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Growing Number of iPad Pro Owners Complain of Screen Stuttering Issues

My 12.9" iPad Pro worked great for the first two months and then I had the stuttering/unresponsive problem. Tried everything and couldn't fix it. Thankfully I bought it at Costco and was able to return it. Super disappointed. More problems seem to be coming with the price increaseso_O. Guess I'll be waiting for the next iteration. I don't have time to play the buy and return game.
 
I started noticing that on my IPP 11 when I was on a web page and I had scrolled down through it all of a sudden it would return to the top of the page. I didn't enjoy this but I carried on and then I started having trouble tapping and typing. That too was annoying but now when I use my Apple pencil the wrist detection doesn't work and the pencil seems to travel all over the page. I will probably take it to apple this weekend and see what they say.
 
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Mine has been doing this for a few months. I even hard reset it using DFU and installed everything fresh and not from backup. I would take it in but seeing as how so many folks have switched theirs out only to get another one that doesn’t work sways me away from that since it is an hour drive to Apple store each way :(. Hopefully they will get this figured out. Especiallly since this was an unresponsive $1150+tax investment.
 
My 10.5 2017 pro can be a bit unresponsive whilst on charge, I don’t normally use it whilst charging so haven’t really bothered looking into it
 
Count me too! It looks like a hardware problem, here are more threads on this:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/2016-ipad-pro-12-9-screen-intermittently-unresponsive.2118824/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/irresponsive-screen-ipad-pro-12-9-2nd-gen.2121051/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/12-9-ipad-pro-gen-3-touchscreen-problem.2154220/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ipad-pro-stuttering-issue-now-more-widespread.2165593/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/missing-keystrokes.2166241/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/known-problem.2168160/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/10-5-pro-with-unresponsive-screen.2170164/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/2nd-gen-10-5”-degraded-touch-screen-sensitivity.2172781/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ipad-pro-12-9-2018-screen-latency-issues.2173735/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/screen-stutter-ipad-pro-2018.2161383/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/screen-touch-unresponsive-on-2018-ipad-pros.2176116/

I personally experience this issue for almost a year on iPad Pro 2017. Had my iPad replaced when under warranty and the replacement developed the same problem after 3 months. Now I'm out of warranty, living (and working) with a defective iPad :( The screen randomly stops responding to touches at random times. Usually the issue appears to be more severe after using Smart Cover or charging the iPad (using Apple genuine charger). Also rotating iPad causes it. I'm using Apple Pencil and have the same problem with Apple Pencil.

The issue does look like it's connected with static electricity and/or gyroscope.
 
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Classie said:
I’m glad my iPad Pro isn’t effected. It’s such an amazing tool combined with my MacBook Pro; revising and commenting technical drawings.

But I have noticed a similar problem with my iPhone XS. Sometimes when I unlock and immediately start swiping to the next screen, the screen displays my swipe as a keyboard swipe; showing the different letters that I “touch”, as if there is a keyboard. It’s only there for a second and then I can swipe normally again. Does anyone else have this problem?
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Yes! I have the same problem. It happens wuite often actually. I was intending to call Apple this week. It happens on 12.1 and all versions including 12.2
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The_Interloper said:
I have a 2017 2nd Gen 12.9 LTE and have had this issue for a while. In fact, it’s happening right now!

It’s intermittent and happens on any screen or app, even the launcher. Really annoying. I have AppleCare and will take it in at some point, but others have suggested there’s no real fix and you’ll just get a replacement that will eventually exhibit the same issue.
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Same here. I have not been to Apple yet and iPad is 2 months old at the moment. 2nd gen with LTE and 256GB
 
Saltank said:
Have taken my iPad Pro 12.9 3rd Gen to the Apple Store because mine would stop registering scrolling, so I assumed the touchscreen is busted. They said diagnostics are fine, but can’t test the touchscreen as they only do that for iPhones.
Suggested I reset and set up as new, if issue persists I can just walk in and swap it for a new one.

If this really is just software, I hope they fix it since I absolutely don’t want to have to start setting up my apps and icons from scratch. Besides, if it’s software then it can just as well any replacement iPad Pro they give me.

Apps I’ve noticed this in: Apollo, Twitter, Apple News, Safari and keyboards in chat apps were acting weird. Have updated to iOS 12.2 recently and began to notice this in the GMail app when half the right screen was unresponsive.
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I had the exact same issue. All diagnostics were fine. I'd already done the setup as new. I finally made an appointment at Genius bar and they replaced it.

I also found that if I held it anywhere close to the edge it was way worse (no problem using it propped up on a table). Twitter (Tweetbot) was the worst. Perhaps because the main spot where I would try and scroll was the area of the screen that I had the most problems with.
 
Baymowe335 said:
I would just take it up with Apple's outstanding customer service. Seriously, it's not that big of a deal. They will take care of you if you're not a jerk and just let them know the situation. I had an iPad replaced with zero questions because it had a small screen issue. Took about 10 minutes and they were happy to do it.
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Problem: They would be replacing your defective keyboard with another keyboard that has the very same defective design.
No matter how good their ‘customer service’ is, you’ll just be going from one ticking time bomb to another.
 
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On a possibly related tangent (?) I was having fits with the ATV remote not registering my finger swipes, and I think it turned out to be my skin being overly dry. The damned remotes never worked well to begin with, but if I rub my finger on my forehead, or cheek, I pick up enough 'moisture' to make it work. I've had sporadic issues with my 8+ as well, but after using a either the cheek method, or a hand moisturizer, the problem has pretty much gone away. Even the TouchID stopped working because of dry skin. Just an idea... *shrug*
 
BigBoy2018 said:
Problem: They would be replacing your defective keyboard with another keyboard that has the very same defective design.
No matter how good their ‘customer service’ is, you’ll just be going from one ticking time bomb to another.
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Meh, give me a break. If it were that much of an issue, it would have been resolved in a bigger way. It's just not.

I'm not saying it's the greatest design ever, but to say it's impacting every MacBook or any great number is just wrong.
 
This is y Apple is failing as a cumpuny. Steve would’ve gave us a flawless iPad, everything he produced was flawless
 
I am so thankful you posted this piece. I have an 2018 iPad Pro 12.9 and have been struggling with this issue almost since the beginning. I thought the stuttering was being caused by too many notifications, or google photos backup, or background app updates, and have gradually turned off almost all background that I could. The problem is also intermittent, sometimes not occurring for days, other times consistently. Sometimes affecting one part of the screen, near the onscreen spacebar, more than higher in the onscreen typing area. I have literally tried to touch a letter 20-30 times before it is registered as having been touched. When I use a bluetooth keyboard, its never a problem, so I believe its a hardware issue within the touch screen. I look forward to a resolution: I have made an appointment at the genius bar later this week.
 
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dampfnudel said:
iOS has never been the same since 7.0 was released and I’m not just talking about the UI.
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I agree. I'm running 10.3.3 on my phones and it's fairly stable, but an Air 2 I bought used had 8.1 on it and I missed the 10.3 window and it's just awful. At least touch works normally on it. So glad I didn't pony up for a Pro, although I tried a refurb original 12.9 for a few weeks and didn't like it. It didn't seem much faster than the fourth gen and the screen was impossible to clean.
 
smartbot said:
It seems like they rushed this iPad to the market! I bought one and ended up returning it after a few weeks. I was constant worried about dropping it or bending it accidentally. I never had this fear with the previous gen. iPads. I am going to stick with my 10.5" Pro for at least another year or two.
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Looks like the new Air might be the way to go - no ProMotion and retro bezels. No 2018 Pros have appeared on the Australian refurb store yet, and barely any 12.9s so I don't know what's happening to the returns.
 
manu chao said:
I've seen about 100x more bent iPhones than iPads. And I rather have an iPad that is very slightly bend due to manufacturing issues but doesn't get worse during usage than an iPhone I have to worry about bending every time I sit down.
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I guess if you put it that way. The lesser of 2 evils.

Id like to see it as if I ever decide to spend $1750 on an iPad or tablet device id like to have neither issue.
 
I too had the issue where half of the screen would become unresponsive (2018 12.9) for 20 seconds or so. It used to happen frequently but I’ve not seen it since updating to 12.2.

The palm rejection software sounds like it could be the most likely culprit
 
Baymowe335 said:
Meh, give me a break. If it were that much of an issue, it would have been resolved in a bigger way. It's just not.

I'm not saying it's the greatest design ever, but to say it's impacting every MacBook or any great number is just wrong.
Click to expand...

The thing about this laptop keyboard issue is that its subject to time and circumstances (just the right small parcel finding its way into the wrong spot).
So the way I see it, the people like you who dont have the issue simply havent used their laptop long enough, or have been a little lucky that some tiny parcel hasnt lodged in the wrong spot ... yet.
 
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BigBoy2018 said:
The thing about this laptop keyboard issue is that its subject to time and circumstances (just the right small parcel finding its way into the wrong spot).
So the way I see it, the people like you who dont have the issue simply havent used their laptop long enough, or have been a little lucky that some tiny parcel hasnt lodged in tbe wrong spot ... yet.
Click to expand...
Or maybe it will just never be an issue and never will lodge int he wrong spot.
 
travoose said:
Had this issue after 12.2, before that never had the issue. I did a reset/restore and that fixed the issue of the screen freezing, but now certain areas of the screen no longer register my “finger flicking” in order to scroll thru apps.
Click to expand...
Same here. Rebooted after updating to 12.2, continued my web browsing, and touch control started taking a dump on me almost immediately.
 
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