Tablets (iPad, Kindle etc.) Guide

Tens of millions of tablets are sold each year. Many of these devices hold photos, videos, music and books. Much of this content (in a similar way to a mobile phone) will be personal to us and both reflect and document the life we are living.

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Tell someone the password on your Tablet

 

If you are reading this on a tablet (such as an iPad or a Kindle) then there is a good chance that you ‘password protect’ your device. If this is the case we recommend that you tell someone your password.

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Tablet phone manufacturers (like Apple and Samsung) do not provide any assistance to the recently bereaved when trying to access a mobile phone. This is because it would violate their privacy agreement with the deceased. This is the case regardless of whether or not directions were left in the deceased’s ‘last will & testament’.

 

Passing on your tablet options

 

Below are a few of a number of ways in which we are able to pass down our tablets and the consequences in doing so.

 

  • Leave all of the media on the device and provide login details for the device itself (if it is password protected) and the login details for the software account that is assigned to the device (for example Apple ID). This will help ensure that any required updates provided by the tablet manufacturer can be updated on the tablet using the current assigned account.
  • Backup the media on your tablet externally. Provide login details for the devices firmware access (for example Apple ID). Delete any apps / content that you do not want to pass down. Tell the recipient that you have left media on the device for them to listen to. However if they want to to wipe the media (or synchronize the device with another account) they can as the media has been backedup externally. Provide the backup files at this point to ensure that they are not lost.
  • Reset the tablet and restore to the original ‘factory setting’. This will remove all media and the password from the device. This will mean that all photos, music, videos etc that are saved on the tablet are not passed down from the device itself. If you do this we strongly recommend that you back your files up before doing so.

 

Pro Tip: Backup your tablet’s media onto an external hard drive and pass on content that any recipient(s) may want to receive. a copy (not needed). Leave content on the Tablet and inform the beneficiary who will receive the tablet that there is a hard copy of the media backup. They shouldn’t therefore feel guilty when they delete the media on the device after you have died. You may want to also consider providing the benefiter of the tablet with the relevant email login details to access the account assigned to the tablet and the main computer that it is synchronised to.

 

*The tips provided above may not work for all tablets and devices. Please review each device before carrying out any permanent actions.

 

External resources

 

  • BBC: ‘Apple security rules leave inherited iPad useless, say sons’ – Article
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