I have an old iPad, a third-generation new iPad, released in March 2012. At that time, I was on a business trip in the United States and staying near Apple Park.

apple campus

During my break, I bought one at the Apple Store with US dollars in cash. The retina screen was truly amazing back then, and looking at the second generation, you could feel a noticeable graininess. As time has passed, the system has become incredibly slow, and the charging cable is the old wide-mouthed type that no longer charges. It has been gathering dust in a drawer. I happened to come across a video explaining how to turn an idle iPad into a mini monitor, so I decided to give it a try.

A driver board is required, which can be found on certain e-commerce platforms. The overall process is relatively simple.

original new ipad
The original iPad, it had been dropped, and the glass on all four corners was shattered. I didn’t have a charging cable to test if it still worked, so I decided to dismantle it.

screen of new ipad
The disassembled iPad screen. Due to the broken outer glass, it couldn’t be directly removed as a whole. It took a lot of time to clean up the glass debris. Fortunately, I had cut-resistant gloves. Be sure to prioritize safety, as small glass fragments can easily pierce your hands.

connect to driver board
Connect it to the driver board. Pay attention to the orientation of the interface, otherwise the screen may burn out.

connect to raspberry pi and test
Connect the power supply and use HDMI to connect it to a Raspberry Pi for power-on testing. The overall effect is good, and the resolution is quite high, after all, it’s a retina screen.