HiTechEdge

Tag: iPadOS

  • WWDC: iPadOS Home Screen, Multitasking and Notes

    WWDC: iPadOS Home Screen, Multitasking and Notes

    Apple’s Craig Federighi highlighted the flexibility of iPadOS and the new features we can expect in iOS 15.

    Home Screen

    iPadOS Widgets

    The Home Screen is getting a big update, with the ability to include Widgets mixed in with app icons. To take advantage of the iPad’s larger screen, Widgets have been updated to allow for bigger sizes, perfect for TV widgets.

    Multitasking

    Multitasking gets its biggest update since the feature’s introduction, and adds a number of abilities people have been clamoring for.

    iPadOS now includes a new multitasking menu at the top of the screen. Tapping the new menu makes it much easier to open another app and add it to Split Screen or Slide Over.

    iPadOS Multitasking and Shelf

    The new multitasking features also include the ability to minimize apps or app windows into a new Shelf at the bottom of the screen. The Shelf stays visible, even when switching to new apps.

    Swiping down on an app in Split View makes it much easier to change the active app.

    Notes

    Notes have received a big update, adding Mentions. When tagging a person with a Mention, they’re automatically notified. A built-in tag browser provides a way to see all the different tags associated with a given note.

    iPadOS Quick Note

    iOS 15 also includes Quick Note, a way to create a note from any app. Simply swipe up from the bottom right corner to create a new app. The feature is also app-aware, adding specific functionality based on the app currently in the background.

  • App Store Ecosystem Hit $643 Billion in 2020

    App Store Ecosystem Hit $643 Billion in 2020

    A new study has shown just how much the App Store ecosystem has grown, coming in at $643 billion in 2020, a 24% increase.

    While Apple’s iOS platform may lag behind Google’s Android, in terms of market share, it receives the lion’s share of money spent on mobile apps. According to an independent study by the Analysis Group, App Store sales grew 24% year over year in 2020, reaching a whopping $643 billion.

    Even more impressive, the number of small developers — defined as less than 1 million downloads and less than $1 million in earnings per year — has increased 40% since 2015. In fact, small developers now make up more than 90 percent of the App Store’s ecosystem.

    “Developers on the App Store prove every day that there is no more innovative, resilient, or dynamic marketplace on earth than the app economy,” says Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The apps we’ve relied on through the pandemic have been life-changing in so many ways — from groceries delivered to our homes, to teaching tools for parents and educators, to an imaginative and ever-expanding universe of games and entertainment. The result isn’t just incredible apps for users: it’s jobs, it’s opportunity, and it’s untold innovation that will power global economies for many years to come.”

    The study is an important validation of the App Store at a time when Apple is locked in a high-stakes legal fight with Epic over the very future of that ecosystem.

  • Shortcuts Run Much Faster in iOS 14.6

    Shortcuts Run Much Faster in iOS 14.6

    It appears iOS/iPadOS 14.6 contains an undocumented improvement, running Shortcuts actions faster than previous versions.

    The Shortcuts app is the unsung hero of iOS and iPadOS, providing a way to automate a series of actions for increased productivity. Federico Viticci, of MacStories, is a long-time iPad proponent and has extolled the virtues of Shortcuts.

    There’s good news for iPhone and iPad power users, as it appears iOS/iPadOS runs shortcuts faster. First spotted by 9to5Mac, users on Twitter started noticing the improvement.

    9to5Mac did their own tests and confirmed Shortcuts actions are indeed faster in iOS/iPadOS 14.6 and the 14.7 beta. One test involved a shortcut with 380 actions that took 8 seconds to complete with iOS 14.5.1. Running iOS 14.6, the same shortcut only took 4 seconds to complete.

    Similarly, one user on Reddit had a shortcut containing 700 actions that now runs in a mere 13 seconds, as opposed to roughly 30 seconds pre-iOS 14.6.

  • Apple Enables 5G Updates for iPadOS

    Apple Enables 5G Updates for iPadOS

    Apple has enabled iPadOS updates over 5G, giving users the opportunity to update their iPads using their wireless data.

    In the early days of iOS, Apple did not allow users to download OS updates via their wireless plans. Instead, OS updates required a WiFi connection. As unlimited plans became the norm, Apple changed their stance, allowing OS updates over 4G LTE.

    With the iPhone 12, Apple expanded wireless OS downloads to include 5G as well. Now the company has rolled out the feature to the latest 12.9 and 11-inch iPad Pros, both of which support 5G.

    Apple currently has three different 5G data modes: Allow More Data on 5G, Standard and Low Data Mode. To update over 5G, users will need to enable the More Data mode.

    Allow More Data on 5G: Enables higher data-usage features for apps and system tasks. These include higher-quality FaceTime, high-definition content on Apple TV, Apple Music songs and videos, and iPadOS updates over cellular. This setting also allows third-party apps to use more cellular data for enhanced experiences. This is the default setting with some unlimited-data plans, depending on your carrier. This setting uses more cellular data.

    Given the high speeds 5G offers, 5G OS updates are a welcome addition to the new iPad Pros.

  • Mac Viruses and Malware Have Reached ‘Unacceptable’ Levels

    Mac Viruses and Malware Have Reached ‘Unacceptable’ Levels

    Mac viruses and malware have reached an ‘unacceptable’ level, according to testimony from Apple senior VP Craig Federighi.

    Many interesting details have emerged in the Epic vs Apple court case over the future of the latter’s App Store ecosystem. One of the most fascinating, however, is just how much the Mac is already being impacted by security threats.

    Not that long ago, the Mac had the reputation of not being affected by malware or viruses. This was due to two factors: the platform’s UNIX underpinnings and security through obscurity. Because the Mac held such a low percentage of the market, it simply wasn’t worth it for hackers to invest a lot of resources to make Mac-specific malware.

    According to Federighi, that appears to have changed in a big way. When Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers asked why the Mac could allow app installs from multiple sources, but not iOS, Federighi drew a stark contrast between the level of security and protections the two platforms offer.

    “It is regularly exploited on the Mac,” Federighi explained. “iOS has established a dramatically higher bar for customer protection. The Mac is not meeting that bar today.”

    Federighi emphasized the disparity between the number of Mac users and iOS users, and the value of their respective ecosystems, making the point that things would be far worse for iOS users if it took the same approach as the Mac.

    “And that’s despite the fact that Mac users inherently download less software and are subject to a way less economically motivated attacker base,” Federighi continued. “If you took Mac security techniques and applied them to the iOS ecosystem, with all those devices, all that value, it would get run over to a degree dramatically worse than is already happening on the Mac.”

    All of this led to the admission regarding Apple’s view of the current state of Mac malware.

    “And as I say, today, we have a level of malware on the Mac that we don’t find acceptable and is much worse than iOS,” Federighi said. “Put that same situation in place for iOS and it would be a very bad situation for our customers.”

    Federighi’s explanation is at the heart of the case Apple is making, that keeping apps operating within its ecosystem help it provide the security and protection that people are paying for when they buy an iPhone or iPad. In contrast, individuals who don’t want that protection can buy Android.