Apple warns users to upgrade their old iPhones and iPads or face GPS and time issues

Apple has issued a warning to owners of some iPhones and iPads, advising them to update their operating system within the next two weeks. The company warns that devices that do not upgrade iOS will experience problems with GPS and incorrect date and times -- which in turn could cause problems with iCloud, email and other services.

The cut-off date is 12:00 a.m. UTC on November 3, 2019 and Apple is eager for users to upgrade as soon as possible as when the date rolls around it may not be possible for affected devices to receive OTA updates.

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The issue affects iPhone and iPad models introduced in 2012 and earlier, and Apple explains that it is not specific to just its devices. The same problem started to affect GPS-enabled devices from other manufacturers back at the beginning of April this year.

For anyone with a Wi-Fi-only device, there's nothing to worrying about, but Apple warns:

If you have one of the devices listed below, it's especially important to update your device's software before November 3 to make sure that its GPS, date, and time continue to work properly.

If you don't update to the newest version of iOS available for your device before November 3, some models might not be able to maintain an accurate GPS position. And functions that rely on the correct date and time -- such as syncing with iCloud and fetching email -- might not work.

In addition, devices that aren't updated before November 3, 2019 might not be able to receive over-the-air software updates. As a result, the only way to update the device will be to restore in iTunes or Finder via tethered connection.

The affected devices are as follows:

• iPhone 5
• iPad (4th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular
• iPhone 4s
• iPad mini (1st generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi + Cellular (CDMA models only)
• iPad (3rd generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular

Image credit: Lori Butcher / Shutterstock