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saxman211

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 12, 2010
258
58
I just got an iPad mini 2 that's running iOS 7. How does OS 9.3.1 run on it? Should I upgrade? Or stay with iOS 7??
 

C DM

macrumors Sandy Bridge
Oct 17, 2011
51,392
19,461
Is there anything from iOS 9 or 8 that you are looking for (any particular new features or anything like that) or anything that you aren't getting from iOS 7 in particular?
 

saxman211

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 12, 2010
258
58
Is there anything from iOS 9 or 8 that you are looking for (any particular new features or anything like that) or anything that you aren't getting from iOS 7 in particular?

I'm curious about night light and all of the other features that have been added since iOS 7, but I've heard horror stories about the upgrade from iPad mini 2... So I'm a bit nervous... I'm fine with iOS 7. Just wondering if I should upgrade
 

Applerx

macrumors member
Sep 12, 2015
37
6
I just bought an iPad Mini 2 that came with 9.3.1. I can't compare it to iOS 7 but compared to my iPhone 6 with 9.3.1 it is slower, probably because of the older hardware.
The iPad is not laggy but opening apps etc. takes a little longer, not annoyingly long but noticeable. Everything else is working without any problems.
 

saudor

macrumors 68000
Jul 18, 2011
1,511
2,114
I'd keep it on 7 unless you have an iPhone and want to use features like sms and call forwarding
 

alphonseM

macrumors member
Mar 29, 2014
85
38
Keeping it on iOS7 seriously limits the number of apps available though.
 
Last edited:

crashoverride77

macrumors 65816
Jan 27, 2014
1,234
213
You should be fine now, iOS 9.3 fixed most performance issues.
I would upgrade just for the full disk encryption and other security issues that haven't been patched in 2.5 years.
There is also some nice features since iOS 8 and 9 that you are missing (too many to list)
[doublepost=1462723813][/doublepost]
I'd keep it on 7 unless you have an iPhone and want to use features like sms and call forwarding

Or all the other features you haven't listed. What about app support, encryption or all the missing security patches from the last 2.5 years.? Terrible advice
 
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magicMac

macrumors 65816
Apr 13, 2010
1,012
427
UK
The horror stories you've heard are most probably fabricated like the recent article about Apple Music deleting people's whole libraries. My friend has an iPad mini 2 and it runs just perfect on iOS 9.3.1.
 
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saudor

macrumors 68000
Jul 18, 2011
1,511
2,114
You should be fine now, iOS 9.3 fixed most performance issues.
I would upgrade just for the full disk encryption and other security issues that haven't been patched in 2.5 years.
There is also some nice features since iOS 8 and 9 that you are missing (too many to list)
[doublepost=1462723813][/doublepost]

Or all the other features you haven't listed. What about app support, encryption or all the missing security patches from the last 2.5 years.? Terrible advice

My iPad 2 running ios7 is faster than my air 2 running iOS 9.3.1. Definitely YMMV here. Same deal with the 5S. There's stuttering pretty much everywhere and Siri is invoked simply by unlocking with Touch ID. Even as I type this, there is keyboard lag on the air2. (Stock keyboard). It's fine if I type slow, but speeding it up = becomes unresponsive

Some of us don't want laggy devices and take precautions to not connect to random open networks. Point is.. If what you want to do all works on 7, why upgrade just for "better security" in exchange for an almost unusable device? obviously, if you need later versions/features that they provide, then upgrade.

iOS devices aren't PCs/running Windows. Security isn't that big of a deal as it is with running something like windows xp. Heck even the old windows xp laptop not even running the latest SP3 is still doing just fine exposed to the Internet (definitely not the best idea but it hasn't died since 2007)
 
Last edited:

C DM

macrumors Sandy Bridge
Oct 17, 2011
51,392
19,461
My iPad 2 running ios7 is faster than my air 2 running iOS 9.3.1. Definitely YMMV here. Same deal with the 5S. There's stuttering pretty much everywhere and Siri is invoked simply by unlocking with Touch ID. Even as I type this, there is keyboard lag on the air2. (Stock keyboard). It's fine if I type slow, but speeding it up = becomes unresponsive

Some of us don't want laggy devices and take precautions to not connect to random open networks. Point is.. If what you want to do all works on 7, why upgrade just for "better security" in exchange for an almost unusable device? obviously, if you need later versions/features that they provide, then upgrade.

iOS devices aren't PCs/running Windows. Security isn't that big of a deal as it is with running something like windows xp. Heck even the old windows xp laptop not even running the latest SP3 is still doing just fine exposed to the Internet (definitely not the best idea but it hasn't died since 2007)
To be fair, there's a whole spectrum and quite a bit of difference between some animation stutters in some places and "almost unusable device". That said, as is pretty much usually the case, there are also some certainly can and do have some more issues than others or more pronounced issues then others.
 

saudor

macrumors 68000
Jul 18, 2011
1,511
2,114
To be fair, there's a whole spectrum and quite a bit of difference between some animation stutters in some places and "almost unusable device". That said, as is pretty much usually the case, there are also some certainly can and do have some more issues than others or more pronounced issues then others.

Indeed. Actually the animation stutters don't bother me. The unlock lag on the 5s is not even animation. There's just no response for about 2-3 seconds and then Siri gets triggered instead of unlocking the phone. It was actually gone in 9.2 and came back in 9.3.

Meanwhile on the air 2, it's like the touch sensor is completely dead as it sometimes takes several taps on the key for it to actually show up. Maybe it's a 64 bit thing. Never had issues on the iPad 4 - even on 9.3 (aside from animation stutters which again is fine) The iPhone 5 ran smooth too.

The iPad 2 on 7 is essentially flawless (for me)
 

archvile

macrumors 6502
Oct 27, 2007
470
609
My iPad 2 running ios7 is faster than my air 2 running iOS 9.3.1. Definitely YMMV here. Same deal with the 5S. There's stuttering pretty much everywhere and Siri is invoked simply by unlocking with Touch ID. Even as I type this, there is keyboard lag on the air2. (Stock keyboard). It's fine if I type slow, but speeding it up = becomes unresponsive

Some of us don't want laggy devices and take precautions to not connect to random open networks. Point is.. If what you want to do all works on 7, why upgrade just for "better security" in exchange for an almost unusable device? obviously, if you need later versions/features that they provide, then upgrade.

iOS devices aren't PCs/running Windows. Security isn't that big of a deal as it is with running something like windows xp. Heck even the old windows xp laptop not even running the latest SP3 is still doing just fine exposed to the Internet (definitely not the best idea but it hasn't died since 2007)


Something's wrong with your devices then. Software or hardware issue. My 5S runs flawlessly on 9.3 and I have a ton of work apps installed. Runs smooth as butter and no problems with battery.


I think your idea of iOS device security not being a big deal is hugely misplaced and quite frankly just wrong. These are ultra portable devices carrying vast amounts of personal information that run an incredibly higher risk of being stolen or lost, so of course security should be absolutely forefront and the devices should be as locked down as possible.

It's not just about a security flaw or browser exploit, it's also about someone getting physical access to your device and breaking into it or stealing data from it without your consent. They implement security features such as full disk encryption for a reason.

edit: typos
 

nburwell

macrumors 603
May 6, 2008
5,553
2,459
DE
My Mini 2 runs perfectly find on iOS 9.3.1. When my fiancée purchased it for me for Christmas, iOS 7 was installed on it. Initially I was hesitant to install iOS 9, each update has run smooth on my Mini 2. You shouldn't have any concerns updating it to 9.3.1.
 

saxman211

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 12, 2010
258
58
Hmmm.... You guys seem to be happy for the most part. Don't know why I'm so hesitant. Maybe I'll do it today. I just hate it when my device slows down and I can't go back to what I've had.
 
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