By Neil Hughes

Published: 03:05 PM EST

A new lawsuit takes aim at Apple over the temperature of the iPad when left in direct sunlight, alleging that the company's multi-touch tablet overheats and turns off too quickly when in the heat.

Filed in a U.S. District Court in the North District of California last week, the lawsuit accuses Apple of falsely advertising the iPad as a reading device when, the defendants claim, it cannot be used outdoors due to overheating.

"Using the iPad is not 'just like a reading book' at all since books do not close when the reader is enjoying them in the sunlight or in other normal environmental environments," the complaint reads. It alleges that Apple's iPad advertising, which claims that reading on the iPad is "just like reading a book," is false.

The suit alleges that complaints about overheating of the iPad "have become prevalent across the Internet and within technology circles." Despite these complaints, it says, Apple has taken no action to warn consumers about use of the iPad outdoors.

"The iPad overheats so quickly under common weather conditions that it does not function for prolonged use either indoors, or in many other warm conditions, for a variety of common uses such as, but not necessarily limited to, an e-reader, e-mail tool, Web browser and/or game/entertainment unit," it states.

The plaintiffs, Jacob Baltazar, Claudia Keller and John R. Browning, have filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple. They have asserted that all consumers in the U.S. who have purchased an iPad are parties in the suit.



Apple is accused of numerous misdeeds, including fraud, negligent misrepresentation, deceptive advertising practices, intentional misrepresentation, breach of warranty, and unfair business practices under the Unfair Competition Act.

The case asks that a jury award the plaintiffs damages, and also assign punitive damages to Apple to "punish" the company and "deter others from engaging from similar misconduct in the future." It was filed on July 23 by attorney Scott Edward Cole with Scott Cole & Associates.