How to Fix a Slow iPad

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This wikiHow will teach you several methods you can use to try to fix a slow iPad. There are a number of things that can cause an iPad to slow down. How you fix it depends on what the problem is. This wikiHow offers a few things you can try to speed up your iPad. If nothing works, you can back up your iPad and restore it to its factory settings as a last resort.

Method 1
Method 1 of 7:

Restarting Your iPad

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  1. The power button is located on the top-left side of the iPad.
  2. You will see a power icon in a bar at the top of the screen. Drag the power icon across the bar.
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  3. You will eventually see a white screen with the Apple logo
    Mac Apple
    in the center.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 7:

Updating iOS

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  1. It's the app that has an image of a small gear inside of a larger gear.
  2. It's next to the icon with a single gear
    iPhone Settings General Icon
    .
  3. It's the second option from the top under "About."
  4. If you don't see this option, no software update is available.
  5. This is the Passcode you set when you first set up your iPad. This is most likely either a 4 or 6 digit number. This will prompt a confirmation pop-up.
  6. It's located in the lower-right corner of the pop-up.
  7. The update will now begin updating. This process may take a while.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 7:

Deleting Unused Apps

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  1. Press the circular home button at the bottom of your iPad's screen.
  2. After a few seconds, you will see all the apps on the screen start to wiggle. You will also see an "x" icon in the upper-left corner of the apps.
  3. The "x" is located in the upper-left corner of the app.
  4. It's the circular button with a square on it below your iPad screen. Tap this button when you are finished deleting all the apps you want to delete.
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Method 4
Method 4 of 7:

Turning Off Background Refresh

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  1. It's the app that has an image of a small gear inside of a larger gear.
  2. It's in the third section of options with the gray gear icon.
  3. It's about halfway down the General Settings menu.
  4. It's in the bar at the top of the menu.
  5. The knob will move to the left and the switch will turn white. This turns off background refresh for all apps.
    • You can also turn off background refresh for individual apps by tapping the switches for each app listed below instead.
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Method 5
Method 5 of 7:

Turning Off Location Services

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  1. It's the app that has an image of a small gear inside of a larger gear.
  2. It's at the bottom of the third section of options next to a gray icon with a white hand.
  3. It's next to the blue icon with the white arrow that points to the upper-right corner.
  4. It's located in the bar at the top. Turning off location services is a good way to improve performance and extend battery life.
    • You can also turn off location services for individual apps by tapping the apps in the Location Services menu, and then select "Never" or "While Using."
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Method 6
Method 6 of 7:

Turning Off Notifications

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  1. It's the app that has an image of a small gear inside of a larger gear.
  2. It's next to the red icon that has a white box outline with a white dot in the upper-right corner.
  3. It's in the box at the top.
  4. This will turn off notifications for all apps.
    • You can also turn off notifications for individual apps by tapping the app in the Notifications menu, then tap the switch to 'OFF'.
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Method 7
Method 7 of 7:

Backup and Restore iPad to Factory Settings

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  1. It's the app that has an image of a small gear inside of a larger gear.
  2. Tap the name or profile icon of your Apple ID at the top of the Settings menu.
  3. It's next to the icon of a blue cloud.
    • Make sure you turn the switch 'ON'
      iPhone Switch On Icon
      for every application you want to back up.
  4. It's next to the turquoise icon with a circular arrow.
  5. It may take a while for all your iPad to be backed up to your iCloud storage.
    • If you need more iCloud storage, tap "Manage Storage" at the top of the iCloud settings menu. Then tap "Change Storage Plan" and select an iCloud storage plan.
    • Don't move on to the next step until you are confident you have backed up everything.
  6. It's in the top-right corner of the screen. This returns you to the main Settings menu.
  7. It's in the third section of options next to the icon of a gray gear.
  8. It's at the bottom of the general settings menu.
  9. It's the second option on the page.
  10. This is the Passcode you set when you first set up your iPad. This is most likely either a 4 or 6 digit number. This will prompt a confirmation pop-up.
  11. It's the red text in the pop-up window. This will erase all data on your iPad and power your iPad off.
  12. Hold the power button is on the top-right side of the iPad. You will need to swipe left on the screen once it powers on. Once you reset your iPad to its factory settings, you will need to go through the initial setup process again.
  13. Follow the prompts to set up your iPad and select the following options:
    • Choose a language.
    • Choose a region.
    • Choose a Wi-Fi network and enter our password.
    • Enable Location Services. You can turn this off later.
  14. When prompted, tap the option to restore your iPad from the backup you made earlier.
  15. Enter the email address and password for your Apple ID.
  16. Tap "Agree" on the page for the Terms and Conditions and your iPad will now start restoring itself from your iCloud backup. This may take a while depending on how big your iCloud storage is.
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Expert Q&A

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  • Question
    Why is my iPad running so slowly?
    Gonzalo Martinez
    Computer & Phone Repair Specialist
    Gonzalo Martinez is the President of CleverTech, a tech repair business in San Jose, California founded in 2014. CleverTech LLC specializes in repairing Apple products. CleverTech pursues environmental responsibility by recycling aluminum, display assemblies, and the micro components on motherboards to reuse for future repairs. On average, they save 2 lbs - 3 lbs more electronic waste daily than the average computer repair store.
    Gonzalo Martinez
    Computer & Phone Repair Specialist
    Expert Answer
    Apple released an update that was getting a lot of news because people thought they were forcing the processor to run slower on older devices so that you would upgrade. The truth is, the batteries were in poor condition and the update told the processors not to run as hard so that the batteries lasted longer.
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      Tips

      • If your iPad is still slow after undergoing a factory reset, it may have a hardware issue or could just be straight-up old. In these cases, it's generally best to replace it.
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      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Try restarting the iPad.
      2. Check for an update in Settings → General → Software Update .
      3. Delete unused apps.
      4. Turn off Background App Refresh in Settings → General .
      5. Turn off Location Services in Settings → Privacy .
      6. Turn off Notifications in Settings → Notifications .
      7. Restore to factory settings if necessary.

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