Reduced Stage Manager iPad Requirements
Now, Apple is making Stage Manager work with a number of older devices: it’ll work on the 11-inch iPad Pro (first generation and later) and the 12.9-inch iPad Pro (third generation and later). Specifically, it’ll be available on the 2018 and 2020 models that use the A12X and A12Z chips rather than just the M1. However, there is one notable missing feature for the older iPad Pro models — Stage Manager will only work on the iPad’s build-in display. You won’t be able to extend your display to an external monitor.
Apple also says that developer beta 5 of iPadOS 16. is removing external display support for Stage Manager on M1 iPads, something that has been present since the first iPadOS 16 beta was released a few months ago. It’ll be re-introduced in a software update coming later this year.
Note that four apps on the built-in display is the same limit as with the originally introduced feature that Apple emphasized was only possible with an M1.
Surprising no one, Stage Manager on the 2018 iPad Pro 12.9” with 4GB of RAM and no swap runs completely fine. The device doesn’t feel any slower than before, and still does 120Hz ProMotion with ease. Fast and fluid.
In our side-by-side testing, Stage Manager worked well on the 2018 iPad Pro, though it was not as quick as the M1 iPad Pro.
But then again, what is?
Extending Stage Manager to older iPads is the RIGHT thing to do and I'm pleased Apple understood this.
I explained my argument in this episode of @_connectedfm (39 minutes in)
Well that didn’t take long.
Pretty nasty Stage Manager bug in the latest iPadOS beta: windows become unresponsive as you…move between them. Clicking the trackpad does nothing. You have to resize the window a little for trackpad input to work again.
Sigh. Here we go again. Stage Manager crashes every few minutes. My enthusiasm for this beta didn’t last long 😔
I really want to like Stage Manager and have better multitasking on my iPad Pro. But between unresponsive trackpad and crashes, it’s impossible to rely on this.
Early impressions: Stage Manager is still fundamentally broken as a design, just slightly less broken than before. They’ve cut the dead weight (external display was very crashy) and expanded device compatibility, which will slightly lessen the negativity come new-iPad-review-time
[…]
The Stage Manager user experience is so bad, it makes Windows 8 look like a masterpiece. It’s every bit, and more, as janky as a modern Windows ‘tablet’. I ran builds of MeeGo with a more-cohesive UX 🫣
When using a trackpad, if you switch windows, clicks are not registered anywhere in the UI unless you…hit the border of a window first.
[…]
It’s like, at this point, I in good conscience have no idea how I’m supposed to review this software.
The very feature that is supposed to let you multitask between windows makes trackpad clicks do nothing. I can’t review something I can’t use.
Resizing the Weather app is a fun new experience. Who knows what city it’ll show you depending on the window size
Previously:
And lo, the press once again completely fails to change Apple's position, or to make a meaningful and very public reversal based on nothing more than very stern criticism of what is obviously a money-grabbing decision that is unsustainable in the glow of good PR.
On the other hand, I have to teach my mum to use it now. Sigh.