iPad Pro won’t charge with USB-C to USB-C cable

A VRURC portable charger from amazon is the only thing that works. I had tried every combination of cables/adapters etc... and nothing worked. (even with the latest updates) The $30 charger from Amazon worked immediately and has worked several times. Until Apple admits there is a problem this is a workaround that allows me to still use my ipad.

this worked for me!

Context:

I had a similar issue as OP, my iPad Pro 11in (2018?) suddenly stopped charging. The only habit I recently changed was charging it with my new HP laptop charger since it is quick (110W). No matter what I tried (OEM apple charger cable + brick, Anker cable and brick, knock-off cable and brick) USB C-USB C cable did not work. I tried soft and hard restarting my iPad to no avail.

I was about to go to the apple store to have it looked at and repaired thinking it was an issue with the port, but I tried using a USB-A to USB-C plugged into my computer and it worked! It is charging very slowly, but it beats paying for a new iPad.

I think that this issue is related to the usb port's sensitivity to a high wattage, but i'm unsure. This happened so suddenly, and I've been using non-OEM chargers for a while, including a laptop charger from my old ThinkPad. Regardless, this iPad has lasted me 6 years and has held up remarkably well. Hope it can last a while longer before an upgrade.

J

To be honest, my USB C port completely stopped working after I had to do a full restore on my 11” iPad Pro (2nd Gen). Even after this latest iPadOS update (17.5) the USB C port is as dead as a door nail. I’m using the port in the Magic Keyboard, otherwise I’d have already had to either buy a new iPad or be completely SOL. Still, I may try the factory resetting route, can’t see how it can hurt.

For some background, I had to restore my iPad as completely new as it wigged out (random icons on the Home Screen completely disappeared and when I went to restart the app icons never reappeared) and I forgot the password to my encrypted local backup. Lesson learned, now I use iCloud to backup. Anyway, without the password to my now completely useless space wasting local backup I restored as new. The intermittent USB C issues I was having previously became consistent and permanent in short order.

So, my conclusion based on personal experience and other’s is that there is most likely a hardware issue causing the internal USB C port to fail. If it’s a software/firmware problem then perhaps a full factory restore will resolve it and I’ll prove myself wrong. If not, well, the new iPads are looking good.

My advice to you and anyone else in this situation is make sure you have a solid backup before trying a full factory reset. But, yeah, go ahead and try it, can’t see how you’ll be any worse off if it doesn’t work, and if it does then you have your USB C port back.

Do you still have issues with the charge?I had similar issues so I updated mine to 17.2, it seems to help its charging now.

Have you tried shutting the iPad down then wait a few minutes and reboot, this normally works for me, it should allow you to recharge it for a week or so before it stops again. Good luck

How old? I had a different problem with an iPad mini 6 that would no longer charge off of a USB-A to USB-C cable, which was my primary means of power and data sync. It would charge off of a USB-C to USB-C cable but wouldn’t make a data connection.

Brought it in to an Apple Store and got a replacement under warranty. If yours is out of warranty there might not be much you can do if you don’t wish to pay the replacement fee.

I have the same problem, it is most definitely the iPad USB-C hardware. If I use a USB-A to USB-C cable with a USB-A charger my iPad will charge no problems. If I place a USB-A to USB-C adapter on the same cable and plug into a USB-C charger it will also work. And like the OP a USB-C to USB-C cable will not work to charge my 12.9 iPad Pro. This all started when my iPad fell of my nightstand and I reached for the cable to slow it down.

Dom Hemeryck wrote:

My questioin, finally, can i use the ipad smart connector to recharge my ipad? I would need to buy an Apple Magic Keyboard for my ipad? Will this work to recharge my ipad? Is there anything else out there using the Smart Connector which could recharge my lovely ipad? For older ipads, Logitech had an ipad stand which also used the smart connectors to recharge. Thanks in advance for you comments and suggestions. Dominick

The Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro 11" has a USB-C connector in the keyboard spine - to which you can connect your USB-C Power Adapter:

• Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro 11-inch (4th generation) and iPad Air (5th generation) - British English - Black

https://store.apple.com/xc/product/MXQT2B/A

When connected, your iPad Pro will charge via its Smart Connector. You should note that while this arrangement may resolve your charging difficulties, the Magic Keyboard's USB-C port can only be used for charging the iPad; other USB-C accessories are not supported by this port.

my mini 6 will not charge using the usb~c to usb-c either. I am using the original cable and block that came with the iPad. It’s a little over a year old and out of warranty. The only way I can get it to charge is to do a reset on it. Why should we have to do that? Apparently it’s in the software and apple is too lazy to fix. Very disappointed with them.

My 3rd gen iPad Pro 12.9 with iOS 16.7.2 has a similar charging problem. Everything worked fine until 1 week ago. 70% of the time that you plug in the charging cable, nothing happens. 20% of the time, it starts charging, but then 15 seconds later it stops. 10% of the time, it will actually charge the iPad. I also tried every combination of swapping out charging bricks, USB-C cables, reversing the cables, etc. and no change to the behavior. All of these charging bricks and cables charge other devices no problem.

I found an Apple support article with simple device soft reset instructions if your iPad won’t charge. Fix issues with charging - Apple Support. I followed the instructions, but it didn’t fix the problem.

I took my iPad into the Apple Store and the guy at the Genius Bar was able to replicate the problem. He then ran diagnostics on it and found zero problems with the hardware, but had no explanation for why this was happening. My iPad was out of warranty so he said it would cost $650 to swap it with an identical refurbished model (I have 512GB storage and the cellular model). He said Apple does not disassemble the iPad Pro 12.9 to attempt any repairs. The only option at the Apple Store was to replace it.

Interestingly, he said because the iPad passed the hardware diagnostics (in spite of the battery charging problem), it would qualify for a trade in credit of $300 if I wanted to buy a new iPad.

It doesn’t seem to matter if the IPad is under warranty or not. Apple is not honoring 1 year warranties for defective USB charging ports. They also won’t repair the IPad. They want you to buy Apple Care. They know this is a common issue, however it’s easier to just blame the consumer for misuse. Our IPAD was less than a year old and Apple said the port went bad because of something we did. The something we did was plugging the USB cable the IPAD came with into the charging adapter that also came with it.

Finally figured out a way to charge my ipad pro! A VRURC portable charger from amazon is the only thing that works. I had tried every combination of cables/adapters etc... and nothing worked. The $30 charger from Amazon worked immediately and has worked several times. Until Apple admits there is a problem this is a workaround that allows me to still use my ipad.

Your comment about playing with the orientation suggests a physical connection problem. As you move things it changes the forces on components and breaks or makes a contact.

With a multi pack of cables you probably have what you need to localise the fault. If you see exactly the same good and bad positions using different cables the fault is more likely to be in the socket (iPad) side. If the various cables show different failure movements it is more likely the problem is low quality cables.

LotusPilot wrote:

When using a USB Type-A Power Source, the iPad will charge at 5V - current limited to ~2.4A (12W).

Makes sense, given that negotiated Power Delivery is a USB-C thing.

The iPad is probably hoping to hear from a USB-C supply with regards to a mutually acceptable voltage, while the USB-A supply may have no idea what PD is, or how to negotiate anything with the iPad.

Apple released update version 17.1.2. Have you tried it yet? Please share the update.