I’m actually surprised apple still gives you replacement devices. You could ask for a full refund at this point.
Heard another story in this forum that someone got his online store access removed by apple cause tons of replacement.
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.
iPad Pro QC issues aplenty with 12.9 inch M1 iPad Pro
- Thread starter syy89
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Heard another story in this forum that someone got his online store access removed by apple cause tons of replacement.
I’ve actually placed separate orders each time with each previous unit returned for a full refund so that might be the difference lol.
As comical as it’s been, I should probably wait a while now for them to hopefully sort out their QC issues before trying again.
Maybe you can see about getting a job with the quality control division at Apple. Sorry that you’re having so much difficulty.
Actually this is quite smart, and can reduce the chance you are getting flagged by Apple. I say this with authority lol (recent fresh personal experience, tho not extreme).
Yup, if I ever feel like I could use a career change, I’ll keep that in mind. Maybe then it’ll help ensure everyone gets products in pristine condition out of the box the first time. I’ve seen far too many other threads and talk here on MR about QC issues pertaining to Apple products.
Lol, if Apple actually flags me for it instead of actually doing something to address their poor QC at the moment and making sure I get a pristine iPad, they’re one shady company, and you can bet they’ll hear it from me and I’ll gladly take my business somewhere else. And by pristine, I mean free of defects like dead pixels, dust under the screen, and permanent stains out of the box, which I’m sure most agree isn’t acceptable at all. As a loyal Apple customer for a long time, they’ve met my expectations (which haven’t changed at all) when it comes to product quality every time prior to last year, so I don’t see why they suddenly can’t do it now. 🤷♂️
Apple is way too big to fail right now, being $3trillion. So, certainly they don’t miss even 2 million customers leaving them, and those apple die hard defenders will keep the company afloat no problem.
And a $3 trillion dollar company should be able to do the right thing by investing more in their QC and making sure their customers receive pristine products.
Also, being a Apple loyalist doesn’t mean not having certain standards when it comes to product quality. I’m sure many of those die hard defenders you refer to would also do what I’m doing right now if they don’t receive a product in pristine condition the first time. And I consider myself to be one to some degree, which you probably realized by now. If Apple were to do the wrong thing and ultimately ban them for too many returns/exchanges of defective Apple products, I can guarantee they’ll be furious and very possibly bail for another brand, instead of say, continue to purchase them from third party retailers. I know I would.
It’s very clear that apple no longe care about product quality as much. Instead of trying to save them, let them rot and collapse, learn their own mistakes the hard way, or just die from it. Apple deserves no sympathy or any level of compensation for any mistake they make.
If it's just the pink stain and the iPad is Silver not Space Gray have you tried a little Acetone on a q-tip (wood or cardboard stick only)? You can find small bottles of acetone in the nail polish aisle at Walmart or Target. Just keep it away from the antenna lines or the camera.
The colorant to make anodized aluminum a color is applied into the little wells made by the initial silver anodization.
Last edited:
That’s interesting to know. Unfortunately, I already returned that iPad so I can’t try it anymore. I’ll keep that in mind for next time, though I really don’t think it’s something I should have to worry about on a brand new $1700 device right out of the box. But thanks for sharing. 👍
Care to share which ones you think are nitpicks? Out of all these units, three had dead pixels, another one had a piece of dust stuck under the screen which looked like a dead pixel with the screen on (which I didn’t share earlier since I couldn’t get a good photo of it). Definitely unacceptable for a device that’s largely about the screen, and you’ll definitely get the same consensus if you do a poll on this forum. As for the loose power button, it’s impossible not to notice as you can’t use an iPad without turning it on first lol. There have also been many inquiries about it here on MR and elsewhere, and ultimately replacements as a result. So hardly alone in that department. As for the dent, I’ll admit it may not bother everyone, though I could feel it depending on how I hold it which is still very disappointing. And finally for the stain, it was bright pink about 1cm in diameter right on the silver back. Pretty big colour difference and therefore impossible not to notice either unless you’re blind and it could very well affect resale/trade-in value down the road.
If your standards aren’t as high as some others, it’s fine, but I can tell you mine aren’t unreasonable at all, especially since Apple has consistently met them in the past.
Last edited:
To me, nitpicking would be going over every part of the iPad with a magnifying glass to try and uncover defects which you otherwise can’t see. That doesn’t seem to be what the OP is doing here. I’d really like to know what your standards are when it comes to stuff like this.
The first picture is literally a zoomed in photo of a very small nick on what’s known to be a soft metal chassis. Others are of singular dead pixels on a 12.9 Retina display of 5.6 million pixels. You have to be looking for dead pixels to find something like that.
I can understand a loose button or stains, but from the get go OP is nitpicking.
This forum has issues with things like this, obsessing over battery health and trying to find defects.
This isn’t about quality control lacking, it’s realistic tolerances in manufacturing that 99.9% of owners would find acceptable without slowing down the process or driving up costs even further.
A zoomed in photo doesn’t mean something not visible under normal circumstances. It actually looked like some leftover substance from manufacturing at first which I tried to clean off before realizing it was dent. Maybe it wouldn’t bother you, which is fine, but there’s nothing wrong with expecting a dent-free thousand plus $$$ device out of the box.
As for dead pixels, I had a 11” model from last year with a dead pixel that I didn’t do an initial screen check on that I noticed a day later without even trying to look for it. So if I don’t look for dead pixels from the get go, I’ll very likely find them shortly after, and so would many others I can assure you. That’s why I do screen checks right out of the box now. Dead pixels are a defect on a device that’s so largely about the screen, plain and simple. Once you see them, you can’t unsee them. I can only presume either your eyesight isn’t the best or have been so lucky that you’ve never had a device with one before.
There’s nothing wrong with expecting quality from Apple at the prices they’re charging and asking whether something is right or if you sense a potential problem. That’s what this forum is for. If you don’t have the same expectations as others, that’s fine, but don’t go around calling people who notice a clear defect with a brand new expensive gadget they just purchased nitpicking. You’re not going to sway them the other way.
My experience has been good with 2 Air 2's, 10.5 iPP, 2018 12.9 iPP and now the 2021 12.9 iPP. No issues with any of them.
When did apple really care at ALL??
Even when Steve Jobs was CEO, the iPods that he sold were prone to scratches and hairline wear and tear on the back of the iPods.
BUT in saying that my 16" MBP is in excellent condition. No dents, no cracks, no paints and definitely no dead pixels and same with my iPad mini 5.