There’s a good reason the iPad got a whole new OS name for itself. The iPadOS takes the iOS 13 base and builds specialized features on top, just for iPad. And the new multitasking features are a prime example of the advancement of the iPad as a primary work computer. The new multitasking features finally let you use multiple instances of the same app, in a variety of different ways. Here’s how it works in real life.
iPadOS Hands-on: New Multitasking Features
Multiple Apps in Slide Over
Slide Over gets a lot more useful. You can now run multiple apps in the same window. When you have a Slide Over window open, and you bring up another app, it will replace the current app. In fact, you can do this from a whole other space as well. All open apps in Slide Over window can be switched between easily.
You’ll see an iPhone style Home bar at the bottom of the Slide Over window. Swipe left or right on it to switch between apps.
Swipe up on the Slide Over window to see all open Slider Over app. Swipe up on an app to quit the Slide Over window for the app.
Multiple Instances of the Same App
You can finally run multiple instances of the same app on the iPad. This was the one feature that Mac users had been asking for years. Now, you can open an app once, go to the Dock again and open the same app again in the Split View or Slide Over. If the app supports it, you can even drag a part of an app to open it in its own window. It’s like opening a Safari tab in a new window in macOS.
But here, you’d grab a tab from the toolbar and drag it to the right edge till you see the box expand. Drop it and the tab is now open as a new window. You can then quit that window, or transfer it to a whole different space.
Manage Open App Instances Using App Expose
The new feature gives you a lot of freedom. Just imagine having three different spaces with different pairs of Safari and Notes app each. It would make things so much simpler. But this also complicates things a bit. How are you supposed to keep track of all the windows from a given app? The solution lies in the App Expose feature. Apple brought this over from the Mac as well.
When an app is open, bring up the Dock and tap on the open app’s icon. This will take you to App Expose. You’ll see all the instances in which the app is open. This can be a single space, a Split View space or even a Slide Over window. You can see the preview as well. Tap on a space to quickly switch to it. If you want to quit that particular instance of the app, just swipe up. All the other instances will stay safe.
iPad Pro In Inching Closer to Being a MacBook Replacement
This was our brief overview of the new multitasking features in iPadOS 13. As we use it for a while we will have more thoughts, opinions, and guides to share. But one thing is clear at the offset. With these new multitasking features (among other things), iPad’s position as a true MacBook replacement is getting stronger.
Now, of course, that’s a controversial topic and not all Mac users will like the way that Apple is implementing the multitasking features. It might even feel cumbersome to some. But it might be enough to swing new users. Have you checked out our complete list iPadOS 13 features?
What do you think of the new multitasking features in iPadOS 13? Share with us in the comments below.
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