Q: The IOS 8.0.2 "upgrade" has ruined my iPad 2 and iPad Air. Will Apple be implementing a fix to the problems- it is the most ridiculous upgrade ever!

I am in the same boat as everyone else --- a functionally intolerable experience after upgrading to iOS8 on my iPad . Sluggish performance, lagging keyboard, lockups, and everything else. What is different is i ran into an honest Genius Bar employee who was refreshingly candid about what is going on here. Apple support is well aware of the problems with iOS8 on "legacy" iPads, and make no mistake iPad2 is nearing its end on the Apple store and is considered at the end of its useful life.

Apple support tells customers to reset their units making the simple assumption that earlier upgrades are responsible for the problems but in nearly 90% of the cases he dealt with, that really wasn't the issue. The simple fact is iOS8 s not designed for iPad 2 and was never optimized for it. Yes, you can run it, just like you can load Windows 8 on a ten year old computer, but it isn't going to run well. These upgrades are optimized for the latest Apple hardware. They "support" legacy hardware, but that is all.

Any factory reset will temporarily offer a perceptible improvement, but only briefly. As apps update and data accumulates on your unit, the same problems will re-emerge, especially with apps like email.

He has seen this many times before, all the way back to the original iPods. Built-in obsolescense isn't the conscious intent but it is the engineering reality at Apple (and others) that allocate a diminishing percentage of work hours fixing issues with older products.

Don't expect miracles on Monday either. Most of the bug fixes in the next update address issues with their newest products.

HIs candid advice -- the best solution to these issues is to reserve a new iPad unit announced this week. While he appreciates Apple's loyal defenders who don't tolerate criticism of the company, they are only hurting their own credibility. He doesn't blame Apple for any of this -- it has made the company extremely valuable and keeps money flowing in. He does fault Apple's policy of not making it easy to downgrade, but the company does not like having to support older versions of its operating systems so it sort of drags all customers along together, even if it creates problems.

He at least is sorry for the disappointment this causes customers, but it is a fact of tech life, and not just at Apple. That is true.

So cutting through the fan boys and propaganda, the real answer here is: if you can't downgrade, you have to upgrade to a newer iPad to really resolve this. Sorry.

If you like your iPad 2, you can keep your iPad 2.

When this week's iPads begin shipping, let us know if iPad2 is still for sale in the Apple store. I am told It won't. Also, none of these faults about sluggish performance are considered warranty issues by Apple.

I am the only one in my group of friends who have upgraded to IOS 8. I waited to do so. I should have gone to this forum before I did. I understand there are fixes for the problems and thank you for posting them. I don't want to try to be "factory fresh" and start anew. I am apprehensive that i will end up worse. Yes, the instructions are clear and sound good. Thanks for making the effort. I do not want to have to spend time going down the slippery slope of doubt that I will screw it up. My issue is a repeated "no service" duirng the day that is fixed with a restart. I did not realize my corrupted old files would cause a probelm though the fact that it took 2 hours to upgrade to IOS 8 should have been a clue. My iPhone 5 was done in under 20 minutes. I am not "griping' I am expressing nostagia and seeking support for what I once had-a fully functioning iPad and I am also posting to warn off people from upgrading their iPad2.  Stay with what you have in IOS 7 folks.

Maybe only a "small" group is having problems but there is a large group that have not joined in.

I did contact Apple Support...they are not able to help online as my warranty is expired. I will use the link provided here on the forum to give feedback. I am sure they are concerned about the iPad2 users.

Corrupt files and garbage accumulates on individual users' machines and are not a product of the install. They can interfer or possible scramble the installation process. You need to have a clean system to "start with" ... so that the Apple installer can do its job okay.

Apple says its hardware can run with iOS 8.0.2 and run functionally, fine and okay ... and as reported by the many users who have had no problem on their iPad 2, plus the many users who had initial problems who now say it runs just fine and "like before" ... like a peppy and new iPad. This is from iPad 2 users themselves saying this. So, your statement is contradicted by many actual iPad 2 users here.

The bottom line for the overwhelming majority of iPad 2 users is that they do not have to trade in their machines ... as they are running just fine, just like the new machines they had in the beginning (again according to the word of many of those iPad 2 users) and ALSO those users who buy an iPad 2 right now - TODAY - from Apple ... they will get a two year warranty (if they wish to get it) and they WILL BE SUPPORTED BY APPLE, UNDER THAT WARRANTY for those two additional years. That clearly tells you that Apple expects they will successfully provide their customer support for that period of time!

We'll see ... but even so ... the FACT REMAINS that those iPad 2 users will get their full two years of APPLE SUPPORT to keep their machines fully functional and running properly under iOS 8.1 (the new one coming out) for the full TWO YEARS of the warranty that they can get!

Cbiz50 wrote:

 

I did contact Apple Support...they are not able to help online as my warranty is expired. I will use the link provided here on the forum to give feedback. I am sure they are concerned about the iPad2 users.

Keep in mind you CAN GET Apple Support even if your original warranty has expired. I happened to "pay ahead of time" for my extended warranty service, so I "did pay" ... but I had to guess as to whether I would need it or not. If I never used the warranty service, that would be money that I paid in that I never got any service for it. But it was good insurance. In your case, you ONLY PAY on an item-by-item case WHEN YOU ACTUALLY NEED IT ... so you're getting exactly what you pay for ... for your Apple Support, as opposed to me, when I don't know if I'll even use it, you see ... :-) ...

the IOS made my iphone 4s slow but with my IPAD 2 is bearable unusable ... the funny thing is, things like that dont make me run and buy a new hardware, makes thinks twice about next time choose a company that does let me downgrade the OS if i want to.  This come from a person who already had 4 iphones , 4 macbooks and 2 ipads!

Phillip, I'm glad you raised the observation that all companies face the issue of the unsuitability of newer operating systems for older hardware generations. But there is a huge disparity in how different companies handle that situation. Let's just take one example, Microsoft.

There are two distinct differences in the way Microsoft handles such rollouts:

1) Before you install a new operating system on an MS device, you get the option of running a pre-test on your device to determine if it is capable of running the new OS. If not, you are warned IN ADVANCE for YOUR MACHINE that you should not install that OS.

2) In such situations, you will still be able to keep your device on the old OS. They do not render your device inoperable by forcing you to install the new OS and not even giving you the option of keeping your older OS. At present in my case, I have an older PC that is running very nicely on Windows 7, and a newer one running Windows 8. And on the Windows 8 machine, when I converted to Windows 8, I did not have to spend hours or days resetting, restoring, or countless other technical gymnastics in the process.

I happen to be brand-agnostic. I own two iPhones and two iPads, and up until iOS8, I have been a very happy Apple customer. But this has been a real disaster. And no amount of cheerleading and advice that wastes my time because it doesn't fix the problem is going to change that fact.

virtualgeo wrote:

 

Phillip, I'm glad you raised the observation that all companies face the issue of the unsuitability of newer operating systems for older hardware generations. But there is a huge disparity in how different companies handle that situation. Let's just take one example, Microsoft.

 

There are two distinct differences in the way Microsoft handles such rollouts:

 

1) Before you install a new operating system on an MS device, you get the option of running a pre-test on your device to determine if it is capable of running the new OS. If not, you are warned IN ADVANCE for YOUR MACHINE that you should not install that OS.

2) In such situations, you will still be able to keep your device on the old OS. They do not render your device inoperable by forcing you to install the new OS and not even giving you the option of keeping your older OS. At present in my case, I have an older PC that is running very nicely on Windows 7, and a newer one running Windows 8. And on the Windows 8 machine, when I converted to Windows 8, I did not have to spend hours or days resetting, restoring, or countless other technical gymnastics in the process.

 

I happen to be brand-agnostic. I own two iPhones and two iPads, and up until iOS8, I have been a very happy Apple customer. But this has been a real disaster. And no amount of cheerleading and advice that wastes my time because it doesn't fix the problem is going to change that fact.

Absolutely spot on !!!

If you have "Feedback" for Apple, they have provided a spot for you to give "Feedback" ... it's the following link ...

Product Feedback

https://www.apple.com/feedback/

If you have a problem, in which you are seeking a solution for it, in terms of another user here giving you one ... then this is the spot. We're "users helping other users" here ... and it's for people asking about a solution and being provided one by another user.

However, if another user or several users don't have any solutions for you, then there is Apple Support for dealing with the issue. It's the following links ...

Apple Support

http://www.apple.com/support/

Apple Retail Store - Genius Bar

http://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar/

BUT ... if you merely have an idea about "policies" for Apple, how they should do things, what they are not doing, what they are doing ... then Apple has set up a spot for you ... which IS NOT on this Forum ... it's the following link ...

Product Feedback

https://www.apple.com/feedback/

You'll find that rants and comments about policy or what Apple should do or what Apple is doing ... are all VIOLATIONS of the TERMS of USE for this forum!

Apple Support Communities Terms of Use

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-5952

Community Etiquette

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-6082

Apple Website Terms of Use

http://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/terms/site.html

Well I decided to take your advice and contact Apple Support. When i was typing in the history and problems I have been having with the iPad 2 operating on iOS 8.02 and just got through explaining about it locking up,the iPad 2 locked up after spending about ten minutes typing the details. I waited about ten more minutes thinking that my unlock itself, it did not. So when I reset the iPad 2 I loat the complete message to Apple Support. So that suggestion did not work either.

You might try a phone call considering that you're typing on the iPad that is giving you the problem. But if you did want to type, use your desktop computer to access Apple Support. Of course, there is always the route where you see the Apple Genius in person at the Genius Bar.

Apple you are despicable for releasing an upgrade which would render older devices sluggish and inefficient.  I used to love my iPad mini and now I want to hurl it back to you because it's slow and at times unresponsive.  all I would like is to downgrade to iOS 7 And your greed won't allow for that.  Apple - why are you disappointing your customers?  I just bought this iPad a few years ago and now what?  i see why people move to other brands!  Apple - I'm falling out of love with you ... And worse ... I'm kind of hating you.  You drop a pretty penny on a device - your release a new operating system and now your device is crap!!!