There has been some concern voiced over Apple‘s use of the “4G” moniker. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission took those concerns to Apple Australia. The company has now responded to the country’s federal court. Apple Australia will offer a refund to those who purchased the New iPad under the misapprehension it could hook up to 4G networks in Australia.
Apparently, Apple will also amend its point of sale details to explain that, while it can connect to 4G LTE networks in the USA and Canada, it won’t connect to Australia’s own 4G network offered by Telstra.
Apple also told the court the company feels Australia does possess networks that fall under the definition of 4G due to the existence of HSPA.
HSPA+ has been recognized by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) as an official 4G technology, as it does offer significant improvements over 3G HSPA/HSDPA technology. It’s even marketed as such by T-Mobile USA, AT&T, and other networks. Still, the debate seems to rage ever on, and Apple Australia is just the latest in a seemingly endless line taking advantage of this new definition (and unwittingly confusing the public in the process).
The ACCC also sought an order to place stickers stating “”not compatible with current Australia 4G networks” upon New iPad boxes, and also asked for corrective advertisements to appear in several publications.