I just got an iPad Air 3 from Best Buy and see two bright white spots on the screen. I noticed when pressing another area of the screen they light up more. I can trigger the spots to get brighter basically by pressing elsewhere on the screen. I have read about problems with the pro, but not so much on the Air 3. How prevalent is this issue? Guess I'll exchange, but don't really want to get on the exchange merry go round if this is a very common issue. Might just return for a refund if that's the case. How many others with the Air 3 have this issue?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
All iPads Air 3 - 2 bright spots on screen
- Thread starter luckylisp
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
It doesnt seem to be as big of an issue as it was on the pro 10.5. It seems only a few people have had white spot issues. Though personally after having the white spot issue with a pro 10.5 I don’t completely trust the air 3. For that reason I went with the iPad 7.
Iirc, on the Pro 10.5 most with the white spot reported it after around a year or so of ownership. The Air 3 hasn't been out that long. I guess time will tell if the issue is prevalent.
Mind, I have both Pro 10.5 and Air 3. Air 3's too new but thus far, the Pro 10.5 hasn't seem to develop the white spot yet. *knock on wood*
The OP's issue seems different though since he mentioned two spots. Don't think I've heard of this one.
It’s more like a white line. I took a pic and will attach here. Looking closely though it appears to be two white dots with a line connecting between them. If I press on the screen the white dots glow more. Anyone ever seen anything like this? Pretty disappointing. Its great otherwise, but obviously I won’t be keeping it.
Attachments
Last edited:
A couple more pics. If I press on the one side of the screen you can see the one dot gets brighter. If I use two fingers and press on opposite ends of the screen the two dots glow and there’s the faint bright line connecting them. If the screen isn’t pressed on it looks more like one single white line.
Attachments
That white line is not too far away from the white spot location of the iPad Pro. It seems like it may be a similar process.
This is at least the second report here of an iPad Air 3 white spot, BTW.
This is at least the second report here of an iPad Air 3 white spot, BTW.
Yeah, take it to Apple for exchange. I bet that you'll have a better experience and a better iPad.
Yeah, take it to Apple for exchange. I bet that you'll have a better experience and a better iPad.
That's my thinking too.
Will post back how it turns out.Well, I took it in to Apple and they said it's a swollen battery. Defective and rare they claimed. Not a good thing and they said they didn't think it would happen, and didn't want to worry me, but it could burst. So basically that white line when pressing on the screen was the outline of the battery.
They said they would give me a new iPad in exchange, (the iPad was purchased at Best Buy on Christmas Eve) but I'd have to wait a week or so for it to come in. They said they no longer give brand new ipads on the spot that they have it stock, but have to order the replacement from California. They assured me it would be new, not refurbished, but would not come with the cords and other packaging. I was confused by this as in the past when I had to exchange a newly bought iPad they simply gave me a new one right on the spot. They said they no longer do it that way. Is this other people's experience as well?
I decided to take it to back to Best Buy (which they agreed would be faster) and try another one as I knew it would be new. Unfortunately, that one has a small black speck on the screen. Seems to be dust caught under the screen rather than a dead pixel. It was the last one they has in stock so I will likely go back to Apple now or try another Best Buy near me. Pretty disappointing experience all around.
They said they would give me a new iPad in exchange, (the iPad was purchased at Best Buy on Christmas Eve) but I'd have to wait a week or so for it to come in. They said they no longer give brand new ipads on the spot that they have it stock, but have to order the replacement from California. They assured me it would be new, not refurbished, but would not come with the cords and other packaging. I was confused by this as in the past when I had to exchange a newly bought iPad they simply gave me a new one right on the spot. They said they no longer do it that way. Is this other people's experience as well?
I decided to take it to back to Best Buy (which they agreed would be faster) and try another one as I knew it would be new. Unfortunately, that one has a small black speck on the screen. Seems to be dust caught under the screen rather than a dead pixel. It was the last one they has in stock so I will likely go back to Apple now or try another Best Buy near me. Pretty disappointing experience all around.
Last edited:
Apple hardware QC has really dropped in recent years. My experience:-
Ipad 4 : Loved it. IOS6 was the bomb. Great hardware too. I actually had the GPU die in it when I was playing NOVA3, but the replacement was fine as long as I kept it.
Air : Crippled with 1GB ram, but its still running strong. Screen, everything is great, dad still uses it until today.
Air2 : See above. Outstanding and one of the best things Apple ever made
Pro 9.7 : No complaints, no issues in 1.5 years
Pro 10.5 : Got the dreaded white spot. Had to pay out of pocket $499USD to replace. Apple techs lied out of their teeth saying they never seen this issue.
Pro 11 : Ok so far. Very fast. I have to restart it often because IpadOS, as great as the feature additions are, is Windows Vista level buggy.
A shame about your 10.5 experience. There's no way around it, Apple has gone downhill. I have to admit I was surprised to find out my brand new iPad problem was a bulging battery with some risk of bursting. He was pretty matter a fact about it too. Showing me how it was the outline of the battery.
I do love the Air 3, it's a great iPad, I'm just hoping I can get one without faults now. I'm almost considering keeping this one with the small black speck on it, but it doesn't seem right really. It's not a cheap device. There's little quality control now it seems.
I do love the Air 3, it's a great iPad, I'm just hoping I can get one without faults now. I'm almost considering keeping this one with the small black speck on it, but it doesn't seem right really. It's not a cheap device. There's little quality control now it seems.
Actually, I admire Apple for its generous full year replacement policy. For just about any display anomaly, to get practically a new iPad is quite generous. They're expensive to produce, even at what it costs Apple. Maybe their quality is erratic lately, but they're pretty liberal in making sure the customer is happy and satisfied despite the cost to them.
I think you are giving them too much credit. They swap out the entire device because so many components are literally glued together, making it almost impossible to repair. I find it funny that there are still people out there who believe apple is somehow altruistic
Nothing to do with altruism. It's just good business practice to keep a loyal and happy customer base. The replacements are high quality refurbished practically the same as new, not thrown together components just glued together. I find it interesting how easy it is to disparage pretty good customer service.
Last edited:
I do appreciate Apple's one year replacement policy, but I also must admit I was pretty disappointed with their customer service this time. My iPad was purchased this Christmas Eve and Apple told me it had a swollen battery that could burst. Did they give me a new iPad on the spot in exchange? No. They had them in stock, but told me they could only give me a "replacement" iPad which they had to order from Cailfornia and it would take a week to get in. I didn't find this fair at all. They sell me an iPad with a swollen battery a few days earlier and then best they can do is order me a replacement iPad (which I have to wait another week for) when they have it in stock at their store? Pretty crappy imo.
Compare this to Best Buy where I take it back within 2 weeks and they give me a new one on the spot. Of course Best Buy doesn't cover it for a year, but at least if I receive an outright defective brand new product I don't have to wait a week for replacement.
I see your point of view and agree with some of it. But I don't think they're being crappy about it. When you buy most anything that doesn't work or to your liking, it's usually a full 30 day return and refund policy to the store, and then one year repair warranty after the 30 days expire. Since these devices are difficult to repair (though possible), a replacement rather than repair for the first year (to me) is pretty good.
But you're right, the displays shouldn't be having these issues at all in the first place.
If you had bought from Apple, they should've replaced it on the spot as well (14-day return policy, extended for the holidays).
If you did buy from Apple and they refused to exchange it, ask to speak to a manager. The policy for the 14-day returns and 1-year warranty are different. You can return for any reason during the return period. Or just return for refund and buy a new one.
But that isn't what Apple gave me. They had the iPad in stock at their store but would not give me a replacement on the spot which I felt was only fair as it has just been bought a few days earlier. That's the only thing that bothered me, that I would have to wait a week for a replacement to come in when they had the iPad in stock. They told me they no longer replace with their new in store stock and have to order "replacement" iPads from California. The way he explained it was the iPad would be brand new, but would not come packaged with the cord and pamphlet. He said it was not refurbished. Were they giving me a load of crap? I don't know, what do you think? I filled out their customer service survey and requested someone higher up to call me. I'll see what happens.
[automerge]1577900081[/automerge]
I bought it from Best Buy, but they said that didn't enter into it. They simply said this was their policy now even if I had bought it at Apple. They don't give out new in store stock for replacements, only what he called "replacement boxes" without the cord etc. I always thought those packaged that way were refurbished, but he assured me it would be brand new. In fact, he said they don't give out refurbished units anymore. All of this was very different from my past years experiences with them.
My feeling is they should, within 30 days, give me a new iPad on the spot (as they always have in past years) rather than making me wait a week for a replacement. Right now I'm trying to figure out if they were even being honest with me in regards to not giving out in store stock. I frankly didn't believe them.
I did end up exchanging it at Best Buy for a new one, (the Apple guy said that would be the fastest way) but unfortunately that screen has dust trapped under the screen and all my local Best Buy's are out of stock of the one I bought now. They said they'd order me one, but first I'll see what the follow up phone call from Apple brings. If that doesn't help, I'll have to go back and talk to a manager. Thanks for your reply.
Last edited:
Hopefully you’re next replacement is good! I bought all 3 of my kids the air and all 3 are free of any cosmetic and hardware defects. Some people just have bad luck once in awhile. I’ve had to exchange iPhones before, it happens no matter you buy these days
Thank you! I'm glad the 3 you bought were all good. Hopefully 3rd times the charm in my case.
If purchased directly from Apple, that's crap and unenforceable when the purchase is still within the return period. As mentioned, there's nothing stopping you from simply returning for refund and buying a new one.
Also, there's no way the store associate can guarantee that the replacement iPad is new and not refurbished (short of giving you a brand new retail box version).
Legal - Accessory Warranty English - Apple
www.apple.com