Apple says new iPad operates 'well within our thermal specifications'

Posted:
in iPad edited January 2014


Apple on Tuesday officially commented on concerns that the new iPad runs at a temperature warmer than its predecessor, and stated that the new device falls "well within" its specifications.



"The new iPad delivers a stunning Retina display, A5X chip, support for 4G LTE plus 10 hours of battery life, all while operating well within our thermal specifications, Apple spokeswoman Trudy Miller said in a statement to The Loop. "If customers have any concerns, they should contact AppleCare."



The quick response came only hours after an infrared test of the new iPad showed it running 10 degrees hotter than the previous-generation iPad 2. The new iPad was measured at 92.5 degrees Fahrenheit, while the iPad 2 measured 83 degrees Fahrenheit.



The temperatures of the new iPad, however, remain well within Apple's specified operating temperature of 32 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, or 0 to 35 degreed Celsius.



Higher temperatures associated with the new iPad are likely because of the quad-core graphics processing found on the new A5X chip. Apple also added a new metal heat spreader to the processor that powers the third-generation tablet.



Users who have discussed the temperature of the new iPad on Apple's official support forums have generally said that the device operates warmer than the iPad 2, but there have been very few claims of iPads overheating or becoming too hot to touch. And many others have said they have not noticed any temperature difference with the new iPad.



The heat is said to emanate from the bottom left corner of the device, and some users have said they managed to reduce the temperature of the new iPad by reducing the brightness of the new high-resolution Retina display.



[ View article on AppleInsider ]

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 53
    isheldonisheldon Posts: 570member
    That's cutting it close - sounds like no back cover for me this time. A sleeve will suffice.
  • Reply 2 of 53
    sol77sol77 Posts: 203member
    "The temperatures of the new iPad, however, remain well within Apple's specified operating temperature of 32 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, or 0 to 35 degrees Celsius."





    Given my experience with Apple products, I'm inclined to take their word for it, but if you told me to stand on a platform sixty-three feet in diameter and I stood two and a half feet away from the edge, I'd call that "toeing the line"...not "well within" the specified range. Like I said, however, given my experience, I don't expect to hear about any serious issues.
  • Reply 3 of 53
    All the accessory makers will soon start selling "the new iPad cooler."



    Want to avoid third degree burns? Use "the new iPad cooler." The silent fan keeps it cool.
  • Reply 4 of 53
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:

    The temperatures of the new iPad, however, remain well within Apple's specified operating temperature of 32 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, or 0 to 35 degreed Celsius.



    I could have sworn that meant 'the ambient temperature in which you use said product', not anything about the product itself.



    The MacBook Pro family says the exact same thing, but we all know they work perfectly fine when their internal temperature reports WAY WAY WAY above that.



    Oh, no! My Mac Pro's northbridge idles at 149ºF! It must be ready to BLOW!



    Oh, wait, it's supposed to do that.
  • Reply 5 of 53
    macinthe408macinthe408 Posts: 1,050member
    Three people have complained about being hot. My original iPad gets warm, especially after extended hours watching hot porn.
  • Reply 6 of 53
    jeffdmjeffdm Posts: 12,951member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    I could have sworn that meant 'the ambient temperature in which you use said product', not anything about the product itself.



    The MacBook Pro family says the exact same thing, but we all know they work perfectly fine when their internal temperature reports WAY WAY WAY above that.



    Oh, no! My Mac Pro's northbridge idles at 149ºF! It must be ready to BLOW!



    Oh, wait, it's supposed to do that.



    However, the FLIR photo measures the external temperatures of the device. It can't directly measure the chip temperatures with other devices in the way.



    I'm not worried for anyone just yet. It is also known that the backlight consumes about 2.5 more power than the previous model (was 2.something watts, now 7 watts), so as the article mentions, owners can turn down the brightness. The explanation that the GPU is more powerful doesn't explain why the whole device is warmer (not just near the GPU), but the backlight does, so it's probably a combination of the two.



    I'm pretty sure a laptop computer's surfaces get hotter than that pretty easily, which is why manuals tell users not to actually use them on their laps, despite the popular name of the device.
  • Reply 7 of 53
    Quote:

    The heat is said to emanate from the bottom left corner of the device, and some users have said they managed to reduce the temperature of the new iPad by reducing the brightness of the new high-resolution Retina display.



    All I have is the original iPad, and in my experience, the screen is always too bright and have to use it at the minimum value, unless, of course, it's used under the sun. And they say the new iPad is even brighter... guess I won't have temperature issues.
  • Reply 8 of 53
    nagrommenagromme Posts: 2,834member
    There’s no free lunch—with power comes heat—but if you want a less powerful device that remains cool (which I do like!) then the iPad 2 is still for sale. I’d hate to give up the retina display over it, but it’s an option.



    I keep my iPad 2 at middle brightness, but I drop it to minimum in dark rooms and raise it to max in sunlight. (Never noticed it affecting heat.)



    It’s actually kind of odd that I never noticed 3D games making my iPad get hot, since I DO notice that on all my past iPhones. I know data transmission is a factor, but I get heat from 3D games regardless of any data being sent. So I tend to think of the new iPad’s heat as normal, and the iPad 2’s lack of heat as a pleasant surprise!
  • Reply 9 of 53
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    I could have sworn that meant 'the ambient temperature in which you use said product', not anything about the product itself.



    The MacBook Pro family says the exact same thing, but we all know they work perfectly fine when their internal temperature reports WAY WAY WAY above that..



    That's correct. Apple's operating parameters are for external temperature. They say that you can safely operate the device when the external temperature is up to 95 degrees. The internal temperatures (and even the case temperature) could be well over that.



    So far, no reports of thermal shutdowns, so Apple is probably correct - no evidence of a design defect. And note that the 'problem' only occurs when running the GPUs flat out. Unless you're continuously playing action games, it's not likely to be a problem.
  • Reply 10 of 53
    sol77sol77 Posts: 203member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post


    That's correct. Apple's operating parameters are for external temperature. They say that you can safely operate the device when the external temperature is up to 95 degrees. The internal temperatures (and even the case temperature) could be well over that.






    Ah...that makes more sense. It's strange, though, that Apple Insider would choose to name that specification in a sentence concerning interior heat. Thanks for clearing it up for me.
  • Reply 11 of 53
    Considering that the normal human body temperature is 97ᵒF - 99ᵒF, I think we're ok.
  • Reply 12 of 53
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    I heard that Apple is releasing a special edition iPad for anybody who whines about the new one being slightly warm.



    It will feature a battery that is half the size of the current battery. Of course, it will only last for 5 hours, but too fucking bad.



    It will also feature a single core processor with a half core GPU and It will run even cooler than the iPad 1. You will not have the power to use 74% of all available apps, but too fucking bad.



    The main killer feature on the special edition iPad will be the anti-retina display. This display will have half the resolution of the iPad 1. Things may not look all that sharp anymore, but too fucking bad, it'll run cooler and require less resources.
  • Reply 13 of 53
    razorpitrazorpit Posts: 1,796member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post


    That's correct. Apple's operating parameters are for external temperature. They say that you can safely operate the device when the external temperature is up to 95 degrees. The internal temperatures (and even the case temperature) could be well over that.



    So far, no reports of thermal shutdowns, so Apple is probably correct - no evidence of a design defect. And note that the 'problem' only occurs when running the GPUs flat out. Unless you're continuously playing action games, it's not likely to be a problem.



    Agreed, I'll add that since the temps mentioned are no where near the reflow point of solder, there isn't much here other than some wasted time reading all this junk...
  • Reply 14 of 53
    Steve would have made them try a software fix or materials change or something. If they're not sourcing and experimenting with solutions now, it's not the same company it was.



    This includes antennagate, which resulted in a design change after the initial denials.
  • Reply 15 of 53
    philboogiephilboogie Posts: 7,675member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by macinthe408 View Post


    Three people have complained about being hot. My original iPad gets warm, especially after extended hours watching hot porn.



    Has their stance changed; is that now allowed¿
  • Reply 16 of 53
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by razorpit View Post


    Agreed, I'll add that since the temps mentioned are no where near the reflow point of solder, there isn't much here other than some wasted time reading all this junk...



    It's not that simple. The reported temperatures are on the exterior of the case. The internal temperatures will be much higher - so it is impossible to simply state that it's OK since it's not near the reflow point of solder. (In addition, it's possible for thermal damage to occur besides melting of solder, so that's not the only temperature limit to be concerned about).



    The only real comment possible is the one that Apple made. The company that designed the device and make its operational specifications says it's not a problem. So unless people start seeing thermal failures, it's a non-issue.
  • Reply 17 of 53
    guyrguyr Posts: 50member
    The only time I have found it getting warm was taking a 10min HD video, where the left side of the iPad became noticeably warmer than the rest.
  • Reply 18 of 53
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Apple ][ View Post


    I heard that Apple is releasing a special edition iPad for anybody who whines about the new one being slightly warm.



    It will feature a battery that is half the size of the current battery. Of course, it will only last for 5 hours, but too fucking bad.



    It will also feature a single core processor with a half core GPU and It will run even cooler than the iPad 1. You will not have the power to use 74% of all available apps, but too fucking bad.



    The main killer feature on the special edition iPad will be the anti-retina display. This display will have half the resolution of the iPad 1. Things may not look all that sharp anymore, but too fucking bad, it'll run cooler and require less resources.



    and they shall call it "PlayBook".
  • Reply 19 of 53
    bkerkaybkerkay Posts: 139member
    Yet it still runs cooler than the human body.
  • Reply 20 of 53
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by katastroff View Post


    and they shall call it "PlayBook".



    Only if you also removed the ability to run most of the better applications and gave it a plasticy feel. Otherwise I would rather have the fictional 'halfpad' product described then the playbook.
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