I just discovered that my iPad3 has a nasty reboot loop problem.

(thus redifining the concept of a Bad Apple!)

Normally, I would just reset the silly thing, but since the iPad's battery is drained, here is my situation:

1) without the power supply, the iPad plays dead (it turns itself off after displaying an icon requesting to be supplied with power);

2) with the power supply cable back in place, the red and almost empty indicator appears, thus leading one to believe it will be refilling itself with power.

3) after a minimal amount of power was taken in (approx 30 to 60 seconds worth of juice) the white apple reboot logo appears on the screen.

4) after about another 20 to 40 seconds, the login keyboard appears for about a third of a second, then suddendly all goes to black and a spinning grey multibar indicator rotates before the step 2,3 and 4 cycle restarts again, and again, and again…

I cannot simply reset the unit since there is not enough power for me to access it for even that simple task.

…And since my iPad consumes more energy that it can take and store in the batteries when the screen is set at full brigtness (which it obviously is!) there is never enough power for me to reset the unit.

The ONLY solution I see at this point is to…

a) physically open the iPad;

b) disconnect the battery from the circuit board;

c) recharge the battery while it is unconnected to the circuit board;

d) after battery is fully charged, rehook the circuit board to finally;

e) reset the iPad while the power level is high enough.

I have modified my eMac & iMacs in the past… opening an Apple product has seamingly becomed an overly complicated affair, yet it is not a problem when going logically about it with some degree of confidence and knowledge. So, my questions are as follows...

Q 1:

Did you ever came across someone who might have successfully done this ?

Q 2 :

Any recommendations before I get into doing this ?

ALSO :

While the iPad is opened and its guts are exposed, i'm seriously considering doing a Modification to allow an easy external battery and/or power supply alternative to be used with it (the access could be made with a simple multipin connector on the backside and well hidden when the iPad is placed inside a protective case (which is always the case with mine since I do not like the touch and feel of the iPad's aluminum case anyway!)

FYI: I could even place a simple switch to toggle from internal to external power supply while recharging the unit AND fooling the iPad into 'thinking' (sic) it is fully charged so that I can use the iPad's built-in multipin connector for my link to a computer or an Apogee guitar interface without draining the built-in original batteries…

Q 3:

Did you ever came across someone who might have successfully done this dual power feed system?

Q 4 :

Any recommendations before I get into doing this (besides patience and a few hours to spare)?

Truly looking forward to a reply.

Salutations,

Martin

PS I'm in no rush and will not operate on the iPad until mid march 2014 (i do like to think I have a life outsite of the iPad :)

I will inform you of any progress as I finally get to operate the thing.

Hello Dan and Jessa,

Thank you both for responding and bringing in more insights into the matter.

Also, thank you Jessa for your input about the Firmware update mode (DFU)… it did bring in a new set of considerations and a new development.

1) in using the iPad at home, unless it is badly connected - something too easy to do with the wide multipin connector-, it is always linked to the power supply (I use the one that came with the unit from Apple in 1 room & another one (a basic switching power supply from Digipower).

2) since the 40 inch long iPad cable Apple supplied when purchasing the unit is WAY TOO SHORT (!) for anything else but linking it to my computer or a recharger in the car, I did purchase a 10 foot High quality gold plated & shielded USB cable from Belkin to provide maneuvering space in using the iPad.

3) With or without the USB Extension cable inline between the power supply and the unit, the iPad has, from Day 1, always drained the internal battery faster than it can charge it IF the brightness is set at 100% (a maximum setting i only use when on the road since I use the iPad to link to my computer via Cellular network--- or make calls via Skype).

In other words, for the iPad to charge while being in use, it needs to have brightness set at about 3/4 brightness level or less.

That has been the case from day 1 (and yet another reason why I keep switching Cellular mode Off as well as Bluetooth Off in order to minimize power drain… Also I make sure the iPad's Camera app is OFF since the built-in camera drains power even if not in use If the Camera app is open in the background)

So…

Here is a new and interesting development :

I started the DFU operation and the loop reboot sequence has stopped! (Yea!)

When asked by iTunes if I wanted to restore (and lose all on the iPad AND Update to the latest iOS) I choose CANCEL and simply let iPad not looping and 'Off'. I then plugged the iPad in the Power Supply to recharge the internal battery… (Something I could not do until now due to the Reboot loop)

As I write these lines, I do not yet know if the unit is really charging or not.

I will provide a few hours of charging time before attempting to restart (reboot) the unit.

Hopefully by then, it will have sipped enough power to start without battery-induced failure and reboot loop

OR

it will at least have enough power for me to properly reset the unit should it go back into reboot loop while having enough power in the battery for me to take control of the unit.

To be continued…

Martin

PS I still use iOS 5.01 & keep saying no to updates. Every one I know who is using an older / lower CPU powered chip has complained about iOS7. I also have some Sweet apps that run Super well in iOS (& I do like the Google/Apple Map system ;)

IF all else fails, perhaps I will be forced to "upgrade to iOS7" ("sigh", but at least I will have a "New" iPad instead of a paperweight)

PPS I agree with you Dan, working with SMD parts is usually not for me either. Its not because I can do something that I want to do it… ;)

In recent past, I already have successfully fixed an ElGato video dongle, Twice, by simply de-casing the circuit and cooking it in the oven for 20 minutes… talk about low-tech success story!

Good news everyone :

I managed to have enough power to access the login keyboard display and get into the iPad’s iOS without a power crash and without being stuck with a reboot loop.

Interestingly enough, the unit was plugged in for over two hours but did not recharge… BUT, having the iPad on the corner of my desk below a opened window got the unit cold and that allowed the battery to regain its composure enough for a 2% mark… And since the aborted DFU operation of a few hours ago did get the loop reboot to stop, I managed to get back just enough power to regain control of the situation.

As I write these lines, the iPad (with display brightness a Minimum, no camera, no Bluetooth and the SIM card removed) is charging and already at 10% (within about 15 minutes).

So…

I will still investigate possible solution to not fall back to the mercy and whims of the iPad power management.

Also, a friend who is visiting mentioned that the release 7.0.4 of the iOS 7 is more efficient and works well. Again, I will have to spend time looking into the matter (since, besides the reboot loop adventure of this week, I am happy with my old iOS).

I will also soon do an impedance measurement of my USB extension cable.

As stated before, it is a high quality cable, yet, perhaps it is draining some juice a bit…

I will post an update on this matter after calculating the power difference (something I will do between now and march’s 2nd week-end…).

As always, I welcome comments and ideas and truly wish to say thank you to all that have contributed on this case.

Salutations,

Martin :)

⟐ Answered February 08, 2026 at 3:24 MST

I tried to start directly, to load it from a computer and from a socket.

So, before I accept my defeat, does anybody have an idea what I could have done wrong? Something worth checking, even if I just learn that I broke one part beyond repair.

Thanks for your support.

⟐ Answered April 20, 2025 at 1:10 MST

⟐ Commented April 09, 2025 at 19:47 MST

⟐ Answer edited February 28, 2025 at 20:49 MST

WHEN I CLICK THE LINK FOR BATTERY A1416 TO ORDER IT, ITS SHOWS ME THE BATTERY A1389. IT IS NORMAL ? I DONT WANT TO BUY THE WRONG BATTERY AGAIN. THANKS FOR YOU HELP!

JENNIFER

MONTREAL, CANADA

iPad 3 Wi-Fi Battery Replacement,

⟐ Commented December 07, 2024 at 8:09 MST

⟐ Answer edited November 07, 2024 at 12:21 MST

⟐ Commented June 19, 2024 at 18:04 MST

Not looking for a definite answer, but what is another good place to look for a fault? I've tested for shorts around the charging IC, but didn't come up with anything. The only thing that gets hot, and it only gets hot when the battery is connected and the power cable is in, is the charging IC. But doesn't seem that power is making its way to the battery.

So I went ahead and replaced the screen, and before I sealed the iPad I tried turning it on, and no luck, no image, no lights, nothing.

1- Screen has no image

2- iPad is on (shows up on iTunes

3- Tried holding the power and home button for 7 seconds

4- Tried to put it in DFU mode

5- I unplugged the battery from mother board

6- I tried unplugging everything about 10 times now

7- Left iPad cables unplug about 45 minutes

8- The battery is at 45%

9- If I hit the power button I do get the sound every iDevice gets

So I did all that and still no image.

Thank you in advanced for your help guys.

⟐ Commented April 12, 2024 at 22:57 MST

It's literally the bottom half inch that doesn't work.

All help is much appreciated

Thanks

Dru

⟐ Answered October 20, 2023 at 1:26 MST

⟐ Commented September 09, 2023 at 12:29 MST

Thank you!

⟐ Answered February 08, 2023 at 16:11 MST

⟐ Answered November 26, 2022 at 14:00 MST

TL;DR: Found my old iPad, put it in charge and it didn't work, even with a different charger (waited for around 2 hours).

⟐ Answered August 28, 2022 at 16:32 MST

I also have 2nd gen ipad can i use the battery on 2nd gen for the 3rd gen.will it work properly

⟐ Answered August 10, 2022 at 8:53 MST

I have a new supplier now out of china that claims they sell OEM (Original Equipment Manufacture), or Apple parts. So the same parts that originally come on the device whether it be iPad, iPod, or iPhone.

I did a glass replacement on an iPad 3 for a customer. He came back not too much longer and had some issues with the glass peeling up just a bit...not a problem some more glue will hold it in. But while removing the glass to install better adhesive the glass cracked(&^$* $85 in the hole). This seemed to crack SUPER easy. Most the time when removing the OEM glass I can get it off with out cracking the glass with some safe pry tools, heat, and patience.

Also I have heard of the OEM glass water droplet test. Basically just a quarter size drop of water on the glass, and move it around. If it stays together and is easy to control its OEM, if not its a copy.

Here's my question: Are there any other ways to tell if the glass is OEM.

And, is the water droplet test legit and does it really work?

Thank you for the help

(sorry for the novel)

⟐ Commented July 17, 2022 at 20:32 MST

⟐ Commented June 22, 2022 at 15:31 MST