In my iOS 11 wish list for iPad and concept video, I focused on system-wide drag & drop – a feature that could reshape how iPad users move documents and data between apps. Readdle, makers of the popular Spark and PDF Expert, aren’t waiting for Apple to add a native drag & drop framework to iOS, though. Today, in addition to the release of Documents 6, the company is updating most of their iPad apps with a custom drag & drop feature that simplifies the transfer of documents between two apps in Split View. I’ve been testing this functionality for the past week, and, even if it’s not system-wide iOS drag & drop, it’s been enough to pull me back into Spark and PDF Expert – at least for now.
Posts tagged with "iPad"
Readdle Brings Split View Drag & Drop to Their iPad Apps
iOS 11: iPad Wishes and Concept Video
Once heralded as a promising sign of Apple’s renewed commitment to the iPad, iOS 9 has begun to feel like a one-hit wonder.
iOS 9 represented a profound change for Apple’s approach to the iPad. After years of stagnation and uninspired imitation of iPhone interface paradigms, iOS 9 allowed the iPad to explore the true potential of its large canvas; for the first time since the original tablet, Apple was creating new iPad-only features rather than adapting them from the iPhone. Split View, Slide Over, and Picture in Picture were drastic departures from the classic iPad interaction model that, however, perfectly fit the device.
As I concluded in my iOS 9 review:
This year, the iPad is getting the first version of iOS truly made for it. After too many unimaginative releases, Apple has understood the capabilities of the iPad’s display and its nature of modern portable computer. Free of dogmas and preconceptions of what an iPad ought to be, iOS 9 fundamentally reinvents what an iPad can become going forward.
In a span of six months, the one-two punch of iOS 9 and iPad Pro redefined the concept of portable computer again, setting Apple on a new path for the iPad ecosystem. Or, at least, it seemingly did.
Since late 2015, Apple hasn’t had too much to show for the iPad. A smaller version of the iPad Pro was released in early 2016, though the new device mostly adapted features from the bigger version to a more compact form factor, introducing inconsistencies to the iPad line in the process, such as the True Tone display (still exclusive to the 9.7” iPad Pro). iOS 10, while a solid upgrade overall, focused on iPhone users and lifestyle enhancements; for iPad users, iOS 10 was a disappointment that failed to build upon iOS 9. The first iPad Pro – launched in November 2015 – has lingered without updates, raising questions on the actual need for one of its marquee features – the Smart Connector that only Apple and Logitech have supported so far. And amid consistently declining sales, the company’s only “new” hardware after the iPad Pro has been a lower-priced and rebranded iPad Air – a solid entry model, but another adaptation.
We haven’t seen something truly new, bold, and transformational happen on the iPad platform in nearly two years. It’s time for Apple to step up their game and continue pursuing the vision for the future of computing set forth in 2015. There’s so much more work to be done with iOS, multitasking, and the redefinition of computing for the multitouch era. The iPad Pro can be a computer for everything, but it needs another leap forward to become the computer for everyone. And that can’t happen without a serious reconsideration of its software.
The iPad needs another bold, daring step towards the future. With iOS 11, Apple has an opportunity to pick up where they left off with iOS 9, forging a new direction for the iPad platform.
Every year ahead of WWDC, I collect some of my thoughts about the current state of iOS and consider where Apple could take their software next. I’ve been doing this for the past several years going back to iOS 6 in 2012. I’ve referred to these stories as “wishes” because they encapsulate all the aspects I’d like Apple to improve in their mobile OS. Last year, we added a concept video to the mix. This year, I wanted to prepare something different and more specific.
iOS for iPhone is, I believe, at a point of sufficient maturity: aside from particular feature additions, I don’t think there’s anything fundamentally missing from the iPhone.1 The iPad now bears the proverbial low-hanging fruit of iOS. There are obvious areas of improvement on iOS for iPad, which is, effectively, two years behind its iPhone counterpart. The iPad’s lack of meaningful software advancements allows us to explore deeper ideas; thus, in a break with tradition, I decided to focus this year’s iOS Wishes exclusively on the iPad and where Apple could take its software next.
Like last year, I collaborated with Sam Beckett to visualize my ideas for iOS 11 on the iPad with a concept video and detailed mockups. This time, instead of showcasing our ideas as standalone concepts, we imagined a “day in the life” theme for the video, showing how enhancements to iOS for iPad would work in practice. Rather than showcasing random bits of possible features, we imagined an underlying task to be accomplished (planning a vacation in Barcelona) and how better iPad software could help.
I’ve been thinking about some of these ideas since iOS 9 (you can see a thread between my iOS 10 concept and this year’s version), while others would be a natural evolution for iOS on the iPad. Once again, Sam was able to visualize everything with a fantastic concept that, I believe, captures the iPad’s big-picture potential more accurately than last year.
Below, you’ll find our iOS 11 for iPad concept video, followed by an analysis of my iPad wishes with static mockups. I focused on foundational changes to the iPad’s software – tentpole features that would affect the entire OS and app ecosystem.
This isn’t a prediction of what Apple will announce at WWDC; it’s my vision for what the future of the iPad should be.
The Long-Lived iPad 2
Every once in a while, an Apple device comes along that sticks around for a while without an update.
Jokes about the “current” Mac Pro aside, one such device that comes to mind for me pretty quickly is the iPad 2, introduced back in March 2011. It was finally taken off the market three years later.
While that doesn’t seem remarkable today, it was an eternity when it came to iOS devices at the time. The iPad 2 was one of the first devices Apple kept around to fill a lower price point on its product matrix.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves quite yet.
“Apple Is Pushing iPad Like Never Before”→
Fascinating research note by Neil Cybart on iPad sales and Apple’s new iPad strategy:
Apple is making its iPad sales pitch to two groups: existing iPad users and long-time PC users. According to my estimates, there are 100M users still using older iPads (iPad 1, iPad 2, iPad 3, iPad 4, iPad mini). A significant portion of these users are using devices that don’t even support the latest iOS release. Management thinks simpler storytelling and an aggressively low $329 price will entice these users to upgrade to the new 9.7-inch iPad.
The fact that 100M people are still using older iPads demonstrates that the product provides value. Apple is also confident that users will see the significant improvement between the latest iPads and models from five to seven years ago. As for PC users, Apple thinks the iPad Pro line is capable of handling the vast majority of tasks currently given to laptops. Apple looks at the iPad Pro line, which includes Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard, as a better solution for consumers than even the Mac. This is quite telling as to management’s long-term motivation.
Strong iPad updates in this year’s iOS release would certainly help Apple steer the iPad’s narrative in a new direction.
Pixure 2.2 with PanelKit→
Pixure is Louis D’hauwe’s excellent pixel art studio app for iOS that lets you create retro-styled illustrations. Pixure was already best suited for the iPad’s bigger display, but the latest version 2.2 adds PanelKit – a UI framework created by D’hauwe himself to turn traditional iPad popovers into floating panels.
Popovers are a staple of the iPad’s interface, and I was skeptical when I saw the first details of PanelKit in February. After testing Pixure on my 12.9” iPad Pro, though, I think D’hauwe is onto something – when the app is in full-screen, it’s nice to be able to re-arrange a palette of tools so it doesn’t hide your content. The best part, in my opinion, is that panels can be converted back to sidebars by snapping them to the edge of the display, which is a fantastic use of the iPad Pro’s large screen. There’s an argument to be made about PanelKit bringing the cognitive load of desktop window management to the iPad, but I believe that, for some apps (such as graphic editors like Pixure), floating controls that you can re-arrange around the canvas are necessary.
I’m testing a few iPad apps that try to optimize for the iPad Pro’s screen with additional popovers and sidebars, and none of them feel as flexible or as intuitive as D’hauwe’s app. If you’re an iPad user, you should check out Pixure.
Swift Playgrounds Gains Support for New Languages→
Today Apple added support for five new languages to its Swift Playgrounds app for iPad: Simplified Chinese, Japanese, French, German and Latin American Spanish.
In its announcement, Apple quoted Xiaoming Bao of Hangzhou Foreign Languages School:
“Swift Playgrounds is the perfect app to help our students learn to code, and I’m very excited students in China are now are able to use it with Simplified Chinese support…Last year, we created an optional coding class for my students to learn fundamental coding concepts using Swift Playgrounds. I had no previous experience with coding, but the engaging and easy-to-learn app, along with the comprehensive teacher guide developed by Apple, made me confident that I could inspire and facilitate my students to learn to code, and understand coding as a way of thinking that can be applied to other subjects and everyday life. Chinese language support will make the learning experience with Swift Playgrounds even easier for students.”
Swift Playgrounds is available on the App Store.
Apple Introduces New ‘iPad’ Model with 9.7” Display and A9 Chip Starting at $329
Following a 5-hour downtime of its online store this morning, Apple announced a new base model of the 9.7” iPad.
Starting at $329 for the 32 GB Wi-Fi version and simply called ‘iPad’, the new device appears to be a lower-cost replacement for the iPad Air line as the company’s iPad lineup now includes iPad mini 4, the new ‘iPad’, and the iPad Pro in existing 9.7” and 12.9” configurations. Neither iPad Pro model received any update this morning. The iPad mini 4, on the other hand, now offers more capacity for the same price: the 128 GB Wi-Fi model is now priced at $399, while the 128 GB Wi-Fi + Cellular is available at $529.
John Gruber on the 2017 iPad Lineup→
John Gruber on what may be coming next in terms of iPad refreshes:
What doesn’t make sense to me is a new 10.5-inch model. The idea makes sense — keeping the physical footprint of the current 9.7-inch models but reducing the bezels and putting in a bigger display. The ideal form factor for iPads and iPhones is just a screen, like the phones in Rian Johnson’s Looper — reducing the size of bezels and moving toward edge-to-edge displays is inevitable. Even the pixel density math works out for a 10.5-inch display.
What doesn’t make sense to me is the timing. I don’t see how an iPad with an exciting new design could debut alongside updated versions of the existing 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch iPads. Who would buy the updated 9.7-inch iPad Pro with the traditional bezels if there’s a 10.5-inch model without bezels? No one.
If Apple is going to position both the second-gen 12.9” and 9.7” iPad Pros as the high-end models, I don’t see where a simultaneous release of a drastically different 10.5” iPad Pro would fit. But if the second-gen iPad Pros (with the current form factors) move to the low end of the lineup, that means the 10.5” iPad Pro could introduce an edge-to-edge design with no Home button before the iPhone gets such treatment (supposedly) later this year.
That idea always seemed odd to me. Traditionally, the iPad doesn’t get major hardware changes before the iPhone. The iPad hardware tends to follow the iPhone. True Tone and the four-speaker system were iPad Pro-first features, but they weren’t fundamental platform changes such as Touch ID or Retina. Both of those came to the iPhone first. (I won’t even count the Smart Connector here.) An edge-to-edge design with no Home button is a major platform shift – particularly if it includes new developer APIs, which would have to launch in the Spring before iOS 11 if the rumor of an imminent iPad Pro 10.5” is to be believed. At this point, I find that somewhat hard to believe.
Instead, I think spec-bumps across the entire iPad lineup would make more sense in the short term. I can see Apple bringing consistency to the product line (True Tone, USB 3 speeds, and fast charging for every iPad Pro model) and adding faster CPUs/more RAM for powerful iPad-only features coming with iOS 11. I’m curious to see if Apple will revive the iPad mini by making a 7.9” iPad Pro and if iPad accessories will receive substantial improvements at all (it’d be nice to get an upgraded Smart Cover or a Pencil with superior battery life).
LiquidText 3.0: A Uniquely Digital PDF Experience
LiquidText is one of the few apps that feels uniquely built for the iPad. There is currently no desktop version available, nor iPhone version, and though that may be a negative in some ways, the positive side is that every new feature and enhancement is focused exclusively on iPad use. As a PDF reader, LiquidText has always provided tools that make its reading experience something you couldn’t get with a physical document. This is perhaps why it was recognized by Apple as the most innovative iPad app of 2015. But today, with version 3.0, LiquidText not only offers a reading experience that’s uniquely digital – it does the same with note-taking and annotation. And the Apple Pencil is a big reason for that.