My New 9th Generation iPad

Tagged with apple, code, eyeglasses, laptop computer, music, shopping, tablet, videos on January 8, 2025

I have a new 9th generation iPad. It’s not the latest model, and it was built in 2021. I didn’t buy it. My wife, Josie, won it in a raffle on the 21st of December. I would never intentionally buy anything made by Apple, and I honestly don’t even know what I’m going to do with it. This is the first tablet either of us has ever possessed.

The first thing I did after Josie brought it home was to check the specifications. The information on the bottom of the box told me it was the Wi-Fi 64 GB model with a space gray finish, and that was it. After reading the specifications, I was so unimpressed with it that I didn’t even bother to open the box until after Christmas Day had passed.

The iPad Setup Routine

I went through all the steps in setting up a passcode, an Apple ID, and even a Touch ID. I installed Facebook’s Messenger application and spoke to my daughter-in-law, Cathy, in Washington State, USA. After we hung up, I thought all was well. It was, until the next time I tried to open the iPad. For whatever reason, it wouldn’t recognize my passcode.

I waited until this morning to go to the Power Mac Center (for Apple computers) at the SM City Olongapo Central mall. Going on a trip to the mall to get one thing done has to be more important than just getting a factory reset for an iPad, especially since it’s not something I’m going to be using a lot. While I was there, I had my eyes examined and bought a pair of eyeglasses for around $28.00 USD, far less than I would have paid in the United States.

I’ll be doing a lot of driving while I’m in the United States this year, and having perfect vision will be a necessity. Although I can drive without eyeglasses, I prefer not to. My left eye has perfect vision, while my right eye has slightly less than perfect vision.

The Second Setup Routine

I chose not to set up a passcode on the iPad, and I chose not to set up a touch ID. My Apple ID is enough for everything except connecting to the iCloud. So far, I’ve installed the Bitwarden password manager, Gmail, Google Chrome, Google Drive, the VLC media player, and YouTube. I’ve tested all of them.

I ordered a case and keyboard from a third party at the Lazada shopping service, for about $12 USD. It’s being shipped from Metro Manila. The iPad’s display is large enough that I won’t need to use eyeglasses with it. I’ve been using my laptop computer without eyeglasses since I bought it in 2023.

Moving Files from My Laptop Computer

This is the simplest way. Although I already know the LAN IP address for my laptop computer because I set it as static on the router, I could easily find it by dropping to the terminal and entering:

hostname -I

To transfer files from the laptop computer to the iPad, I can enter the terminal in the directory that has the files and then run this:

python3 -m http.server

On the iPad, I can open the web browser and type this in the address bar:

192.168.1.102:8000

Whatever is in that directory will be listed. All I have to do is highlight the link, drag it down, and I’ll be offered to save it. It only takes a couple of minutes to transfer a 300 megabyte file.

What Will I Do With the iPad?

At this point in time, I don’t know. It’s too unwieldy to use when I’m in bed, which is when I watch videos. I have three computers at my disposal, and I certainly don’t need to use it as a backup. I have a low-budget phone that I’m using as an MP3 player (so I don’t have to use my personal phone for parties), so I don’t need it for playing music.

For the next couple of months, before I fly to the United States, I’ll probably spend some time messing with the iPad, just to see what I can do with it.

Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay