Productivity on iPad
Stage Manager on iPadOS 17: the iPad Isn’t Just a Big iPhone Any More
I’ve been writing every day since July on an iPad Pro using iPadOS 17 Stage Manager. Here’s how to get the best out of it
Some people view the iPad as a massive iPhone, supremely impractical for most jacket pockets! It has, however, come a long way since Steve Jobs proudly revealed it to a simpler, saner world in 2010.
Yes, an iPad with iPadOS 17 Stage Manager and a monitor is a solid solution for many types of content creation (e.g. writing, photography, illustration). Add an Apple Pencil, and it might even be the preferred choice.
Content creation doesn’t seem to have been Apple’s original intent, but over time, it warmed to the idea. In September 2015, the iPad Pro appeared, and in 2020 the iPad gained mouse and trackpad support.
A giant piece of the jigsaw was still missing, however, and Apple appeared to be the last to notice. Unlike Microsoft tablets, the iPad Pro could not use an external monitor for extra screen real estate. It just mirrored its touchscreen, for reasons known only to Apple’s Department of Crazy.
