Many readers in our Telegram chat, following the popular bloggers on YouTube, literally smashed the new version of the operating system for the most popular tablets in the world. They say there is nothing new and revolutionary, and how to realize the full power of the M1 chip in the iPad Pro is simply incomprehensible. However, the analysis of the first beta for developers shows that Cupertino did a lot to improve the interaction of users with gadgets, and today we will analyze in detail what is fundamentally new in the regular file manager of iPadOS 15.
iPadOS 15 takes tablet interaction to the next level
Content
- 1What is the Files app for iPad for?
- 2What’s new in Files in iPadOS 15
- 3How to highlight files in Files app on iPad
- 1Group files on iPad
- 4Support for NTFS file system on iPad
- 5Improved multitasking in iPadOS 15
What is the Files app for iPad for?
Initially, Steve Jobs and Scott Forstall and their team taught us that users do not need files on mobile devices. These devices are solely for the consumption of content, and an ordinary person does not need to know in which file a particular photo, video or musical composition is saved. He just interacts directly with this content in the corresponding applications and that’s it. And it should be noted that this approach had its advantages, which made the iPhone and iPad the most popular gadgets in the world.
But Tim Cook’s team for at least the past three years has been actively promoting the idea of a full-fledged replacement of a laptop with a professional tablet in many of our industries. A professional device for work simply must provide the user with access to the file system and have an appropriate application for this.
Впервые приложение Файлы появилось еще в iOS 11, однако позволяло ограниченно манипулировать только файлами пользователя в iCloud Drive. После анонса iPad Pro 2018 года, которые получили разъем USB-C, в Apple существенно доработали свои Файлы и уже в iPadOS 13 и iPadOS 14 мы могли спокойно копировать и перемещать данные с подключенных внешних флешек, SSD накопителей, камер и т.д.
What’s new in Files in iPadOS 15
In addition to iCloud Drive, it became possible to work with the most popular cloud storages, archive and unzip zip files, scan documents to pdf and convert photos to the same format. iPadOS 15 further improves and simplifies the way users interact with files on iPad and connected external devices.
Copy (move) files indicator on iPad
Последние модели iPad Pro оснащены не просто USB-C разъемом, это Thunderbolt 3, а значит, подключив совместимый внешний накопитель, пользователи смогут быстрее передавать между своими устройствами довольно внушимые по размеру файлы.
But in previous versions of iPadOS, a person could not influence the process of copying (moving) files on his gadget in any way. Cupertino listens to users’ opinions, and today iPadOS 15 provides an opportunity to intervene in this action. When you start copying or moving a file, for example, by dragging and dropping Drag-and-Drop, a progress circle appears in the upper right part of the window. Clicking on it will open the copy (move) indicator. And here, by swiping to the left from the right edge of the indicator, we can pull out the red “Cancel” button, when pressed, the process will stop.
How to highlight files in Files app on iPad
Previously, to select files in the regular file manager on the iPad, we had to click the “Select” button in the upper right corner and then either select each individual file with our finger, or move our finger over the files that we want to select in a row. Today, iPad Pro users with Magic Keyboard , as well as enthusiasts who connect a mouse such as Magic Mouse 2 or Magic Trackpad 2 to their iPad, can select files just like they do on a Mac or Windows PC. To do this, just click with the mouse (trackpad) in an empty area around the files and, without releasing your finger, drag the rectangle frame, grabbing the files you need.
Now files on iPad can be selected both on macOS and Windows
Group files on iPad
Just like Finder on Mac, iPad now has a new sorting option that lets you group files according to different criteria. To do this, click on the blue button with four squares in the upper right corner of the screen and select “Use Groups” at the very bottom. As a result, all your files will be sorted by type. You can view all pdf files, photos, documents, videos and so on separately.
Sort files by groups on iPad
But that is not all. The user can group files not only by type, but also by date and size. To do this, go to the submenu available after activating the “Use Groups” mode.
Additional options for sorting files into groups
Support for NTFS file system on iPad
It’s no secret that the most popular desktop operating system in the world is still Microsoft Windows. The main file system for Windows drives is NTFS. Therefore, it should not be surprising that many external hard drives, flash drives and SSD drives are formatted in NTFS for some reason. By default, Mac computers were able to connect these external devices in Reading Mode . Writing to NTFS formatted volumes required third-party software.
But it was simply impossible to connect a drive formatted in NTFS to the iPad. Today iPadOS 15 allows you to natively connect and read NTFS-formatted external drives. Writing to these drives is not yet supported . But in terms of versatility, a huge step forward has already been taken.
Improved multitasking in iPadOS 15
iPadOS 15 also brings a new experience to interacting with files in SplitView mode . So, now, placing on the screen side by side windows of two applications, the user can freely move between them not only photos or links on the Internet, but also any documents, images and files.
Transferring data and objects between apps in iPadOS 15
Of course, the current beta for developers is still full of all sorts of bugs and flaws, but by mid-September, many functions will be completed, and third-party developers will update their applications. And we will be able to fully appreciate all the benefits of file management in the new iPadOS 15.
