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Other uses for an obsolete ipad.


Tracker

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Thanks to Apple's policy of not supporting older kit by building in the inability to update 'em or sync 'em to a PC or even use email I now have a very well travelled 12 year old ipad unfit for purpose even though the hardware works perfectly and that alone is testament to Apple's build quality.

GMaps still seem to work OK and I still get a good internet connection for browsing so maybe all is not lost as use as a rolling mobile map beckons - but it needs an internet connection to do that and that means tethering which could be more expensive than it's worth?

It's the wrong shape as a plate for me fish and chips, and it's too heavy to use as an eye pad, so has anyone any great ideas what to do with it - other than shove it deep and dark into a suitable place!

 

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You could load the various "sheets" of Maps ME for Apple, a free program/app.

 

This is a mapping system that once the maps are downloaded they can be used "off line" so then not need any connection wifi or mobile.

I use it on my bikes where by using in my case an old phone it would not be a great loss if bounced or stolen. I have to use a power bank on longer rides as that phone's battery is way past its best. Mine is Android but as said they do an Apple version which I assume has the same or much the same features.

 

Maps ME uses the phone's GPS to place your position on the map, and the app even allows a bit of route planning though not a feature I bother with.

Each map sheet covers a big chunk and the app seamlessly stiches those you download together.

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It’s perhaps worth highlighting that - If Tracker’s elderly iPad is a wi-fi-only model - it won’t have a built-in GPS capability.

 

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/250953594

 

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/252033072

 

Other suggestions here

 

https://tinyurl.com/shxh9m5m

 

(Not sure this is a valid thread for the Motorhome Matters forum, but there’s no point it being on Chatterbox with the politicophiles.)

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Robinhood - 2021-10-28 4:33 PM

 

Tracker - 2021-10-28 3:57 PM

 

Thanks RH - just off to buy myself an iguana!!

...is that to replace the dead hamster?...

 

No, the hamster is alive and well and fattening up nice for Christmas due the shortage of turkeys but if the Iguana dies I do now have another use for the ipad after Christmas!

 

Didn't there used to be a book - '101 uses for a dead ipad'?

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Old iPad are useful to store photos, slides shows, and downloaded films, or just as data storage.

 

I have slideshows of old holidays on mine which I link to, and show through a better screen.

 

I also store Disney films etc to entertain grand daughters.

 

Still works for this after years of use.

 

Peter

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peterjl - 2021-10-29 10:35 PM

 

Old iPad are useful to store photos, slides shows, and downloaded films, or just as data storage.

 

I have slideshows of old holidays on mine which I link to, and show through a better screen.

 

I also store Disney films etc to entertain grand daughters.

 

Still works for this after years of use.

 

Peter

 

Which is fine if Apple will let you sync to a pc or similar to download photos etc - if not how else do you get 'stuff' onto an obsolete but working ipad?

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Tracker - 2021-10-29 11:02 PM

 

Which is fine if Apple will let you sync to a pc or similar to download photos etc - if not how else do you get 'stuff' onto an obsolete but working ipad?

 

Not being an "Apple" products person I have limited knowledge of what they inhibit or allow, but suspect they must offer some access to a "cloud" based transfer, one that can be accessed by both PC and their technologies?

 

Then send tranche by tranche packets up to either the chosen cloud's or devices storage limits.

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Syncing between an iPad and a Windows PC is covered here

 

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/ipad/ipadae9bab3e/ipados

 

and file-transfer is covered here

 

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/ipad/ipad32dd03cd/13.0/ipados/13.0

 

The advised methods seem to require that the iPad be running iPadOS 13 or higher and - as iPadOS 13 was released in 2019 - they may not work with Tracker’s 2009 iPad if it was not updated when iPadOS 13 became available.

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According to Wickipedia the 1st-generation iPad was released in April 2010 and Apple (apparently) only fully supported it for a very short period.

 

This 2020 thread discusses the potential 'technical' capabilities of a 1st-generation iPad nowadays.

 

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251485488

 

I have a 2010-purchased iMac desktop computer running the macOS "Sierra" operating system. That system is as 'modern' as my iMac can accept and, unsurprisingly, Apple has not supported it with security upgrades or enhancements for several years.

 

Some applications that used to function OK on my iMac now do not work properly or work unpredictably, but the machine is still sufficient for my needs most of the time and I have a more recent IPad that I can fall back on if I have to.

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Thanks Derek, I really appreciate your help.

My son, as an Apple fan, is more readily willing to pay the cost of using their up to date kit than I as his needs are primarily occupation related and he reckons Apple systems are far superior to MS for his purpose.

He's looked at my ipad and thinks that, as Apple say, due to the OS being 9.3.5 it is too old to sync with itunes and my pc and he too just says it's easier to chuck it and buy a new one.

The ipad, old though it is, worked perfectly well enough for my now very limited 'away from home' needs as all I want is email access, web surfing, access and photo transfer from pc to ipad.

But Apple will not let me sync to update photos or anything else and no matter what I do gmail will no longer work reliably. I can add my gmail a/c to the ipad again and it works once, then fails to work again unless I delete it and add it again. If that ain't caused by Apple I wonder what is causing it?

Maybe I should try a different email provider, but my poor old brain cell is struggling with understanding it all?

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A GOOGLE-search on "old iPad gmail problems" retrieves a lot of stuff including this

 

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/250358602

 

There may now be an incompatibility between the gmail application and your iPad's OS and it's applications. You could try deleting everything from your iPad that might possibly affect gmail and reinstall from scratch. I rarely use gmail, but my old iMac seems happy enough with it when I do.

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Tracker - 2021-10-29 11:02 PM

 

peterjl - 2021-10-29 10:35 PM

 

Old iPad are useful to store photos, slides shows, and downloaded films, or just as data storage.

 

I have slideshows of old holidays on mine which I link to, and show through a better screen.

 

I also store Disney films etc to entertain grand daughters.

 

Still works for this after years of use.

 

Peter

Which is fine if Apple will let you sync to a pc or similar to download photos etc - if not how else do you get 'stuff' onto an obsolete but working ipad?

Ever had a problem linking iPads to pc’s or Apple Macs. Just use adapter. I use regularly to link old iPad to tv.

 

Peter

 

 

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peterjl - 2021-10-30 8:41 PM

 

Ever had a problem linking iPads to pc’s or Apple Macs. Just use adapter. I use regularly to link old iPad to tv.

 

 

I would if I knew what to use!

 

Linking is one thing, transferring files or data something else and although I see several different types of cables / adapters online I don't understand which does what and whether any of 'em will work for me?

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Links to guidance on syncing/file-transfer between an iPad and PC are in my posting of 30 October 2021 8:44 AM above, and there’s also an Apple Support webpage on cable-connecting an iPad to a Windows PC or a Mac.

 

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/ipad/ipad756c56a8/ipados

 

Once the iPad and PC have been connected by the appropiate cable, the procedure to allow files to be transferred is described here.

 

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/ipad/ipad32dd03cd/15.0/ipados/15.0

 

The hardware features of a 1st Generation iPad are stated here

 

https://www.lifewire.com/first-generation-ipad-hardware-4103854

 

with the following advice given

 

Dock Connector: This wide port on the bottom of the iPad is where you plug in the included USB cable to sync your tablet and your computer. On the 1st gen. iPad, this is the 30-pin connector (later iPads replaced it with the smaller, 9-pin Lightning connector). Some accessories, like speaker docks, connect here, too.

 

Presumably - for a 1st Generation iPad - one would need a cable with a 30-pin connector for the iPad end and the appropriate USB-type connector at the PC end. Perhaps a cable like this

 

https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/MA591ZM/C/apple-dock-connector-to-usb-cable

 

Whether data transfer would then take place is quite another matter...

 

As Tracker’s main gripe is that his iPad 1 now fails to work properly wiht Gmail, it might be worth exploring that specific issue with the iPad Support Communities.

 

https://discussions.apple.com/community/ipad

 

 

 

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