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Apple shocks iPad 3 customers with free upgrade

Yesterday we saw the special event staged by iPhone maker Apple as the company unveiled a number of new products that included two new models of their tablet PC, which included the iPad 4. There would have been many customers that had recently purchased an iPad disappointed with the news of a new model so soon, but Apple shocks some iPad 3 customers with a free upgrade.

The company yesterday announced the iPad mini and the refreshed iPad 4 that is promised to be twice as fast as the previous model, but according to Redmond Pie it seems Apple is going to offer customers of the iPad 3 a free upgrade to the new model.

There is a catch though as it seems this is dependent on the device being purchased in the last thirty days, but at the time of writing it is not known if this is company policy or select Apple Stores taking part. The store on Stockton Street in San Francisco has let customers trade in their iPad 3 for a new model, as long as it was purchased no more than thirty days ago.

If this is company policy it will certainly please some iPad 3 owners, but many people that have purchased one in the last few months will be understandably be angry at the company’s move, especially if they fall just outside the thirty day cut off policy if it actually exists.

The new model brings the Lightening connector along with a more powerful processor and better graphics handling capability, but considering the company also launched the iPad mini you would have thought they would have waited until early next year to refresh the main model.

While we can expect flagship tech products to quickly be overtaken by new models, it’s not often that these devices come from the same manufacturer and in only a few months. Apple is obviously looking to take advantage of the busy holiday season, but it could be in danger of alienating some previous customers in the process.

Are you angry at Apple bringing out a new model so soon?

Comments

36 thoughts on “Apple shocks iPad 3 customers with free upgrade”

  1. smh says:

    Have you ever had deja, deja, deja, deja, deja vu? Change is cool but not when you make someone’s purchase of the NEW IPAD in march seem outdated for the NEWER IPAD 4 in October of the same year. So now i can’t wait for the A6xl chip. Smh

  2. Tuxinoo says:

    I’m really upset, disappointed, duped… It’s a complete break with Steve Jobs’s ideals. If Tim Cook doesn’t propose any compensation to ipad3 owners (early adopters included), he will confirm he doesn’t consider Apple customers/fans.

  3. dezdewdec . says:

    2, iPad’s in one year ?? I bought the New iPad very soon. But am not going to buy the iPad 4. Am gonna wait for an iPad next year with an A7 or A7X chip, lighter and better camera…….

  4. reignjohn says:

    apple should have at least wait for march-april to release the ipad 4 🙁 i know they are accepting replacements to ipad 4, but here in the Philippines i don’t think so.

  5. Daniel Brown says:

    Furious, 14 days ago I purchased the “new” ipad and apple won’t swap as it’s purchased from a retailer other than apple store… Consumer affairs prepare thyself.

    1. Notappy says:

      Done the same with PC world two weeks ago, and they’re not going to exchange, so it only seems to apply to apple stores which is another kick in the teeth!

  6. sim303 says:

    Compensation?! What for? As Buyer (you) and Seller (Apple, Apple Store…) both parties freely entered into, and satisfied, a Sale of Goods. Stop moaning. In fact Apple should not offer this 30 day deal unless they made that clear at the time of purchase. To do so is to set a stupid precedent.

      1. mobile10 says:

        iPad 3 problem

        I am having the same problem, this is the 3rd iPad 3 I have had in 6 months, charger unit gets very, very hot! Battery discharges faster and faster the more I use it, wifi is very weak and want stay connected at public wifi locations. In my openion I think Apply realized this model was designed with flaws that’s why they pulled it from the market so fast, in there stores and the official apple online store it is totally discontinued, where as the previous models were not pulled just discounted by $100.00. So I think we should all pull together and bring it up as a legal issue and see where we get or at least talk to someone in the legal profession about our options. I would be interested in your openion on this subject matter.

  7. Borge says:

    The iPad 3 is exactly as fast and nice as it was before iPad 4 was announced. Apple start selling a faster model now when Windows 8 tablets arrive. High end Android tablets gets the speedy S4 pro quad CPU now, and Apple want a fast tablet on the market. For iPhone 5 owners the new connector is a bonus.

  8. asdf says:

    I bought the iPad 3 at launch. Now its time to get a new phone as my contract ends.

    I’ve been using different Android phones for a few years – WAS thinking about moving from Android to an iPhone, but Apple’s launch of the iPad 4 was a real wake-up call. Now I’m definitely staying on Android – probably the Samsung Note 2 – and I’ll probably go to an Android tablet when the iPad 3 gets long in the tooth.

    Bad move Apple.

  9. Lets see if the 4 solves the heat issues…..if it does I will be seriously irritated as that is the only reason I would update. Its the only consistent complaint I have with my ipad 3 and if the upgrade addresses this issue I would be seriously irritated –

  10. Mandy says:

    I am very angry about this. I paid in May for a top of the line Ipad hoping to get a year of top performance and memory out of it, before the faster chip. The faster chip coming out this soon means that the developers will design for the faster chip. That means that when the apps I currently run update, they will show significantly poorer performance. I called Apple for a response and they basically “said too bad so sad.” So after today you can rest assured that if buy and apple product you might as well set fire to the same pile of money.

  11. guy says:

    its ridiculous, i have an ipad 3 and i am not going to be able to upgrade, an upgrade so close to the lst one… they should give all ipad 3 owners the opportunity for an upgrade!!!

  12. scp says:

    I bought my old hat Ipad 3 6 weeks ago and was assured that no software on the market could match the capabilities of the new processor and that it wouldn’t be replaced in the near future. I even knocked on their door when the new lightning dock was introduced on iphone 5, but was still assured that it wouldn’t be changed on the ipad3. Here we are six weeks later!!!!!

    Totally mis-sold in my opinion what a rip off apple.

    I’m all for progress but dont lie to your customers or you will end up with none.

  13. jcal1 says:

    Yes, I am very Very angry. I purchased an iPad 3 on Oct 5th. I upgraded from an iPad 2 which I no longer have. I finally heard from the local apple store that they will take the iPad 3 back for a 4 if I bring it in within 30 days (Nov 3).

    But they then warned me I could wait a very long while to get the iPad 4, as only WiFi versions are available early Nov. – the 4G versions will be AT LEAST mid to late November. I can’t “get a reservation” to swap it by showing my Oct 5th receipt and swapping it when my model comes in – I must turn the iPad 3 in, wait 2-3 weeks, then pick up my iPad 4. Now I use this thing everyday in my business, so who wants to have nothing to work on for 2-3 weeks. Apple is really not making it easy.

    I suspect they want to make it as hard as possible to return these things so no one will. Whether I return it or not, it will be my LAST Apple purchase.

  14. Joseph Frye says:

    What is there to be angry about? Who says you always have to have the latest and greatest products available? Just purchase a new iPad when you need (or want) it. Problem solved.

    1. Borge says:

      Almost every company in the world announce a new product some time before it arrive on the market. Then their customers can choose to buy the old model or wait for the new model. Apple don’t give their customers this choice. It is kind of ok when they follow their normal release schedule, but now they suddenly sell double performance for same price as their customers paid a few days earlier.
      Not cool 🙁

  15. davidtrevose says:

    I purchased from a non apple store, pcworld 20 days ago. apple now say the ipad 3 is discontinued (obsolete) and discounted by 20% in clearance. They say the ip4 is 100% faster than an ip3 and other significant improvements. apple are not being transparent. Where are their values? If I’d know all of this 20 days ago I would not have parted with my hard earned cash, but would have waited for an ip4 at the same price. Screwed by the largest company in the world. Apple is swapping ip3’s <30 days old, but PC World will not match that.

  16. Rams says:

    I bought a new ipad 3 two weeks ago and it is already outdated! If I don’t get a free upgrade then I will never buy a apple product again in my life!!!

  17. Francisco Galvan says:

    I am deeply disappointed as to what apple has done in order to increase revenue this upcoming quarter. Apple has betrayed all of its customers(who very excitingly bought the iPad 3). The upgrade that apple has done to the iPad is very significant. The fact that they added a A6X chip lets the whole market know that they already have something that is better in performance than the iPhone 5. Why after only 6 months has Apple updated to a full complete chip when throughout all these years(since 2007) Apple barely updates their chip every year. The A6 chip was released in september, and less than 2 months! and now we have the A6X. I bought my iPad with the trusted feeling that a new iPad was not to be seen in less than a year!! This makes me think that Apple has much more under the covers but yet, it wants to control the customer base by limiting them. Of course, customers have been loyal to Apple and Apple takes advantage of this. This is the same action that Apple committed when it decided to release the iPhone 3G short after the original iPhone was released, but this is not emphasized because its clouded by the release of the most recent products from Apple. I seek compensation or else i will strip Apple from my loyalty, and take my family and friends with me. I am a customer and care very much for this but when you release such products with such timing, it lets us know that we should just WAIT and not buy anything. Apple is having a downfall and seems at times desperate like their opponent “Samsung”. please consider this. Apple was not todays Apple in the 90’s. Steve Jobs brought it back- and now that he is gone, it is inevitable to see all these flaws. Compensation for all iPad 3rd generation is what i seek. AND NOT JUST A 100 DOLLAR GIFT CARD.

  18. Philthedrill says:

    Bought an ipad3 for myself and fell for it head over heals. I liked it so much I just had to buy one for my wife as well. My wife loved it till I told her it was obsolete already. I had planned to give one to my mother as a Christmas gift, until I heard about the big rip off that is. I was so impressed I was considering switching from MIcrosoft to Apple Mac for my main PC………..Well that’s not going to happen now!

  19. This is rather infuriating, I admit. It’s my first time venturing into the Apple universe…at the insistence of my family and colleagues who are all-Apple, all the way.

    The ridiculous part is they told me that I would never regret getting the newest iPad because it would be dumb to wait another year or so for the next gen,. So I got one…in late July. Funny how just a few months later…I already have regrets, and the Apple fans just don’t have much to say. A few of them are quite pissed too…but only because this is the last time I get ANYTHING from Apple (or listen to them yapping over how wonderful all that expensive stuff is supposed to be.)

    I don’t begrudge Apple the freedom to upgrade its products. BUT…I do not like to be conned into paying a lot of dough for something that’s about to be discontinued, especially when it is not their usual practice to do so on such a schedule. They could have at least hinted that something new was coming sooner than expected….and I could have made a reasoned decision. But nooooooo….it’s all about extracting those high prices because…well the market seems willing to take it (up the you-know-what.)

    At the least they owe their iPad 3 sucker/buyers (outside the 30 day replacement window) some sort of make-good spiff…but I’m not holding my breath.

    Bah humbug to Apple and its ridiculous moonies!

  20. Hepsy says:

    I am extremely chessed off. I wanted to get my iPad earlier in the year and waited patiently till the ipad3 came out. Finally got my iPad early June excited and all only to find that less than 6 months down the line my iPad is now obsolete. I was beginning to gradually change my gadgets to Apple products but seriously considering if it is worth it now. If not that I recently upgraded my phone from Blackberry to iPhone and now stuck with a 2 year contract I would have had a second thought about it because what is the guarantee that a new iPhone won’t be released in less than six months from now. Apple now has to convince me it’s worth changing my laptop to a MacBook. I so miss Steve Jobs

  21. I purposely bought an iPad 3 today, Nov 13, 2012, guys, seriously, there’s a big secret in this device that Apple launch this product so fast, there’s a diamond code in it. That’s why they discontinued iPad 3 and urge people for iPad 4 free upgrades.

  22. Htugeon00@hotmail.com says:

    Apple are primadona and need to consider their customer. I m considering moving to a pc tablet and drop this company for the future. Very angry.

  23. Missy says:

    I’m really annoyed. I have a pristine iPad 3 hidden in my cupboard, still in it’s packaging that I bought a month after it launched. It’s for my daughter’s Christmas. I had wanted to give her the latest iPad, now there’s a new one. I had thought at least a year. It doesn’t even feel like I’ll be giving her a new iPad ’cause now it’s the previous generation. I bought it through my work because we got a deal where we can pay it up. I’m still paying for this previous generation iPad. Won’t be doing it again.

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