iOS 7.1 + iPad 2? Should I? Would I?

[Sonicmojo]

Even with iOS 7.1 now out - I am still fighting the good fight - keeping Apple and their OTA update services locked down hard to ensure iOS 6.1.3 stays healthy on my iPad 2...

But - I would like to know if anyone finally gave in and went for 7.1 on their iPad 2?

How is it. Faster? Slower? Worse?

Appreciate any intel from the field.

Cheers,

SOnic

 

[chrispfeiffer21]

Personally I find it very good on my iPad 2. I know others have had mixed results as it seems to vary from device to device. iOS 7.0.x was not too bad, I certainly had lag and stutter, and heavy apps crashed such as Infinty Blade III crashed a lot, but since moving to 7.1, the experience has been much better. I think they must have really done a lot "under-the-hood". Infinity Blade III doesn't drop in frame rate or crash. The animations are not only faster but smoother. And overall it feels more stable.

I would recommend doing the update through iTunes as that seems to just give a more stable result although it is a lot more time consuming.

For a device that has been around since iOS 4, it does alright. What's kept it alive is that the A5 has been used in a multitude of newer devices, and so Apple has no real reason to drop it from its supported device list.

I hope my insight helps a little bit. Good luck!

 

[Paddle1]

The iPad 2 runs iOS 7 fine, it has the same hardware as iPad Mini.

 

[Sonicmojo]

I would recommend doing the update through iTunes as that seems to just give a more stable result although it is a lot more time consuming.

I hope my insight helps a little bit. Good luck!

Awesome. Appreciate the input. I do not game on my device - just do the raw basics...a little bit of Netflix etc from time to time.

Good to hear that it's coming along.

Anyone else?

Sonic.

 

[matttye]

For the love of god, DO IT!

My iPad is alive again!!

I deleted a bunch of stuff at the same time, so can't be sure that didn't contribute... but I was at the point of never using my iPad and getting ready to sell it because of how slow it had become. It's actually a joy to use again now with iOS 7.1.

 

[Paddle1]

Yes, 7.1 is even faster too.

 

[thedeejay]

Even with iOS 7.1 now out - I am still fighting the good fight - keeping Apple and their OTA update services locked down hard to ensure iOS 6.1.3 stays healthy on my iPad 2...

But - I would like to know if anyone finally gave in and went for 7.1 on their iPad 2?

How is it. Faster? Slower? Worse?

Appreciate any intel from the field.

Cheers,

SOnic

Worth it!

 

[multicore]

7.1 noticeably faster on my iPad2.

 

[gumblecosby]

I thought iOS 6 was poor on the iPad 2. It introduced a lot of lag in comparison to iOS 5. iOS 7 is no worse than 6 for responsiveness. It has been good so far. Battery life has been the same i.e. long. The wifi drivers are more reliable. I personally had big problems with connection drop outs with certain routers using iOS 6 that are not there on either iOS 5 or iOS 7.

My favourite iOS 7 feature for the iPad 2 -> iPhone apps scale better. They don't look pixelated greatly increasing the legibility of text.

It all comes down to whether or not you can live with the new look.

 

[pdutta2000]

Add me to the list of iOS 7.1 users on the iPad 2. I love it. Much faster than iOS 7. My kids use the ipad 2 a lot to watch multiple tv apps (Disney junior, PBS kids, etc) and it no longer freezes when they keep switching between the apps. I used to have to constantly close apps. Now it works like it did 2 years ago. Great update. This is why I buy Apple.

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

Best update in ages for the iPad2. Much faster and more responsive.

 

[Dino F]

I also have to agree that iOS 7.1 runs really nice and fast on my iPad 2.

iOS 7 used to be real glitchy on my iPad 2 - the animations of zooming in and out of apps and folders would glitch half way through and sometimes would take a few seconds to respond however, now with iOS 7.1, as soon as I tap on a folder or app - I get the zooming animation straight away!! Its even faster than on my iPhone 5...!??!?!

 

[Sonicmojo]

Alrighty! Now that it seems we have some very positive reports on how this works on the iPad2 - next up - installation.

Of those of you who feel like this is the best thing since sliced bread on your iPad 2 - how do you recommend a guy best go about the install?

Super Clean - as in restore iPad to factory fresh with iOS7.1 or...just leave 6.1.3 in place and let the iOS7 installed rip right over top?

Also - is it possible to backup ALL my settings etc, somehow do a clean install and then somehow restore the settings - or will I have to commit some time to redo my email, network, apps...yadda yadda...?

Appreciate any tips on how you did you upgrade to arrive at best performance.

Cheers!

Sonic

 

[dannyyankou]

Alrighty! Now that it seems we have some very positive reports on how this works on the iPad2 - next up - installation.

Of those of you who feel like this is the best thing since sliced bread on your iPad 2 - how do you recommend a guy best go about the install?

Super Clean - as in restore iPad to factory fresh with iOS7.1 or...just leave 6.1.3 in place and let the iOS7 installed rip right over top?

Also - is it possible to backup ALL my settings etc, somehow do a clean install and then somehow restore the settings - or will I have to commit some time to redo my email, network, apps...yadda yadda...?

Appreciate any tips on how you did you upgrade to arrive at best performance.

Cheers!

Sonic

I always do a clean install, but you shouldn't have a problem with updating OTA or through iTunes without restoring.

 

[MrMike6by9]

iOS 7.1 + iPad 2? Should I? Would I?

I did a over-the-air/wifi update to 7.1 (from 7.0.6) on my iPad 2. It went well. I'm using it now for this reply. YMMV

 

[mattopotamus]

Just chiming in that 7.1 runs just fine on my ipad 2

 

[Richardgm]

I jumped from 6.1 to 7.1.

I bought the iPad 2 with iOS 5. It performed fantastically. Upgraded to iOS 6 and performance never took a hit.

With iOS 7.1 animations and frame rates took a hit.

Also I've noticed more pixelation across the OS mostly because of the iOS 7 redesign.

 

[Isamilis]

Is there any significant differences compared to 706 with few performance tweaks installed (ie. no slow animation, fakeclockup and nitro)?
Still thinking whether this upgrade worthed for returning to jailed...

 

[navodwickra]

I had 7.1 beta on my iPad 2 and it was not bad at all.

 

[aphexacid]

This is exactly what I came to see.

I have a newer model (2nd version with shrunken A5). It's got tremendous battery life

I have 6.13 with no problems at all. However I've been using ios7 on my iPhones for so long now, it's pretty shocking to go back and use my iPad 2. But I'll deal with it if battery life stinks. Any ideas?

 

[YanniDepp]

Also I've noticed more pixelation across the OS mostly because of the iOS 7 redesign.

I came here to say this.

iOS 6 and below were designed to look good on screens with big pixels. They used a lot of shadows, gradients and anti-aliasing to make it look smoother.

iOS 7 is designed for retina screens, with its thin text and smooth shapes. It works well on the iPad 2, but it doesn't look that smooth. For me, the most annoying thing isn't the text. It's the fact that rounded corners on buttons and pop-up boxes look rough.

 

[Sonicmojo]

Well - I went for 7.1 last night. Did the upgrade via iTunes so I could backup everything etc prior to going for it - it's all good. The device feels nice a snappy, all my stuff was preserved.

Thanks all.

Sonic.

 

[deluxeshredder]

I came here to say this.

iOS 6 and below were designed to look good on screens with big pixels. They used a lot of shadows, gradients and anti-aliasing to make it look smoother.

iOS 7 is designed for retina screens, with its thin text and smooth shapes. It works well on the iPad 2, but it doesn't look that smooth. For me, the most annoying thing isn't the text. It's the fact that rounded corners on buttons and pop-up boxes look rough.

It's actually exactly the opposite - classic iOS is far more Retina-demanding.