iPad 3G Video Streaming Problem

It’s just been a weekend, since the Apple iPad 3G released in the US. Like the WiFi-only iPad, this new edition also has its own set of hiccups. But this time it is with video streaming.

iPad 3G video streaming issues:-
iPad 3G ABC app – Video streaming apps like ABC are being restricted on the new device. The following message is displayed when people try connecting to ABC over the AT&T cellular network:-
“Please connect to a Wi-Fi network to use this application. Cellular networks are not supported at this time.”
Therefore, the fault is not really with the AT&T network.

iPad 3G YouTube app – Videos from YouTube are being scaled down to lower resolutions (by the YouTube app in the iPad), for both standard and HD videos, when the 3G network is used.

iPad 3G iTunes app and NETFLIX app – The iTunes videos are however said to be working fine. Even NETFLIX is mentioned to be working fine.

Both companies involved (Apple and AT&T) have not mentioned any solid reason about the issue.

The iPhone, supposedly scales down videos for optimal performance, when the signal strength is weak. Maybe the iPad too has such a feature implemented and maybe ABC’s files are not compatible with this scaling down. The ABC app might be requiring higher speeds than the cellular network can provide. Therefore, they work only on the WiFi network.