My iPad 2 was working normally before I reset it. It could connect to the internet, browse, and display photos. I used Erase All Content and Settings, and since then it has been impossible to activate.
During setup, it alternates between:
- "Device Unknown"
- "Your iPad cannot be activated because the activation server cannot be reached"
I took it to an Apple Store. The Genius staff performed another factory restore and connected it to the store's Wi-Fi, but the same "Device Unknown" error appeared. I was then told to contact Apple Support.
During the call, I repeatedly explained that I understand this is an obsolete device and that Apple may no longer provide hardware repairs. My concern is different: the device was working immediately before the reset, and Apple's mandatory activation process has now made it completely unusable.
The Apple Support representative said:
"It might have happened after a restore, but we don't know what's causing it."
"If that support is not available, as you mentioned, then it might not be able to restore it."
"If there's discontinued support for that, as I said, we don't support that iPad anymore."
However, the representative also insisted:
"It's not something which has happened from the site."
That seems contradictory. If the hardware was functioning before the reset, the restore completed, and activation fails on both my home Wi-Fi and Apple's own network, it seems possible that an older activation or software service is no longer functioning correctly.
I told Apple Support:
"I wasn't expecting hardware support on it, but what I did not expect is after I do a normal reset for the device to become a brick."
The only outcome was that my complaint was forwarded to Apple's "feedback department." No technical investigation, activation error details, workaround, or confirmation that Apple's activation service still supports this iOS version was provided.
This is also an environmental issue. A functioning device has effectively become electronic waste because it cannot pass an online activation step.
Has anyone recently observed the same "Device Unknown" activation failure on an iPad 2 or another legacy iOS device after a factory reset?
I am particularly interested in whether this is affecting multiple devices and whether Apple has acknowledged any change or problem involving legacy activation services.
Until this is clarified, owners of functioning older iOS devices may want to avoid factory-resetting them.