Apple Winding Down iPad 2 Production After Three-Year Run
Apple is winding down production of the iPad 2 as customer interest in the legacy device dwindles, according to a report from AppleInsider. First introduced in early 2011, the iPad 2 has remained in Apple's product lineup as a lower-price option even as newer iPad models have been discontinued.
According to people familiar with Apple's plans, the company has made the decision to ramp down iPad 2 production given that customers are resoundingly shifting purchases towards its more modern and capable iPads, namely the iPad mini and iPad Air.
Apple continues to sell 16 GB iPad 2 models priced at $399 for Wi-Fi only and $529 for Wi-Fi + Cellular for the time being, coming in $100 lower than corresponding iPad Air models. There is no word yet, however, on just when Apple plans to stop selling the iPad 2 as its stocks wind down.
The iPad 2 remained popular even up until the launch of the iPad Air, with educational institutions and other specialized markets preferring the device for a combination of its lower price and its compatibility with numerous accessories through the legacy 30-pin dock connector. But with the introduction of the dramatically thinner iPad Air and Retina display-equipped iPad mini late last year, sales of the iPad 2 dropped dramatically and the company has apparently decided that continued production is not worthwhile.
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Top Rated Comments
Selling the iPad 2 for only $100 less than the Air was a rip off. They should have at least offered the 4th gen or at worst the 3rd gen for that price. Can't wait to see the back of the iPad 2, in a metaphorical sense - it's not an invitation to reply to me with a picture of the back of an iPad 2 haha :p
I laughed to myself as I used Configurator to bump them all en-masse up to 7.0.4, thinking about all the people who accidentally upgraded and whined about losing iOS 6. Bwa ha ha ha.
iPad 2s are great for this purpose; they're less expensive, sufficiently fast to do the job and less attractive a theft target than iPad Airs or Minis would be.
EDIT: I should add that if you have to configure a bunch of iPads and haven't played with Configurator, to do so. It's one of the coolest apps I didn't know existed! We bought an ergotron cart with built-in USB hubs that lets you plug up to 32 iPads into one Mac. They all show up in Configurator, and you can mass-wipe, install profiles and restrictions, and mass-restore a backup to all of them to make them identical. Really neat stuff, with absolutely NO similar software available for Android, which is why we went with iOS for this purpose.
Nobody. I had mine up until this year, and before iOS 7 it ran as well as the day I bought it. It was a truly great device. The iPad 3 messed that up because it was underpowered, and the iPad 4 was getting rather heavy. The Air is great, or so I hear, besides lack of RAM.
The iPad 2 was great. It's best days are behind it now, but it was a great device in my opinion.
LOL, mine was getting doggy until I installed iOS 7. Since then, it's been all smooth sailing.