iPad Magic Keyboard backlight not turning off. Draining battery when iPad is not being used.

I read several other threads, one of which suggested removing the iPad from the Magic Keyboard. I removed the iPad and pressed the button to shut off the iPad. Then I reconnected the iPad to the Magic Keyboard - but it still did not work.

I then decided to add a step. I pressed the button to turn off the iPad, removed it from the Magic Keyboard, then I did a complete shutdown of the IPad. (You press and hold the top button and the volume up button at the same time until it prompts you with the option to shut down). I restarted the iPad and then connected it to the Magic Keyboard. It now works fully. If I close the iPad into the keyboard the backlight goes off. If I am typing and pause for a while, the backlight goes off. If I go into settings and increase or decrease the backlight, it immediately adjusts.

Hope this helps folks solve this issue. Now I love this keyboard.

So now it's July1st. After going to the Apple store on June 28th- they indicated that they would replace the Magic Keyboard. It arrived on June 30th. They took back my original Magic Keyboard and provided a NEW replacement. I'm appreciative of Apple responding to my concerns in such a quick manner.

So far (only 1 day) the new keyboard is working correctly (🤞) The cursor works perfectly, I'm able to adjust the brightness up and down. The backlights on the keyboard don't come on while the iPad is closed against the keyboard.

(While not an Apple comment, the genius bar person I worked with made an off hand comment indicating that there would probably be a software update that should resolve the issue.)

I hope this helps everyone that is trying to resolve this issue.

Hello,

Try updating to iPadOS 13.5 to see if it resolves your problem.

Settings > General > Software Update

I read several other threads, one of which suggested removing the iPad from the Magic Keyboard. I removed the iPad and pressed the button to shut off the iPad. Then I reconnected the iPad to the Magic Keyboard - but it still did not work.

I then decided to add a step. I pressed the button to turn off the iPad, removed it from the Magic Keyboard, then I did a complete shutdown of the IPad. (You press and hold the top button and the volume up button at the same time until it prompts you with the option to shut down). I restarted the iPad and then connected it to the Magic Keyboard. It now works fully. If I close the iPad into the keyboard the backlight goes off. If I am typing and pause for a while, the backlight goes off. If I go into settings and increase or decrease the backlight, it immediately adjusts.

Hope this helps folks solve this issue. Now I love this keyboard.

I experience the same issue with a iPad Pro 11” 2020 with iPadOS 13.5.1 and also sometimes the backlight stays on. Not always at the same intensity. Sometimes very dim so hard to see.

After removing the iPad from the keyboard (which breaks the contact with the smart connector) and putting iPad back on keyboard everything works fine again, most of the time.

Sometimes you also need to power down and reboot iPad to solve.

So in my opinion it looks SW related as reboot or reconnect solves it...

Hope the next release of iPadOS will solve this issue...

Charles Gardner wrote:

Is there any way as a user to determine which app could be causing this type of problem? I really like the magic keyboard but find this “occasional” problem a real pain. I use my iPad while traveling in my business and really can’t have the ipad die going into a meeting.

You could lock your screen and if the back lights don't turn off, see which apps you may have in the background, and force close them one by one to see if one is the culprit.

I have brand new iPP 11” and MK which I received June 12. Running iOS 13.5.1

I have had 2 times where the MK stayed lit and has drained the battery and once when the keyboard would not light up in a dark room at night. Checked all my brightness settings etc and they were fine. Unmounting the iPP from the MK and rebooting has worked, but for $300 this should not be happening. I am calling Tech Support tomorrow.

I think it's less an API hijacking your keyboard, it's more likely 3rd party developers NOT incorporating the Apple API they were provided well in advance of iPadOS 13.4 (which provided track pad support to begin with) into their apps. If this reviewers take on this is correct, it's up to the app developers to fix the code in their apps. Of course a simple solution would be to force close an app if it causes this. I'll again comment that I've not had this happen on my keyboard since I got it, but perhaps I'm not using an app which wasn't properly updated after that iPasOS release?

Quick update... We own multiple ipads, including 2 iPad Pro 11s and 2 iPad Pro 12.9s. We have magic keyboards for all of 'em. We have not experienced this problem with the 11s, but we have had it with both 12.9s now. After all of this experience, I find it hard to believe this is NOT a software bug of some sort. And based upon online complaints on various forums, this is not a small isolated issue. Again, we have had multiple keyboards with this problem (and yes, they have the latest updates).

Apple needs to get on the ball, investigate, provide a status and figure this one out. Poor user experience--which is sad, because it's a great keyboard otherwise (aside from the rubbery material that attracts dust/gunk. I wish they'd stop using it).

Hello,

same thing happens to me (12.9 ipp latest FW), it’s the second magic keyboard after a swap was recommended by apple for my first MK, the backlight stays on randomly removing the MK does the job at last for me! I called apple several times and the keep telling me there isn’t a problem as far as the know with the MK, i told them in my first call that i think it’s more likely sw related then hw.

So the new MK has got the same bug error Hw error or whatever, that said it’s a nice expensive keyboard with a problem, that nobody is aware of but us „poor“ customers.

thx apple for not listening (again).

PS i’m not a native speaker, so im sorry for my typos

We are all users on this forum, so we cannnot resolve anything. You need to let Apple know you are having this issue. Your keyboard comes with a one year warranty. Contact Apple directly and let them know.

You can: Use the Contact Support button at the top right of this page; Call Apple (in the US) at 800-MY-APPLE; Or visit an Apple Store Genius Bar

If Apple didn't make people jump thru hoops every time they called about it, I could deal with Apple not wanting to admit fault to a wide audience until they have a fix. But we had to call multiple times, go thru some (obviously) misguided suggestions, and demand to talk to managers before we finally got new keyboards shipped out. And the Apple tech support people also have no clue, so it's a brand new conversation every time you call them (even if they have notes from previous calls). If Apple would at least have a prepared customer support reply (acknowledging the issue, and admitting they're actively working on it), it would make the experience less crummy for customers.

Frankly, our best "temp fix" is to disconnect the keyboard at night so it doesn't drain. We use our ipads regularly/daily, so shutting down is a bigger pain in butt.

I hear you and again understand your frustration, but as another user, I have no ability to do anything other than make suggestions. Like restoring your iPad from backup using your computer with iTunes.

Well last time I posted was 5/30/20. I did not have the problem reoccur until last night 6/11/02. The keyboard stayed on almost all night with the iPad closed. It ran the battery down quite a bit. I hope there is a Magic Keyboard software fix forthcoming. If nothing is out in the next week, I am going to contact Apple and request a replacement. This is unacceptable for as expensive a keyboard as this one. Has anyone else continued to have the occasional need to detach and then reattach the iPad in order to have the backlight work properly for a while? I think Johste was correct, this must be a software issue.

I saw a youtube video in doing some research about programming shortcuts for my new Magic Keyboard and one reviewer commented about this (I can't remember which video, I've watched many) and his comment suggested the issue is not necessarily with the Keyboard, but with 3rd party apps not properly using Apple API's for keyboard integration?

I would recommend anyone who is having this happen, to see if they may have a 3rd party app running when they lock their screen and the backlit keys don't go off.