Some Build-Quality Complaints Around Latest iPad Air

Image via Apple

21 MARCH 2022 - Apple’s latest iPad Air does not feel up to snuff to some. iMore's Stephen Warwick is tracking a thread on Reddit that has owners of the fifth generation iPad Air, announced a couple of weeks ago and released last Friday, complaining of quality issues. The post that kicked it off had someone with two new, blue iPad Airs saying:

The aluminium backplate is a lot thinner than on the iPad 4 which I also have. You can almost feel the battery through the plate when you hold the device. Both iPads have the same feeling and are making creaking noises when you hold them. This did not happen on the iPad Air 4. 

They said they were returning the devices. A follow-up post had a new owner saying they felt the same way about their blue iPad Air. “More than OK once I put it in my folio case,” said the second person, “but feels weird when naked…”

I assume they mean without a case on their iPad, but - you do you. “Blue” is a commonality for many of the complaints, though not all. iMore says:

While some users said they had not experienced this, and others suggested it was a problem specific to the blue iPad, one user stated they had found the same issue with the Space Grey and had returned their device to an Apple store, adding they tried all of the colors and felt the same issue, although Apple reportedly disagreed.

Mr. Warwick points out that none of the reviews he saw mentioned build quality issues in a bad way. In fact, he says, many actually praised the build quality of the device. 

Maybe it was a bad batch? Maybe a mild psychosis? The thing’s been out for about 72-hours. Let’s listen closely over the next 72.