Funny how things sometimes change.

Im my last two posts I reported on a screen shadow effect I was getting from my iPad Air 5. Generation.

I first got an iPad with a very bad shadow which I showed in my first post of this series.

I got a brand new iPad a couple days later but still had issues with it, which I said I wouldn’t investigate further.

The thoughts about it didn’t leave me alone though, so while I was near a Apple store a couple of days ago, I brought my iPad with me and showed it to the Genius bar. Here’s what they said about the issue:

They ran multiple tests and diagnostic tools on my iPad and checked my issue with their database of known issues. The employee then told me that while he sees what I mean, that this thing isn’t technically an issue and he has no references to this problem.

He even went around the store and checked multiple iPads for the same problem and consulted with his supervisor on this issue. He came back and told me that he will replace my iPad again, for free. Apple’s service is indeed simply the best.

Sadly, they didn’t have my color at the store and because they told me they could only replace my iPad with one with the same color, I had to come back another day to pick it up. Less than 48 hours later I had my mail that the new device was ready for pick up and that’s what I did today.

Here’s the funny story. It has the same issue again – but different. This time the shadow was even smaller, in fact so small that I can barely photograph it. But I tried and here’s how it looks like:

The shadow is even smaller than the second iPad Air 5. Generation I got and is not visible if you don’t go closer than 10cm with your face to the display which in real life scenarios – you won’t.

Since this seem to be the problem with (all?) of the iPads, I decided just to roll with it. After all, I checked multiple iPad Airs and iPad Pros Apple had displayed in their store. They all had it. Some worse, some less noticeable but they all had it. I think if you want an iPad of the current Apple Lineup you have to live with it. Maybe upgrade in one or two years when new models come out if you currently have an older device and think about upgrading. I believe most people won’t even notice that this manufacturing defect is out there, but for those who do, like me, I feel you.

I will continue using my iPad Air and don’t let this minor issue consume any more of my time. After all, I’m currently trying out to switch my entire digital life from a 13″ Macbook Pro M1 to my iPad. I might be getting the iPad Pro for the better display or a brand new model if they release one this or next year. It is rumored that they will have an OLED display, so this issue might never appear again after they changed the display module on their devices.

I wish you all a lot of fun with your Apple devices and don’t let them turn your head on those little imperfections. There’s so much more in life.