This year, as in recent years, one of the hottest gifts for the holiday season is the iPad. If you receive a brand new iPad for the first time then that is truly an awesome present, but you may already have one. If you do, then you may not be able to install apps on your new device at first because your iTunes account already has other devices linked to it. This means you will need to deauthorize a device before you authorize your new one, and here’s how you can do that.

First, understand what authorizing your device is

When people and Apple experts talk about “authorizing your device”, what they really mean is linking it with iTunes and the account you use for this on your computer. Once you do this, you can download already-purchased media and apps onto a new device without having to pay for the content again.

The way iTunes works is that there is usually a limit on how many devices you can download apps and media onto at the same time. Any purchases can be installed on 10 devices or five computers via iTunes at the same time. If, for example, you have an existing iPad for which you have already purchased apps via iTunes, and you receive a new device, you will need to authorize the existing iPad before you are able to download apps onto this new one.

If you have more than 10 devices or five computers authorized and want to add another, you will need to first deauthorize one device. Similarly, if you are giving an iPad away, it is a good idea to make sure it is deauthorized before you give it away or the new user may have access to your iTunes account.

Second, how do you deauthorize an existing device?

This process is actually fairly easy, but you will need to do it from the PC or Mac you use to sync your iPad with iTunes. To do this:

1. Launch iTunes on a computer that it is installed on and log into the account you use to purchase apps for your devices.
2. Click on your name. This is located at the top-right of the window. If you see Sign In, click that and log into the account you use on your iPad.
3. Select Account info from the drop-down menu.
4. Enter the password for your account.
5. Scroll down and click on Manage Devices which is under iTunes in the Cloud.
6. Click Remove beside the device you would like to deauthorize.
7. Press Done.

When you do this, the apps you’ve paid for should either be deleted automatically from the device, or become inaccessible the next time the device syncs with iCloud (which is responsible for linking devices in iTunes).

How do you authorize your new device?

If you receive a new device this holiday season, authorizing it is as simple as logging into your Apple account using the username and password you have used in the past to purchase apps and media.

Once this is done, go into the App Store on your new device, log in, if you haven’t already done so, and tap on Purchased. You should be taken to a list of all apps and media that you have purchased and which are still available on the App Store. Tapping on any of the apps and then hitting Download will install the selected app on your new device. If you are above the limit of devices on your account, you will see an error message telling you there are too many devices with the app installed. You will then need to deauthorize an older device before proceeding.

If you would like to learn more about your new iPad, or how Apple products can be used in your business, contact us today.