Can not update iOS on iPad

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I have an elderly iPad 4G and, since I no longer use it much, it has largely sat unused except for internet access when I travel. I no longer have a sim card in the iPad as I do not much use it and, when I travel, I use my Verizon hot spot to connect the iPad or my MacBook Pro to the internet.

I recently purchased a new pair of headphones and decided to install the headphone software on the iPad but was told that I needed to update the OS to at least version (9) - I am currently on 5.1 (as I said, I hardly ever use the iPad). When I attempted to update the iPad I was told I could not because "you are no longer connected to the internet". Well, of course I am as I can browse online to my hearts content with the wifi access I have. Cellular data is turned off on the iPad since I no longer have a sim card in the device but turning it on does not change my inability to update the OS. Can anyone tell me what the problem might be? Surely there must be some way to actually update the OS on the iPad.

Thanks for any help.
 
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Connect to iTunes, upgrade through iTunes.
 
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Hi Mike - please tell us which 'old' iPad model you own - the earliest ones can be taken so far - see the chart below from HERE and match your device w/ the iOS upgrade possibilities - good luck. Dave :)
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Connect to iTunes, upgrade through iTunes.
I don't see how I can do that.

When I open iTunes I do not have any option to select an OS upgrade. My choices are Music, Movies, TV Shows, Podcasts, Audio Books, iTunes U, Purchased and Downloads. The only one of those that seems appropriate is Downloads but when I open that all I get is a link to a Terms and Conditions page that does not even give me the option of accepting or declining. I see no way to update the OS using iTunes.

I have also tried the App Store which seems like a good choice, but I can not find any OS update there either. The only place I see an option to update the OS is in the Settings -> General -> Software Update page and that is where I get the error message about not being able to verify the update because I am supposedly not connected to the internet.
 
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Hi Mike - please tell us which 'old' iPad model you own - the earliest ones can be taken so far - see the chart below from HERE and match your device w/ the iOS upgrade possibilities - good luck. Dave :)
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View attachment 25632

The model number is A1403. The About page says that it is an iPad 4G and I have always assumed that referred to the cell speed, but perhaps it really refers to the 4th Generation. The current OS is 5.1.

It says it is trying to install 9.3 when it "fails validation" because I am supposedly not connected to the internet.

Does that help?
 

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The A1403 is a third generation iPad (see here) so it should run iOS 9 although certain functionality will not be available.

You should be able to update this through iTunes on the main page for your device once it's plugged in (it has to be plugged in - iTunes will not update iOS devices wirelessly). What does iTunes look like when you plug in your iPad and head over to the "Summary" page for your iPad?
 
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The A1403 is a third generation iPad (see here) so it should run iOS 9 although certain functionality will not be available.

You should be able to update this through iTunes on the main page for your device once it's plugged in (it has to be plugged in - iTunes will not update iOS devices wirelessly). What does iTunes look like when you plug in your iPad and head over to the "Summary" page for your iPad?

> it has to be plugged in - iTunes will not update iOS devices wirelessly

I am sorry but I do not understand what you are saying here. "It has to be plugged in". OK. I assume that means plugged into power, but what does that have to do with updating wirelessly? Or did you mean that it will not update without being powered?

> What does iTunes look like when you plug in your iPad and head over to the "Summary" page for your iPad?

There is no Summary page in iTunes on my iPad, if that is what you mean. The display only shows the buttons I mentioned above along the bottom and then, for each button selection, a different display. There is no Summary for any of the iTunes display pages. I don't know if there is any way to take screen shots on an iPad to show you the iTunes display pages but I suppose I could take some photos to upload if you need that information.

By the way, the iPad failed to update the OS both when powered and when on battery.
 
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The model number is A1403. The About page says that it is an iPad 4G and I have always assumed that referred to the cell speed, but perhaps it really refers to the 4th Generation. The current OS is 5.1.

It says it is trying to install 9.3 when it "fails validation" because I am supposedly not connected to the internet.

Does that help?

Hi again Mike - plugging that model number into EveryMac's Lookup Tab brings up the iPad below, i.e. a 3rd generation device, which should be upgradeable to 9.x (note the footnote from the previous link I provided). Concerning your last comment about the internet, assume that your are trying to update OTA (Over the Air) w/ a Wi-Fi connection - correct?

As an alternative using iTunes, is your iPad cabled to your computer w/ iTunes opened? If so, the a device icon should appear (see second image below w/ arrow) - clicking on the icon should open the last image below - there an update can be checked - of course, you need to be connected to the internet cabled or wirelessly - let us know if these suggestions help? Dave :)
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Ah. Open iTunes on the MAC. I thought iTunes on the iPad and that was what I had been trying.

Let me try that and see if it works. Thanks for the information.
 

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Sometimes a picture really is worth 1000 words. I hereby crown member RadDave King of the Screenshots.
 
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Sometimes a picture really is worth 1000 words. I hereby crown member RadDave King of the Screenshots.


Hey Sly - now I'm embarrassed - thanks for the crown - ;) As a retired radiology professor who gave MANY PowerPoint lectures - adding pics to slides was like getting out of bed - impossible to break the habit! Dave :)
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Sometimes a picture really is worth 1000 words. I hereby crown member RadDave King of the Screenshots.


+1. Ditto.

I donate these to support his crowning.

img_2101-e1448470848208.jpg images.jpeg





- Patrick
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I would also like to add my thanks. Once I understood that I was supposed to use the iTunes on my MAC instead of the one on my iPad everything worked. It took a bit of time because I had to back up my iPad but once that was done iTunes updated my iPad properly and I now have 9.3.5.

Thanks again to all for their help and especially to RadDave fore this wonderful set of slides.
 
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I had to back up my iPad but once that was done iTunes updated my iPad properly and I now have 9.3.5


Wow!! That's probably going to be quite an iOS upgrade shock for your use and generally a fair amount of changes.






- Patrick
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I would also like to add my thanks. Once I understood that I was supposed to use the iTunes on my MAC instead of the one on my iPad everything worked. It took a bit of time because I had to back up my iPad but once that was done iTunes updated my iPad properly and I now have 9.3.5.

Thanks again to all for their help and especially to RadDave fore this wonderful set of slides.

Thanks Patrick & Mike - glad that you were able to do the upgrade - Dave :)
 
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Once I understood that I was supposed to use the iTunes on my MAC instead of the one on my iPad everything worked.


Now with the newer iOS installed, you won't even need to use your iTunes for any iOS software updates if you have a wireless Internet setup as it can now be done using it, if there will be any. It's accessed via the iOS Settings and can be done via wireless.

But some don't like or trust that method it seems.





- Patrick
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Now with the newer iOS installed, you won't even need to use your iTunes for any iOS software updates if you have a wireless Internet setup as it can now be done using it, if there will be any. It's accessed via the iOS Settings and can be done via wireless.

But some don't like or trust that method it seems.

@ Mike - agree w/ Patrick - I have 3 iDevices that I update/upgrade - when I do a minor update (i.e. the number right of the first or second decimal point changes, like 9.x going to 9.y), I first backup the devices and then do an OTA (Over The Air, i.e. wireless) update - however, when I need to upgrade (defined as a change in number to the left of that first decimal point, like 9.x to 10.y), then I will usually cable to our computers and use iTunes - don't know if that makes much of a difference, but just my habit. Dave :)
 
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however, when I need to upgrade (defined as a change in number to the left of that first decimal point, like 9.x to 10.y), then I will usually cable to our computers and use iTunes

Well, that makes two of us.

I just don't trust wireless for large data OS installs, besides it's usually slower.






- Patrick
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Wow!! That's probably going to be quite an iOS upgrade shock for your use and generally a fair amount of changes.
- Patrick
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The iPad does look very different now, but it was only left updated for so long because it is almost never used. My Mac, on the other hand, gets updated all the time so although the iPad now looks different it also looks more like my wife's iPhone and feels a bit more like my Mac.

When I do use it now it no longer feels like my first Apple product.
 

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Your iPad 3 is still a very useful iDevice. I also have an iPad 3 updated as far as it will go = 9.3.5. We use it for reading and music and although it's considerably slower than my iPhone 6+ or my wife's 6s+, it still works great. My iPad 3 also has cellular capability and since we are with T-Mobile, we receive a complimentary 200 MB of free data every month, but rarely if ever, use cellular.
 

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