New iPad Runs Nearly 20% Hotter, Thermal Imaging Confirms

Following complaints from users that some 3rd-gen iPads may be overheating, Dutch website Tweakers.net (via The Verge) used an infrared camera to confirm that the new device runs up to 18.7% hotter than its predecessor, with most of the heat focused on the lower right corner.

When running the GLBenchmark, infrared measurement revealed that the new iPad runs at up to 33.6 degrees Celsius (92.5 Fahrenheit), although the site didn’t test heat differences when using 4G LTE data on the new device.

While these heat increases are significant, they’re not that big a deal – the temperatures should still leave the device comfortable to use, even over long periods of time. It is possible, however, that some units could be hotter than others (and some may indeed overheat) due to manufacturing variances from unit to unit. After all, Tweakers only used a single unit in their tests.

What about you? Are you noticing a significant heat difference in the new iPad?

Update: Apple has since confirmed that the new iPad isn’t “overheating” in any sense, and that the temperatures fall well in line with their thermal specs.

J. Glenn Künzler

Glenn is Managing Editor at MacTrast, and has been using a Mac since he bought his first MacBook Pro in 2006. He lives in a small town in Utah, enjoys bacon more than you can possibly imagine, and is severely addicted to pie.