With the release of iPadOS 16 last year, Apple completely changed the way I use my iPad. After years of complaining about the lack of a better multitasking interface and true external monitor support, Apple is adding both of these features to a number of iPads through a feature called Stage Manager.
If you like your iPad the way it is, Stage Manager is an optional feature so you don’t need to enable it. Otherwise, to use Stage Manager, you need to find and activate it on your iPad. And when enabled, you can have up to four apps running on your iPad screen. Better, each can be moved on the screen and resized. Yes, just like you can on a Mac.
And when you connect your iPad to an external monitor, you get a second iPadOS desktop where you can additionally have up to four additional apps open and active. In the end, this gives the tablet a total of eight active apps at any one time. So this is an impressive leap in the capabilities of Apple’s tablet. Provided of course to have a compatible iPad model.
The question of iPads compatible with Stage Manager
The new Stage Manager feature does not indeed work on any iPad compatible with iPadOS 16. It was originally limited to iPads using Apple’s M-series processors, which includes the iPad Pro 2021 and the iPad Air 2022. However, following protest from the iPad community, Apple has integrated Stage Manager into other iPad models. But of course, here too the devil is in the details! These models do not support using Stage Manager on an external monitor.
Here is the complete list of iPad models compatible with Stage Manager:
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12.9-inch iPad Pro (3rd generation and later)
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11-inch iPad Pro (1st generation and later)
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iPad Air (5th generation)
iPads compatible with both Stage Manager and its use on an external monitor:
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iPad Pro 12.9 inch (5th generation and above)
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11-inch iPad Pro (3rd generation and later)
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iPad Air (5th generation)
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/ZDNET
How to activate and deactivate Stage Manager
Stage Manager is therefore an optional function. You can use it whenever you want, by pressing a virtual button to activate or deactivate it. This button is located in the control center of the iPad. To access it, swipe down from the top right corner of your iPad screen. There you will see a new icon consisting of three dots on the left side and a rectangle to the left of the dots. Simply tap the icon to activate Stage Manager.
If you want to go back to the more traditional iPad view, open Control Center again and tap the Stage Manager button to turn it off.
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/ZDNET
What to do after activating Stage Manager?
You may not notice a difference in the way your iPad looks after activating Stage Manager and exiting Control Center. And this especially if you return to the home screen.
So open any app on your iPad to see the change Apple has made to multitasking with Stage Manager! As you can see in the screenshot above, the Weather app no longer takes up the entire screen. Instead, it’s slightly smaller, and thumbnails of previously used apps appear on the left side of the screen.
You can either tap an app icon to open another one, or tap the thumbnail on the left side of the screen to switch to that app.
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/ZDNET
Use more than one app at a time
If you want to add a second, third, or even a fourth app and see them simultaneously on the iPad, just drag the app icon from the dock or App Library. You can also drag a preview thumbnail from the left of the screen to open it next to your active window(s).
When you add a second app, the two windows resize to share screen space equally. But don’t feel like you’re stuck with windows in a regular split-screen-like layout. You can resize windows, overlap them, and stack them on top of each other.
iPadOS 16 purposely leaves an edge of all active apps visible, so you can switch between apps with just a swipe. Again, you can have up to four apps open and accessible at any given time. In the screenshot above, you can see Safari, Tweetbot, Weather, and Apple Music apps are open and active on my iPad Pro screen, each a different size and overlapping.
If you open a single application or switch to an application (or group of applications) that is on the left side of Stage Manager, the currently open application(s) will move to the left side of the screen, which will facilitate the recall of this same group in case of need.
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/ZDNET
Resize, minimize and close apps
You will see a three-dot button at the top of each application window when Stage Manager is active. When selected, this button brings up a menu that offers you some actions to perform. Here is a brief overview of the function of each option:
- Full screen : Makes the current application full screen and minimizes all other open applications.
- Add another window : Pushes currently visible apps to the side of the screen, and you can check out your app library from where you can pull one to add to your current group.
- Minimize : Moves this specific application to the left side of the Stage Manager or quits Stage Manager if it was the only open application on the screen.
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Close : completely closes the application in question.
You have several options for resizing application windows. You can use the curved handle which is often in the lower right or left corner of the window, or if you have a mouse/trackpad connected to your iPad, you can move the pointer to any edge of the window and make your adjustments.
The size of the windows is not 100% freely adjustable, but the window somehow adapts to pre-existing sizes determined by iPadOS. But from what I’ve seen so far, the myriad options make it seem like you can fit almost any size.
It is even possible to adjust the size of the windows so that they automatically hide the application dock at the bottom of the screen or cover the scene management area on the left side of the screen. screen.
Image : Apple
Using Stage Manager with an external monitor
Now that you’ve mastered Stage Manager on the iPad, it’s time to take the next step by connecting your iPad to an external monitor.
Stage Manager works with up to 6K resolution. Unlike the previous implementation of external monitor support for the iPad, instead of mirroring your iPad display to the monitor, you get a second home screen, complete with a dock. Stage Manager apps and tiles.
The Stage Manager function on a monitor is activated automatically when you connect the iPad. Once logged in, you can open apps, resize and move them around, as seen above. But an additional option is included in the three-dot menu button at the top of each window: Move to screen or Move to iPad, depending on the device it is on. As its name suggests, this option allows you to move the window to a particular screen.
On an external display, Stage Manager functions and acts the same as on the iPad. Using a monitor doubles the maximum number of apps open and active at any given time, from four to eight. Hence the need for high performance and external display support in Stage Manager mode only allowed for iPads with an M-series processor.
Source : “ZDNet.com”
