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Tech Report: iPad Wi-Fi Bug Is Back

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - The intermittent Wi-Fi problem that plagued the very first iPad users has resurfaced with a vengeance.

Users have again been complaining on blogs and in Apple forums about weak and dropped Wi-Fi signals after upgrading to iOS version 4.3.3, issued after the controversy over stored location data that some saw as an invasion of privacy.

KCBS technology analyst Larry Magid writes the problem this time affects not just the iPad but also iPhones and iPod Touch devices running the latest version of the operating system.

Sometimes a weak signal can be remedied by moving the device closer to the Wi-Fi router. Also, turning the Wi-Fi off and then back on again seems to work, Magid said.

"But that's just temporary and obviously not a real solution," he said.

KCBS Technology Analyst Larry Magid comments:

Apple has yet to acknowledge the problem officially.

Magid said the intermittent nature of the bug makes it hard to diagnose, which means a fix from Apple could be some time in coming.

"Assuming Apple acknowledges it, I'm sure they will come out with a fix," he said. "But who knows, maybe it'll break again. That's exactly what happened last time."

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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