From the look of the thick iPad box, Apple could have fit an instruction booklet in there. Instead, the gods of Cupertino packed only a tiny leaflet and an assertion that the device is simple enough to just figure out. That may have been true in the iPad’s earliest incarnation, but after multiple models and major software upgrades, a few of the tablet’s newest tricks may have sailed past veteran users. Thankfully, the iPad’s unlisted features are among its best, so make the most of your iPad with our secret instruction book.
Sift through recent apps
To hop between apps (say, consulting a forum post in Safari to learn how to master the game Tiny Tower), you’d expect to go back to the home screen, then hunt for the next app. For a faster way, double tap the home button, and a row of app icons will appear at the bottom of the screen in order of most recent use. It’s called the App Switcher and it hides a few other useful iPad functions.
Four-finger salute
For a quicker app switch, iOS 5 has enabled some new multitouch gestures. Put four or five fingers on the screen, then swipe to the left or right to switch to your most recent apps. Also, swiping four or five fingers upward reveals the aforementioned App Switcher, while pinching four or five fingers together will return to the home screen.
Lock your screen
The hard switch on the side of your iPad can do two things: mute all sounds, which is its factory default setting, or lock the screen’s rotation. The latter tends to be more useful, particularly when placing an iPad on a table to share images or video. Enable that feature by heading to Settings, then General, and selecting the Use Side Switch option.
A/V club
When you swipe your finger to the right within the App Switcher, you’ll bring up more recent apps. Swipe to the left, however, and you’ll find a few useful toggles: a screen-brightness meter, a volume dial, and a rewind, play and forward button trio that works with your most recent audio player (iTunes, Pandora, etc.). Also, whichever function isn’t assigned to the side switch — mute or screen lock — will appear here.
Freeze tag
If an app freezes, you’ll want to load the App Switcher again, only this time, hold your finger on the offending app until a red minus sign pops up. Then tap that minus icon. This will not delete the app in question but rather purge its frozen state so you can try again.
To clear out a more severe iPad freeze, hold the sleep button for 10 seconds for a simple reboot. If all else fails, wait until the iPad screen is off, then plug the iPad’s USB cable into a computer while holding down the home button to restore functioning from an iTunes backup. But that’s a last resort.
Increase your Smart Cover’s IQ
If you’ve added a Smart Cover case to your new iPad 2, you can basically ignore your power button. Just close the cover to turn off your iPad 2’s screen. Conversely as soon as you lift the cover, the screen comes back on. As a bonus, a study guide app, called Evernote Peek, plays nicely with the Smart Cover’s folding nature; it’ll hide the answers to study questions until you peel back the Smart Cover’s corresponding flap.
Hitting the right note
iOS 5’s most renowned new feature, the Notification Center, is nice precisely because of how unobtrusive it can be while you’re in the middle of a task. If you’ve walked away and missed its alerts, however, or have let them pile up over time, swipe from the top of the screen downward to bring up those e-mails, Facebook updates and more. Then tap the respective alert to head to its app or tap the “x” to clear them. Cover’s corresponding flap.
Sift through recent apps
To hop between apps (say, consulting a forum post in Safari to learn how to master the game Tiny Tower), you’d expect to go back to the home screen, then hunt for the next app. For a faster way, double tap the home button, and a row of app icons will appear at the bottom of the screen in order of most recent use. It’s called the App Switcher and it hides a few other useful iPad functions.
Four-finger salute
For a quicker app switch, iOS 5 has enabled some new multitouch gestures. Put four or five fingers on the screen, then swipe to the left or right to switch to your most recent apps. Also, swiping four or five fingers upward reveals the aforementioned App Switcher, while pinching four or five fingers together will return to the home screen.
Lock your screen
The hard switch on the side of your iPad can do two things: mute all sounds, which is its factory default setting, or lock the screen’s rotation. The latter tends to be more useful, particularly when placing an iPad on a table to share images or video. Enable that feature by heading to Settings, then General, and selecting the Use Side Switch option.
A/V club
When you swipe your finger to the right within the App Switcher, you’ll bring up more recent apps. Swipe to the left, however, and you’ll find a few useful toggles: a screen-brightness meter, a volume dial, and a rewind, play and forward button trio that works with your most recent audio player (iTunes, Pandora, etc.). Also, whichever function isn’t assigned to the side switch — mute or screen lock — will appear here.
Freeze tag
If an app freezes, you’ll want to load the App Switcher again, only this time, hold your finger on the offending app until a red minus sign pops up. Then tap that minus icon. This will not delete the app in question but rather purge its frozen state so you can try again.
To clear out a more severe iPad freeze, hold the sleep button for 10 seconds for a simple reboot. If all else fails, wait until the iPad screen is off, then plug the iPad’s USB cable into a computer while holding down the home button to restore functioning from an iTunes backup. But that’s a last resort.
Increase your Smart Cover’s IQ
If you’ve added a Smart Cover case to your new iPad 2, you can basically ignore your power button. Just close the cover to turn off your iPad 2’s screen. Conversely as soon as you lift the cover, the screen comes back on. As a bonus, a study guide app, called Evernote Peek, plays nicely with the Smart Cover’s folding nature; it’ll hide the answers to study questions until you peel back the Smart Cover’s corresponding flap.
Hitting the right note
iOS 5’s most renowned new feature, the Notification Center, is nice precisely because of how unobtrusive it can be while you’re in the middle of a task. If you’ve walked away and missed its alerts, however, or have let them pile up over time, swipe from the top of the screen downward to bring up those e-mails, Facebook updates and more. Then tap the respective alert to head to its app or tap the “x” to clear them. Cover’s corresponding flap.
