Caps Lock confusion on iPad

I got a Smart Keyboard for my 10.5–inch iPad Pro, but it failed. When I used the Caps Lock key, it opened the Language menu instead of engaging capitals. The Delete key also suddenly stopped working, and wouldn’t delete emails. To get that working again, I have to disconnect the keyboard and shut down the iPad. Apple replaced the keyboard, but that has the same faults. Is this a known problem?

The Smart Keyboard for iPad Pro models seems generally reliable, but two known software issues are responsible for your problems, which explains why they didn’t resolve with a replacement.

The Caps Lock key was, by default, set to switch to and from the Latin keyboard, rather than functioning as Caps Lock should. With the keyboard attached, go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Hardware Keyboard. If you see a setting labelled ‘Caps Lock Switch to/from Latin’, turn that off and you’ll have a proper Caps Lock key again.

The problem with the Delete key is unfortunately not a strange default like that, but a bug that goes right back to iOS 10, and might even persist into iOS 12. It mostly affects Mail, and is commonly seen when using the Delete key to trash messages.

When it occurs, tap in Mail’s search box at the top of the messages list, then press the Delete key. You may need to type a couple of characters into the search box before the Delete key works properly again, but most people find tapping in the box sufficient to restore its function.