Digital 1DX

Q: Updating a new iPad Pro 9.7 from and iPad Mini

I have an old iPad Mini (the Mini) and a new one, an iPad Pro 9.7 (Pro).  I have 185 pdf books, manuals etc on the Mini and I am trying to update the Pro.  In the past two weeks, I have spent over 4 hours with Apple support on the phone to no avail.  The first bout lasted about 2 hours and it appeared that the Pro was being updated properly.  A week later when I went looking for a pdf that I thought had been transferred, I was unable to find it.  That is when I discovered that only 74 of the 185 had been transferred properly.

 

The basic approach was to backup the Mini to iTunes and then restore this backup to the Pro.  It obviously didn't work.  I then called Apple Support a second time and we basically went through the same process.  Backup the Mini to iTunes and then restore this backup to the Pro.  All 185 pdfs were backed up properly to my desktop (Win 8.1), but when this backup was restored to the Pro, only 74 of the 185 came over.  The Apple support person and I never did get this to work.  So now I have to find out which ones were not restored  and restore each one of them individually - 111 pdf files.

 

This situation is TOTALLY unacceptable.  A couple of years ago, when I bought a new desktop, it was a simple matter to move the "old" stuff to the new computer using a simple transfer program running on both machines and a special transfer cable to connect the two computers.  Why I cannot get this transfer to work using Apple's own programs, I do not know.

 

Most of my opinions about Apple and their so-called "user friendly" stuff are unprintable and really unfit to repeat in polite company.

 

I am hoping that someone reading this can shed some light on a solution to this problem, other than what appears to be the only solution so far.  Finding the missing pdfs and getting them onto my Pro is going to take an inordinate amount of time.  Time I would rather spend pursuing my favourite hobby - photography.  Not only that, even though I am retired, I still have a lot of things to do other than my photography.

iPad Mini, iOS 8.1, PV runs under Windows 7.1 64 bit

Posted on May 28, 2016 5:38 PM

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Q: Updating a new iPad Pro 9.7 from and iPad Mini

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  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa May 28, 2016 6:07 PM in response to Digital 1DX
    Level 7 (32,078 points)
    iPad
    May 28, 2016 6:07 PM in response to Digital 1DX

    Do both of your devices work with Airdrop?

     

    If so, why not airdrop the PDF from the Mini to the Pro - one at a time, but the process is really fast.

  • by ManSinha,

    ManSinha ManSinha May 28, 2016 6:19 PM in response to Digital 1DX
    Level 6 (10,250 points)
    iPhone
    May 28, 2016 6:19 PM in response to Digital 1DX

    Couple of options for you to consider if you are willing to invest the time / have not done before

     

    Create a new backup of the iPad mini and restore that one to the Pro

     

    This article has tips about handling pdf files - you can use the share option as detailed in 6

     

    http://www.quepublishing.com/articles/article.aspx?p=2130734

  • by Digital 1DX,

    Digital 1DX Digital 1DX May 28, 2016 6:32 PM in response to ManSinha
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iPad
    May 28, 2016 6:32 PM in response to ManSinha

    Sorry, I do not find this very helpful.  We did try something like this with a new backup and it did not appear to work.

    Thanks.

  • by Digital 1DX,

    Digital 1DX Digital 1DX May 28, 2016 6:36 PM in response to babowa
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iPad
    May 28, 2016 6:36 PM in response to babowa

    How can I determine if they support Airdrop?  Where do I find this app and instructions for its use?

     

    Normally, I have been using Dropbox to transfer these pdfs from my desktop to my iPad Mini and I suspect this will work the same with my iPad Pro.  Airdrop is not something I was aware of, so my question is does it work the same way, because I am unable to put the pdfs into my Dropbox on the Mini, at least I haven't figured it out, so that I can transfer them to the Pro, because this would also work.

  • by babowa,Helpful

    babowa babowa May 28, 2016 11:29 PM in response to Digital 1DX
    Level 7 (32,078 points)
    iPad
    May 28, 2016 11:29 PM in response to Digital 1DX

    I'm not sure about your Mini, but your iPad Pro would. On both, swipe up to see the Control Center and set the airdrop to accept from everyone. Here is a screenshot of my Pro with two devices available to airdrop a photo to:

     

    IMG_0402.PNG

    I simply chose a photo and hit the share icon. You will need to check if PDF's will work - I've only used it to share photos from one iDevice to another (PDF's work just fine with a Mac).

     

    And, here is a one page excerpt from the iPad user manual on airdrop:

     

    AirDrop - iPad User Guide.jpg

  • by ManSinha,Helpful

    ManSinha ManSinha May 28, 2016 11:25 PM in response to babowa
    Level 6 (10,250 points)
    iPhone
    May 28, 2016 11:25 PM in response to babowa

    You need to have both Bluetooth and WiFi working for AirDrop to work normally

  • by Digital 1DX,

    Digital 1DX Digital 1DX May 28, 2016 11:49 PM in response to babowa
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iPad
    May 28, 2016 11:49 PM in response to babowa

    The Airdrop does not seem to work with PDFs.  I don't seem to be able to get the "Share" part of it to work.  Any further suggestions?

  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa May 29, 2016 8:27 AM in response to Digital 1DX
    Level 7 (32,078 points)
    iPad
    May 29, 2016 8:27 AM in response to Digital 1DX

    I haven't attempted to do this (working with PDFs), but here is some info I found - try these:

     

    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202075

     

    http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-transfer-pdfs-to-an-ipad.html

  • by Digital 1DX,

    Digital 1DX Digital 1DX May 29, 2016 6:06 PM in response to babowa
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iPad
    May 29, 2016 6:06 PM in response to babowa

    This is the default fix of last resort and may ultimately prove to be the only solution to this problem.

     

    I must confess to being really disappointed in Apple in not making this process a lot easier than it is turning out to be.  It is pretty pathetic when even their own "Help" people are unable to help.  My problem is, I do not seem to be able to find a way to complain directly to Apple.  The fact that I cannot do this just indicates to me that they really don't care about their users that much despite all the "advertising" that they use to try and tell us otherwise.  When push comes to shove, they are not there!

  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa May 29, 2016 6:34 PM in response to Digital 1DX
    Level 7 (32,078 points)
    iPad
    May 29, 2016 6:34 PM in response to Digital 1DX

    Sorry about that, but, just to be clear, no one here is Apple's "own help people". We are all end users just like yourself. There are many options to address Apple support - you can start right here:

     

    https://support.apple.com/

     

    You will wind up with options such as scheduling a call from their support. Or, make an appointment at your nearest Genius Bar - the help there is free of charge. Since you have a new iPad Pro, you should also be covered by your warranty - call Apple support and take advantage of it.

     

    The problem is: iOS is not a computer OS and therefore doesn't have all the capabilities you want/need. I don't expect my iPad to work like my iMac - if it did, I'd be tempted to ditch my Macbook Pro, but I need the Mac OS capabilities, so unless they make major changes, I'll put up needing to have both. I just spent way too much time trying to get two songs onto my iPad - I finally managed; Apple offers the easy way: your entire library using the cloud. Well, I don't want the entire library and I don't use the cloud for any storage.

  • by Digital 1DX,

    Digital 1DX Digital 1DX May 30, 2016 5:50 PM in response to babowa
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iPad
    May 30, 2016 5:50 PM in response to babowa

    Babowa, I am quite aware that no one helping on this forum is one of "Apple's own people" and I am quite grateful for the help that I get from the folks on this forum.

     

    You suggestion about scheduling a call from their support is similar what I did  - I called their support directly on two occasions and spent over 4 hours on the phone with them and got absolutely no solution to this problem, which is why I am posting here.  I would like to be able to complain directly to Apple, i.e., those above the  I am not convinced that, as you note "help" desk folks, but there does not seem to be any way to do this short of writing a letter to Apple executive.  As you have suggested, I may make an appointment with the local Genius Bar to see what they can do for me, although I do not hold out any hope as the "help" people were unable to help.

     

    I am not convinced, as you state that iOS is not a computer OS and therefore doesn't have all the capabilities you want/need. I don't expect my iPad to work like my iMac, as some of the pdfs transferred, whereas others did not.  The problem,  as I see it, is intrinsic to the transfer process and why some are being transferred and some are not.

     

    Like you, I do not wish to use the Cloud as it is only 5GB (MB?) that are available without paying for more and my pdfs occupy a lot more than that.  I do not wish to pay for something I will use only once.

  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa May 30, 2016 5:59 PM in response to Digital 1DX
    Level 7 (32,078 points)
    iPad
    May 30, 2016 5:59 PM in response to Digital 1DX

    I do not care to use the cloud due to privacy reasons - pretty much anything online can be hacked into, so I prefer to have as little as possible there.

     

    In any case, I think the Genius Bar would be the perfect spot: bring both iPads and think about making two successive appointments (1 slot is 12 minutes for iDevices in this area; although they won't just leave you, it tends to make them late and  inconvenience everyone with an appointment after yours, so it works better that way).

     

    And, making a Genius Bar appointment works best (and fastest) by using the Apple store app on your iPad. You'll just need to find a store near you.

  • by Digital 1DX,

    Digital 1DX Digital 1DX May 30, 2016 6:06 PM in response to babowa
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iPad
    May 30, 2016 6:06 PM in response to babowa

    Thanks Babowa.  I appreciate the tip about two appointments.  We only have one Apple store near us, so the choice will be easy.

  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa May 30, 2016 6:15 PM in response to Digital 1DX
    Level 7 (32,078 points)
    iPad
    May 30, 2016 6:15 PM in response to Digital 1DX

    Good luck and post back with positive results!

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