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iPadOS 14.8.1 Problems: 5 Things You Need to Know

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Apple’s iPadOS 14.8.1 update is causing problems for some iPad users.

iPadOS 14.8.1 is a small upgrade and it brings important security patches to Apple’s iPad, iPad Pro, iPad Air, or iPad mini. It doesn’t have any known bug fixes or features on board.

Feedback about iPadOS 14.8.1’s performance is good, but we’re also hearing about issues impacting the company’s newest firmware. Some of these problems are brand new, others have carried over from iPadOS 14.8 and older versions of iPadOS.

In this guide to iPadOS 14 problems we’ll take you through the current state of the software. We’ll show you where to find potential fixes for the most common iPadOS 14 problems and provide you with some resources that could help if you do happen to run into trouble.

We’ll also touch on the state of the iPadOS 14 downgrade and outline what you can expect from Apple and iPadOS down the road.

iPadOS 14.8.1 Problems

iPad mini, iPad Pro, iPad Air, and iPad users are complaining about a variety of bugs and performance issues including some that popup every time Apple releases new software.

The current list of iPadOS 14.8.1 problems includes download and installation problems, UI lag, crashes, various issues with Contacts, issues with first and third-party apps, problems with Fitness+, issues with Widgets, Face ID problems, Wi-Fi issues, and Bluetooth issues.

We’ve also heard about severe battery drain issues impacting owners of older iPad models like the 2018 iPad Pro. These issues are fairly widespread it seems.

If you haven’t downloaded iPadOS 14.8.1 yet, we recommend preparing yourself, and your iPad, for the move. A little prep work ahead of time could help you avoid major headaches.

We’ve put together a step-by-step pre-installation process and it will help you get ready for the installation.

Where to Find iPadOS 14.8.1 Reviews

If you’re currently running iPadOS 14.8 or an older version of iPadOS, and you’re feeling leery about the move to iPadOS 14.8.1, you’ll want to dig into feedback from those who have made the move to the software.

If your iPad is currently running iPadOS 14.8.1, you might want to monitor feedback about the update’s performance from other iPad users.

We also recommend digging around on YouTube, Apple’s discussion forums, social media sites like Twitter/Facebook, and the MacRumors forums for additional feedback about the update’s performance.

We’ve also released our list of reasons to, and not to, make the jump to iPadOS 14.8.1 right now.

How to Fix iPadOS 14.8.1 Problems

Before you get in touch with Apple, take a look at our list of fixes for the most common software problems. You might find the fix you’ve been looking for.

We’ve also released a list of tips that could help you improve your device’s performance and a guide that will show you how to fix  battery life problems.

If you can’t find a fix in those guides, head on over to Apple’s discussion forums. If you don’t find what you’re looking for there, you might want to get in contact with Apple Support via Twitter or via the the company’s website.

If nothing works, you’ll probably want to make an appointment to see a Genius at your local Apple Store if it’s open.

iPadOS 14 Downgrade Status

If you can’t stand iPadOS 14.8.1’s performance on your iPad, note that you can’t downgrade your device’s software.

Apple isn’t signing on iPadOS 14.8 which means you can’t bring your iPad’s software back to the previous version of iPadOS 14 in an effort to improve performance.

The company has also stopped signing on iPadOS 14.7.1, iPadOS 14.7, iPadOS 14.6, iPadOS 14.5.1, iPadOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.4.2, iPadOS 14.4.1, iPadOS 14.4, iPadOS 14.3, iPadOS 14.2, iPadOS 14.1, iPadOS 14.0.1, iPadOS 14.0, and iPadOS 13 which means there’s no way back to those versions of iPadOS either.

For more about how the downgrade process works, take a look at our walkthrough.

What’s Next

Apple lets iPad users stay on iPadOS 14 so you can skip an upgrade to the company’s iPadOS 15 operating system if you want to. That being said, iPadOS 15 brings numerous improvements and most iPad users should upgrade.

If you do decide to keep your iPad on iPadOS 14, Apple will roll out new iPadOS 14 software though the change log will likely be limited to bug fixes and security patches.

We’ll let you know when we learn more about the next version of iPadOS 14.

4 Reasons Not to Install iPadOS 14.8.1 & 11 Reasons You Should

Install iPadOS 14.8.1 for Better Security

Install iPadOS 14.8.1 for Better Security

If security is important to you, and it should be, think about installing iPadOS 14.8.1 right now.

The iPadOS 14.8.1 update has 12 new security patches on board. They'll help protect you and your device from harm. You can read more about them on Apple's website

If you missed iPadOS 14.8, you'll get its security patches with your iPadOS 14.8.1 update. You can read more about them on Apple's security site

If you missed iPadOS 14.7.1, you'll get its security patch with your upgrade. If you want to learn more, head on over to Apple's website

If you skipped iPadOS 14.7, you'll get its 30+ security patches with your upgrade. If you want to learn more, head to Apple's website

If you skipped, iPadOS 14.6, you'll get its patches with your upgrade. iPadOS 14.6 brought 50+ security patches to the iPad, iPad Pro, iPad mini, and iPad Air. You can learn all about those changes right here

If you missed iPadOS 14.5.1, you'll get its security patches with your update. Both of them are related to WebKit. If you want to learn more about them, check Apple's website for more details

If you skipped iPadOS 14.5, you'll get its security patches with your upgrade. You can read more about the changes over on Apple's website

iPadOS 14.5 also brought Apple's new App Tracking Transparency which lets you control which apps are allowed to track your activity across other companies' apps and websites for ads or sharing with data brokers.

If you skipped iPadOS 14.4.2 you get its security patch with your upgrade. You can read more about the change over on Apple's website.  

If you missed iPadOS 14.8, iPadOS 14.7.1, iPadOS 14.7, iPadOS 14.6, iPadOS 14.5.1, iPadOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.4.2 and iPadOS 14.4.1, you'll get iPadOS 14.4.1's security patch with your update. You can read more about the patch on Apple's security site

If you skipped iPadOS 14.8, iPadOS 14.7.1, iPadOS 14.7, iPadOS 14.6, iPadOS 14.5.1, iPadOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.4.2, iPadOS 14.4.1 and iPadOS 14.4, you get iPadOS 14.4's patches with your upgrade. You can learn more about iPadOS 14.4's security patches right here

If you skipped iPadOS 14.8, iPadOS 14.7.1, iPadOS 14.7, iPadOS 14.6, iPadOS 14.5.1, iPadOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.4.2, iPadOS 14.4.1, iPadOS 14.4, and iPadOS 14.3, you'll get iPadOS 14.3's patches with your upgrade. 

iPadOS 14.3 also included a new privacy information section on App Store pages that includes a developer-reported summary of the app’s privacy practices.

If you skipped iPadOS 14.8, iPadOS 14.7.1, iPadOS 14.7, iPadOS 14.6, iPadOS 14.5.1, iPadOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.4.2, iPadOS 14.4.1, iPadOS 14.4, iPadOS 14.3, and iPadOS 14.2, you'll get iPadOS 14.2's 24 security patches with your upgrade. You can learn more about those patches on Apple's security website

If you're still running iPadOS 13, iPadOS 14.8.1 includes iPadOS 14.0's security updates. 

iPadOS 14.0 brought 11 new security patches to iPad models. If you're interested in the exact nature of these improvements, you can read about them over on Apple's website

If you skipped iPadOS 13.7 or any older versions of iPadOS 13, you'll get the security patches from those updates with your upgrade. They're baked in.

In addition to those patches, iPadOS 14 comes with some security and privacy upgrades including improvements to Home/HomeKit and Safari. 

For instance in Safari, you can now tap the Privacy Report button to better understand how websites handle your privacy.

With iPadOS 14 on board you can now get information on the App Store that will help you understand the privacy practices of apps before you download them. 

There is also a new recording indicator that will appear at the top of your screen whenever an app is using your microphone or camera. You can see if an app has used them recently in Control Center.

Researchers also discovered that Apple brought a new "BlastDoor" sandbox security system to iOS 14 and iPadOS 14. The system is meant to prevent attacks from occurring via the Messages app. 

You can read more about "BlastDoor" right here

4 Comments

4 Comments

  1. George Johnston

    04/27/2021 at 3:22 am

    the update has rendered my iPad Pro useless as it won’t connect to wifi.

  2. Josiah Isaiah Moore

    08/11/2021 at 4:37 am

    My iPad keyboard won’t work and it isn’t disabled

  3. Marilyn J Vidas

    08/13/2021 at 7:24 am

    My less than 6 month old ipad mini is dead and won’t turn on after the update.

  4. Luke

    09/28/2021 at 7:14 pm

    My iPad Pro has been made useless after the auto update ruined it and then following Apples support procedures it is now a paper weight and I’ve been told I need to buy a new one.

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