iOS 9.3 has caused headaches for some iPad owners, who updated to the new operating system only to find their devices bricked. But Apple already has a fix out to help bring those older devices back to life.
Apple temporarily pulled the iOS 9.3 update from some devices yesterday. The company has since released a new build of the update specifically for iPad 2 users whose devices failed to install the update.
Before pushing out the update for iPad, Apple released the following statement acknowledging that some iOS devices get stuck in an inactive state when upgrading to iOS 9.3.
“Updating some iOS devices (iPhone 5s and earlier and iPad Air and earlier) to iOS 9.3 can require entering the Apple ID and password used to set up the device in order to complete the software update. In some cases, if customers do not recall their password, their device will remain in an inactivated state until they can recover or reset their password. For these older devices, we have temporarily pulled back the update and will release an updated version of iOS 9.3 in the next few days that does not require this step.”
iOS 9.3 was released to the public on March 21st after Apple’s iPhone SE keynote. The new update brings a number of new features, including Night Shift mode, Touch ID protected Notes, Apple News tweaks, and the ability to finally delete unwanted stock apps.
It’s unclear if Apple will release other updates for devices other than the iPad 2 that are stuck in activation mode. For those that can’t activate their iPhone or iPad after installing iOS 9.3, Apple has published a new support article detailing how to resolve the issue.
Buster Hein is a freelance writer who lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Twitter: @bst3r.
