Not sure about getting ipad 2 now

[JWKessler]

Understanding the scope of problems

Having read through the forums, I have noticed there seem to be alot of ipad 2's having backlight bleeding issues.

I am now not sure I want one because I wouldn't like to order, wait ages for it to arrive and then find it has this problem, have to return it and wait

I just walked into the Apple Store in Albany, NY and walked out with my new iPad 2 3G. (I did pay for it of course.) The wait time was all of 30 minutes.

They offered to open it up and set it up for me - at which time any problems would have been noticed I assume. I chose to do my own setup at home because I didn't want to spend a lot of time in the store.

Remember one simple rule. People who have problems are likely to report them on forums like this. People who do not have problems tend to just use their devices and not say much about it. This has the unfortunate effect of making problems seem a lot more common than they may actually be. If all you see are reports of people having some problem you soon begin to believe all such devices have problems, when in fact it may be just a tiny fraction of the devices that are effected.

Many years ago I had a job repairing DEC PDP-11 mini computers for a company that used them in an industrial machine. I saw lots of bad PDP-11s and very few good ones. But of course no one sent me good ones - they were all out in the field running machines. A customer asked me one day if these machines were reliable. My advice was not to ask the repairman that question since to the repairman, 100% of the machines were bad. I'd make the same suggestion about relying on forums for reliability advice.

 

[Tarkio]

In normal use, you can't even see the bleeding. I checked ours out and yes there was a tiny ghost in absolute darkness ... no body ever uses their computer that way ... and after a week, it all disappeared. The hint is that as the adhesive cures, the bleeding disappears.

You have a full year of protection from Apple, if you get one that is not satisfactory.

1. There is no such thing as 'normal use' - everyone uses this device differently. What may be normal use for you, will not be normal use for another person. Some people purchase this device purely for watching movies on long haul flights, or for gaming. Also the degree to which this is affecting some people is not consistant - some people have brighter light leakage than others. I have been through 3 iPads with this problem, and each one had different patterns and brightness of light leakage/screen bleed. You do not have to be in a darkened room to notice screen bleed. On 2 of the 3 iPads I owned, the light bleed was highly visible under most lighting conditions, at all brightness levels.

2. The adhesive issue is completely different to the light leak issue. With wet adhesive, it will dry within a few days, however the adhesive is mostly visible with a white background - as opposed to light leak, which is visible only on a dark background.

3. You cannot assume that Apple will replace an iPad under warranty for light leak. While many have been lucky in getting theirs replaced, just as many people are reporting that Apple will not replace an iPad for this issue. I had this problem - Apple refused to replace the product for light leak. In the end, I opted for a refund. There is no official policy on how to deal with this issue, so staff have been given no instruction. They do not yet know if this is an actual problem, or if it is just normal. Also if light leak is normal - HOW much is normal?

Yet in your case they did give you the option to replace your iPad, no? They gave you a refund and now you can buy another one. But in the majority of all cases I've read about, Apple has gladly replaced the faulty units.

And, Apple has a clear official policy to deal with the issue which is, they tell customers that there is no official policy. This let's each store make decisions based on availability of stock. If you don't like the answer, just go to another store.

 

[Dee Ashley]

We received our 2 ipad2s about 3 weeks ago. No issues what so ever. No bleeding. We have received wonderful assistance and have attended, so far, two workshops plus personal set-ups for both of us.

Yes, usually on forums like this you will get the complaints and the problems.....but there are so many people happy with their ipads on this forum.

 

[trinket]

Yet in your case they did give you the option to replace your iPad, no? They gave you a refund and now you can buy another one. But in the majority of all cases I've read about, Apple has gladly replaced the faulty units.

And, Apple has a clear official policy to deal with the issue which is, they tell customers that there is no official policy. This let's each store make decisions based on availability of stock. If you don't like the answer, just go to another store.

They didn't give me the option. My case is a VERY long story, but to cut it short, when I got the iPad and noticed the problems, there was no refurbished stock for warranty replacements, and very little floor stock. I was told by the store that I would definitely get a replacement, but I had to wait 3 weeks. When I went back in 3 weeks later, they said they wouldn't replace it. By that time, it was too late for a refund (which generally can only be given within 2 weeks of purchase). Because I was stuffed around by the staff, they offered me a refund a week later after I emailed the manager. It is only that I complained about being promised, then denied a replacement to the manager that I was given any option at all.
They had refurb stock and enough floor stock to replace the unit under warranty - the staff admitted it, but they said their policy is not to replace it because there is no official policy-- as in there is no product recall or replacement programme, and Apple has not officially stated this is a problem.
I am not the only person who has had this problem - and it isn't the policy of just one store as you suggest. I have heard from 2 other people who were refused a replacement at the store I visited, and one person from almost every other store in Australia who have been told they won't get their units replaced.

Also bear in mind this isn't the kind of screen bleed that you have to go into a dark room to see...If you have to go out of your way to find screen bleed, it isn't a real problem. If it is something that effects your enjoyment of the product - under any lighting conditions - then it is a problem. Believe it or not, there are some people who predominantly use their iPad in a darkened room - like a lecture hall, or cabin of a plane.

 

[Eleain]

No problem, please don't worry, I have used my iPad 2 for a long time, there is no any issue so far.

 

[saphire]

Thank you, i did the test in a dark room and didn't find any bleed. Great.

How do you check for backlight bleeding. I only run programs that have white backgrounds so haven't noticed anything.

Load up a dark page on your iPad, then go into a room that is dark. If you don't see any light from coming from the sided of your iPad 2, you don't have the problem.