How to Prepare for iPadOS 13 Release On Your iPad

BY Khamosh Pathak

Published 23 Sep 2019

Apple will release iPadOS 13 on Monday, September 3oth. This update comes with an amazing dark mode, a redesigned Reminders app and awesome features like Safari download manager and more.

Prepare iPad or iPad Pro for iPadOS Release

Here is a checklist to help prepare for iPadOS 13 release:

1. Check for Device Compatibility

Before we start it is important to know if your iPad supports iPadOS 13. The OS supports the following devices:

  • 10.2 inch iPad (7th generation), 12.9-inch iPad Pro 2nd generation, 12.9-inch iPad Pro 1st generation, 10.5-inch iPad Pro, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, iPad Air 3, iPad Air 2, iPad 5th generation, iPad 6th generation, iPad mini 5, iPad mini 4.

2. Delete Unused Apps

A major OS upgrade is a good time to think over the apps you have installed, and delete ones that you hardly use. While you can always delete apps from your home screen, another way is to go to Settings > General > Storage & iCloud Usage> Manage Storage and then tap on the app you don’t need and hit “Delete App”. You will be able to see how much space is being occupied by the apps, so you can at least delete the ones that are taking up too much storage space.

3. Free Up Space

iPadOS 13 update will require at least 2GB of free space, so if you’re running low on free space on your iPad, it might be a good idea to free up some space by deleting unwanted stuff from your device. You should have at least 2.5GB or more free space to be on the safe side.

Read: 15 Tips to Free up Storage Space on Your iPhone or iPad

4. Install Latest App Updates

App Developers have been working hard to get their apps ready for iPadOS 13. So don’t forget to install updates for the apps so that you can enjoy all the new iPadOS 13 features such as dark mode support, and you don’t face any issues.

5. Update to Latest iTunes

If you are planning to install iTunes to install the iPadOS 13, then make sure you’ve updated to the latest version of iTunes on your Mac or Windows PC.

6. Backup your iOS Device

It is always a good idea to take a backup of your iPad and iPod Touch before updating it with the latest iOS software update. (Note that if you choose to encrypt your backup using iTunes, along with normal data, secure information like passwords etc. are also backed up.)

You can back up your iOS device using iTunes or iCloud. If you need help then check out our step-by-step guides.

We recommend taking a backup of your iPad using the iTunes method as if you ever want to downgrade back to iOS 12.4.1 you will be able to easily restore all your data.

Warning for Jailbreakers

If you have jailbroken your iOS device and cannot live without your favorite jailbreak apps and tweaks then it is recommended that you avoid updating to iPadOS 13, until a tool is released to jailbreak iPadOS 13.

Ready to Install iPadOS 13

After you’ve followed the steps mentioned above, you should be ready to download and install iPadOS 13 as soon as it is available and discovering the new iPadOS 13 features.

iPadOS 13 will be available as an update via iTunes as well as an over-the-air update, which allows you to download iOS software updates (just incremental changes) without plugging your iOS device to the computer.

You can also update your iPad device to iPadOS 13 using iTunes by plugging it to your computer.

It can take an hour or two to download and install an update, so don’t do it if you’re in a hurry. On the day of the release due to the surge in traffic, it could take even longer to download iPadOS 13. So you should do it when you have enough time.

iPadOS 13 Release Time

Apple should release iPadOS 13 at around 10 AM PST/1 PM EST. Since iOS 4 in 2010, Apple has released a major iOS software update at that time. If you’re wondering what time it will be released in your timezone then we’ve you covered. Check our post if you want to find out what time it may get released in your timezone.

The only piece of advice I would have is to wait for a day to install the update or at least not immediately after iPad 13 is released on Monday. There is usually a flood of users downloading a major iOS software update, which can slow down the download of the software update and at times has also caused major issues. So be patient and download the iPad 13 software update after the floor of requests has slowed down. It also gives you enough time to find out if there is a major issue with the update.

Please drop us a line if you’ve any questions.