Wireless connection is fine for most tasks you do on your iPad, but there are some things that could be much better with a solid wired ethernet connection. Here’s how to connect your iPad to ethernet to get the best internet connection. When on iOS 10.2 or above, there are new settings to help connect iPad to ethernet.
The iPad does not include an ethernet port, so you will need to purchase some adapters and accessories. It’s not cheap, but if you need to hook up an iPad to a bad WiFi zone or a trade show, it’s a purchase worth checking out.
With the right accessories, you can connect your iPad directly to a modem or router with an Ethernet cable and, in iOS 10.2 and later, make changes to Ethernet settings directly on the iPad or iPhone.
We have updated an older version of this guide that requires a powered USB hub. If you’re using an iPhone with a Lightning adapter, you should be able to use a regular USB Ethernet adapter without any powered hub to provide extra power.
Everything you need to connect iPad to ethernet.
What Do You Need to Connect Your iPad to Ethernet?
It’s a bit of a gimmick, but it’s officially backed by Apple so it doesn’t void your warranty and you don’t have to worry about breaking something.
Here’s what you need to buy to use your iPhone or iPad with an ethernet cable.
You need to buy the official Lightning to USB camera adapter, but if you don’t want to pay Apple’s price, you can buy a cheaper USB to Ethernet adapter.
How to connect iPhone or iPad to Ethernet.
How to Set Up iPad Ethernet Connection
This is a short list of steps you need to follow to use the iPad ethernet connection. You can use the same instructions for iPhone as well. Here’s a step-by-step guide on connecting your iPad to ethernet:
- First off, disable WiFi and cellular data on your iPad if it’s an LTE model.
- Plug one end of the Ethernet cable into a free port on your router and the other end into the ethernet port on the USB Ethernet Adapter.
- Connect the USB end of the adapter to the Lightning to Camera connector.
- Plug the Lightning end of the adapter into your iPad.
You can see a similar setup in the video below, but you no longer need to use a powered USB hub for this to work.
After a few seconds, the iPad or iPhone will recognize the ethernet connection. If you are on iOS 10.2 or later, you can now go to Settings and you will see an option to change Ethernet settings on your iPhone or iPad.
iOS 10.2+ finally has a UI for USB ethernet adapter settings 🎉 pic.twitter.com/r7mojxgdGE
— Steve Troughton-Smith (@stroughtonsmith) February 28, 2017
This is a newly added feature to iOS that will give you more control over using ethernet as the main way to connect an iPad.
After connecting everything, open Safari and see if the connection works before moving on to other options.
This is a great way to use the iPad at a trade show or any other area where WiFi connections are often spotty. A simple investment in these adapters can save you from trying to fix a broken demo on the show floor.
