how do I transfer apps from one ipad to another

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Level 1

9 points

how do I transfer apps from one ipad to another

Let me start off by saying that itunes confuses the crap out of me. I am a moderately saavy tech person and even spent a morning watching youtube tutorials a while back and still I can barely figure what to do in itunes. I get by.

So, my son had an ipad and we have bought an app through the app store that was around 30$. It was an educational thing, so an important one. Got him a new ipad yesterday and now I need that old app to be transferred onto the new ipad. Called the app company who said I needed to do it through itunes. So I hooked up the old ipad to my computer, it opens up itunes and asks if I want to update. I figure yes. Start the update. Says it will take 6 hours. Cancel the update. I click on the ipad icon in the top left and see at the bottom of the next screen, a sync option. I figure, ok, I need to sync this so that the app is now on my computer so I can then transfer it to the new ipad, right? I sync. I unplug the old and plug in the new ipad. I sync again, thinking, ok, now it should be there, right? Nope. I check the app list....it's not there. 5 dozen other stupid kid apps making food and hairstyles...no educational app. I plug the old one back in...this is useless. I can't figure out how to see the educational app on the old ipad through my computer....

What the heck am I doing wrong!?!

iPad Mini, iOS 8.2

Posted on Mar 25, 2015 1:27 PM

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Answer 1

King_Penguin

Level 10

334,138 points

Mar 25, 2015 1:53 PM in response to 6kents

Syncing copies content from your computer's iTunes to the device.

If the app is still in the store then you should be able to redownload it directly on the new iPad via the Purchased tab in its App Store app.

Or, to copy the app from the old iPad (and other any other download that's only on the iPad) connect it to your computer's iTunes and use the File > Devices >Transfer Purchases menu option to copy it over :

To sync it to the new iPad, connect it and select it in iTunes, and select its Apps tab e.g. (if using the current version of iTunes)

On the right-hand side of the screen find that app in the listbox of apps and click the 'Install' button next to it, and then click the apply/sync button bottom right to install it onto the iPad.

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Answer 2

6kents Author

Level 1

9 points

Mar 26, 2015 7:50 AM in response to King_Penguin

Thank you.

I think I've figured out that my issue is concerning the Apple ID's. Between my husband and I, we didn't realize that we'd used two different Apple ID's when downloading apps onto our kids' devices. I can't figure out why the educational app isn't on my account though, because I'm pretty sure it was me that put it on the original ipad.

So, if it was originally downloaded using my husbands Apple ID, and now the new ipad is associated with my Apple ID, we can't transfer it, correct? I don't completely understand the whole Apple ID and associated devices thing, but when I tried to sign out of the the current ID on the new ipad, it said that all the associated data would be deleted. We just had a very expensive speech augmentation app put on the new ipad, before it was delivered to us through our local children's hospital--pretty sure it was my ID that we supplied them with to do this. We can't delete that...it was paid for by the hospital.

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Answer 3

King_Penguin

Level 10

334,138 points

Mar 26, 2015 8:02 AM in response to 6kents

Logging out of an app for the stores (by tapping on it in Settings > iTunes & App Store) shouldn't remove any content (logging out of Settings > iCloud might, but that isn't necessary for downloading store content) - but if you log in with your husband's account and redownload the app then you risk tying the iPad to his account for 90 days : Manage your associated devices in iTunes - Apple Support - that will stop you redownloading a different account's (e.g. yours) purchases for 90 days (I think the 90 days is an attempt to try and stop people, not families, sharing content).

Connecting the old iPad to your computer's iTunes and doing File > Devices > Transfer Purchases should copy it over to the computer, and it should then show on the new iPad's Apps tab (in the listbox for apps) for selecting and syncing to it (click the 'install' button to the app's right, then 'apply' bottom right)

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