I have an iPad-mini that recently turned into a brick, and I don’t know what to do.
Yesterday, while doing a routine software update (I think it was installing a new version of ios), the ipad stopped updating, then the itunes program on my PC shut down. After waiting a good long while, hoping something good would happen, I unplugged the ipad and tried to get it to reboot. No luck. The best I can get is a screen telling me to plug the ipad into my PC and go to support (dot) apple (dot) com/ipad/restore. I have followed the instructions at that url, but nothing happens.
The itunes program on the PC still seems to work fine. I can download podcasts, and everything else seems normal. The problem all seems to be in the ipad.
What are the options, if any? Take it to an apple store?
I uninstalled the Apple Devices app on my PC, and tried to restore the ipad using itunes. I can do a bit more now, but the process still ultimately fails.
When I start up itunes on the PC and plug in the ipad, it gives me a choice to either update or restore the device.
When I choose Update, it begins the process, but fails after a few minutes with an error (75) message. The update stops at that point.
When I choose Restore, it again begins the process, but when it gets to Restoring Firmware, then itunes stops working and shuts down. Nothing happens after that.
I am assuming you backed up you Mini to a Windows Computer with iTunes. If that is wrong, my thoughts do not apply
Sounds to me like your firmware on the iPad and the version of iTunes on your computer do not match – maybe you updated one side but not both at some point in time. If that is true, my guess is you are out of luck.
You certainly can restore the device (A much better word here would be RESET - not restore - edit by gwpotter) - which will give you an iPad like it came from the store, except the iOS version will be a newer version.
If you purchased music, podcasts, or software through the Apple Store, all that stuff can be downloaded again at no cost.
This kind of sitution can be avoided if you backup your iOS devices (Both iPhones and iPads) to iCloud, not a computer. If you have an iPhone you should think about this issue before you need to recover, store the iPhone or purchase a new iPhone.
Here are some links to Apple’s information on your problem. Do keep in mind taking your iPad to an Apple Store will not be enough - you will also have to have the computer on which you have your backup. I expect you know this, but just in case.
Yes, I backed up the iPad-mini with iTunes on the PC. On iTunes, I clicked on Edit - Preferences - Advanced, and saw the “Check for new software updates automatically” box was checked, so I believe I am running the latest version of iTunes.
All I did was agree to the iOS 18.2 download. That was the fatal error.
I have made no changes to the firmware on either the iPad or the PC. I wouldn’t know how to do that, even if I wanted to. I merely synced up the iPad to iTunes on a regular basis, since I download several podcasts through iTunes every day, and then listen to them on either the iPad or another MP3 device I have.
Yes, I have followed the instructions on the other link you provided, but it doesn’t work. I press the home button and top button simultaneously, until I get the screen telling me to plug in the iPad to the computer. I then start iTunes on the PC, and then plug in the iPad. iTunes recognizes that something is plugged in, because I get a screen on the PC saying I can either Update or Restore the device. Choosing Update results in an error message after a few minutes, then everything stops. Choosing Restore eventually results in iTunes shutting down when it gets to the Restoring Firmware screen.
There isn’t anything on the iPad that I can’t live without. All of my music is on the PC with iTunes, and backed up on DVDs or the original CDs. For web surfing, it would take a while to rebuild all of the Safari bookmarks I have saved, but that can be done without too much effort. At this point, I would be happy with an iPad reset to factory condition, so I can start over. But I can’t get the thing to restore.
Would taking it to an Apple store be worth it? I see on Amazon I could get a refurbished iPad for less than $200. Hopefully, those do not come loaded with a bunch of malware and viruses which could infect my PC.
Going directly to Apple for a refurbished iPad is another option, also knowing it is fully checked out… I have no experience of linking a PC to an iPad, but it seems you have done all you could at this point…
I was talking about the iOS updates that regularly happen on your iPad. There have been at least 6 of these in the last 4 months. On happened within the past week.
I bought a piece of software called iMazing, which is supposed to help in restoring iOS to an apple device. It is $40, which is a little pricey, but cheaper than buying a new tablet.
However, there was no guarantee that iMazing was going to actually work at restoring the iPad back to an operable condition. In fact, after a few tries, it looked like it was going to be a failure. The restore still failed when it got to the restoring firmware section. But, this afternoon, I tried one last time, and then the iOS install actually worked. I didn’t do anything different that I am aware of, but iMazing did restore the iPad to factory condition.
I then synced it up with iTunes on my PC, and managed to get back everything that was on the iPad when it bricked up. It even restored all of my Safari bookmarks, so I didn’t lose those.
I guess the big question now is: Do I take a chance the next time Apple comes out with a new version of iOS? I think I am just going to be happy with this version from now on. As the old engineer’s saying goes: If it works, then don’t F with it.
I suspect the issue is equally shared between Microsoft and Apple - Both guys have complex operating systems. It is hard for both companies to just keep their own systems capable of not hitting a glitch with previous/old hardware and software. Trying to avoid issues with 3rd parties is a lot more complex.
If you backup to Apple’s iCloud first it is essentially automatic (you need to be connected to a charger/wire and the system locked). iOS software is never backed up - always downloaded. Email, videos and photos are not backed up for Apple folks and I expect Windows also. Settings and icon locations are backed up, but it is a small amount of data.
The only reason I can think of today for not using iCloud is folks who have really slow and/or really expensive/limited download restrictions.