Yeah, it’s really a shame. I have the original iPad and the hardware remains solid. If I could have an updated browser that could display modern websites without crashing, I would still use it.
I also recall that the final iOS version for that device (iOS 5.x or 5.1.1) left less memory for apps and I regretted agreeing to that upgrade.
I really wish I could install a minimal Linux and the best minimal browser available. That would at least be an improvement over the doorstop that I have.
Giving older devices new life is part of the reason I started developing my framework.
For example, the websites linked in my profile are backwards compatible all the way to Netscape 3.0, while still supporting more modern features like in-place updating vote counters and adding dialogs to a page without reloading it.
And LLM use will only make this type of website easier to build, once you can ask, for example, "operator, please ensure the website markup is compatible with my particular device, which is an iPad 2 running iOS 6.0."
I think we're about to experience an amazing renaissance of the Web, with sites and services which bend over backwards to accommodate each particular user, device, and abilities combination, rather than telling the long tail to fuck off.
And I think it's the right way to go. Each device-user deserves to be catered to and supported, the same way we support wheelchairs and baby strollers with elevators and ramps, even though they're less than 1% of the traffic.
It's not enough for sites to work, the underlying software also has to be secure enough to handle the internet. That can come from Apple providing software updates to the device to keep it secure, or Apple providing a supported mechanism for someone to install Linux, or some other operating system that can be updated.
Unfortunately, apple does not provide security updates or any way to actually "unlock" them, so they are unsupported. Tailoring your site to work on these insecure clients is in a sense encouraging them to venture onto the internet, encouraging them to try other sites which might have untrusted 3rd party ads that pwn them and steal their bank cookies..... In that sense, it's more responsible to make your site only work with newer secure browsers than the reverse.
I think the accessibility necessity of supporting older devices is often underrated severely, while the need for security is overstated. New, currently supported devices people use day-to-day are also exploitable.
Which means iPad mini 2, iPad Air, iPad Pro 1, iPad 5 and greater.
I have a Retina iPad stuck on iOS 9, which is now essentially an ebook reader and movie player.
I had two of them stuck on iOS 5. Perfectly working, cosmetically perfect, lots of battery life, but bricks.
Whereas I have a 1st gen Pro and a 5th gen (when the stock iPad got the Air form-factor) which both run the latest iPadOS, but their battery life is now a couple of hours if that. They're nearly useless.
I had a new battery fitted to the 5th gen. It is no better but now the screen is damaged with multiple artifacts visible.
There is no battery replacement for the Pro: it's too big and too fragile.
In other words, in important terms, the old ones were BETTER but they are now useless because of an outdated OS.