April 2, 2012

BETHESDA, MD – Two weeks ago, the new iPad hit the market with a bang. But now that the Apple tablet is in the hands of consumers, what is their initial reaction towards the new device?

A March 22-28 survey of 200 new owners looked at their impressions of the new Apple iPad, including overall satisfaction with the device, key likes and dislikes, and the impact of the heat issue.  ChangeWave Research is a service of 451 Research.

Customer Satisfaction

User satisfaction with the new iPad is even higher than previous iPad ratings from a February 2012 ChangeWave survey.  More than four-out-of-five new iPad owners (82%) say they are Very Satisfied with the device.  Another 16% say they're Somewhat Satisfied.

Here is a head-to-head comparison of the new iPad user survey results with previous iPad user results from the February 2012 ChangeWave survey.

Top iPad Likes and Dislikes

We also queried new iPad owners on the specific features they liked best and disliked most:

What do you like best about the new iPad?  (Choose No More Than Three)

By a landslide, the High-Resolution "Retina" Display (75%) is what new iPad owners report they like best about the device. Long Battery Life (22%) comes in a distant second, followed by 4G LTE Capability (21%) and the Faster Processor (20%)

New iPad Dislikes

When asked what they dislike most about their new iPad, users cited the Cost of the Device (26%) and the Cost of the Wireless Data Plan (23%) as their two biggest gripes.

And what do you dislike most about the new iPad?  (Choose No More Than Three)

Two other issues were each cited by 8% of owners – the iPad's Size/Weight and its Amount of Flash Memory Storage.

Additional dislikes mentioned include its Integration with Other Devices (7%), Excessive Heat Coming From the Device (7%) and Battery Life (6%). No other issue was cited by more than 5% of new owners.

A Closer Look At The iPad 'Heat' Issue

In a recent release, Consumer Reports stated that the new iPad can heat up to as much as 116 degrees Fahrenheit when plugged in and continually running a game. While the consumer publication considered this to be "very warm," they said it wasn't especially uncomfortable if held for brief periods and they didn't consider it to be a safety concern.

To gauge new iPad owner reaction to the heat issue, we presented respondents with a brief summary of the Consumer Reports findings on the new iPad and asked how much of a problem the issue of excessive heat was for them:

In testing, Consumer Reports found the new iPad can heat up to as much as 116 degrees Fahrenheit when plugged in and continually running a game. While they found it very warm, they said it was not especially uncomfortable if held for brief periods and they don't consider it a safety concern.

How much of a problem for you - if any - is the issue of excessive heat coming from your new iPad?

Only 4% of new iPad owners found the issue of excessive heat to be Somewhat of a Problem for them, and 0% found it to be a Very Big Problem.  Moreover, the vast majority of new owners reported they Haven't Experienced any Problem (89%).

To put this in context, back in July 2010 we surveyed new iPhone 4 owners on the antenna and reception issue – which at the time had received an unprecedented level of news media focus.  In that survey, iPhone 4 owners were asked how big of a problem the antenna/ reception issue was for them, and we found the following:

At the time, 7% of new iPhone 4 owners found the antenna and reception issue to be a Very Big Problem and 14% Somewhat of a Problem. Two-thirds (64%) reported they Hadn't Experienced any Problem.

In comparison to the 2010 iPhone 4 Antenna/ Reception issue, the new iPad heat issue hardly registered a concern among the 200 new iPad owners in this ChangeWave survey.

Simply put, the heat issue does not appear to be a perceived problem for the overwhelming majority of new iPad owners.

The complete ChangeWave report is available here.

**Note that ChangeWave also offers this report as part of a quarterly subscription series available for purchase.

About ChangeWave Research
ChangeWave Research, a service of 451 Research, is a survey research firm that identifies and quantifies change in consumer spending & electronics trends, telecom trends, and corporate buying & business trends. This is accomplished through a weekly series of large sample surveys to its network of 25,000 accredited business and technology professionals, and early-adopter consumers, working in more than 20 industries. To learn more visit www.changewaveresearch.com.

About 451 Research
451 Research, a division of The 451 Group, is a leading global analyst and data company focused on the business of enterprise IT innovation. Clients of 451 Research – at end-user, service-provider, vendor, and investor organizations – rely on 451 Research's insight through a range of syndicated research and advisory services to support both strategic and tactical decision-making. For additional information on 451 Research, go to: 451research.com.