Can I Put Two iPads On One Computer/account?

Comments: 3 Responses to “Can I Put Two iPads On One Computer/account?”

Gary Rosenzweig

12 years ago

You can put both under one account, yes. I have my iPad 1 and my iPad 2 both using the same account and syncing to the same computer with iTunes. I can still choose which apps. music, photos, etc, to put on each iPad.
However, the disadvantage of this is in management. Ideally you want to have personal accounts for each of you. This way she can manage her own contacts, events, books, music, iTunes gift cards, etc. On a Mac you can set up two user accounts (you may already have that) and she logs into hers, and you log into yours and it is like you have two computers, but share the same applications and OS. You can then each sync each iPad to your individual iTunes libraries on each account.
The main disadvantage is that you can't then share purchases. She purchases a book, app or music, and you can't easily get those because you are using two different accounts.
So it is hard to advise here. Two different ways to do it, both with advantages and disadvantages. There's no right answer. It depends on what you want.
You can set up individual apps, like iBooks, to access an account different than the ones being used by other apps. So, for instance, you can each have your own iCloud account and email, but she just uses your Apple ID account in iBooks, so you share books.

Ray

11 years ago

My wife's and my two iPads are sharing One iTune Account, can we share purchased apps, or do we have to purchase twice? If sharing is ok, do we just download the same app to both iPads? Will I be charged twice? Thank you for detailed instructions.

Gary Rosenzweig

11 years ago

If both iPads are using the same account, then you can download the same apps to it without paying twice. Try it and you'll see. You won't even get a payment button, just a download or install button.