iOS 9 on the iPad Mini 2?

[zlogs]

Do not upgrade a mini 2 to IOS9. When IOS9 GM came out, I tried it on my mini 2 (previously had IOS 8.1.2).

It turned a perfectly good tablet with butter smooth animations, transitions, web browsing and app loading and stability it to utterly a complete disaster.

Gave it 3 days and could not deal with the lag, slow fps animations and transitions, 1-2 second delay when you touch clicked an app just for it to start and load. Then there were longer load times for apps because they're optimized for IOS 8 not at all for IOS 9. Since the mini 2 has A7 processor and less than a gig of ram for useable memory, IOS 9 cannot stay loaded into ram to keep things smooth because there is not much of it.

I play Beach Buggy Blitz Racing (first one that came out) and it warns you when there is low memory before continuing into the game to play it. Never saw that error ever before in IOS 8. I even had everything in the task switcher closed out (which by the way lags as well). In IOS 9 I got the low memory error in game.

In game I would get pauses/freezes which is called "hitching" every random amount of seconds.

Crossy Roads loads in exactly 12 seconds for me on Mini 2 and Air 1 using IOS 8. On mini 2 with IOS 9, it took over 30 seconds every single time to load it even after 3 days for the OS to settle.

Also the new IOS 9 keyboard likes to lag and cause all kinds of problems while typing on it because it has more functionality that is automated.

Keyboard on IOS 8 is more simplistic and I can type way faster on it because it keeps up (using it now on my Air 1 running IOS 8.2)

All you will gain in IOS 9 is the side menu app load where you can use apps that support it on side of screen, but main app in main big window on screen is paused and your locked out of it until you close side screen loaded app.

Also you get PiP video which is cool but not worth it to lose performance and basic smooth functionality like in IOS 8. Also tested several times, my Mini 2 would only last 11 hours screen on with usage.

When I restored my mini 2 back to IOS 8.4.1 using the DFU method then restoring iCloud backup, everything was smooth and perfect again making it feel like a brand new top of the line device compared to the messy IOS 9.

Also there is a IOS 9 bug that won't let you login to your Messages and FaceTime apps, no work around and your stuck without it. Also now there is a glitch with Game Center where it does not work when in the main application and lags in game while loading along with game being played.

Trust me it's not worth it, besides in IOS 8.4.1, 30-40 percent gaming, 50 percent web browsing, and 10-20 percent YouTube, music, and networking tools my last usage time with screen on was 13 hours and 15 minutes before 1 percent battery automatic shutdown.

Remember this, IOS 8.4.1 cannot be downgraded to now. Once you go with IOS 9 and realize you hate it like the majority of Apple users across the board (all Apple devices) your stuck with a paper weight that you got to sell.

Just wanted to warn you, my Mini 2 and Air 1 work perfectly on IOS 8 and I want it to stay that way. Never had a single app crash, reload, reset or lockup making device unstable and having to shut it down or reboot.

On IOS 9 did have those problems on mini 2.

You and me I guess, I was to lazy to type out what I experience using iOS 9 on the mini 2 but this sums it up perfectly.

 

[Skyhawk21]

You and me I guess, I was to lazy to type out what I experience using iOS 9 on the mini 2 but this sums it up perfectly.

Thanks and exactly. If no one wants to believe us, they need to go do some research on their own. Tons of YouTube videos that show IOS 9 has many problems and issues compared to IOS 8 not just the lag debate...

 

[EdwardC]

I have 9.0.2 on my iPad 4 and iPad Mini 2 and have turned of motion and background app refresh but still have a little lag when using the task switcher as well. It's not terrible by any means but is not silky smooth either.

 

[icsd08063]

I have 2 ipad mini's 2. I updated both of them to 9.0.1 and the overall lag was noticeable at both of them.
But, here is the problem: i only managed to downgrade one of them before Apple stoped signing 8.4.1.

I can not say that this one ipad running 9.0.2 is useless due to the lag but it is definitely slower than before.
Is there any way of getting this ipad back to 8.4.1? Just to mention, I do have the iOS 8.4.1 backup from the other iPad...
I have the 8.4.1 .ipsw file and i have never jailbreak any of my devices.
Any advice?

 

[ryannel2003]

I just purchased an iPad mini and upgraded to 9 and the only noticeable lag I can see is when using the app switcher. Otherwise it runs fine to me.

 

[Zwhaler]

Funny thing is that mu mini 2 ran iOS 9 smoother than the mini 4 does. I don't get why that is happening.
But yeah Mini 2+iOS9 = awesome.


Kal.

I noticed app switching animation on the mini 4 lagged. That was bizarre...

 

[MrGuder]

Is there any way of getting this ipad back to 8.4.1? Just to mention, I do have the iOS 8.4.1 backup from the other iPad...
I have the 8.4.1 .ipsw file and i have never jailbreak any of my devices.
Any advice?

No, it doesn't matter that you have the ipsw file, Apple is no longer signing therefore Apple will not allow you to revert. I'm sure you can if you jail brake but don't know anything about doing that.

 

[ryannel2003]

Having used iOS 9 on my mini for a few days I can say the most noticeable lag I can see is when using the app switcher and sometimes when I'm running the picture in picture view while watching movies online. Otherwise I'm happy with the performance, though using my mini 2 and iPhone 6S back to back it's obvious the iPhone is a much quicker device. I'll upgrade when they put the A9 chip in the mini form factor with 2GB of RAM. The perfect iPad.

 

[newellj]

Having used iOS 9 on my mini for a few days I can say the most noticeable lag I can see is when using the app switcher and sometimes when I'm running the picture in picture view while watching movies online. Otherwise I'm happy with the performance, though using my mini 2 and iPhone 6S back to back it's obvious the iPhone is a much quicker device. I'll upgrade when they put the A9 chip in the mini form factor with 2GB of RAM. The perfect iPad.

No surprise the 6S with an A9 and 2GB RAM is trouncing the Mini 2.

 

[eclipse01]

I put IOS9 on my mini 3 (basically the same thing) WELL worth it for me.

Love the new picture and picture video feature. I don't really notice to much "sluggishness"

 

[Chocolatemilty]

I'm currently running iOS 9.1 public beta and it's running very well for me. Nice and smooth.

 

[whodatrr]

Working fine for me. No problems I've noticed.

 

[Jeff R]

Works fine on my mini 2. I update all my devices every year to keep apps up to date. What's the point of having out dated apps? That's just me though.

 

[Skyhawk21]

How does updating an OS for Apple help you stay up to date on apps that you download and update separately from the app store?

I hope this is not the reason you upgraded to IOS9! Because the included apps and apps from the app store are not 100 percent functional due to all of the dam bugs, glitches, issues and lag plus delays!

Works fine on my mini 2. I update all my devices every year to keep apps up to date. What's the point of having out dated apps? That's just me though.

 

[pika2000]

I installed it on my mini 2 once 9.0.2 was out. Updated via iTunes, in place (not clean format).
So far, it works okay. It feels a tiny bit laggier, especially when trying to launch search/spotlight, but it is still pretty smooth. I don't feel anything to be significantly slower. Safari is fine. Mail is okay, and seems to crash less often than iOS 8. Slide view works, although not many apps support it yet. I'm still surprised that my old iPad 2 can do the floating video, although youtube doesn't work with it yet.

I think it's a safe update. As usual, best way is to backup your iPad and do a clean slate, and restore your contents back. But my in-place updated iPad seems to be running fine. I have not experienced any glitches yet. The slide view made me want to get the iPad Air 2/iPad Pro so I can do actual side-by-side apps.

 

[Jeff R]

How does updating an OS for Apple help you stay up to date on apps that you download and update separately from the app store?

I hope this is not the reason you upgraded to IOS9! Because the included apps and apps from the app store are not 100 percent functional due to all of the dam bugs, glitches, issues and lag plus delays!

That's right! If previous apps you downloaded aren't compatible with the current OS, obviously, the developers need an update to their app to keep up.

 

[newellj]

How does updating an OS for Apple help you stay up to date on apps that you download and update separately from the app store?

I hope this is not the reason you upgraded to IOS9! Because the included apps and apps from the app store are not 100 percent functional due to all of the dam bugs, glitches, issues and lag plus delays!

That's an enormous exaggeration. I've currently got an Air 2 and a Mini 2 on 8.4.1 and a Mini 4 on 9.0.2. There are now quite a few apps that have updated for iOS 9, so I can compare them and none of the apps I'm using on the Mini 4 have got "all of the dam bugs, glitches [and] issues." I am not going to engage in an argument about "lag plus delays" in this thread.

 

[Skyhawk21]

Okay... I was not replying to any of your posts in this thread. So do not argue then!

I returned a mini 4 due to IOS 9 and its issues plus 3rd party apps not working well with the OS.

That's an enormous exaggeration. I've currently got an Air 2 and a Mini 2 on 8.4.1 and a Mini 4 on 9.0.2. There are now quite a few apps that have updated for iOS 9, so I can compare them and none of the apps I'm using on the Mini 4 have got "all of the dam bugs, glitches [and] issues." I am not going to engage in an argument about "lag plus delays" in this thread.

 

[newellj]

Okay... I was not replying to any of your posts in this thread. So do not argue then!

I returned a mini 4 due to IOS 9 and its issues plus 3rd party apps not working well with the OS.

Which apps? I'm not saying you're wrong; we could be using different apps. Can you describe what didn't work well? I also think it's not too shocking that some of the 3rd party devs have problems initially even with the beta period to try to shake out problems. I haven't kept track but I'm pretty sure that I've seen three or four updates for some of the apps I use since iOS was officially released.

 

[hi.there]

It has been fine for me so far, except for 2 issues. Initially, wifi was horrendous. So much so that I didn't use the iPad for a week. It made me want to fling it out the window. Then I looked it up online and tried a few of the things an article suggested, like changing the DNS, etc. That seems to have fixed it. The second issue(which still persists) is when you select text and click on speak, the speed of the speech is crazy fast, even though I haven't made any changes in accessibility. It's so fast you can barely make out what's being said.

So other that, everything's running well. Animations and switching between apps could be smoother. But coming from Android, frankly, I'm surprised that after a year of heavy usage, performance has only depreciated about 10-15%.

 

[mtneer]

I had my iPad 3 on iOS 5 until about 6 months ago when many apps completely stopped working. My iPad Mini 2 is still on iOS 7, it will do fine with the apps I have and use for another year and a half at least. By then, I will just buy the next iPad instead of enduring Apple's "upgrade".

 

[newellj]

My Touch 5 is still on 7.1.2 and it's getting a little annoying. Even my 8.1.5 iPads are throwing off a lot of messages when I sync them, though I haven't run into any apps that just plain won't install yet on those...