iPad mini iPad Mini: Only Charging When Off

[PaulWog]

I'm trying to help my brother fix his iPad mini (the first gen). He has had this issue for the past year & essentially has hardly used his iPad mini since it hasn't been functional.

The problem is that whenever the iPad Mini is plugged in to charge (with any cable / to any outlet / to any computer), it only charges when off. It automatically turns on after a little bit, and stops charging once it does that. I can't keep it from turning on, it does that automatically.

When I plug it in to charge enough so that I can hold down the two buttons to do a factory reset, it simply turns off & doesn't go into reset mode.

It's pretty frustrating to say the least.

 

[Rodster]

Will it charge while on with the Apple AC adapter and lightning cable? Why didn't your brother get that checked out while it was still under warranty?

 

[PaulWog]

Will it charge while on with the Apple AC adapter and lightning cable? Why didn't your brother get that checked out while it was still under warranty?

I'm not sure I think it was just outside of warranty when it started happening, or he didn't pay much mind to it while it was still in warranty.

If it were me I would've gotten it in for warranty pretty fast, but it was him.

 

[cynics]

Only thing I can suggest is restoring as new and hope it's software related.

 

[PaulWog]

Only thing I can suggest is restoring as new and hope it's software related.

Did a full restore (managed to finally! it was difficult getting enough juice in it to be able to even do that -- took me a while of just plugging and unplugging and replugging over and over).

It still doesn't charge while connected to any computers (oddly), and it doesn't seem to work with some chargers still... but my full-sized iPad charger that came with my iPad 3 is working with it for charging so there we go -- fixed (sort-of). Hopefully he doesn't have to go out and get a new charger (his old charger works just fine for other things... strange).

 

[mfr1340]

USB to computer won't charge the iPad

Did a full restore (managed to finally! it was difficult getting enough juice in it to be able to even do that -- took me a while of just plugging and unplugging and replugging over and over).

It still doesn't charge while connected to any computers (oddly), and it doesn't seem to work with some chargers still... but my full-sized iPad charger that came with my iPad 3 is working with it for charging so there we go -- fixed (sort-of). Hopefully he doesn't have to go out and get a new charger (his old charger works just fine for other things... strange).

The USB doesn't put out enough power to charge while awake.
It has to be pluged into the right power cube to get the fast charge.

 

[iThinkergoiMac]

It still doesn't charge while connected to any computers (oddly), and it doesn't seem to work with some chargers still... but my full-sized iPad charger that came with my iPad 3 is working with it for charging so there we go -- fixed (sort-of). Hopefully he doesn't have to go out and get a new charger (his old charger works just fine for other things... strange).

Most computers don't have enough power to the USB ports to charge an iPad (or plenty of other tablets) while it's doing anything but sleeping, and even then only slowly. You need a fairly powerful charger to charge it, so it's no surprise that he's having difficulty charging it from a computer. Use a wall plug with at least 2 amps (at 5 volts, that's a 10 watt charger; watts = amps x volts, and all USB is 5 volts). If you can find one with more amperage, it may charge a bit faster.

 

[ugcop]

The original iPad mini shipped with the same wall charger as the iPhone. It will charge with either of the official Apple chargers.

Turning on to accept a charge is normal operation.

Like others have said trying to charge from a laptop port can be problematic.

 

[PaulWog]

Most computers don't have enough power to the USB ports to charge an iPad (or plenty of other tablets) while it's doing anything but sleeping, and even then only slowly. You need a fairly powerful charger to charge it, so it's no surprise that he's having difficulty charging it from a computer. Use a wall plug with at least 2 amps (at 5 volts, that's a 10 watt charger; watts = amps x volts, and all USB is 5 volts). If you can find one with more amperage, it may charge a bit faster.

I charge my iPad 3 on the same computer from the same port.

The original iPad mini shipped with the same wall charger as the iPhone. It will charge with either of the official Apple chargers.

Turning on to accept a charge is normal operation.

Like others have said trying to charge from a laptop port can be problematic.

I don't know. It just seems to be finnicky still.

 

[iThinkergoiMac]

I charge my iPad 3 on the same computer from the same port.

Then you either have a relatively recent Mac or are blessed with a PC that actually has a high-power USB port.

 

[PaulWog]

Then you either have a relatively recent Mac or are blessed with a PC that actually has a high-power USB port.

I built my PC.

 

[Rodster]

I built my PC.

Bingo, that's why. Desktops with recent motherboards put out enough power to charge mobile devices. My laptop will not charge my iPad's. Not enough power on the USB ports.

 

[PaulWog]

Bingo, that's why. Desktops with recent motherboards put out enough power to charge mobile devices. My laptop will not charge my iPad's. Not enough power on the USB ports.

Yes I know. I built it. I'm not sure why I'm being told this I had a problem with the iPad Mini & simply stated that it doesn't charge from any source, and included the computer as an example so that no one says "well, try the computer as a last resort". Then I got a bunch of replies saying "It won't charge in your computer!!!" even though I stated that I've also tried wall chargers.

I get a little frustrated when I clearly explain things on a forum & then things go off on a tangent... and then *I'm* now going off on an absolutely needless tangent that I could 100% leave, but what the heck, I've typed this much so far.

 

[takeshi74]

his old charger works just fine for other things... strange.

Different devices can certainly have different current requirements for charging. What are the specs of the charger that he was trying to use? It sounds like it's insufficient.

I charge my iPad 3 on the same computer from the same port.

Then his iPad itself may be the culprit. Take it in and have it tested.

I get a little frustrated when I clearly explain things on a forum & then things go off on a tangent...

It happens. You can't control how people respond. You can only control how you react.

 

[ugcop]

I get a little frustrated when I clearly explain things on a forum & then things go off on a tangent... and then *I'm* now going off on an absolutely needless tangent that I could 100% leave, but what the heck, I've typed this much so far.

You have to understand that reading comprehension is a dying skill. Public education is teaching to the lowest denominator and the result is a dumbing down of the population.

This thread really didn't go as far afield as others. There are some where I have to question if the person writing the post even completely read what the OP had written.

 

[Orkavix]

I'm trying to help my brother fix his iPad mini (the first gen). He has had this issue for the past year & essentially has hardly used his iPad mini since it hasn't been functional.

The problem is that whenever the iPad Mini is plugged in to charge (with any cable / to any outlet / to any computer), it only charges when off. It automatically turns on after a little bit, and stops charging once it does that. I can't keep it from turning on, it does that automatically.

When I plug it in to charge enough so that I can hold down the two buttons to do a factory reset, it simply turns off & doesn't go into reset mode.

It's pretty frustrating to say the least.

Did you ever figure out the solution? My iPad just started doing the exact same thing.