IOS 8.1.1 Home button ....fixed?!?

[ngc7293]

I have had my iPad2 since July2012 (extended Warranty from Best Buy). Since then the power button has given me problems and later the Home button. That started around the end of 2013 (I know I should have taken it in for Warranty service but I didn't).

I went through update after update: 6, 7, 8, no change. Then 8.1.1 comes out. It is small and it is just for iPad2 and the 4s. Details said it was bug fixes only. Yet when it was finished, the problem with the home button was gone!

I was thinking of upgrading the iPad2 but if this problem has been fixed by a tiny update I might not.

Can someone give me an idea what is going on?

Thanks.

edit: I didn't read far enough down the page to see a similar post or posts. I thought the tiny update wasn't for fixing things like the home button.
before the update I tried the pressing the home button and a built-in app. It worked for a few minutes before the Home button started acting up again.

I suppose if this is fixed by a little update, would it be worth it to update to the Tablet to an iPad Air 2?

 

[twerppoet]

If the Home button was the only reason you were going to buy an iPad Air 2, and it's fixed, then obviously you should stick with the iPad 2. After all, if it breaks again you can go back to the buy-a-new-one plan.

On the other hand, the iPad Air 2 is a massive upgrade from the iPad 2. There isn't a single thing that has not been improved in some way. Well, except maybe the absence of the side switch. If you used that a lot you'll probably miss it.

So, if you want a better iPad that will be easily upgraded for the next few years, and you have the money, go for it. Just don't buy the 16 GB version.

 

[giradman]

I have had my iPad2 since July2012 (extended Warranty from Best Buy). Since then the power button has given me problems and later the Home button. That started around the end of 2013 (I know I should have taken it in for Warranty service but I didn't).

I went through update after update: 6, 7, 8, no change. Then 8.1.1 comes out. It is small and it is just for iPad2 and the 4s. Details said it was bug fixes only. Yet when it was finished, the problem with the home button was gone!...............

I purchased an iPad 2 in the spring of 2011 and used the device for nearly 4 years (just replaced in early December '14 w/ an iPad Air 2) - I took that device through the same iOS upgrades as you (maybe one more?) - it was on the current one and I never had a problem w/ the home button, so I doubt that this last update you made was the solution, i.e. more likely a hardware issue - but I'm not an Apple Genius. I would only suggest that the problem may return (or maybe not)?

BUT, the iPad Air 2 as already stated by TP is a MAJOR upgraded device (you can look up the specs) - after using the Air (love the fingerprint technology, BTW!) for just a few days, the iPad 2 felt like holding a brick (recently sold it online) - if you have the $$, then really consider 'improving' your life! And as already suggested, DO NOT get the 16 GB - I bought the 64 GB - good luck w/ the iPad 2 (and dream about the Air) - Dave

 

[ngc7293]

About the 16gig. I once got a iphone 4s 64gig thinking that I would need all that room. I never went over 8. With my current 16gig ipad2, I am barely using 8gig. Unless there is a physical problem with the 16gig Air 2, that is the one I was preparing to get. I have money set aside for it.

It didn't seem possible that the small update to 8.1.1 would solve the home button issue (it is now at 8.1.2 and the home button problem hasn't come back). Friends have suggested it to be a hardware issue.

I guess I will hold onto my money for now until the tablet starts to show the problem again.

 

[twerppoet]

The problem with the 16 GB iPad Air 2 isn't just what you're doing now. It's what you'll want to be doing with it for the next three years. Apps keep getting bigger. iOS versions keep getting bigger.

Unless you are convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that you'll never do anything on that iPad but browse the internet, do your email, and play a few casual games then buying a 16 GB model is very risky. Even using the camera to a fraction of it's potential will fill 16 GB very quickly. This isn't your iPad 2. It's a media powerhouse, and it uses up storage like crazy.

And an extra $100 now is a heck of a lot cheaper than buying a new iPad even a year earlier than you would otherwise need to.

 

[cruiser111]

Reminds one of the desk and lap top computers conundrum, or simply aggravating situation. The stock units never had enough RAM. Resulting in the added purchase of a memory card and its installation. Now with tablets it's more convenient, we just pay more for what's needed.
Almost seems as though software developers are working in concert with manufacturers - har har.

 

[ngc7293]

The iPad Air 2 would end up being a Gamer tablet of a different sort (D&D Table Top). I don't play the video games that everyone plays. I might play a crossword puzzle or maybe Chip Chains. I have a spreadsheet program for my character sheets. I use Goodreader for PDF files.

My Laptop is there for my email and any tunes go on my cellphone and on the 1gig thumbdrive for my car.

In the two years since I have had the iPad2, I still have over 8 gigs free. If I were to get the next version, I don't see a need to get the 64gig. That's just wasted space.

 

[Ser Aphim]

I don't see a reason why you should upgrade. The iPad will work fine if you are just gonna use it for casual gaming and PDF, and it can still work fine for other purposes.

What kind of problem were you experiencing with the power button exactly?

 

[ngc7293]

I don't see a reason why you should upgrade. The iPad will work fine if you are just gonna use it for casual gaming and PDF, and it can still work fine for other purposes.

What kind of problem were you experiencing with the power button exactly?

I wasn't able to exit programs with the home button. When I pressed the button, nothing happened. I would press it multiple times and still nothing happened. I would get that screen that showed multiple applications at once in a row, but I wasn't able to exit. Eventually I was able to exit.

Finally I turned on Multitasking Gestures. I was able to get out of applications when the home button decided not to work.

Some how 8.1.1 "fixed" the problem but I have been seeing the Home button problem coming back. People have been telling me it is a hardware issue.

Sure I can just keep using it until the battery won't charge anymore, but I fear there will come a time when the home button won't work anymore.

There IS no reason to upgrade the tablet if I use it for so few things but since I am having hardware issues, I see a reason for it to be replaced at some point in the future.

 

[cruiser111]

I use and enjoy general>accessibility>assistive touch. Hardly, if ever, use the home button. By the way, if you use assistive touch, try double tapping 'home'.

 

[skimonkey]

I use and enjoy general>accessibility>assistive touch. Hardly, if ever, use the home button. By the way, if you use assistive touch, try double tapping 'home'.

I use the assistive touch too and love it. However, I wasn't aware of the double touch on the home button there. I would go to the multi-task area of the assistive touch to close out apps. So thanks for the short cut!

 

[twerppoet]

Actually, the Accessibility shortcut is a triple click of the home button.

The settings to enable it are at the very bottom of the Accessibility settings page.

 

[cruiser111]

I use the assistive touch too and love it. However, I wasn't aware of the double touch on the home button there. I would go to the multi-task area of the assistive touch to close out apps. So thanks for the short cut!

Your welcome. Got excited one day and accidentally hit the home button in assistive touch twice and the multi-task area popped up. It was a useful eureka moment.

 

[Ser Aphim]

I wasn't able to exit programs with the home button. When I pressed the button, nothing happened. I would press it multiple times and still nothing happened. I would get that screen that showed multiple applications at once in a row, but I wasn't able to exit. Eventually I was able to exit.

Finally I turned on Multitasking Gestures. I was able to get out of applications when the home button decided not to work.

Some how 8.1.1 "fixed" the problem but I have been seeing the Home button problem coming back. People have been telling me it is a hardware issue.

Sure I can just keep using it until the battery won't charge anymore, but I fear there will come a time when the home button won't work anymore.

There IS no reason to upgrade the tablet if I use it for so few things but since I am having hardware issues, I see a reason for it to be replaced at some point in the future.

I thought it was the power button lol.

I can't see how software updates can fix an hardware issue. Maybe it can, idk. I doubt it is an hardware issue.

Hey but there are always alternatives to that. I don't think its worth it if there is an alternative.