Apple
The Secret to Skipping Long iOS 8 Downloads and Problems
There’s a secret to skipping the long iOS 8 download lines and waiting with Update Requested on your screen. We’ll show you how to download iOS 8 without waiting hours and what you need to do to avoid deleting your files, apps and photos for the iOS 8 storage problems that are frustrating many iPhone and iPad owners.
You can avoid long iOS 8 download times and manually install iOS 8 to get the new iOS 8 features on your iPhone or iPad very quickly.
You don’t need any type of special subscription or service to manually install iOS 8, you just need your computer, iTunes and the right iOS 8 download.
Use this trick to manually install iOS 8 and skip long downloads.
For most users this is not something you need to do, but if you cannot wait for the iOS 8 download to complete this is much faster.
The iOS 8 download time stretched out to 13 hours on the iPad Mini Retina, but using the iOS 8 direct download links we could download the iOS 8 update in 10 to 15 minutes and complete the installation using iTunes.
iOS 8 Direct Download Links
Use the iOS 8 direct download links from OS X Daily to get the right version of iOS for your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. These links go direct to Apple so you don’t need to worry about where you are actually downloading them from.
- iPhone 5S (GSM)
- iPhone 5S (CDMA)
- iPhone 5 (GSM)
- iPhone 5 (CDMA)
- iPhone 5C (GSM)
- iPhone 5C (CDMA)
- iPhone 4S (Dualband GSM & CDMA)
- iPad Air (5th gen Wi-Fi + Cellular)
- iPad Air (5th gen Wi-Fi)
- iPad (4th gen CDMA)
- iPad (4th gen GSM)
- iPad (4th gen Wi-Fi)
- iPad Mini 2 with Retina (Wi-Fi + Cellular)
- iPad Mini with Retina (Wi-Fi)
- iPad Mini 2 with Retina (CDMA)
- iPad Mini (CDMA)
- iPad Mini (GSM)
- iPad Mini (Wi-Fi)
- iPad 3 Wi-Fi (3rd gen)
- iPad 3 Wi-Fi + Cellular (GSM)
- iPad 3 Wi-Fi + Cellular (CDMA)
- iPad 2 Wi-Fi (2,4)
- iPad 2 Wi-Fi (2,1)
- iPad 2 Wi-Fi + Cellular (GSM)
- iPad 2 Wi-Fi + Cellular (CDMA)
- iPod Touch (5th gen)
You should be able to download iOS 8 in a matter of minutes using this method.
Manually Install iOS 8 in iTunes
You can now connect the iPhone or iPad to iTunes and start the manual update. You don’t need to perform a clean install (or Restore) but you can using this method if you want to minimize the problems that you may run into.
1. Download the iOS 8 official release .ipsw.
2. Plug your iPhone or iPad into a computer and open iTunes.
3. Perform a backup just to be safe.
4. In iTunes click on the iPhone option in the upper right. If you see the Restore and Upgrade options you are on the right screen.
Special click Check for Upgrade.
5. Special Click on Check for Update. A special click involves holding a key while you left click.
- Hold alt/option on Mac when you click Check for Update.
- On Windows, hold Shift when you click Check for Update.
If you want to perform a clean install you just special click on Restore.
6. Find the iOS 8 download and click on the .ipsw file.
Choose your iOS 8 download and complete the upgrade.
7. Let the iOS 8 update complete. This can take 15 minutes or longer depending on how long it takes to verify the update with Apple’s servers.
When this is done you will be up and running iOS 8 without waiting forever for an over the air update, iTunes downloads or the storage problems that frustrated so many users.
iOS 8 vs iOS 7 Walkthrough - Home Screen | ||||||||||||||||||||
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We start our iOS 8 vs iOS 7 walkthrough with the iPhone home screen, which is where you'll start your iOS 8 experience after an update this fall. These screens are incredibly important as you see them anytime you turn on the iPhone or need to choose an app to launch. There is no way around using them, so Apple needs to make sure they work just right. As you can see in the iOS 8 vs iOS 7 comparison above, there is no change between the home screen in the new iPhone software. Apple changed the status bar and some other small visual changes in iOS 7, but there are no updates for iOS 8. We could see Apple change the home screen slightly for iOS 8 for the iPhone 6. The new iPhone will feature a larger 4.7-inch display with a higher resolution. This is something Apple may use to add more icons to the screen. Or they could stick with the current layout, it's tough to tell. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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myrain25
09/17/2014 at 9:42 pm
stuck on preparing iPad for restore… -_____-‘
Ray
09/17/2014 at 11:11 pm
I just downloaded iPhone 5S update from you only to find that your links are the wrong way round and I have downloaded the CDMA version instead of the GSM version, please check and update so other people dont do the same
Dan
09/18/2014 at 3:46 am
^Ray is right. I’ve just downloaded your iPhone 5 GSM update and the firmware is not compatible because the GSM link is for the CDMA version.
Caroline Bertoni
09/18/2014 at 6:21 am
says 6 day! WTF
Alex
09/18/2014 at 3:52 pm
you idiot, you switched the GSM and CDMA links for 5s, only ADDING to download times!!!
Steve Philpot
09/18/2014 at 4:07 pm
Worked just fine on my iPhone 5s and Retina iPad Mini.
Craig
09/18/2014 at 6:38 pm
I haven’t been able to update/install the last several iOS updates…8 is no exception…I guess the want me to just buy a new devices…
Terry
09/19/2014 at 8:01 pm
I have the 5s 64g and it took 15 min over air to download. Have some calm collected time. Do it right the first and only time. Shortcuts= more time lol
Mark
09/20/2014 at 4:29 pm
Shortly after installing ISO 8.0 my iPod 5
began running very slow now one day
after while in safari I get this message
of a third party hack that has screwed
up my ISO 8 update and call Apple imm-
ediatly to fix. well they won’t help me
until a pay for a security fix-plan??? B. S
this occurred after their system upgrade
install! not prior. they should help with their $60.00 charge I told em. so then he says o.k $20.00 I ain’t got $10.00 to my name.so no help no fix from the greed
of Apple. That and I’ve lost 42 of 75
already paid for and downloaded
I- tunes songs there just gone???.
7 of my apps are completely white.
They need to fix this B.S and real
soon, and stop trying to rip of their
own damn consumers, grow some
morals and quit trying to scam us!
MarkD
09/21/2014 at 1:02 pm
Except when I click on the file, I am informed by Safari that the iPad mini update will take 20 hours to download.
I have a 75mg FIOS wired connection. Epic failure by Apple not seeing this one coming and buying the bandwidth.
chris
10/20/2014 at 8:40 am
Ipad mini wifi takes 12 hours to download. It would be quicker to take it to the states.
gramsaran
12/25/2015 at 8:50 am
It still takes way too long to download from the Apple servers, they really need to start using allowing torrents and or faster upload servers for these files. It shouldn’t take over an hour to download a 2 GB file.