Users complain that Magic Keyboard drains iPad Pro battery unusually fast

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Magic Keyboard Trackpad
Draingate, anyone?
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

Users are complaining that Apple’s Magic Keyboard drains the battery of their iPad Pro at a shockingly fast rate.

Some claim that their iPad Pro battery level drops by up to a quarter in just a couple of hours while using the Magic Keyboard for typing. Others say their tablet burns through battery life even when the iPad Pro is idle with the Magic Keyboard attached.

The iPad Pro normally should boast a battery life of around 10 hours for everyday tasks like writing or using the internet. That suggests that the Magic Keyboard is having an unexpectedly outsize effect on the device.

The Magic Keyboard debuted last month. (You can check Cult of Mac‘s largely favorable review of the peripheral here.) Unlike the previous Smart Keyboard, the Magic Keyboard’s keys are backlit. The pricey peripheral also adds one of the best trackpads yet seen for iPad Pro. However, neither of these should explain such a dramatic decline in battery life when using the device.

Is this a problem you’ve experienced while using the Magic Keyboard? Is this only a problem faced by a small number of users? And, if not, will Apple be able to introduce a software update to solve this problem? Let us know your thought in the comments below.

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