iPad Pro Bright spot on iPad Pro 10.5 screen

[0924487]

I thought when you get a replacement, the replacement is brand new. I'm in Canada and I asked before, they said it's brand new, not a refurb.

 

[Jensend]

1 year update...

I sent my iPad Pro 10.5 in to Apple for a battery replacement. I did it through Best Buy's Geek Squad and the person I dealt with didn't say anything about the bright spots or perhaps just didn't notice them. It got accepted and sent off to Apple and I didn't hear anything from them about it either. To my surprise, Apple's battery replacement program is actually a replacement of the entire device. So, I now have a brand new iPad Pro 10.5 in my possession.

I am debating between continuing on with this model or selling it and getting a 2018+ Pro.

Looking up the IMEI, it shows an estimated purchase date of Sep, 2017. I'm not sure how accurate that is, but I will assume it's accurate and bet that this iPad was manufactured around that time frame which means that this iPad has the same design defect that caused the bright spots on my previous iPad which I purchased in 2017 as well.

I'd like to ask if anyone can comment on how widespread they believe the bright spot issue to really be? We know that Apple will never admit to it being a common problem, so all we have is our own shared anectodal experiences. Should I risk continuing on with this model hoping I'm lucky this time with never getting the issue? I don't understand how some of these iPad could develop the issue while others don't. You'd think that a design flaw is going to reveal itself through the hardware every single time so long as each unit was assembled the same way.

I still love the iPad Pro 10.5 but I'm assuming the bright spots will eventually be an issue with this new replacement. For that reason alone I am very much leaning towards selling it and getting a 2018+.

My 10.5” Pro still feels fast. Much, much better that my iPad 3 was at the same age 😅. Mine just has a tiny moderately bright spot near the bottom left corner that I usually forget is there.

I’m waiting for mini-LED or OLED in the 11” size before I upgrade.

 

[1BadManVan]

I thought when you get a replacement, the replacement is brand new. I'm in Canada and I asked before, they said it's brand new, not a refurb.

They call them “as new” since they get a new screen, new shell, new battery and whatever else needed to be replaced

 

[Revtach]

I dug a little deeper and ran the serial number on a website which gives you production date information:

Klantenservice: Serienummers

Here are my results:

Serial number: XXXXXXXXXXXX
Nice Name: iPad Pro (10.5-inch) Wi-Fi Cellular
Machine Model: iPad7,4
Family name: A1709
Group1: iPadPro
Group2: WiFi-Cellular
Generation:
EMC number: Please tell us the EMC number of this product if you know it.
CPU speed: 2.3GHz
Screen size: 10.5 inch
Screen resolution: 2224x1668 pixels
Colour: Silver
Production year : 2023
Production week : 6 (February)
Model introduced: 2017
Capacity: 64GB
Memory - flavour: Soldered
Memory - maximum total: 4GB
Factory: F6 (China, Zhengzou - Foxconn)

So this replacement iPad Pro 10.5 that Apple sent me was manufactured in Feb, 2023. I assume that what is actually meant by that is that it was refurbished. Still, it is pretty astonishing that these are actively being produced by Foxconn given that the original release date was over 5 years ago now.

And I think it goes without saying that if by 2023 the design hasn't been retooled to address the bright spot issue, then it simply never will be. I am highly tempted to keep this iPad now just to see what happens.

 

[1BadManVan]

I dug a little deeper and ran the serial number on a website which gives you production date information:

Klantenservice: Serienummers

Here are my results:

Serial number: XXXXXXXXXXXX
Nice Name: iPad Pro (10.5-inch) Wi-Fi Cellular
Machine Model: iPad7,4
Family name: A1709
Group1: iPadPro
Group2: WiFi-Cellular
Generation:
EMC number: Please tell us the EMC number of this product if you know it.
CPU speed: 2.3GHz
Screen size: 10.5 inch
Screen resolution: 2224x1668 pixels
Colour: Silver
Production year : 2023
Production week : 6 (February)
Model introduced: 2017
Capacity: 64GB
Memory - flavour: Soldered
Memory - maximum total: 4GB
Factory: F6 (China, Zhengzou - Foxconn)

So this replacement iPad Pro 10.5 that Apple sent me was manufactured in Feb, 2023. I assume that what is actually meant by that is that it was refurbished. Still, it is pretty astonishing that these are actively being produced by Foxconn given that the original release date was over 5 years ago now.

And I think it goes without saying that if by 2023 the design hasn't been retooled to address the bright spot issue, then it simply never will be. I am highly tempted to keep this iPad now just to see what happens.

if you're still happy with the performance then i guess thats really up to you

 

[Digitalguy]

I had the battery on my 2015 iPad pro replaced in January 2021. In over 5 years it never had any screen issue. The replacement unit developed a faint bright spot in Spring 2022... So I trust replacement units even less than original devices. Given that my 10.5 had developed a faint spot which then became much brighter and widespread, I sold the replacement unit before the issue becaome really visible to avoid taking the risk (I wanted to keep as a second 12.9 to my 2018 12.9, but I was kind of forced to sell it by this situaiton and bought a used M1 12.9 as as second large pro).

 

[dbirnbaum7]

My 2017 Pro 10.5” developed two bright spots in the lower left corner after the warranty expired. One is very faint and the other is brighter and slightly bigger. While normally things as this bug me, I don’t even notice them most of the time and it functions as smooth as ever. And nothing has changed at all with any new bright spots, I see no reason to upgrade at this point. And I am a heavy user.

 

[Revtach]

I had the battery on my 2015 iPad pro replaced in January 2021. In over 5 years it never had any screen issue. The replacement unit developed a faint bright spot in Spring 2022... So I trust replacement units even less than original devices. Given that my 10.5 had developed a faint spot which then became much brighter and widespread, I sold the replacement unit before the issue becaome really visible to avoid taking the risk (I wanted to keep as a second 12.9 to my 2018 12.9, but I was kind of forced to sell it by this situaiton and bought a used M1 12.9 as as second large pro).

Did you mean your 2017 iPad Pro?

Reading through this thread it looks like the issue is just as common on replacement devices as it is with original devices. If you look up used 10.5 Pro's on ebay most of them look like they have the bright spot to some degree.

I don't get the impression that Apple ever addressed this in any way.

 

[CharlesShaw]

I’m envious of the OP. If my battery weren’t still at 87%, I would indeed try to get mine replaced, since I also have screen issues. But I just keep it in dark mode. It’s still does what I need and I’m glad I ”rescued” it from Apple’s trade-in partners when they offered me $0 value and offered to recycle it. I returned the 11” M2, got the 10.5” back, and bought a new Smart Keyboard for it on eBay for a very low price. And I only paid $425 for the open box 10.5” so it’s continues to be a good value.

I learned from this post how to find the battery status: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ery-life-on-m1-ipad-pro.2380499/post-31959826

 

[Digitalguy]

Did you mean your 2017 iPad Pro?

Reading through this thread it looks like the issue is just as common on replacement devices as it is with original devices. If you look up used 10.5 Pro's on ebay most of them look like they have the bright spot to some degree.

I don't get the impression that Apple ever addressed this in any way.

No, I did mean the 1st gen 2015 iPad pro. Those devices were generally not afftected by the bright spot, which only appareaded years later as a general issue, but the replacement unit was, which means that replacement units even for non 2nd gen pro devices can be problematic, at least for the first gen pros. Personally after that excperience I am not going to replace the battery on any device, except the 10.5, which already has a bright spot....

 

[Yebubbleman]

I have an approx 1in spot on my iPad Pro screen which is brighter than the rest of the screen - it's unevenly lit. The spot is about 2in above the home button, and although it has soft edges, I'm anal about my gadgets, and the difference in brightness could be described as 'minor', it's clearly there. It looks a bit like a pressure spot or similar. I always keep it in a case with a screen protector and the Smart Keyboard, so it's well looked-after.

I can't find much about similar issues online - anyone heard anything similar? I have a Genius Bar appointment later in the week to see what Apple think (spending £800 on an iPad means I pretty much expect it to still be perfect within the warranty period).

Extremely common on 10.5-inch iPad Pro models as well as third generation iPad Air models (they pretty much used the same display). I think there's a really long thread about it buried somewhere in these forums from closer to those devices' launch eras. Less common on 12.9-inch iPad Pros (both with and without home buttons), but still possible. I had this issue on a few iPad Air 2 models as well.

 

[Yebubbleman]

In fact, this was so common, that I avoided that model despite wanting one for a spell.

 

[d5aqoëp]

I would advise people to refrain from spending money to replace batteries on 10.5” Pro. Just sell it on Craigslist or whatever and get a used 11” 2018/2021 iPad Pro and get on with lives.

(Speaking from personal experience)

 

[VaruLV]

I loved design of my Silver 10.5, however I sold it once I got it replaced under warranty due to white spot issue.
Not taking chances.

 

[floral]

My 10.5” Pro still feels fast. Much, much better that my iPad 3 was at the same age 😅. Mine just has a tiny moderately bright spot near the bottom left corner that I usually forget is there.

I’m waiting for mini-LED or OLED in the 11” size before I upgrade.

Basically everyone bought an iPad 3, huh. Even my grandma bought one, and it actually takes 15 seconds just to load a webpage..

 

[CharlesShaw]

I would advise people to refrain from spending money to replace batteries on 10.5” Pro. Just sell it on Craigslist or whatever and get a used 11” 2018/2021 iPad Pro and get on with lives.

(Speaking from personal experience)

Haha, yes, sell your old device to someone and replace it with someone else’s old device and cross your fingers.

 

[Revtach]

Haha, yes, sell your old device to someone and replace it with someone else’s old device and cross your fingers.

It's not a bad idea if a certain generation is known for having a defect. Go on ebay and look at all the 2017 iPad Pro's both the 10.5 and 12.9. Most that I see either have a bright spot or screen bleed issue. I feel pretty confident in saying that this generation had a design defect. It may have had something to do with being the first iteration of ProMotion, where the design wasn't completely worked out to ensure long term durability.

As far as I know these problems aren't common on the 2018+ models.

 

[*~Kim~*]

It's not a bad idea if a certain generation is known for having a defect. Go on ebay and look at all the 2017 iPad Pro's both the 10.5 and 12.9. Most that I see either have a bright spot or screen bleed issue. I feel pretty confident in saying that this generation had a design defect. It may have had something to do with being the first iteration of ProMotion, where the design wasn't completely worked out to ensure long term durability.

As far as I know these problems aren't common on the 2018+ models.

Air 3 users also had this defect, so it seemed that Apple never got anything larger than 10.2 in the traditional form factor quite right. I assumed this was why the base model went directly from 10.2 to an Air 4 lite, rather than going via the 10.5 size.