Multitasking

The New iPad Will Have Apple Pencil Support

Apple unveiled a new 9.7 inch iPad for 2018 with lower educator pricing and an expansive package of classroom-management and curricular apps at its recent "Let's Take a Field Trip" event. The new hardware and applications are designed to launch teachers, students, administrators, and the classroom itself into an integrated, streamlined future where educational and creative opportunities are expanded, organized, and optimized. 

With the iOS 11 public beta officially available, brave testers everywhere can now use the new features designed to bring the iPad a huge step closer to being a laptop replacement. The major changes we’re going to take a look at are the new dock, the Files app, drag & drop, new multitasking features, and a couple other stand-out features we’re excited about. This isn’t an opinion piece, so I’m not going to definitively tell you whether or not I think these features will make your iPad as functional as your MacBook. I think that’s far too individual of a decision; instead, I’ll lay out what each new iPad with iOS 11 beta feature can do and let you decide for yourself.

How to Use Split View (aka Split Screen) on iPad

Split View on iPad allows you to work in two different apps simaltaneously. You can split the screen and have one app on either side, or have one app that's taking up a third of the screen. To open Split View on iPad:

• Open an app on iPad.
• Swipe up for Dock.
• Drag the second app you want to open to the left or right side of the screen.
• Alternatively, you can open Split Screen from Slide Over by gently swiping down on the gray bar at the top of Slide Over.
• That will open Slide View. You can swipe down again on the gray bar to return to Slide Over.
• Once you’re in Split View, you can resize your app windows by dragging the app divider to the center of your screen.

Multitasking on iPad added Split View in Safari when iOS 10 was introduced for iPad. Previously, you could only open up two different apps simultaneously on iPad using Split View. But it only makes sense to use Split View in Safari since we often have multiple tabs open anyway—might as well be able to view two at the same time. There are multiple ways to open Split View in Safari on iPad; here’s how.

How to Turn Off Split Screen on iPad

So you want to get rid of split screen on the iPad, huh? When opening split view on iPad, you swipe from the right side of the screen to open slide over, then swipe it to the center of your screen to open split screen. Which means you can close split view by swiping left, back to slide over, and left again to close it entirely. If, however, by “getting rid of split screen on iPad” you mean turning the feature off completely, that’s something you can do in Settings. To turn off split screen on the iPad:

1. Open the Settings app on your iPad.
2. Tap General.
3. Select Multitasking.
4. Toggle off Allow Multiple Apps.

Apple introduced multitasking for the iPad with iOS 9. This includes Split Screen, Slide Over, and Picture-in-Picture. Most iPads are capable of using Slide Over and Picture-in-Picture, so long as they are running iOS 9 or later. However the Split Screen multitasking function is reserved for iPad Air 2, iPad mini 4, and iPad Pro users. It’s arguably the most useful of the three functions too, as it allows you to work in two apps simultaneously. That means you could read the news on one side of the app and take notes on the other. Here’s how to use Split Screen view on the iPad.

Picture in picture is one of the new iPad multitasking features introduced with iOS 9. Picture in Picture works with iPad Pro, iPad Air or later, and iPad mini 2 or later. You can use Picture in Picture with FaceTime or while browsing in Safari. If you come across a video you want to watch, with Picture in Picture, you can minimize the video window and continue to browse or use other apps while you continue watching your video. 

With iOS 9, Apple introduces the iPad to split-screen multitasking. Also called Slide Over, this new function is supported by the iPad Air, iPad Air 2, iPad mini 2, and iPad mini 3 and later. Located on the right edge of the screen and designed to run multiple apps, Slide Over allows you view another app without leaving the one you're in; however, the two applications won't run together side by side unless you have an iPad Air 2 or later.