Apple must make a big, juicy target to lawyers trying to cobble together class-action lawsuits. They make promises in plain English that, as is the case with almost all advertising, don’t exactly pan out, but usually allowances can be made. Does Old Spice make you “smell like a man”? If you think a man smells otherwise, can you sue Old Spice for false advertising?
Similarly, when Apple says reading on the iPad is “just like reading a book,” are you going to sue Apple because unlike books, the iPad can overheat and shut itself down? It’s a free country, I guess, but someone’s going to have to pay those legal fees when the case gets thrown out amid uncontrollable laughter.
From the suit (which you can read in its entirety here):
20. Indeed, according to the www.apple.com website, “[r]eading on iPad is just like reading a book.” However, contrary to this promise, using the iPad is not “just like reading a book” at all since books do not close when the reader is enjoying them in the sunlight or in other normal environmental environments. This promise, like other portions of APPLE’s marketing material for the iPad, is false.
And let’s just get the full quote from Apple’s website, just for the record:
Reading on iPad is just like reading a book. You hold your iPad like a book. You flip the pages like a book. And you do it all with your hands — just like a book.
Combine this specific, qualified statement with the fact that operating temperatures are mentioned in the manual, and I think a reasonable judge will conclude that Apple broke no promises and adequately warned the user. The product is functioning as advertised and within the limits disclosed by Apple. I don’t like it any more than they do that the thing doesn’t function above 95°F, but hey, I don’t sue the grocery store when my ice cream melts.
So far there are three plaintiffs, making up .000001% of iPad owners. I often find myself in the awkward position of defending Apple, and other large companies I frequently criticize, from silly lawsuits. It’s irritating. Get a grip, whiners! These lawsuits are embarrassing to the species!
[via Ars Technica]