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Oct 19, 2011
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I have an ipad 2 and heard mixed reviews about updating to iOS 8. I'm currently running 7.1.2. Just wondering if people have thoughts on this? Or if I should stick with 7. Trying to hang on to my ipad 2 for as long as it goes and I don't want to bog it down if I don't need to. Thanks for any comments!
 
I also have an iPad 2, and read mixed reviews. I would also like to know if anyone who has iPad 2 has upgraded yet. My main concern is that the "health book" apps will take up a lot of room, when I have no intention of using it.

Thanks

Sarah
 
I did a clean restore on my iPad 2 and it has slowed down my iPad, a lot. I have a lot of problems with stuttering, slow wi-fi speeds and safari is a real PIA...

I can live with it, but if you can't live with slower performance across the iPad (most notably safari & wi-fi speeds), then hold on until they fix the issues..

They released 8.1.1 to developers today/yesterday, which is focused on stability and improvement specifically on iPad 2 and 4s...

I would hold out until there is definite agreement on the MR forums, that the newest release will improve performance and stability on the iPad 2..
 
I also have an iPad 2, and read mixed reviews. I would also like to know if anyone who has iPad 2 has upgraded yet. My main concern is that the "health book" apps will take up a lot of room, when I have no intention of using it.

Thanks

Sarah
There is no healthbook app on iPad.
 
No, don't do it.

It's bad on any iPhone below the 5 and any iPad below the 4th gen. Just stick with iOS 7 for now, until at least 8.1.1 gets released and see, though i'm doubtful anything will be significantly improved.
 
No, not yet. I did, and 8.0 was a disaster. 8.1 improved mine measurable, but many folks still seeing issues. 8.1.1 supposedly has improvements for iPad2, but best wait and see. If you don't need any of the 'updated' stuff, i would hold off.
 
Thanks for all the responses. Looks like a good idea to wait!
 
So has performance actually improved??

I'm desperate to know!!

i asked this question on the 8.1.1 beta thread and no one replied. I assume no one has yet run 8.1.1 on their iPad 2 to confirm either way...

I am getting desperate too..
 
I wouldn't recommend upgrading.

I have an old iPad 2 running 8.1. It's a stock install with no apps or services setup whatsoever. There is a ton of UI lag. Opening Safari you count the time it takes to be usable in many seconds. Typing in the keyboard there's lag with every key tap. It's a truly awful experience.

Apparently 8.1.1 may solve some of these problems but I remain to be convinced it will make a significant difference. IMO iOS 8 should never have been made available to users of the iPad 2.
 
my iPad 2 still-runs swiftly on iOS 6 :)

and is only missing a million features or security improvements and looks like its from 2007, oh wait. :D
8.1.1 is ment to improve performance for older devices. There is only so much Apple can do with 512MB ram and a dual core processor thats 3-4 generations old. I'm amazed they even support it at all.
 
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I wouldn't recommend upgrading.

I have an old iPad 2 running 8.1. It's a stock install with no apps or services setup whatsoever. There is a ton of UI lag. Opening Safari you count the time it takes to be usable in many seconds. Typing in the keyboard there's lag with every key tap. It's a truly awful experience.

Apparently 8.1.1 may solve some of these problems but I remain to be convinced it will make a significant difference. IMO iOS 8 should never have been made available to users of the iPad 2.

iOS 8 should have been made available on the iPad 2 given its the most used iPad model with 27% of the iPad market share, however they should have decided to wait to release it for older devices till they had the time to optimise it.
 
Safari is better with 8.1.1 beta but there are still bugs everywhere. Wish I could revert back to 7.1.2.
 
I just installed the 8.1.1 beta on my old iPad 2 (now used by my kids) and its a marked improvement on 8.0 and 8.1. Most of the keyboard lag is gone (swapping from characters to symbols cause a noticeable pause) and general performance, including Safari, was improved.
 
I just installed the 8.1.1 beta on my old iPad 2 (now used by my kids) and its a marked improvement on 8.0 and 8.1. Most of the keyboard lag is gone (swapping from characters to symbols cause a noticeable pause) and general performance, including Safari, was improved.

Thanks for the heads up.... Have wifi speeds improved as well??!
 
iOS 8 should have been made available on the iPad 2 given its the most used iPad model with 27% of the iPad market share, however they should have decided to wait to release it for older devices till they had the time to optimise it.

Sure, if they have finally found a way to make the iPad 2 usable again then what you suggest would be reasonable. I'm still skeptical.

Marketshare should be largely irrelevant in the decision. Giving 27% of your users a terrible degraded experience just because more than a quarter of all iPad users are using a particular model is not acceptable.

I can tell you two people in my family have turned off all auto updates as a result of the iOS 8 debacle on their devices. They now know what a risk updating can be and they are going to be very cautious about doing it in the future. Long term this is bad for Apple.
 
Sure, if they have finally found a way to make the iPad 2 usable again then what you suggest would be reasonable. I'm still skeptical.

Marketshare should be largely irrelevant in the decision. Giving 27% of your users a terrible degraded experience just because more than a quarter of all iPad users are using a particular model is not acceptable.

I can tell you two people in my family have turned off all auto updates as a result of the iOS 8 debacle on their devices. They now know what a risk updating can be and they are going to be very cautious about doing it in the future. Long term this is bad for Apple.

Thats just the point. Given their market share for the 2 is so high, they should have optimised iOS 8 for the iPad 2. There are something like 60% of iPad users on A5 devices similar to the iPad 2, so optimisation should have been a focus.

Its also not acceptable to stand 27 percent of your users on an outdated version of iOS, which is already loosing out on App compadiblity especially when they were sold less than a year ago.

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I just installed the 8.1.1 beta on my old iPad 2 (now used by my kids) and its a marked improvement on 8.0 and 8.1. Most of the keyboard lag is gone (swapping from characters to symbols cause a noticeable pause) and general performance, including Safari, was improved.

This is exciting!! Are animations smoother now?
 
Its also not acceptable to stand 27 percent of your users on an outdated version of iOS, which is already loosing out on App compadiblity especially when they were sold less than a year ago.

I think if you asked the majority of users what they care most about - a smooth experience without UI lag everywhere, or compatibility with the latest apps and updates that are iOS 8 only, they'd choose the former. Moreso when you consider how few apps the average person installs on their devices.
 
How about an ipad mini 1? Worth the upgrade or not? Haven't read anyone upgrading.

Still a fairly new product.
 
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