The iPad Pro’s large, 12.9-inch display, split-screen multi-tasking support, and 10-hour battery life are tempting millions into buying Apple’s biggest tablet ever. It’s an attractive device for productivity and creativity, but it isn’t flawless. If you’ve splashed out on one, then you have every right to expect it to work perfectly. Sadly, for some people it has been behaving unprofessionally.
These are the most common iPad Pro problems being reported online, with advice on what you should do to work around them, or, where possible, fix them so they don’t happen again.
2. GLITCH: WON’T TURN ON AFTER CHARGING
Glitch: Won’t turn on after charging
If you find that your iPad Pro won’t turn on, the screen remains black, and doesn’t respond when you tap it or press buttons, then you are not alone. This seems to be a common problem that occurs after charging. A lot of people report leaving their iPad Pro charging overnight, only to find that it won’t turn on in the morning.
Workarounds:
- Hold down the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons together for at least 10 seconds, or until you see the Apple logo. Your iPad Pro should work again now, but the problem is likely to reoccur.
- Some people report the issue was resolved after turning on the “Hey Siri” feature via Settings > General > Siri.
Potential fixes:
- It may be worth backing up and restoring your iPad Pro to factory settings via iTunes. This seems to have worked for some people, but others say that it didn’t work for them. If you want to try it, then plug your iPad Pro into your computer using the cable that came with it. Launch iTunes and choose your iPad Pro, then click on Summary and Restore. Click Restore again to confirm.
- Apple says the iOS 9.2 update (or any later update) will deal with this issue. Go to Settings > General > Software Update and make sure you have the latest.
3. PROBLEM: CAN’T CONNECT TO WI-FI
Problem: Can’t connect to Wi-Fi
A few people are having trouble getting the iPad Pro to connect to a Wi-Fi network. This is a very common issue for all sorts of devices, and it’s usually fairly easy to fix. Here’s what to try:
Potential solutions:
- Turn your router and your iPad Pro off and on again. Hold down the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons together for around 10 seconds and you should see the Apple logo as the device reboots. It’s also worth restarting the router if you can.
- Try resetting all your network settings by going to Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings. You’ll have to input your passwords again.
- If your router has MAC filtering turned on, then you may need to turn it off. It is possible to add your iPad’s MAC address, but due to Apple’s MAC randomization, there’s a good chance it’s going to change and refuse to connect the next time you try. The simplest solution is just to turn MAC filtering off altogether.
- It’s possible that your DNS settings are the problem. You can change them in Settings > Wi-Fi by tapping the “i” icon next to your network and scrolling down to DNS. Tap on the numbers and change them to “8.8.8.8” or “8.8.8.4” if you want to use Google’s servers, or you could use OpenDNS, which is “208.67.222.222” or “208.67.222.220”.
- If you’re using a VPN service, make sure you have the latest updates.
- Make sure that your router firmware is fully updated. You may need to check with your ISP or the router manufacturer.
4. ISSUE: SCREEN FREEZING DURING USE
Issue: Screen freezing during use
Some people have found that the iPad Pro keeps freezing while in use. The screen will freeze and remain unresponsive for a number of seconds, and then resume as normal. However, it doesn’t seem to be related to a specific app.
Workaround:
- Hold down the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons together for at least 10 seconds, or until you see the Apple logo. Your iPad Pro should work again now, but the problem might crop up again.
Potential fixes:
- You should try restoring your iPad Pro to factory settings via iTunes. Back up any precious files first, then plug your iPad Pro into your computer using the cable that came with it. Launch iTunes and choose your iPad Pro, then click on Summary and Restore. Click Restore again to confirm. Keep in mind that restoring from a backup may reintroduce the problem, though, you could try testing for a while without restoring a backup to see if the issue is resolved.
- If the problem persists, even after a restore with a fresh set up and without restoring a backup, then it’s time to contact Apple or take your iPad Pro into the nearest Apple Store and ask about a replacement.
5. BUG: SYSTEM SOUNDS ARE VERY QUIET
Bug: System sounds are very quiet
A number of iPad Pro owners are having trouble hearing system sounds. The volume is fine for movies and music, but alerts about emails, messages, and calendar events — along with keyboard taps and other system sounds — are playing at a very low volume.
Potential solutions:
- Start by swiping up from the bottom to open the Control Center, and make sure that Mute — the bell icon with a diagonal line through it — is not turned on.
- Take a look in Settings > Sounds. If Change with Buttons is off, then the system sound level will be set separately in here. Try tweaking your settings and see if it makes a difference.
- If you set up your iPad Pro and restored a previous iOS device backup, then it’s possible that a previous setting is causing your problems. You can test this by backing up your device and then restoring it to its factory settings. Plug your iPad Pro into your computer using the cable that came with it. Launch iTunes and choose your iPad Pro, then click on Summary and Restore. Click Restore again to confirm. Test the sound before you restore any backup or install anything, and see if the volume is higher.
6. GLITCH: SCREEN FLICKERING
Glitch: Screen flickering
A few people have reported an issue with the iPad Pro where the screen flickers. The backlight seems to be coming on and flickering, most noticeably on black areas of screen. You might see it in the black bands around a letterboxed movie, for example.
Workaround:
- If you turn the screen off and on again, you should find that the deep blacks are back, but the flickering may return.
Solution:
- This one seems to be a hardware flaw. You should contact your retailer or Apple and arrange a replacement. Sufferers of this problem who exchanged the device have not found any re-occurrence on their new iPad Pro.
7. PROBLEM: BATTERY LIFE IS POOR
Problem: Battery life is poor
There is a whopping 10,307mAh battery in the iPad Pro, which should keep you going for ten hours at a time, but not everyone is finding the battery life good. If you find that the battery is draining much faster than expected, especially if it’s draining quickly while in standby, you may have a problem.
Workarounds:
With a 12.9-inch screen to power, brightness will have a big impact on the iPad Pro’s battery. Go to Settings > Display & Brightness and turn the brightness down. Set a comfortable level and then turn Auto-Brightness on to cater for different background lighting situations.
If you have a lot of apps refreshing content in the background it can really drain your battery. Go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh and toggle off any apps you don’t need updating themselves. They’ll still refresh when you open them.
You’ll find some more relevant suggestions in our iPhone battery tips roundup.
Potential solutions:
It’s always worth trying a simple restart. Hold down the Sleep/Wake button and swipe slide to power off, then turn it on again. You could also hold down the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons together, until you see the Apple logo, to force a reboot.
Go to Settings > Battery and look under Battery Usage. If there’s a problem app, make sure that it’s fully updated. If that doesn’t help, you may want to try uninstalling it and see if you can find a replacement.
A factory reset could solve your problem. Back up everything on your iPad and go to Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings to try it. Try testing the battery life before you restore a backup.
If battery life is still bad after a factory reset, then it’s time to contact Apple.
8. BUG: HARDWARE KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS NOT WORKING
Bug: Hardware keyboard shortcuts not working
Quite a few reports have popped up about the Smart Keyboard failing to work properly after waking up from sleep. Shortcuts like Command and Tab, which would usually cycle through apps, no longer work. On further examination it seems this problem can occur on any hardware keyboard connected to the iPad Pro.
Workarounds:
If you detach and then reattach the keyboard, it may start working again, but the problem can come back.
Restarting the iPad Pro will also bring back functionality temporarily.
Potential solutions:
This definitely seems to be a software flaw, so check Settings > General > Software Update and make sure you have the latest version of iOS.
Apple also released an update for the Smart Keyboard. It should pop up as a prompt, but if you haven’t seen it, try disconnecting your Smart Keyboard, and then connect it again. You should see an iOS pop up asking you if you want to update the Smart Keyboard.
9. ISSUE: CAN’T ACTIVATE AFTER IOS 9.3 UPDATE
Issue: Can’t activate after iOS 9.3 update
A few people have had trouble getting the iPad Pro to activate after updating to iOS 9.3. You may get a message about the activation server being unavailable. You can download the fix from Apple, so check if you have software updates available in Settings > General > Software Update.
Potential solutions:
Make sure that you have the latest version of iTunes installed. Try plugging your device into your computer and start up iTunes. Choose your device, and click on Summary > Update.
If that didn’t work, it’s time to try a restore. Press and hold the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons on your iPad Pro until iTunes offers you the option to Restore your device.
When it’s finished, you can restore a backup, and you should be good to go with iOS 9.3 running.
That’s all of the iPad Pro problems we have for now, but please do check back in future because we’ll update this piece with new issues, workarounds, and fixes as we discover them. If you have a different iPad Pro problem, or you know of a good fix, please share it in the comments below.
