What is it with Sweden lately? From Pirate Bay and Julian Assange news to iPad magicians and Minecraft, the country seems to be at the forefront of both innovation and controversy on the web.
Just one day after an Australian group complained to consumer groups in that country about the marketing of the new iPad, Ars Technica is reporting today that Swedish groups are doing the same. Evidently, The Swedish Consumer Agency is receiving complaints about the 4G capabilities of the new tablet and could open its own investigation.
The issue in these countries is that Apple released only one version of the new iPad worldwide, and advertised it as 4G capable. While the tablet certainly is 4G enabled in the U.S. and a few other countries, it is not compatible with either Australia’s or Sweden’s 4G networks. Consumers and consumer protection groups are crying “false advertising,” though the Australian packaging for the device did include a sticker with a warning explaining the situation. Apple announced today that Australian customers who feel they were mislead could receive a refund.
This story is one more in a long line of unflattering new iPad stories. Will Apple offer similar refunds in Sweden? I’m guessing yes, and sooner rather than later.
Twitter seems to think the whole issue is a little overblown:
This whole iPad 4G complaint in Oz and Sweden seems overblown to me. On the UK site it says “up to 4G LTE.” What are the carriers saying?