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Battery icon, no lightning bolt, not charging

For the last few hours, my iPad has had a black screen with a battery icon showing 4 red vertical lines. There is no lightning bolt on the screen. However, if I remove the plug, a lightning bolt and charger symbol appears - so the iPad knows when it's disconnected. I've tried two different Apple chargers, two different outlets, and also the USB port on the back of my Mac. I've done the Home/Sleep button thing about 10 times, to no avail. It might even be worse now because the screen seems to flash between the white Apple logo, to a black screen, to the screen with the battery symbol and back to a black screen. Every so often, my lock screen will pop up for a milisecond. I've examined the connection at the bottom and I do not see any bent pins, lint or debris. Nothing like this has happened to it before.


Any ideas? I would really appreciate any help. I've read through so many threads here, but haven't really seen anything quite like what's happening.

iPhone 4S, iOS 6.1.2, iPad 3, Mac OS X 10.7.5

Posted on Jun 9, 2014 1:11 AM

Reply
39 replies

Jun 5, 2017 3:14 AM in response to JohnWFMak

Awesome! I tried everything suggested online - I found the same suggestions over and over but this is the one that worked!


Somehow by keeping that battery symbol on the screen and not allowing it to go off, finally the apple logo showed up. I kept pressing the home/power buttons and suddenly my lock screen showed up allowing me to open the computer. It's on 2% and and least showing that it is charging and alive!


Thank you, thank you, thank you! No restore necessary!

Aug 29, 2017 6:42 PM in response to adepew1975

I tried everything I could find in posts on this forum and other Apple communities and struck out on them all. The classic fix is to hold in the power and home buttons. Heard that one among many other variations with the device plugged into outlet power and/or computer with ITunes. No option of that sort worked, but I was determined to get my iPad functioning again and refused to pay Apple support to troubleshoot and fix it. I finally ran across several forum posts that were well written and logical about the lithium battery being discharged to the point that the battery will no longer function properly. I will Not attempt to go into the science behind lithium batteries and why the fix of heating the battery up puts a mild charge back into the battery, etc. If your iPad or other iX device battery has been completely drained and is displaying the red battery icon with a few red strips, and all other troubleshooting measures fail you may want to try heating the device until the back of it is hot to the touch, then try plugging it in and waiting for at least 10-20 minutes.


I had little hope in this fix, but it indeed gave the internal battery in my iPad enough juice to start taking a charge. It is now at 48% and climbing. I am convinced that no other troubleshooting method would have resulted in my iPad battery being jump-started into taking a charge and powering the device on because I tried them all. There are probably a million ways to heat the iPad to attempt this fix with what seems to be the most popular being a hair dryer and standing there for an eternity until the back of the device is hot to the touch. If I told you that I put the iPad on a wooden cutting board and placed in the oven at 170 for 20 minutes I am sure many would not believe it or get holier than thou that I violated some safety commandment of placing the iPad in an oven, but that very well might have worked...

Jun 9, 2014 8:51 AM in response to adepew1975

Could be the charger, cable or iPad. Plug the USB cable into your computer. It may say "Not Charging", however, it is charging slowly and will verify that the cable is good. If your computer/iTunes does not recognize the iPad, then the cable is probably bad.


Try this first - Reset the iPad by holding down on the Sleep and Home buttons at the same time for about 10-15 seconds until the Apple Logo appears - ignore the red slider - let go of the buttons. (This is equivalent to rebooting your computer.) No data/files will be erased. http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1430


The quickest way (and really the only way) to charge your iPad is with the included 10W or 12W (5W on Mini) USB Power Adapter. iPad will also charge, although more slowly, when attached to a computer with a high-power USB port (many recent Mac computers) or with an iPhone Power Adapter (5W). When attached to a computer via a standard USB port (2.5W, most PCs or older Mac computers) iPad will charge very slowly (but iPad indicates not charging). Make sure your computer is on while charging iPad via USB. If iPad is connected to a computer that’s turned off or is in sleep or standby mode, the iPad battery will continue to drain.


Apple recommends that once a month you let the iPad fully discharge & then recharge to 100%.

How to Calibrate Your Mac, iPhone, or iPad Battery

http://www.macblend.com/how-to-calibrate-your-mac-iphone-or-ipad-battery/


At this link http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/galaxy-tab-android-tablet,3014-11.html , tests show that the iPad 2 battery (25 watt-hours) will charge to 90% in 3 hours 1 minute. It will charge to 100% in 4 hours 2 minutes. The new iPad has a larger capacity battery (42 watt-hours), so using the 10W charger will obviously take longer. If you are using your iPad while charging, it will take even longer. It's best to turn your new iPad OFF and charge over night. Also look at The iPad's charging challenge explained http://www.macworld.com/article/1150356/ipadcharging.html


Also, if you have a 3rd generation iPad, look at

Apple: iPad Battery Nothing to Get Charged Up About

http://allthingsd.com/20120327/apple-ipad-battery-nothing-to-get-charged-up-abou t/

Apple Explains New iPad's Continued Charging Beyond 100% Battery Level

http://www.macrumors.com/2012/03/27/apple-explains-new-ipads-continued-charging- %20beyond-100-battery-level/

New iPad Takes Much Longer to Charge Than iPad 2

http://www.iphonehacks.com/2012/03/new-ipad-takes-much-longer-to-charge-than-ipa d-2.html


Apple Batteries - iPad http://www.apple.com/batteries/ipad.html


iPhone: Hardware troubleshooting (Power/Battery section also applies to iPad)

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2802


http://www.overthought.org/blog/2014/the-ultimate-guide-to-solving-ios-battery-d rain

http://www.overthought.org/blog/2014/the-ultimate-guide-to-solving-ios-battery-d rain


Extend iPad Battery Life (Look at pjl123 comment)

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3921324?tstart=30


iOS 7 Battery Life Draining Too Fast? It’s Easy to Fix

http://osxdaily.com/2013/09/19/ios-7-battery-life-fix/


Poor battery life after installing iOS 7.1? Try these simple tips

http://www.zdnet.com/poor-battery-life-after-installing-ios-7-1-try-these-simple -tips-7000027348/


New iPad Slow to Recharge, Barely Charges During Use

http://www.pcworld.com/article/252326/new_ipad_slow_to_recharge_barely_charges_d uring_use.html


iPad: Charging the battery

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4060


Best Practices for iPad Battery Charging

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/articles/comments/best-practices-for-ipad-batte ry-charging/


How to Save and Prolong the battery life of your new ipad

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4480944?tstart=0


Prolong battery lifespan for iPad / iPad 2 / iPad 3: charging tips

http://thehowto.wikidot.com/prolong-battery-lifespan-for-ipad


iPhone, iPod, Using the iPad Charger

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4327


Install and use Battery Doctor HD

http://itunes.apple.com/tw/app/battery-doctor-hd/id459702901?mt=8


To Extend a Device’s Battery Life, Get to Know It Better

http://tinyurl.com/b67c7xz


iPad Battery Replacement

http://www.apple.com/batteries/replacements.html


In rare instances when using the Camera Connection Kit, you may notice that iPad does not charge after using the Camera Connection Kit. Disconnecting and reconnecting the iPad from the charger will resolve this issue.


 Cheers, Tom 😉

Jun 9, 2014 8:59 AM in response to Texas Mac Man

I've tried two iPad cables, two wall sockets, and also plugged it into my Mac, all as stated in my original post. I also used the cables on my iPhone, which charged just fine. The problem is not with the cables; I fear the problem is with the iPad. Also, I have tried to reset many times, with no success. When plugged in, there is no "Not Charging" message, no lightning bolt, no home screen...just the black battery with red lines (there are 4 of them) or the screen with the white Apple logo.


Again, I appreciate your time, but unfortunately your suggestions are precisely what I've already tried.


This has never happened before; it was running just fine. 😟

Battery icon, no lightning bolt, not charging

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