Apple’s new iPadOS 15 features major multitasking overhaul

By Andy Boxall Published April 25, 2023

Get your iPad ready, because Apple has announced iPadOS 15, the next version of the tablet’s operating system, during the keynote presentation at WWDC 2021. The software is a spinoff of iOS 15 for the iPhone, but with changes and new features specifically designed to improve the software experience on a larger screen.

Apple put a big focus on its widgets, which are now more powerful and more flexible. Instead of a single widget area, you can now mix your widget among your apps, giving you more options on where to place them. There are also new widget sizes. Widgets in larger sizes will display more information and better make use of the iPad’s larger display compared to the iPhone.

Recommended Videos

Another key area Apple discussed was multitasking, something that had received a huge amount of speculation before the event. There is now a new control at the top of apps that reveals a new multitasking menu. This lets you quickly access controls to launch Split View or Slide Over, as well as send an app full screen. When using Split View, you can swipe down on an app to minimize it into a shelf, which houses all your open apps and allows you to move between them.

While it is not the windowed experience with menu bars that some people had speculated — or indeed the merger between iPadOS and MacOS that is constantly doing the rounds — the new controls in iPadOS helps bring the iPad a little closer to a laptop experience.

Former Senior Mobile Writer

Andy has written about mobile technology for almost a decade. From 2G to 5G and smartphone to smartwatch, Andy knows tech.

Topics

Computing

Apple’s new child safety tools are now available with better controls for screen time, web access, and harmful content

Parents can now start child accounts with a smaller set of approved apps and add more access later

Apple child safety features revealed at WWDC 2026

Apple first previewed a new set of child safety features at WWDC in June, and parents can now start using them with iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27. The update gives families more control over which apps children can access, what websites they can visit, who they can communicate with, and how much time they spend in certain app categories.

Apple is also changing Screen Time to make those controls easier to manage. Parents get a clearer view of device usage, quicker access to restrictions, and age-based guidance for setting limits across categories such as Games, Social Media, and Entertainment.

Tablets

How to reset an iPad: soft restart, force restart, and factory reset

From a quick reboot to a full wipe, here's every reset trick your iPad actually needs.

iPad Pro on table

Even the best hardware from Apple isn't immune to glitches. iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks are known to run for years without issues, but every so often, your iPad needs a reset to get back on track.

The good news is that resetting an iPad is one of the easiest things you can do on any Apple device. It takes just a few minutes and doesn't require any tech expertise. That said, there are three very different types of resets, and mixing them up can cause more problems than it solves. You don't want to wipe your entire iPad when all you needed was a quick restart.

Tablets

Lenovo’s $1000 flagship Android tablet packs everything you’ll ever need

A 4K screen, giant battery, and keyboard in the box? Lenovo’s new tablet goes all out

The Yoga Tab Plus Gen 2 Featured

Lenovo’s latest high-end tablet is finally available in the US, and the company has jam-packed it with hardware that makes it versatile enough for all kinds of work. The Yoga Tab Plus Gen 2, first unveiled at IFA 2026, is now on sale for $999.99 with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.

For that price, you get a 13-inch 4K display, a 12,700mAh battery, and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite processor. More importantly for anyone hoping to do some actual work on it, Lenovo includes the All-in-One Clamshell Keyboard and Tab Pen Pro 2 in the package.