What? What did you do? My iPad is getting old and now you’ve got me freaking out a little.
It happened kind of slowly and I didn’t realize it for a while. The main symptom is the screen beginning to separate at the edges but that was obscured by the case. Also when I tapped on the screen it would ghost other areas which I think is because of the separation. Then about a week ago it started shutting down randomly and other signs of battery failure like not holding a charge very long. So I bought a new iPad but kept using the old one also. It wasn’t til today when I googled what to do about it that I read it’s a fire/explosion hazard. Yikes, I go to sleep with that thing 10” from my eyes.
I am assuming it’s a swelling battery because of the screen separation but I haven’t taken it apart to confirm. I wiped it clean and shut it down. The iPad is several years old and at the end of its lifetime anyway but I had gotten a new battery put in only January. So either it was a bad new battery or something in the iPad made the new battery go bad real fast. I’m going to take it back to the place that put in the new battery this week, have them take it out and dispose of it, and then I’ll take the iPad to the shooting range.
To avoid this, use only batteries from the device’s manufacturer, not a foreign-made knock off. Don’t allow the devices to overheat, like leaving them in a hot car. Don’t cover them while charging so they don’t overheat. (I’d have mine plugged in at night and it would end up under a pillow! Bad!). Use the charge block that comes with the device. Protect the device from falls and damage. Use power saving practices to extend the battery life. And when it shows signs of end of life replace it. I did that though and apparently that didn’t help. I’m just going to replace the whole damn device from now on like I always ever did before.
If yours is old you might just replace the whole iPad. The average lifespan is 4 to 6 years. Either the physical components will begin to fail or Apple will stop supporting it with updates anyway. Just do what I did. I said to hubby, “My birthday is this month so I’m buying myself a new iPad and a nice expensive made in USA real leather case for it, all total about $1000, mkay?” And of course it’s okay because he just spent several thousand dollars on parts for the 1980 Corvette he’s restoring. And didn’t yours just drop several
tens of thousands on a hangar?