Apple today unveiled iPadOS 18, its latest major update to its iPad operating system. iPadOS 18 (finally) brings Calculator to the iPad with Math Notes. New Apple Pencil handwriting tools in Notes are also present and accounted for. There are now more ways to customize the iPad Home Screen and Control Center, there is a major redesign of the Photos app, and new ways for users to express themselves in Messages.
iPadOS 18 includes many of the new features and improvements that are also debuting in iOS 18 , including the revamped Photos app and new Home Screen customization tools.
Apple Intelligence
iPadOS 18 also includes the debut of Apple Intelligence, the artificial intelligence system that will be available in iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia. Apple Intelligence is built with privacy in mind, and it can understand and create text and images, draw from personal context, and simplify and accelerate daily tasks.
“Our most versatile device is becoming even more powerful and intelligent than ever with iPadOS 18,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering. “With fun new ways to personalize the Home Screen, a redesigned Photos experience, major updates to the Notes app, the addition of Calculator with Math Notes, and the groundbreaking introduction of Apple Intelligence, iPadOS 18 brings incredible new features designed for the unique capabilities of iPad, making it even easier for users to get tasks done.”
Calculator on the iPad (Finally)
A Calculator app has finally made it to the iPad, and the new app has several interesting features. Math Notes calculator allows users to type or write mathematical equations and see the results instantly, in their own handwriting if that’s how the equation was entered. Values can be assigned to variables, and a new graphing feature allows users to write or type an equation and insert a graph with just one tap. Math Notes has the same math capabilities from Calculator, and are accessible in the Notes app in a new Math Notes folder.
The Calculator app’s History feature helps users keep track of previous calculations, and unit conversions let users quickly convert length, weight, currencies, and more.
Floating Tab Bar
A new customizable floating tab bar morphs into the navigation sidebar. Favorites are kept within easy reach and it is available across the system. A new document browser is available in Pages, Numbers, and Keynote.
SharePlay now allows users to tap and draw on the screen while screen sharing, and users can also remotely control another user’s iPad or iPhone.
Additional iPadOS 18 updates
- Built on the foundation of Keychain, Passwords is a new app that makes it easy to access credentials and have them securely stored in one place, including passwords, verification codes, and security alerts.
- SharePlay gets even better this year with powerful updates to screen sharing. Users can tap and draw on their screen to point out what should be done. For more direct assistance, users can ask for permission to remotely control a device.
- With Freeform, bringing ideas to life becomes even easier. Users can create scenes to organize sections of a board by topic, or easily present content by moving around quickly.
- Gaming becomes even more immersive with features like Game Mode and Personalized Spatial Audio, which put players in the middle of the action in upcoming titles like Assassin’s Creed Shadows and RESIDENT EVIL 7 biohazard. And with Game Porting Toolkit 2, developers have new tools that make it easier to bring even more advanced games to iPad, iPhone, and Mac.
- Calendar becomes more helpful by showing both events and tasks from Reminders. Users can create, edit, and complete reminders right from Calendar.
- Reminders gets new tools, including the ability to view, create, and edit directly from the Calendar app; access a recently deleted list; and find subtasks in Smart Lists for quick reference.
- In Apple Maps, users can browse thousands of hikes across national parks in the United States and easily create their custom walking routes, which they can access offline. Maps users can also save their favorite national park hikes, custom walking routes, and locations to an all-new Places Library and add personal notes about each spot.
- Accessibility features include Eye Tracking, a built-in option for navigating the iPad with just eyes, and Vocal Shortcuts that enable users to perform tasks by making a custom sound.
Availability
The developer beta of iPadOS 18 is available through the Apple Developer Program at developer.apple.com starting today, and a public beta will be available through the Apple Beta Software Program next month at beta.apple.com. New software features will be available this fall as a free software update for iPad Pro (M4), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation and later), iPad Pro 11-inch (1st generation and later), iPad Air (M2), iPad Air (3rd generation and later), iPad (7th generation and later), and iPad mini (5th generation and later). Apple Intelligence will be available in beta on iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPad and Mac with M1 and later, with Siri and device language set to U.S. English, as part of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia this fall.
