iPads are extremely robust devices. They can last for years without any hitch. We keeping running into people who are holding on to their 4 to 5-year-old iPads, simply because it still work perfectly fine. If you belong this category of long-term iPad users and happen to have an iPad 4, then you might be in for a surprise upgrade from Apple.
Don’t get excited just yet! It’s not that Apple is recalling all iPad 4 models and offering newer iPad Air 2 as replacements. That’s just wishful thinking!
What’s happening instead is that, in cases where an iPad 4 is damaged and needs to be replaced, Apple has decided to offer iPad Air 2 model at no extra cost. Read the following excerpt from Apple’s internal memo for further clarity:
“Starting March 30, iPad 4th generation whole unit repairs may be substituted to iPad Air 2 models. Apple’s repair and order management tool will indicate for each repair if a substitution will take place. Please note the substitute part’s color and capacity to ensure the customer understands what their replacement iPad whole unit will be.”
The reason for this move is that iPad 4 is more than 5 years old model and Apple must be running out of stock of new units. Their service centres would be having the replacement parts, but not the entire units. Hence, they have chosen to offer the more widely available model in exchange.
Please be very clear that this very much a case-to-case offer and depends completely on the discretion of the service staff. So don’t break your iPad 4 assuming that you will get a better model as a replacement.
Also, your iPad 4 must be more than 2 years old (as Apple stopped selling new ones almost 4 years back). Therefore, it’s out Apple warranty and all repairs/replacements are paid. So you’ll still be paying the cost of the replacement device, but the benefit is that you’ll get a better model in return.
As you must have realised, lots of things have to fall in place for you to be able to benefit from this offer. But if you happen to have a broken iPad 4 lying around, waiting to be fixed, then now is the time to take it to the Apple service centre.