New shiny toys, and then what? Restore or start fresh?

Hardware
1

I’ve ordered a 11" iPad pro to be able to work when I’m away from the office.
I used a 9.7" pro until a few weeks ago, and before I sold it I made a backup in iCloud and iTunes.

Now I’m wondering what to do:

  • Restore from the backup and have my setup as it was a few weeks ago
  • Start fresh and build up the iPad as I go…

What do you think? And for those of you in the same situation, what are you going to do?

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2

I started fresh when I recently received an iPad Pro 10.5" - but I kinda feel some of the “magic” of getting new Apple devices is this “wauw” feeling of setting up the device :grin:

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3

On iOS I always go for the restore option. Given the nature of iOS, restoring from a backup feels almost like a fresh install just with an automated process to install the apps you need without the need to do it yourself.

Normally I go through my apps installed on my old device. Then I delete the apps I do not really use. After that, I run a fresh iCloud backup. Then I set up the new device restoring from the fresh backup.

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4

I take this as an opportunity to review what my device accumulated through years. So I start fresh and install the apps once I need them.

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5

I install fresh and normally end up ditching at least a few apps that I don’t use much. I find it to be a good exercise because I always end up with too many installed after 3 or more years (my minimum time between device upgrades)

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6

Old habits tell me I should set up everything from scratch. If not to clear out operating system problems, then it’s a good time to get rid of apps I no longer need.

With that said, I’ve found iCloud restore to be excellent these days. So good, in fact, that I no longer hesitate to do a quick erase & restore when something gets a bit “flaky”.

I think either will likely give you good results.

7

I always restore iOS devices. My iPad installation goes all the way back to 2010.

8

So does iOS not build up “cruft”. Is this due to the nature of the mobile OS that the system clears caches and you just don’t get much “stuff” left over? My wife and I are receiving our new iPads this week and we were discussing this topic today. She is going with the restore option. I am thinking of setting up new. But maybe there is no need to do that. Maybe I should just restore as well.

9

I would just point out that the cable that comes with the new iPad is a CHARGING cable made for USB-c to USB-c connections. If you are restoring from a local backup, and your computer doesn’t have a USB-c port, you’ll need another cable.

Also keep in mind that the charging cable that comes with the iPad is intended for charging only and is not intended to transfer data. It will be slow if you use it for data transfers, despite the USB-c port. If you intend to do fast data transfers, you will need a USB-c to USB-c cable that supports at least 10 Gbps.

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10

Or a USB-A to USB-C cable that supports USB 3.0.

11

I think I can get around that using the icloud backup.

12

Yep, I think that’s right. Most people will be doing transfers from iCloud I think.

13

Like others have said I start fresh. It gives me the chance to see what apps I’m really using.

14

I do an iCloud restore for each of my new devices and have since the first one. Never an issue!

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15

I got my iPad pro today, and decided to restore from an icloud backup.
This machine is like nothing I’ve ever seen! Wow! Loving it already :slight_smile:

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