Another Bendgate?
Bend it like Apple. Photo via MacRumors
When Apple released the iPhone 6, most users were happy with the thinner design and larger screen. However, a short time later, users began to complain about a curious issue. Their phones were bending. Some, they claim, bent strictly from the pressure put on them by a tight jean pocket. They said they didn’t sit on them. Apple denied the problem, but users pointed out how easy it was to bend the phone by hand. While the issue didn’t impact many people, Apple took action. The iPhone 6s came with a reinforced chassis, made of a stronger aluminum. Apple learned their lesson.
Or so we thought.
The new iPad Pro is easy to bend. But that’s not surprising. After all, it’s a large, thin slab of glass and metal. If you couldn’t bend it with your hands, it would have to be made of steel or perhaps adamantium. You can likely bend any of your electronics of that size. Please, though, for your wallet (and the danger of bursting a lithium ion battery) do not try this.
However, what is surprising is Apple’s latest admission. The 2018 iPad Pro can bend itself. No, really. Apple has confirmed that some users are receiving iPads that bent during transit on their own. They say it’s a result of the manufacturing process and that it’s completely normal.
Users with bent iPads that don’t sit flat on a table, on the other hand, have a much different story to tell.
How an iPad Bends Itself
Photo via The Verge
Have you ever spent some time in the garage after you park your car? You can hear the pings of metal as the engine cools. That’s the metal contracting. You can hear it expanding sometimes too, like when your heat comes on. Its the sound your house makes when it creaks after you’ve gone to bed. When things cool, they contract. They take up less space. When they heat up, they expand. iPads are, apparently, made hot.
Apple says the self-bending is due to the metal of the iPad and it’s glass and plastic components cooling at different rates. Some objects expand far more when exposed to heat, and the aluminum back of the iPad is a great and malleable conductor. When it cools, it contracts more than the rest of the iPad, which can cause it to bend.
All models of the new iPad Pro are susceptible to bending. However, it’s likely that the 12.9″ iPad Pro with LTE would bend the most. This is because of the volume of aluminum on the back and the additional plastic components for the LTE antennas on this model. However, The Verge and other users have reported bending on the smaller 11″ model as well.
What Apple’s Doing
What’s Apple doing? Nothing.
Apple has told users to remain calm, that it does not hurt the electronics, and the device will continue to function as expected. Try telling that to the artist who can’t use their iPad on a flat desk anymore because it wobbles, or the person with the rigid plastic case that just doesn’t quite fit right now.
Apple has told users to remain calm, which isn’t a comfort. As a result, Apple may find themselves apologizing again. Users may force Apple to replace bent iPads and make changes to their manufacturing process to prevent this from happening in the future.
However, if it’s anything like the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s, Apple will just wait a generation to fix it, and tell current users to return their products if they don’t like them.
What You can Do
The new iPad Pro: it rocks (back and forth). Photo: MacRumors reader Bwrin1
Right now, about all you can do is return your iPad. Fortunately, within the first 14 days of purchasing it, you can return it. Check your iPad when it arrives. If it’s bent, return it. It’s up to you if you want to risk trying to buy another one. However, giving the engineering complications here, it sounds like many of them, if not all, could exhibit some slight bending. If you have an iPad Pro that’s bent and it’s outside of the first two weeks of ownership, still contact Apple. This will help them realize it’s a problem, and you may luck out. They may replace the iPad for you free of charge. However, Apple has not promised to do so.
Apple thinks this is an acceptable thing. They believe that iPad Pros should arrive bent, and there’s nothing to worry about. Or, at least, that’s what they want you to think they believe. What do you say? Do you like your iPads with a bit of a curve or not?
Sources:
- Juli Clover, MacRumors
- Chris Welch, The Verge
- Mike Wuerthele, AppleInsider