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iPad Overheating – Not a Myth

By | July 11, 2010 | 8 comments
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For the last couple months, quite a few folks complained about alleged overheating issues with their iPads (see for instance this discussion on Apple’s forum), but nobody at PadGadget experienced, or could reproduce the issue… until today.

Earlier this morning, while on the patio of a Starbucks in Palo Alto, Cali., I decided to use my iPad to check the local weather for the week while having my morning caffeine fix. All of a sudden, the iPad became unbearably slow, and eventually crashed and displayed the dreaded temperature warning screen. The iPad was locked, the display showed “iPad needs to cool down before you can use it”, and there was nothing I could do but wait for the screen to disappear.

According to an Apple support note, the iPad has no issue with dealing with temperatures up to 95F, and the temperature this morning was well below that, about 62F – note that I never ran into any single overheating issue while on my patio in Texas, where temperatures can easily go beyond the recommended limit.

While the reasons why the iPad crashed are still a bit obscure, I am fairly confident that the issue is linked to the fact that the iPad was receiving some direct sunlight. Not a lot of sunlight, as the iPad would have been unreadable anyway, but enough to warm it up a little bit, and trigger the temperature warning.

Ultimately, the iPad never really reached the theoretical limit of 95F, but it is clear that the temperature sensor thought it did. For this reason, and the fact that the iPad’s screen is not really readable while exposed to some sunlight, simply keep your iPad away from the sun when you use it!

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  • http://ipadcasesblog.com iPad Case

    Thanks for sharing! Probably the sunlight caused the problem. Will have to be keen now when I’m out.

    Just wondering, for how many minutes did it display the warning?

  • Dpen00

    Interesting piece. I myself live in Texas and as stated temperatures here can get pretty extreme. While I do use my iPad 3G inside doors mostly, I do plan on taking it out more. Thanks to this article ill be mindful of my outdoor usage with it.

  • David Bickford

    I saw this warning screen less than a week after buying my iPad. I live in Phoenix, which is a very sunny place, and was using the iPad in direct sun in my backyard. After a few minutes of unproductive use due to screen glare, the device shut itself down. After that experiment, I’ve stopped using the device in direct sun, which is okay because I bought it mainly for indoor use. Nevertheless, I’ve encountered the same warning a few times after leaving the iPad in a parked car in 100+ temperatures. I’m still immensely satisfied with my iPad, but these experiences make it clear that it is not an outdoor device, especially not in sunny, warm climates.

  • Schnooky

    I encountered the problem while driving my AIR CONDITIONED BMW 7 series. I had the iPad sitting vertically in front of my radio, and was using it for navigation and traffic. All of a sudden my passenger noticed the TEMP WARNING. I could only figure that even though the unit was inside my car, the sun was still hitting it and the aluminum back top of it which caused the problem. When I Asked Apple about it at the Genius Bar, she only said “you will have to keep it out of direct sun”!!

  • Indyvil

    I also experienced the same problem while attending the Canadian Grand Prix F1 race in Montreal. I was using my WiFi only iPad tethered to my iPhone to check the lap times and after a few minutes I got the warning. It was a hot day with temperatures in the low 90′s and the iPad was in direct sunlight. It was a good thing the iPhone was not exposed to sunlight, because it becomes really hot when just using it as a WiFi access point. This was the only time I saw the temperature warning on my wonderful iPad.

  • paintpolisher

    My wife just called from the beach in FL. She had her ipad in a bag pool side. She took it out to read in the sun and in 5-10 mins the warning came on. Maybe we won’t sell her Kindle.

  • Karolyn

    I notice the posts on this are a few months old so it’s maybe old news. Mine went three days ago in an air conditioned apartment with no direct sunlight and it wasn’t in use at the time. It is still frozen. I’m in Malaysia where you can’t even buy one let alone have it serviced. Can anyone help? Tried switching off but still locked.

  • http://www.ipadsandiphones.com/ George

    I think that iPad overheating is very big problem. I cant just be in the sun with my iPad for a long time.