Tricks and functions to get the most out of your Apple tablet

Tricks and functions to get the most out of your Apple tablet

All the tricks and functions that we are going to mention are available on the entire range of devices with the latest version of the operating system , including the recently launched iPad Pro of 2020 .

We are going to try to include everything we can, including the basic advanced functions with which the iPad tries to differentiate itself from other devices for all those who are taking the first steps with it . But we are also going to try to offer some other slightly more advanced tricks for those who have been using one for a while, but want to finish mastering it.

And as we always say in these Xataka Basics articles, in case you think that we have left an important trick or function out of the list, we invite you to share it with our entire community of readers using the comments section. Thus, those who come to the article can also benefit from your knowledge.

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Tap on the title bar of an app

We start with one of those little tricks not so well known, but once you discover them they open a new life for you. When you have greatly lowered the scroll of a website or an application, just by clicking on the title bar of the app , you will go back to the top. You will be able to do it with practically all the applications, and you will save yourself a long way of moving your finger to climb to the top.

By clicking on the title bar, I mean that invisible bar at the top of the screen, at the height of where you have the battery level on the right and the time and day on the left. Therefore, press at the very top of the screen to make this function go into action.

Make the keyboard smaller and put it where you want

A digital keyboard as large as that of the iPad, occupying the entire bottom part, forces you to type with two hands. This can sometimes be uncomfortable, especially when you only have one hand to type, so Apple allows you to change the size of the keyboard by pinching on it so that it becomes the size of the keyboard of an iPhone.

This keyboard becomes floating, and you can put it anywhere on the screen you want. In addition, it allows swipe gestures , which means that you can not only write by clicking on the letters, but you can also slide your finger on the keys to compose the words faster.

In addition to pinching on it, you can also keep your finger pressed on the keyboard icon that you can see at the bottom right when you have it with its large size. You will see the Floating option appear , and you will only have to slide your finger towards it.

Record your iPad screen

Like the iPhone, the iPad also has a screen recording function in the control center. It's that menu that appears when you slide your finger down from the top right of the screen. The problem is that the recording option is not in the control center by default , so you have to go to the system settings and activate it.

  • Enter the device settings.
  • Go to Control Center .
  • Click on Customize controls .
  • Add the Screen Recording control by clicking on the + symbol that is in green on the left.
  • Now simply open the control center menu, and click on the recording icon to start or stop it.

Add other shortcuts to the control center

Above we have told you how to add the screen recording shortcut to the control center of your iPad. But you can also put many other shortcuts to other shortcuts on your device. To do this, enter the settings, also go to Control Center and click on Customize controls .

You will see a list in which above, where it says include, you have those that appear in the control center. To its left there is a subtraction symbol to delete them, and to the right of each name a button to drag and move them up or down to change the order. Below you have more controls that you can add by clicking on the plus symbol that appears in green to the left of each one's name.

Use the shortcuts of the app icons

A quick and easy trick is to use the shortcuts for the icons of the apps you have installed. When you keep your finger pressed on one of the icons , a menu will appear with shortcuts to some of its functions. Use them to save you entering the application and looking for that function.

Use the iPad split screen

Apple has implemented in iPadOS a system of divided screen called Split View , and with which you can see and use two applications at the same time . This mode will create a dividing bar in the middle of the screen that you can move to the left or right to give more screen to one or another application.

  • First, put the app you want to split screen alongside others in the bottom dock.
  • Now, open an application.
  • Swipe up a little from the bottom to reveal the dock with pinned apps.
  • Hold your finger down for a second or two on one of the apps in the dock, and slide it to the right side of the screen.
  • The split screen mode will be activated.
  • You can move the central dividing bar to the left or right.

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Change the lower dock to your liking

And since we are mentioning using the applications that you have in the lower Dock, you should know that you have a simple way to put the apps you want in it . All you have to do is click on an app and move it slightly to enter the mode in which to move them, and then move them slightly to the dock. From there you can also remove them if you want by dragging.

Something you have to know, since we are discussing the Dock, is that it is divided into two parts. On the left you have the apps that you have placed there, and on the right there are three holes to show the most recent apps that you have been using until recently.

Drag and drop items from one app to another

And here is a little trick with which to get more out of the split screen, although it is not something for which it is strictly necessary. iPadOS and iOS allow you to drag content from one window to another , so you can insert images into documents or folders. When you have the split screen this makes all the sense in the world, since by pressing on an element you can drag it to another place from one application to another.

You can use up to three apps at the same time

Before we have told you that with the Split View of the iPad you can use two apps at the same time, but there is a little trick with which to raise the bet and get to see and use three apps at the same time . You are going to do it first by putting two apps in Split View, and then by opening a third app above them.

  • First, put the app you want to split screen alongside others in the bottom dock.
  • Now, open an application.
  • Swipe up a little from the bottom to reveal the dock with pinned apps.
  • Hold your finger down for a second or two on one of the apps in the dock, and slide it to the right side of the screen.
  • The split screen mode will be activated.
  • Now, open the bottom dock again and drag a third app to the middle of the screen, to the dividing line.
  • When you release it, the app will stay on top, and now you can move it anywhere you want on the screen.

Use external storage

Now iPad has support for SD cards and USB drives, which means that if you connect them to the device you can open them directly from the native Files application . You will not need to install anything, and it is a method to manage external storage to save things on your iPad or edit files from other devices.

The only thing to keep in mind is that the iPad only has one USB 3.1 port . This means that you will not be able to directly connect practically any external drive unless it has a compatible slot, so you will also have to resort to external adapters.

Show and edit your widget column

IPad can display a column that appears and disappears, displaying a series of application widgets . It is not like in Android that you can place them wherever you want, but it is a fixed bar where they cannot leave. They are very visual, and allow you to access the information of certain compatible apps whenever you want.

  • First swipe from the left of the screen to the right to display the widgets.
  • In the widget column, scroll all the way down until you see the Edit button . Press it.
  • On this screen, you can go to the More widgets section and click on the + button of the application that has one compatible.
  • At the top, the buttons - are used to remove widgets.
  • To the right of the name of each widget, you have an icon with three stripes. It is used to move the widget up or down to order them to your liking.

Leave the widget screen fixed

These widgets are present on both iOS and iPadOS. But what the iPad does that the phone cannot do is to leave the widget column fixed so that it is always visible, and that information is at all times on the main desktop.

  • First swipe from the left of the screen to the right to display the widgets.
  • In the widget column, scroll all the way down until you see the Edit button . Press it.
  • On this screen, at the top, activate the Keep option on the home screen .

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Change the wallpaper

There are two ways that you can change the wallpaper on your iPad. The first one is the simplest, and is entering the device settings. Once in them, in the left column, click on the Wallpaper option , and there click on the Select new background button to choose a new image from your folders.

Then you can also choose wallpaper from iCloud Photos . To do this, first open the photo you want, and once in it, click on the Share option . When you get the share menu, inside you will see an option that is Wallpaper .

Change app with just one gesture

If you don't want to have to double-click the Home button every time you want to switch between open applications, or you simply have an iPad Pro without a Home button, there is a very quick gesture with which you can navigate between the applications you have open . And not only the last two, but among all the ones you have open so you can maximize your productivity.

All you have to do is slide four fingers horizontally across the screen at a time . When you do, you will navigate between the open applications in opening order, and you can move left and right until you find the one you want or return to the previous one.

Recovers Safari tabs closed by mistake<7h3>

There is nothing more annoying than accidentally closing a browser tab and not remembering what it was, but being sure that you want to recover it. Fortunately, Safari has a hidden function to recover closed tabs that is very easy to use.

All you have to do is click on the open tabs button at the bottom, and hold down the + symbol of the browser that you have in the upper right corner. Doing so will open a list with the last tabs you have closed so that you can recover the one you want, both the last one you closed and the previous ones before it.

Screenshots: with buttons or Apple Pencil

Taking screenshots on an iPad is very easy, and you have two ways to do it. The first way is the classic one, you have to press the power buttons and volume up at the same time . The screen will flash, and the iPad will let you choose what to do with the new screenshot you have taken.

You can also take screenshots even easier if you have an Apple Pencil. What you have to do is slide the Apple Pencil from the lower left or right corner to the center of the screen . The capture will be activated with the edit and share controls. Here you will also have the possibility to take a PDF of the entire page that you were viewing. Perfect for taking notes later.

Sticky Notes with Apple Pencil

And speaking of the Apple Pencil, there is another little trick that will also help you with productivity. Especially in those moments when you have an idea and need to write it down quickly. If you press with the Pencil on the iPad lock screen , a new note will open where you can write or draw whatever you want without having to unlock, search for the Notes app and open a new one.

Squeeze the text editor with these gestures

Apple has also implemented a gesture system specifically designed for iPadOS and its text management. This creates gesture-specific shortcuts for some classic cut, paste, and many other actions that bring the tablet experience a little closer to what a laptop offers. These are the 11 gestures that you have to memorize:

  • Two taps on a word to select it.
  • Three taps on a word to select the phrase to which it belongs.
  • Four taps on a word to select the paragraph to which it belongs.
  • Drag with two fingers to move the cursor like a trackpad.
  • Pinch once with three fingers to copy.
  • Pinch twice with three fingers to cut.
  • Expand with three fingers (the opposite of pinch) to paste.
  • Swipe left with three fingers: undo last action.
  • Swipe right three fingers: redo the last action.
  • Drag the scroll bar to move quickly through a document or web.
  • Pinch with two fingers on the keyboard to make it small like on the iPhone.

19. Copy and paste between your devices

Devices in the Apple ecosystem have always gotten along, which means that they integrate seamlessly with each other. A good example is the Universal Clipboard , which allows anything you copy to one device to be pasted onto another. All you need is for all devices to use the same iCloud account , and all you need to do is copy a text on one of the devices and paste it on the other you want.

  • All devices have to use the same iCloud account.
  • All devices must have Bluetooth and WiFi activated.
  • Go to Settings> General, and make sure you have the Handoff option turned on.
  • Now when you copy onto a device something on the clipboard will be temporarily available on the closest device.

Use the virtual keyboard trackpad

When you have gotten confused when writing a word, it can be a bit tedious to select the exact point of that word or that phrase where you want to make a change. Fortunately, both iOS and iPadOS hide a virtual trackpad on the native keyboard to help with that task.

To use it you just have to keep two fingers on the native virtual keyboard of your device. Upon detecting this change, the iPad will go into trackpad mode and you can scroll through the text by sliding your fingers across the screen as if you were using a physical trackpad. The second finger can be used to select a part of the text by sliding it a little to the right or left.

Write numbers and symbols easily

Let's go with another little trick of the virtual keyboard of your iPad. In each key in addition to the letter you have to write there is a symbol or number, and to write it you usually have to press Shift , something that wastes time. But if you press the key and slide your finger down , you will automatically type the number or symbol without pressing Shift .

Quick selection in Apple applications

The basic Apple iPad apps, like Mail for emails or Files and Messages have a little trick that lets you quickly select multiple items. You just have to slide with two fingers down the list of emails, messages or items , and by doing so you will automatically select all those you pass through. So you don't have to first select one and then the rest, you go directly selecting all of them.

Text substitution can help you

More than a trick itself, this is a tip to squeeze one of the features that iOS and iPadOS offer. The operating system allows you to create text replacement shortcuts. This can be used very well when you usually write the same long text on many occasions for whatever reason. Just use a single shortcut, something like text01 or mymail , and have it replaced with the full text you want. It can also be used to autocomplete long words with abbreviations.

  • Enter the device Settings .
  • Click on the General section .
  • Now, click on Keyboard .
  • Within the keyboard options, click on Text Substitution .
  • And that's it, go adding the substitutions you want.
Date update on 2020-09-07. Date published on 2020-09-07. Category: Windows Author: Oscar olg Fuente: xataka