my ipad is stuck on a black screen with only the apple icon...ive tried to hold the home button

Hi missglbert,

Thanks for visiting Apple Support Communities.

It sounds like your iPad is unexpectedly not starting up past the logo. I understand how frustrating that can be, and recommend these steps to help troubleshoot the issue:

1. If the device is unresponsive or if certain controls aren't working as expected, restart your device.
   
2. If the device remains unresponsive or does not turn on (or power on), reset your device.
   
3. If there is no video or if the screen remains black, verify that the device has enough charge to turn on:
1. If you are using an iPad, ensure that it's connected to the USB Power Adapter supplied with the device.
2. Let it charge for at least twenty minutes, then see if it starts normally.
3. If there is no image on the screen, press the Sleep/Wake button to attempt to wake the device.
4. If the screen displays a red battery icon, continue charging the device until the battery is fully charged. Learn more about charging iPhone and iPod touch, or iPad.
4. If the above steps do not resolve the issue, or the if the screen remains black or shows a persistent Apple logo, try restoring with iTunes:
1. Connect the device to your computer and open iTunes.
2. If the device appears in iTunes, select and click Restore on the Summary pane. Learn more about restoring iOS software.
3. If the device doesn't appear in iTunes, try to force the device into recovery mode, and then restore it.
5. If the above steps do not resolve the issue, contact Apple.

From:

iOS: Not responding or does not turn on

Best Regards,

Jeremy

Hold the home button and Power button together untill the screen turns off completely. Then do the same thing untill you see the apple logo. Hopefully your iPad should boot 🙂

thank you.

Yep! Me too!

Black screen of death on my iPad, and visions of many dollars siphoning off my bank balance into Apple's hands. No combination of buttons worked, no matter how long they were pressed. I put it on its back and whacked it a few times. No joy. Put it on its front and slapped it around a few times to teach it a lesson it wouldn't forget. Nup! Dropped it onto carpet from half a metre onto its back. Bingo! Colours were… a bit wrong, but it was a start. Dropped it again onto its back from half a metre onto carpet. Fixed it.

I am not overly confident as to the permanency of the fix. And it should NOT happen. But the drop test worked.

Many thanks to all who have posted. Forums like these make the world work. …and iPads as well.