It's conscionable aft the holidays, and galore radical received an iPad arsenic a gift. If that's you and you're caller to the iPad oregon this is your archetypal update successful immoderate time, marque definite to cheque retired the tips beneath to get the astir retired of your caller tablet, whether it's an iPad mini, iPad, iPad Air, oregon iPad Pro.
Basic Tips for Beginners
If you're caller to the iPad, we person some basal articles that volition locomotion you done the fundamentals you request to cognize to get started with your iPad.
- How to Set Up Your New iPhone oregon iPad Using Automatic Setup
- How to Update Apps
- How to Delete Apps connected iPhone and iPad
- How to Back Up Your iPhone and iPad
- How to Factory Reset Your iPhone oregon iPad
- How to Shut Down oregon Force Restart Your iPad Pro
- How to Take a Screenshot connected Your iPad
- How to Send and Receive SMS Messages connected iPad via Text Message Forwarding
- How to Save oregon Share a Safari Web Page arsenic a PDF
- How to Change the Default Web Browser connected iPhone and iPad
- How to Use Quick Notes
13 Things to Know About Your New iPad
1. Use a Mouse and Keyboard With Your iPad
If you privation to crook your iPad into a replacement for a Mac erstwhile you're moving astatine a desk, you tin bash truthful with a rodent and a keyboard.
As with a Mac, you tin link immoderate Bluetooth mouse, keyboard, oregon trackpad to your iPad to usage those inputs arsenic an alternate to the interaction screen. It's truly arsenic elemental arsenic opening up Bluetooth and initiating the pairing process, but we've got however tos that screen each the ins and outs of utilizing a keyboard and a rodent with an iPad.
- How to Connect a Bluetooth Mouse oregon Trackpad to Your iPad
- How to Use a Bluetooth Mouse oregon Trackpad With Your iPad
- How to Control an iPad With an External Keyboard Using Accessibility Shortcuts
With Universal Control, a diagnostic that Apple added with iPadOS 15.4 and macOS Monterey 12.3, you tin usage a azygous rodent oregon trackpad crossed each of your iPads and Macs, making it adjacent simpler to power your iPad if you're utilizing it alongside a Mac.
2. Use App Library to Keep Your Home Screen Clean
Have an iPad Home Screen that's cluttered up with each mode of apps? The App Library tin lick that problem, giving you instant entree to a well-organized database of each the apps connected your iPad.
To get to it, conscionable swipe each the mode implicit to the extremity of your Home Screen pages. App Library automatically organizes your apps into categories similar Games, Entertainment, Health & Fitness, Social, and more.
You tin scroll done the categories and pat into each 1 to spot each the apps listed there, oregon you tin instrumentality vantage of the hunt feature.
Tip: If you privation to delete your Home Screen pages successful bulk oregon rearrange them, conscionable agelong property connected an bare country of the Home Screen and past pat connected the enactment of dots astatine the bottommost of the display. You tin resistance Home Screen pages to rearrange, oregon pat connected the checkmark and past the "-" to delete them.
3. Drag and Drop Text Between Apps
If you privation to determination substance from 1 app to different connected the iPad, specified arsenic pasting immoderate substance from Safari into Notes, you tin bash truthful with a drag-and-drop gesture.
- Select the substance that you privation to determination from 1 app to different by agelong pressing. Drag the 2 small bars to get precisely the substance you want.
- On the highlighted text, property and clasp to propulsion it up from the page.
- Keep your digit connected the substance portion you usage different digit oregon your different manus to unfastened up the app you privation to determination the substance to.
- When the substance is situated successful the app wherever you privation it to go, merchandise your digit and it volition beryllium pasted over.
Tip: This drag-and-drop substance motion is easiest to usage in multitasking mode, wherever you person 2 app windows unfastened broadside by side.
4. Use an Apple Pencil
An Apple Pencil is hands down 1 of the champion accessories that you tin get to usage with an iPad, and each of Apple's modern iPads enactment 1 of the 2 Apple Pencil models. If you didn't get an Apple Pencil talented with your iPad, it's good worthy considering.
With an Apple Pencil, you tin sketch and gully wrong drafting apps, note-taking apps, and more, but you tin besides navigate with the Apple Pencil and you tin constitute successful any substance tract connected the iPad, with the iPad translating it into typed text.
In the built-in Notes app, for example, you tin unfastened it up and conscionable commencement penning with the Pencil. The aforesaid goes for Safari searches, Calendar events, Messages, and truthful overmuch more.
There are 2 antithetic versions of the Apple Pencil, truthful the exemplary you request volition beryllium connected which iPad you have. To find your iPad model, unfastened up the Settings app, pat connected "General" and past pat connected "About." Your exemplary is listed nether "Model name."
Apple Pencil 1 Devices
- iPad (6th Gen and Later)
- iPad mini (5th Gen)
- 12.9-inch iPad Pro (1st and 2nd Gen)
- 10.5-inch iPad Pro
- 9.7-inch iPad Pro
- iPad Air (3rd Gen)
Apple Pencil 2 Devices
- 12.9-inch iPad Pro (3rd Gen and Later)
- 11-inch iPad Pro (All models)
- iPad Air (4th Gen and later)
- iPad mini (6th Gen)
Learn much astir the Apple Pencil in our dedicated guide.
5. Take Advantage of Widgets
Many of Apple's apps and third-party apps travel with widgets, which you tin enactment connected your Home Screen oregon presumption successful the Today Center to get accusation astatine a glance.
Here's however to adhd a widget to your Home Screen:
- Long property connected an bare abstraction connected the Home Screen to participate "Jiggle" mode wherever the icons are wiggling.
- Tap connected the "+" fastener successful the precocious near manus country of the display.
- Scroll done the widget suggestions, oregon hunt for a circumstantial widget.
- Tap connected the widget you want, and past swipe done the the antithetic options. For galore widgets, you tin take a size, and for others, you tin customize the function.
- When you've customized your widget to your satisfaction, pat "Add Widget."
- It volition beryllium placed connected the Home Screen, and from there, you tin resistance it into the presumption that you want.
- Tap "Done" erstwhile you're finished.
Tip: On the iPad, you person entree to XL widgets, a larger-sized widget that's not disposable connected the iPhone. You tin besides adhd widgets to the Today View by going to your archetypal Home Screen leafage and past swiping again from near oregon close to unfastened the Today View interface.
Add a widget by agelong pressing connected the show and past tapping the "+" fastener arsenic outlined above. You tin resistance and driblet widgets to rearrange them, oregon propulsion 1 retired from Today View to your Home Screen.
6. Use Quick Notes
With iOS 15, Apple added a handy Quick Notes feature to the iPad that's designed for jotting down notes without having to unfastened up the Notes app. Quick Notes tin beryllium utilized with oregon without an Apple Pencil, and the interface tin beryllium accessed astatine immoderate clip with a elemental gesture.
- In immoderate app, oregon connected the Home Screen, swipe up diagonally from the close manus country of the screen.
- You tin bash the diagonal swipe successful either representation oregon scenery mode - it works the same.
- Type your notes oregon constitute with the Apple Pencil.
- Swipe to illness the Quick Note to the broadside if you privation to fell it temporarily and bring it backmost to look thing up.
- Tap "Done" erstwhile you're finished.
Tip: You tin besides get to Quick Notes done the Control Center by tapping connected the Notes icon, oregon by utilizing the Globe cardinal + Q keyboard shortcut. If you person an Apple Pencil, you tin besides pat it connected the iPad's locked surface to bring up a note.
For much tips connected however to get the astir retired of the Quick Notes feature, we person a dedicated Quick Notes however to.
7. Use Your iPad arsenic a Second Screen
If you person a Mac and it's not excessively old, you tin usage your iPad arsenic a 2nd surface with Apple's Sidecar feature.
Using Sidecar is arsenic elemental arsenic accessing the show conception of the Control Center connected your Mac and beaming your surface to your iPad, but we person a elaborate usher with afloat instructions below.
Sidecar requires a Mac compatible with macOS Catalina oregon later, and it works with the pursuing machines:
- MacBook Pro introduced successful 2016 oregon later
- MacBook introduced successful 2016 oregon later
- MacBook Air introduced successful 2018 oregon later
- iMac introduced successful 2017 oregon later, oregon iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2015)
- iMac Pro
- Mac mini introduced successful 2018 oregon later
- Mac Pro introduced successful 2019
Your iPad needs to beryllium compatible with an Apple Pencil to usage this feature, and it needs to beryllium moving iPadOS 13 oregon later. That includes the iPad mini 5 oregon newer, each iPad Pro models, the sixth-generation iPad oregon newer, and the third-generation iPad Air oregon newer.
8. Enhance Safari With Extensions
Safari connected the iPad supports each of the aforesaid extensions that you mightiness get connected your Mac, truthful you tin download extensions for turning each webpages to acheronian mode, utilizing password managers, avoiding AMP pages, and more.
Getting Safari Extensions is arsenic elemental arsenic opening up the Settings app, scrolling down to Safari, tapping connected Extensions, and past selecting More Extensions to get to the Extensions conception successful the App Store.
We person a elaborate walkthrough connected installing extensions and a useful usher connected immoderate utile extensions that are worthy checking out.
9. Multitask with Stage Manager
iPadOS 16 introduces a caller multitasking interface called Stage Manager, which is meant to beryllium much similar Mac multitasking. Some radical similar Stage Manager, and immoderate radical find it to beryllium excessively buggy to beryllium functional, but you tin effort it retired to spot however it works for you.
Stage Manager is strategy intensive and tin beryllium utilized with a constricted fig of iPad models, and it supports utilizing up to 4 apps astatine erstwhile connected the iPad itself.
- iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd procreation and later)
- iPad Pro 11-inch (1st procreation and later)
- iPad Air (5th generation)
Here's however to crook Stage Manager connected and disconnected connected a compatible iPad:
- Swipe down from the close country of the surface to unfastened up Control Center.
- Tap connected the Stage Manager fastener that looks similar a rectangle with 3 squares connected the near of it. You tin pat it to toggle Stage Manager connected oregon off.
Alternatively, unfastened up the Settings app, prime Home Screen and Multitasking, and past Choose Stage Manager to crook it connected oregon off.
Stage Manager tin besides beryllium utilized with an outer show connected prime iPad models, and connected these models, you tin usage up to 8 apps astatine erstwhile by dragging 4 implicit to the outer display. iPadOS 16.2 is required for this feature, arsenic is an iPad with an Apple silicon chip.
- iPad Pro 12.9-inch (5th procreation and later)
- iPad Pro 11-inch (3rd procreation and later)
- iPad Air (5th generation)
10. Find Anything With Spotlight
If you don't already usage Spotlight connected your iPad, it's the champion mode to find conscionable astir anything. To get to it, conscionable spell to the Home Screen and swipe down.
In summation to Siri Suggestions, which offers up apps you mightiness privation to entree based connected your usage history, determination volition beryllium a hunt bar. Tap into it and you tin hunt for each mode of things. Just immoderate of what you tin usage Spotlight for:
- Finding and launching apps you person installed
- Finding caller apps successful the App Store
- Rearranging apps (search for an app and past resistance it retired of Spotlight to the Home Screen)
- Installing apps (after a search, pat connected "Get")
- Deleting apps (long property and take delete)
- Looking for photos (search by date, person, oregon entity successful the photo)
- Facts astir actors, actresses, and different well-known people
- Information connected contacts
- Web images (search for [subject] images)
- Converting measurements
- Converting currency
- Simple calculations
- Find contented successful Notes, Messages, and different apps
Tip: If you swipe down from the Lock Screen connected your iPad, you tin get to a Spotlight Search interface without having to unlock your device.
If you privation to spot much connected Spotlight Search and however it tin beryllium used, we have a dedicated guide highlighting each of the caller features that came successful iOS 15.
11. Use the Freeform App
After upgrading to the latest iPadOS 16.2 update, you tin entree Freeform, a blank canvas whiteboard benignant app wherever you tin make anything. Freeform is installed automatically with iPadOS 16.2, and there's thing other that you request to bash too unfastened it up and experiment.
The app has assorted drafting tools that are akin to those disposable successful the photograph editing interface, on with options to adhd hundreds of shapes, stickies, photos, scans, documents, and more. You tin person aggregate boards and adjacent collaborate connected projects with different people, and each edits and changes are shown successful existent time.
For much connected what's imaginable with the Freeform app, we person a Freeform guide that walks done each of the features and tools.
12. Try Some Karaoke With Apple Music Sing
The iPadOS 16.2 update besides added Apple Music Sing, a diagnostic that turns your iPad into a small karaoke instrumentality if you're an Apple Music subscriber. Using the built-in lyrics feature, the Apple Music Sing enactment lets you sing on with a song, with your dependable replacing the song's vocals.
Vocal measurement tin beryllium adjusted, and determination are settings for duets, positive a ton of playlist options highlighting the champion Apple Music Sing songs successful the Apple Music app.
Apple Music Sing is disposable connected these iPads:
- iPad Pro 12.9-inch (Fifth-generation and later)
- iPad Pro 11-inch (Third-generation and later)
- iPad Air (Fourth-generation and later)
- iPad (Ninth-generation and later)
- iPad mini (Sixth-generation)
Here's however to usage Apple Music Sing:
- Open the Music app connected your iPad and commencement playing a track.
- With the fullscreen playback controls open, pat the Lyrics button (the quotation people code bubble) successful the bottommost near country (if it's disposable for the song).
- Tap the Sing button (the mic and stars) connected the right, conscionable supra the way advancement bar. If you don't spot it, the Sing diagnostic isn't disposable for this song.
- With the way playing, property and clasp the Sing button, past resistance the slider up oregon down to set the measurement of the vocals.
13. Check the Weather
There's a dedicated Weather app connected the iPad arsenic of iPadOS 16, truthful you tin get each the upwind info you're utilized to seeing connected your iPhone connected your iPad.
Just unfastened up the Weather app to spot the upwind successful your determination oregon a determination of your choice, with 10-day forecasts, precipitation charts, and different modules that amusement you in-depth accusation connected metrics similar humidity, aerial quality, upwind speed, sunset/sunrise times, pressure, visibility, and more.
Learn More About Your iPad
We person dedicated roundups for each of Apple's iPads, with implicit diagnostic rundowns.
You'll besides privation to instrumentality a look astatine the iPadOS 16 roundup to larn however to usage each of the iPad functions that were introduced with this year's bundle update.
Related Forum: iPad