iPad 8 Year Old iPad Questions From Sr. Citizen, Please

[Robert4]

Hello,

Sr. Citizen now, very, and would be most grateful for any help.

Was considering a new Amazon Kindle, as our Library closed, but decided it was just too smalle my eyesight now.
But then i remembered I had a very old iPad which upon digging thru my records found that it was bought back in 2012. wow !
It was really expensive back then, about $ 500. But it sure has a nice "big" screen on it.

So, i found it, and what i believe is the charging cable for it.
Has that larger very flat female connectors on the unit, and a USB plug on the other.
Labeled as Apple.

*Sound likely ?

*Are the batteries in the unit replaceable ?
If not, think they would still hold a charge ?

Would love to find a on line, downloadable Manual or User Guide for it.
Looked, but just can't find any link for.

It is about 8 years old now.

No idea of actual model number.

*Can someone please point me to a likely Manual for it ?

Any thoughts or comments would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Bob

 

[lostom]

Hey Bob, no reason it wouldn't still hold it's charge, plug it in and give it a go.
You can download the kindle app from the app store and read your kindle books on your iPad.

You'll need your apple id and password though, If you don't remember them, you'll need to go online and reset them, or contact Apple support to get some help.

If you can't do that yourself, hopefully you have some family or friendly neighbours that can assist you, what you're trying to do is not fundamentally difficult at all, best of luck Bob.

 

[drlunanerd]

Sounds like an iPad 2 or 3 with the 30-pin connector.
Help to identify it here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201471
User Guide for iOS 9 here: https://help.apple.com/ipad/9/

The problem is software support on these older models. Limited to iOS 9. Not sure the Amazon Kindle app will run for instance, at least the latest version. Although Apple’s iBooks app should still work.

Update: in April 2012 you posted you’d bought an iPad 3, so I assume you still have it. That’s good as it’s a Retina Display model ideal for reading.

 

[AutomaticApple]

Update: in April 2012 you posted you’d bought an iPad 3, so I assume you still have it. That’s good as it’s a Retina Display model ideal for reading.

The only problem is that its unbearably slow on iOS 9 (unless it isn't on iOS 9).

 

[lostom]

The only problem is that its unbearably slow on iOS 9 (unless it isn't on iOS 9).

You're probable right, although unbearably slow to you (or I) may be acceptable to a senior citizen that just wants to read, so if it works, slow might just be ok.
I've got an old Samsung Galaxy tab 10 ( I think) , I use it to read as a convenience, it's slow but it works.

Hopefully Bob gets his device to work and it's ok for him.

 

[ericwn]

If the iPad doesn’t come back to life let me just add that Kindles are good devices as well with good font adjustment options that let you zoom the letters quite significantly.

There is even a higher up model with build in cellular connectivity that lets you access the Kindle shop directly.

 

[Digitalguy]

It sounds like an ipad 3... If it's still on an older version of IOS it's better not to update it... or it will become even slower... Having said that, if it was left "on" the battery may be dead now as it discharged to zero and the cells died after a while and Apple does not replace batteries in devices older than 5 years...

 

[MacPoulet]

You might want to take a look at the Kobo readers if you want to borrow from the library. The Overdrive service that public libraries use is built-in to the Kobo and you can get it various sizes.

 

[calliex]

We have the original iPad. Haven't used it in years my wife uses orig iPad air now, even thats getting even long in the tooth. The old orig iPad was misplaced and during a major cleaning spree during this virus pandemic we found it. I plugged it in and waited about ten minutes for it to charge. Nothing happened. I kept plugged in and forgot about it for about an hour. It booted up. Took a long time to get to 100%. Very quirky can't get it to connect to wif. Many apps do not work. But Angry birds and a few other games do.

 

[AutomaticApple]

You're probable right, although unbearably slow to you (or I) may be acceptable to a senior citizen that just wants to read, so if it works, slow might just be ok.
I've got an old Samsung Galaxy tab 10 ( I think) , I use it to read as a convenience, it's slow but it works.

Hopefully Bob gets his device to work and it's ok for him.

If it is running an older version of iOS, Bob should keep it that way.

 

[marty1980]

The batteries are not able to be easily replaced by someone at home. When the stores open, you could take it in and Apple will replace it for a cost. But sadly, they will most likely hassle you to buy a new iPad.

Have you tried plugging it in? My iPad 2 still holds a good charge, so I imagine yours will be fine too.

The Amazon Fire tablets are really good and cheap, but if you are not happy with them for your eyes and your old iPad is having problems, then there are iPads for ~$329 or less. Let us know if you’d like some links to a new iPad and this community will help you find something in your price range. But generally I think most of us agree that your old iPad will be good for you once you get it powered on.