The New 11” and 12.9” iPad Pros: My First Impressions and Hands-On

By Federico Viticci

I just came back from the media event Apple held this morning in Brooklyn, during which the company announced major updates for the MacBook Air, Mac mini, and iPad Pro. Personally speaking, the star of the show was – unsurprisingly – the new iPad Pro line, with two new models featuring a stunning edge-to-edge display, an iPhone X-like gesture-driven interface, more powerful CPUs, and a more compact form factor.

We’re sharing more details about specs, new features, and prices in our dedicated overviews (you can find the iPad Pro, Mac mini, and MacBook Air overviews here, here, and here, respectively). In this post, I’m going to be sharing some quick first impressions about the new iPad Pros along with some notes and pictures I took at the hands-on area Apple set up after the event. Obviously, I will be sharing a lot more about the new iPad Pros over the next few days and weeks both on MacStories and AppStories.

Shortcuts 2.1 Brings New Weather and Clock Actions, iCloud Sharing Improvements, and More

By Federico Viticci

In a release that largely focuses on performance improvements and digital well-being tools to curb notification overload and smartphone addiction, Apple’s Siri shortcuts initiative in iOS 12 stands out as one of the most exciting developments in modern iOS history. Perhaps even more impressive than developers’ adoption of Siri shortcuts though has been the response to Apple’s Shortcuts app, which enables the creation of custom shortcuts that can integrate with apps, system features, and even Siri.

In addition to a thriving community that continues to prove how combining users’ imagination with automation can elevate iOS productivity, Apple itself has so far shown a remarkable commitment to the Shortcuts app by listening to the community and ensuring a smooth transition from Workflow. Traditionally, Apple’s App Store apps receive major updates then linger for months before the next big set of changes; with Shortcuts, Apple has kept the TestFlight beta channel active, pushing for the same development pace that characterized Workflow before its acquisition.

The result is Shortcuts 2.1, released today on the App Store with a variety of bug fixes, iCloud improvements, and, more importantly, new actions that integrate the app even more deeply with iOS 12. If you’re not familiar with the Shortcuts app, I recommending reading the dedicated section from my iOS 12 review first; if you’re an existing Shortcuts user and rely on the app for key aspects of your iOS workflow, let’s dig in and take a look at what’s new.

AppStories - Ep. 85 - 36 minutes

iOS Personalization and Customization

Federico

John

AppStories Episode 85 - iOS Personalization and Customization

0:00
35:56

↓

AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

This week, Federico and John talk about some of the ways they personalize and tweak their iOS setups, including wallpapers, widgets, control center, share sheet, app icons, and more.

Connected, Episode 214: The Californian Idea of Food →

Linked By Federico Viticci

Stephen was wrong, and Myke demands an apology before explaining what makes up dust. The FileMaker world is considered, then Federico explains why he thinks the ????emoji is wrong. Lastly, Adobe and Palm are both in the news.

Last week’s episode of Connected was a fun one – we discussed food emoji, Photoshop on iPad, and the Shortcuts 2.1 beta. You can listen here.

Frequently-Used Shortcuts, Part 2

Federico

John

AppStories Episode 84 - Frequently-Used Shortcuts, Part 2

0:00
32:04

↓

AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

This week, Federico and John go over more of their favorite shortcuts, focusing on web API-based shortcuts and creating menus to organize and launch shortcuts.

Moving a Calendar Event to a Different Day

By Federico Viticci

Federico

I was taking a look at some of my upcoming calendar events earlier this week, and I realized there were a couple of them that needed to be moved to a different day. Unsurprisingly, I immediately thought of Shortcuts and its native Calendar integration, but then remembered the app doesn’t offer a built-in ‘Move...

App Debuts

By Federico Viticci

Federico

MixTape Audio Sync MixTape is a simple but effective utility to load any audio file you want onto the Apple Watch and play it locally through connected headphones. To add audio files, you need to use the MixTape app for iPhone, which can transfer episodes from the iOS Podcasts app as well as any...

Why Photoshop on iOS Is A Huge Win for the iPad Pro →

Linked By Federico Viticci

Jason Snell, writing for Macworld on the announcement of Photoshop coming to iPad next year:

Adobe’s move to iPad instantly makes everyone who knows, loves, or relies on Photoshop a possible candidate for an iPad Pro. And make no mistake, the iPad Pro is already plenty powerful enough to run Photoshop, and with the Apple Pencil it’s got an input method that will satisfy most graphics pros. Even better, Adobe has said that it will be building in cloud syncing for Photoshop files, so that you’ll be able to seamlessly hand off projects directly from one device to another.

A lot of the criticism of the iPad Pro as a flawed tool for doing real work comes down to software. The hardware is capable—but where’s the software? These arguments have been weak for a while now—I think Microsoft Office for iPad is aces, and Apple’s iWork apps are remarkably capable, too—but with every major app that arrives on the platform, the quieter that criticism has to get. Adobe’s also bringing a simplified version of Premiere, called Premiere Rush, to the iPad. I wonder if Apple’s considering just how Final Cut and Logic might work on the iPad?

As I’ve been arguing for a while now, I believe we’re witnessing a shift in how tech companies – both platform owners and development studios – approach desktop and tablet software. Multiple factors – from better-looking displays and more powerful GPUs to cloud-based file management and subscriptions – are converging to make it possible to have a consistent app experience on every device you have without compromise. In this transition, iPad versions of desktop apps will be treated less like “companion” apps to a “real” desktop one and more like the same app, with the same features, optimized for touch and capable of adapting to the kind of computer it is running on (and adaptivity becomes especially important when you start considering external display output, for instance).

Photoshop, as Snell writes, is a first step. If Apple is truly pushing this vision forward, perhaps it’s time they also start treating the iPad as a place for real pro apps, not just companion utilities of macOS apps.

Permalink

Creating Shortcuts with Invisible Names for the iOS Home Screen and Widget

By Federico Viticci

I’ve spent the past two weeks updating my iPhone’s home screen setup for the XS Max and, as I shared in the latest episode of AppStories, part of the process involved gaining easier access to some of the shortcuts I use on a regular basis. While I’m not a fan of the shortcuts-only home screen approach described by CGP Grey in episode 75 of the Cortex podcast (at some point, I believe you just end up swapping app folders for shortcuts), I do like the idea of adding a couple of frequently used custom shortcuts to the home screen. And as I detailed on AppStories, I also like to use “shortcut launchers” – effectively, shortcuts to launch other shortcuts.