iPadOS 16's Best Feature is Limited to M1 iPads

[MacRumors]

Apple yesterday unveiled iPadOS 16, the newest version of the iOS operating system designed for the tablet form factor. iPadOS 16 has many of the features that are coming to iOS 16, but it also has some iPad specific updates.

One of those new features is an updated multitasking system called Stage Manager, but many iPad users are never going to get to test out Stage Manager because it only works on M1 iPads. There are just three M1 iPads at the current time, the M1 11-inch iPad Pro, the M1 12.9-inch iPad Pro, and the M1 iPad Air.

All other iPads that are using A-series chips simply will not get access to the new Stage Manager feature, and it is by far the biggest iPadOS 16 change.

Also available on Mac, Stage Manager is a whole new multitasking experience. You can overlap windows for the first time on the iPad, and resize those windows as well. The window of the main app that you're working on is front and center, with your other recently used apps off to the left for quick access when you need to swap.

You can have overlapping windows of different sizes, similar to on a Mac, and you can group apps together using drag and drop gestures. Stage Manager supports groups of up to four windows, plus another four if you have an external display attached to your iPad. Stage Manager also enables full external display support on the iPad.

The 64GB fifth-generation M1 iPad Air is the most affordable iPad that supports the Stage Manager feature, and it is priced at $599. The M1 iPad Pro models are priced starting at $799 for the 11-inch version and $1099 for the 12.9-inch version, but we do not recommend an iPad Pro purchase at this time as a refresh is in the works.

Article Link: iPadOS 16's Best Feature is Limited to M1 iPads

 

[freakomac]

The 2020 iPad Pro is technically just the previous gen, it’s not fair that it doesn’t get this feature. It’s a $1000 device!

 

[DanteHicks79]

Holy crap, the one time I actually have the device that the new feature works on only!

 

[mystery hill]

iPhone 15 with USB-C should have full external display support with Stage Manager.

 

[Shune299]

The power cable of the Studio Display is white... 🧐

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

This doesn’t actually bother me as much as I thought it would.
The iPad Pro is crazy expensive, it should get more functionality than $329 iPads.
However there is a small caveat.
I am very much annoyed that A12Z iPad Pro‘s that aren’t even two years old don’t get these features.
They use that exact same processor for the Apple Silicon transition kit to run a complete version of macOS, so it is absolutely possible.
It’s a real shame they’re leaving those customers who paid just as much or around the same amount for their 2020 iPad pros as those who purchased the 2021 iPad pros.

 

[Rudy69]

The 2020 iPad Pro is technically just the previous gen, it’s not fair that it doesn’t get this feature. It’s a $1000 device!

I don't think it's about fairness. What I find really really terrible is that the A12Z could easily handle the feature too and they're just gate keeping it 'because'

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

Tim knows your 2-year old iPad is awesome.

He's gonna change that y'aalll...

 

[saudor]

Reminds me of the ios9 multi tasking which was only available on air 2. (IPad Air 1 only got slide over)

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

It's the Stealthy M1 chip. That's doing all the work. Running 6 apps at a same time. Multi-tasking at it's finest.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1534069450500018176

 

[contacos]

At first I was a little disappointed, since my iPad Air 4 isn’t that old but on the other hand, I am not doing anything productive on my iPad anyway 😅

 

[DeepIn2U]

The 2020 iPad Pro is technically just the previous gen, it’s not fair that it doesn’t get this feature. It’s a $1000 device!

This completely sucks that even the 815 iPad minis can’t do this processing power is there I highly doubt that extending of the iPad screen is a limiting factor to the M1 processor only

 

[mnsportsgeek]

Excited to try it out on my iPad Air 5.

 

[Runs For Fun]

Cries in iPad Air 4 😭

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Tim knows your 2-year old iPad is awesome.

He's gonna change that y'aalll...

Tim Cook just found a way for everyone who carries an older generation iPad to upgrade. Now, there's a reason. Stage Manager! He's a genius, LOL.

 

[MacOH21]

"This deal is getting worse all the time." - Lando Calrissian

 

[TigerNike23]

So that pretty much means the $329 iPad is a consumption device, as is the Mini; whereas the Air and Pro's are productivity devices.

 

[currentinterest]

It is too bad that the 2020 iPad Pro, or the recent A14 Air does not support this feature (my wife has the Pro), but it is understandable. There are some things that simply require the power of an M1. I will be upgrading my 10.5 inch iPad Pro this fall, and am looking forward to the new multi-tasking. I wonder if the mini will be upgraded to the M1? I don’t see it for the entry level iPad. It will likely go to the A15.

 

[fbr$]

The window of the main app that you're working on is front and center, with your other recently used apps off to the left for quick access when you need to swap.

Hope the main app can take all the screen if I want it to, not only the center of the screen.

The 11" screen is too small to waste it with this left list of recently used apps.

 

[Le0M]

I just bought an iPad, and with this non-update Apple already made it obsolete.
No need to say I'm quite angry.
I really hope Apple will reconsider.

 

[funnyboy88]

Pretty crazy that you could’ve bought an $1100 iPad Air 4 (256GB with Magic Keyboard) just a few months ago and not get this feature.

 

[Psychicbob]

It’s a very “Stage Managed” way of forcing an upgrade

 

[jav6454]

This should make several users in the iPad's forums happy.

 

[jclardy]

I've tried it out, I think it still needs quite a bit of work (on the design side.) The "auto" layout feature is rarely helpful, taking my three panel windows and resizing them to 1 pane iPhone size panels, which I then have to manually fix. Three finger swiping left/right still swaps apps that are in the "other" multitasking switcher, which is super confusing, I haven't figured out a gesture to switch between the other "side" apps other than tapping/clicking.

Basically, the problem is there are so many multitasking modes that there is no grounded concept of how this all should work. The "active" app group will often be three or four to the left when you go into the multitasking switcher. For some reason it will only show two app icons even if I have three apps open. Throw in an external monitor and things get even more confusing. It's beta 1, but this feels like the Safari redesign in that we are going to see a lot of changes over the next few months.

Also if you are using the iPad in your hands and you resize your window to be too wide, the left side app switcher hides and I can't find a gesture to get it back, other than resizing the window to be smaller. I kind of wish they just dealt with more complex window tiling, rather than letting windows overlap. Feels a bit like they don't want to copy Microsoft's snap features.

That said, it is still very nice to be able to have 4 full resizable apps open on the iPad. Connected to my Studio Display you can almost forget you are on an iPad and not a Mac.

 

[syklee26]

Not even sure stage manager is all that craiged up to be….