iPad Pro "Dust particles cause scratching on the side of iPad"

[ace98]

Hey everyone,

I wanted to open this thread after some problems with the apple support. My apple pencil has caused scratch marks on the sides of my new iPad Pro 2020 12.9 inches. This problem was discussed in some other threads but I wanted to get advice on the way apple is handling my case specifically, since I saw from a few people that they got their iPads replaced.

So after trying to figure out what is even scratching my iPad I came to the conclusion that it is the pencil. As you can see in the picture there's a black dot on my pencil which is basically the magnet sticking out. In general I think the pencils magnets are causing the scratching.
I contacted the apple support a dozen times and never did they help me always telling me the damage won't be covered by them.

Lastly my case was sent to the apple engineers for assessment and they came to the conclusion:
"Dust particles are getting trapped between iPad and pencil and causes the scratching."

Now this sounds quite stupid to me, because obviously there is metal sticking out of the pencil and also how is it my fault that literally micro particles are causing such big scratching? And why is this then not happening with everyone else's iPads. Dust particles are naturally occurring in our environments. Are they claiming my surroundings are especially dusty??? Also what was I supposed to do? Wipe my freaking pencil every time?

The fact that some people get their iPad replaced because of this same issue while others don't seems quite unfair as well. Any suggestions what I could do next? I don't want to just accept this ridiculous statement by them.

 

[akash.nu]

That will be counted as normal wear and tear.

 

[ace98]

That will be counted as normal wear and tear.

Normal wear and tear after 3 weeks of purchase?

 

[AutomaticApple]

Normal wear and tear after 3 weeks of purchase?

Yes, thats normal wear and tear.

 

[ace98]

How is it normal that literally the magnet of the apple pencil is sticking out and scratching my iPad after 3 weeks? That can't be considered normal wear and tear.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Because of your use the last 3 weeks, the coating on the pencil has come off in that one spot where it connects / and rubs against the iPad from your use. That is considered normal wear and tear. I have had my iPad Pro almost 7 months now and don't have that problem with my pencil, because my usage is different than you.

Those faint markings haven't prevented the iPad from working like it should. AC+ does not cover cosmetic wear and tear, nor does the standard 1 year warranty. Time for you to accept you inadvertently caused the damage and move forward using the iPad.

 

[ace98]

Because of your use the last 3 weeks, the coating on the pencil has come off in that one spot where it connects / and rubs against the iPad from your use. That is considered normal wear and tear. I have had my iPad Pro almost 7 months now and don't have that problem with my pencil, because my usage is different than you.

Those faint markings haven't prevented the iPad from working like it should. AC+ does not cover cosmetic wear and tear, nor does the standard 1 year warranty. Time for you to accept you inadvertently caused the damage and move forward using the iPad.

Yeah I've seen comments like yours on a lot of these kind of threads boasting about how well you treat your iPads.
Let me tell you that I'm sure I have used my stuff at least as good and careful as you did and this still happened. And don't tell me that I'm not attaching the pencil right or doing tricks with it because that is not the case! The apple pencil and iPad should not get into this kind of condition with normal use.

Also as you can read above the problem is not in the way I've used the iPad. As apple has not stated the causes of this damage to be that. They stated that dust particles are the cause of this damage. Basically saying that even with appropriate use, these dust particles may cause this scratching. And that is not a sufficient explanation to me.

Now please enlighten me on the right ways to use an iPad without having dust particles scratch it??

 

[ace98]

I can also easily find thread where this problem occurred within one week or even few days.
And I can also easily find threads in which people have said they have the same problem and their devices were replaced.

 

[akash.nu]

I can also easily find thread where this problem occurred within one week or even few days.
And I can also easily find threads in which people have said they have the same problem and their devices were replaced.

Look, this is all down to usage and handling. Some people get their devices scratched within a few days and some don’t get for years. You can’t compare your usage with others unless you do exactly the same thing the other person does.

I don’t know what you’re expecting but that kind of scratch will be considered as normal wear and tear. You can keep hammering Apple about the same thing and see if you get lucky or just move on. I don’t see anything else you could do regarding this to be honest.

 

[ouimetnick]

It’s normal. I would blame the end user like some forum members here are doing. When I had a 11” iPP (ended up returning it and going back to my old 10.5) I bought a case that covered the side of the iPad while still allowing the pencil to charge. Stupid design choice by Jony Ive/Apple, and there are numerous threads about this problem. Some folks put a skin on the pencil to prevent it from happening.

Nothing you can do after the damage is done unfortunately.

 

[ace98]

It’s normal. I would blame the end user like some forum members here are doing. When I had a 11” iPP (ended up returning it and going back to my old 10.5) I bought a case that covered the side of the iPad while still allowing the pencil to charge. Stupid design choice by Jony Ive/Apple, and there are numerous threads about this problem. Some folks put a skin on the pencil to prevent it from happening.

Nothing you can do after the damage is done unfortunately.

So to prevent scratching I should use all those things like cases and skins?
The iPad pros are intended to be used with the pencil constantly attached to the iPad. Taking it with you wherever. One shouldn‘t be scared as hell any moment that some microparticles will come between and scratch the iPad..

 

[ace98]

Look, this is all down to usage and handling. Some people get their devices scratched within a few days and some don’t get for years. You can’t compare your usage with others unless you do exactly the same thing the other person does.

I don’t know what you’re expecting but that kind of scratch will be considered as normal wear and tear. You can keep hammering Apple about the same thing and see if you get lucky or just move on. I don’t see anything else you could do regarding this to be honest.

I‘m genuinely curious on how you guys use your iPads because I don‘t know what I did wrong. So please tell me how you use your iPad so I can do that from now on too.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I‘m genuinely curious on how you guys use your iPads because I don‘t know what I did wrong. So please tell me how you use your iPad so I can do that from now on too.

I don’t think you’ve used it wrong. I’d contact Apple over it if it were me. It amazes me how Apple design such cool products, but things like this are not thought of. I would accept this sort of thing if it appeared of many months, but not after just 3 weeks. Give them a call

 

[ace98]

I don’t think you’ve used it wrong. I’d contact Apple over it if it were me. It amazes me how Apple design such cool products, but things like this are not thought of. I would accept this sort of thing if it appeared of many months, but not after just 3 weeks. Give them a call

Thank you! I agree. I love me iPad and that‘s why I am especially frustrated that this happened.
I contacted Apple several times and their last response was that dust particles are causing this. The tech support employee whom I talked to said that she was also surprised by the decision of the engineers but since she‘s just a middleman she doesn’t have the power to make any decisions.

I will ask if I can talk to those engineers personally. I just want them to explain to me how these dust particles caused this and how that‘s my fault... That was also the point of this thread: to talk about these evil dust particles

 

[Slartibart]

What IMHO is not normal is that a fine piece of metal sticks out of the pencil. Here is a picture from the tear down by iFixit of the Apple Pencil 2 - there seems to be nothing made of metal inside the pencil which could penetrate the outer plastic shell like in the pictures above.

But apparently it happened. That’s clearly not “dust” but bare metal scratching the surface of the iPad.

Did you include a description/documentation of the pencil? It’s probably a good idea to contact Apple Support again and arrange that you send everything in (assuming that a visit to an Apple store is not possible at the moment).

EDIT: this is an original Apple pencil 2?

 

[Falhófnir]

What IMHO is not normal is that a fine piece of metal sticks out of the pencil. Here is a picture from the tear down by iFixit of the Apple Pencil 2 - there seems to be nothing made of metal inside the pencil which could penetrate the outer plastic shell like in the pictures above.

But apparently it happened. That’s clearly not “dust” but bare metal scratching the surface of the iPad.

Did you include a description/documentation of the pencil? It’s probably a good idea to contact Apple Support again and arrange that you send everything in (assuming that a visit to an Apple store is not possible at the moment).

EDIT: this is an original Apple pencil 2?

+1 I think OP would have a strong case that the pencil at least is not right. As for the iPad they may or may not replace it because the pencil caused the damage, but I would at least try to get the pencil replaced to stop any further damage being caused.

 

[ace98]

What IMHO is not normal is that a fine piece of metal sticks out of the pencil. Here is a picture from the tear down by iFixit of the Apple Pencil 2 - there seems to be nothing made of metal inside the pencil which could penetrate the outer plastic shell like in the pictures above.

But apparently it happened. That’s clearly not “dust” but bare metal scratching the surface of the iPad.

Did you include a description/documentation of the pencil? It’s probably a good idea to contact Apple Support again and arrange that you send everything in (assuming that a visit to an Apple store is not possible at the moment).

EDIT: this is an original Apple pencil 2?

Yes that‘s basically also how I explained it stating that that „metal dot“ is causing the scratch. And the apple support employee agreed with me and said that she‘ll try to get a warranty exception because an apple accessory is causing the damage. I included all the pictures above + I collected lots of similar pictures that I found on many forums and send them too. But the engineers just replied with the dust thingy.
That‘s why I want to talk to them directly and the employee is also still trying to talk to them.

And yes the pencil is an original apple pencil 2. I bought them both from apple directly and they noted the serial number down.

 

[ace98]

+1 I think OP would have a strong case that the pencil at least is not right. As for the iPad they may or may not replace it because the pencil caused the damage, but I would at least try to get the pencil replaced to stop any further damage being caused.

Yeah honestly that‘s my greatest fear. I‘m okay with having some scratching eventhough it‘s annoying to have but I have read on some other threads that the situation got worse and the pencil started to leak fluids and the magnetic attachment didn‘t work anymore.
Also what has caused that dot to appear, since it wasn‘t there from the beginning? If I bought a new pencil: what if the iPad is causing those metal dots to appear?

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Thank you! I agree. I love me iPad and that‘s why I am especially frustrated that this happened.
I contacted Apple several times and their last response was that dust particles are causing this. The tech support employee whom I talked to said that she was also surprised by the decision of the engineers but since she‘s just a middleman she doesn’t have the power to make any decisions.

I will ask if I can talk to those engineers personally. I just want them to explain to me how these dust particles caused this and how that‘s my fault... That was also the point of this thread: to talk about these evil dust particles

My case comes with a little recess for the pencil if that’s of interest. ESR is the brand.

 

[ouimetnick]

So to prevent scratching I should use all those things like cases and skins?
The iPad pros are intended to be used with the pencil constantly attached to the iPad. Taking it with you wherever. One shouldn‘t be scared as hell any moment that some microparticles will come between and scratch the iPad..

Unfortunately, yes you should use a case or skin. You have to cobble up a solution for Apple's poor design choices sometimes. Magnets attract metal shavings and I can only imagine what kind of disaster an iPad with Apple Pencil would be if you worked in or near a machine shop.

 

[sracer]

Hey everyone,

I wanted to open this thread after some problems with the apple support. My apple pencil has caused scratch marks on the sides of my new iPad Pro 2020 12.9 inches. This problem was discussed in some other threads but I wanted to get advice on the way apple is handling my case specifically, since I saw from a few people that they got their iPads replaced.

So after trying to figure out what is even scratching my iPad I came to the conclusion that it is the pencil. As you can see in the picture there's a black dot on my pencil which is basically the magnet sticking out. In general I think the pencils magnets are causing the scratching.
I contacted the apple support a dozen times and never did they help me always telling me the damage won't be covered by them.

Lastly my case was sent to the apple engineers for assessment and they came to the conclusion:
"Dust particles are getting trapped between iPad and pencil and causes the scratching."

Now this sounds quite stupid to me, because obviously there is metal sticking out of the pencil and also how is it my fault that literally micro particles are causing such big scratching? And why is this then not happening with everyone else's iPads. Dust particles are naturally occurring in our environments. Are they claiming my surroundings are especially dusty??? Also what was I supposed to do? Wipe my freaking pencil every time?

The fact that some people get their iPad replaced because of this same issue while others don't seems quite unfair as well. Any suggestions what I could do next? I don't want to just accept this ridiculous statement by them.

Ouch. Sorry to hear about what you are experiencing. I'm not going pretend to know how it happened, but I'll offer some things to consider....

Regarding the black protrusion on the Pencil...it looks like it is poking OUT of the Pencil but maybe it is an external piece of debris that got lodged on the Pencil. Magnetic connections can often attract small magnetic particles.

I bought a few lightning-to-magsafe adapters for my wife's iPad and iPhone for easy charging. One day they stopped working. While troubleshooting the problem and thinking that I would have to order new ones, i noticed that quite a bit of metallic grit had attached to the connector and interfered with its functionality. I removed the grit and things started working again.

Looking at the wear marks on the edge of the iPad where the Pencil sits, it looks like the Pencil was rubbing (that black protrusion would definitely cause the wear). Have you been traveling with the iPad/Pencil? If it was in a backpack it could've moved with every step taken moving the Pencil enough to shift it without losing contact.

 

[seadragon]

A bit of duct tape will take care of it.

 

[ace98]

Ouch. Sorry to hear about what you are experiencing. I'm not going pretend to know how it happened, but I'll offer some things to consider....

Regarding the black protrusion on the Pencil...it looks like it is poking OUT of the Pencil but maybe it is an external piece of debris that got lodged on the Pencil. Magnetic connections can often attract small magnetic particles.

I bought a few lightning-to-magsafe adapters for my wife's iPad and iPhone for easy charging. One day they stopped working. While troubleshooting the problem and thinking that I would have to order new ones, i noticed that quite a bit of metallic grit had attached to the connector and interfered with its functionality. I removed the grit and things started working again.

Looking at the wear marks on the edge of the iPad where the Pencil sits, it looks like the Pencil was rubbing (that black protrusion would definitely cause the wear). Have you been traveling with the iPad/Pencil? If it was in a backpack it could've moved with every step taken moving the Pencil enough to shift it without losing contact.

Hey thanks for the reply. When I noticed the scratching my pencil had the space-gray coloring that came off the iPad like on the last picture I attached here. I was able to wipe that off quite easily but the black dot remained. I tried to get it off the pencil with my finger nails but it was still not coming off. I am pretty sure it's not external but protruding from inside like you mentioned. I have seen many threads with this problem and they all had this black dot on their apple pencil in common. One even had a really detailed photograph, shot with a DSL camera, in which you could very clearly see the metal sticking out (attached).

As for traveling. Nope. I bought this iPad for university and I mostly used it at home. Because of the pandemic almost all of my classes were online. I did bring it with me to the library and to class a few times. Also I noticed the dot on the day I noticed the scratching and after that I only attached my pencil for charging.
You're right though. It might have moved in my backpack, but in the end it all comes down to that metal dot causing this. Plus isn't the iPad expected to be carried around with you?

Now that I know about this scratching problem, in retrospect of course I wish that I had used a silicone case for the pencil or a case like it was posted here where the magnetic side of the iPad is covered too. But I used a case were the side is free (like the original apple cases) so I can leave my pencil attached all the time. Isn't that the upgrade to the old airs, anyways? If I get my iPad replaced (even in my dreams) I will take these precautions but still in my opinion all of this shouldn't happen with normal use.

 

[ace98]

A bit of duct tape will take care of it.

yesss haha will definitely look nice after spending over 1000€ for this thing

 

[seadragon]

yesss haha will definitely look nice after spending over 1000€ for this thing

Embrace the pain!