refund iPad owners who felt misled. Other countries like the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark could soon be following Australia's lead.

"Apple's recent promotion of the new 'iPad with WiFi + 4G' is misleading because it represents to Australian consumers that the product can, with a SIM card, connect to a 4G mobile data network in Australia, when this is not the case," the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) wrote in a statement Tuesday.

And unfortunately, for many, the high data speeds promised by 4G is one of the main draws of the new tablet. Not having that feature, or misrepresenting its availability, is a deal breaker.

"A guy from the Apple Store told me [the new iPad's 4G] will work in Germany. If it is not working, in my opinion this would be a deliberate deception!" commenter Romano81 posted in one of Apple's forums. "Apple should give a clear statement on this whether it works or not."

"Yes, even on the Italian website they are advertising the new iPad as being 4G compatible around the world, but the issue of different frequencies is not even mentioned!" commenter Turbodelta heatedly replied in the same thread.

At Apple's press event for the new iPad, vice president of worldwide marketing Phil Schiller specified that at launch, the iPad's LTE capabilities would be compatible with AT&T, Verizon, Rogers, Bell and Telus in the United States and Canada, and less specifically, others around the world. Even in Apple's most recent press release, only those carriers are guaranteed to be compatible with the iPad's 4G.

Apple's website also clearly states exactly which wireless bands are compatible with the device, but for those not living in the United States, that information isn't helpful unless you understand what 4G wireless bands your carrier employs.

IHS iSuppli analyst Francis Sideco told Wired: "The 4G moniker has been used to span HSPA+ all the way to LTE advanced, and everything in between. It's probably adding to a lot of this confusion."

The iPad is compatible with the 700MHz and 2.1GHz LTE bands, which works with North American carriers, as well as HSPA+ bands, which are commonplace internationally and in the states. European countries, however, are largely utilizing the 800MHz and 2.6GHz bands for LTE — where it's even available.

Basically, Sideco explained, the 4G chipset is composed of two parts: a base band, and an RF section (or front band). The base band can typically work across any area of the wireless spectrum. The RF band, which is located right below your device's antenna, is what's causing all of these differences. And for those with a hacker spirit, this isn't some part you can just swap out — it's an integral part of the system design.

"Unlike in the US, where carriers are increasingly using '4G' as a marketing terminology to differentiate their networks, most product strategists at European operators haven't really rolled out or marketed their 4G networks yet," Forrester analyst Thomas Husson wrote in his December 2011 Western European Mobile Forecast. "Europe as a whole is only moving away from the 4G trial stage."

So what's the solution to all this? Basically, it's expectation management, Sideco says. Or as I'd call it, transparency: Making sure consumers understand exactly what they're getting so they don't end up disappointed. Because technically, international iPad users are getting "4G."

"If somebody has already accepted the name of 4G for HSPA+, this device can do that," Sideco said. "You're just not getting the LTE speeds. And one could argue in certain situations (like sub-10MHz channels, for instance), that HSPA+ and LTE are on par."

But until consumers get more knowledgable about the different types of 4G and its availability, it looks like Apple may have some more litigation to deal with.

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Original Page: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/03/apple-4g-ipad-international/

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Regards,

Derik Chan