Top tips for getting to grips with your new iPad (2018)

STRAIGHT OUTTA CALIFORNIA

You’ve just splashed out on the brand spanking new iPad, but what are you gonna do with it once you’ve slipped it out of that sumptuous packaging? Well, probably install a few games, indulge in some quirky apps, and generally prod around with your finger digits. Sounds like as good a plan as any, but before you steam ahead and get jiggy with it, why not take a minute to ensure you’ve taken care of the basics by following these six quick tips.

1. SECURE YOUR IPAD

If your iPad ends up in the wrong hands (be they those of a nasty thief or a curious toddler), you don’t want them wreaking havoc. So in Settings, go to Touch ID & Passcode. Set up a passcode (six digits minimum; alphanumeric preferred) and Touch ID, and have the iPad require the passcode when someone tries to unlock it. Also in Settings, tap your name and then under iCloud turn on Find My iPad and Send Last Location. This will be beneficial if the iPad’s lost, enabling you to track/wipe it using the Find My iPhone app (also available on iCloud.com).

2. START BACKING UP

iPads are robust, but can break or get pilfered. That’s going to be a problem if yours houses a ton of family photos and videos, all your business documents, and that hit novel you’ve been bashing out in your spare time. So start backing the thing up from day one. In Settings, tap your name and under iCloud turn on iCloud Backup. If you need to buy monthly iCloud storage to do so, don’t be a skinflint – just eat the costs. And if you’ve a Mac or PC, hold your nose, download iTunes, and periodically back-up your iPad to that as well.

3. LEARN HOW TO MULTITASK

Gone are the days when the iPad restricted you to gawping at one app at a time. Now, there’s Split View (two-up app view) and Slide Over (iPhone sized app lurks over another full-screen app). Both are activated by dragging from the bottom of the screen to get at the Dock, and then dragging an icon. For Split View, drag to the left or right of the screen (as shown); for Slide Over, plonk the icon somewhere else. Either way, it pays to store favourite apps in the Dock, ready for when you need to do a spot of multitasking.

4. MASTER THE VIRTUAL KEYBOARD

You should consider a proper keyboard for serious writing work, but the iPad’s virtual one has useful tricks to make typing more efficient. Flick downwards on any key to input the symbol above the key (such as # on S). Tap-hold letters to view alternates, like accented vowels. Two-finger press the keyboard to temporarily transform it into a trackpad for precisely positioning the cursor. Or to go thumbs-only, tap-hold the keyboard button and select Split. Also, check out Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement. Here, you can create shortcuts that expand to full phrases, vastly speeding up text input.

5. PERUSE BUILT-IN APPS

The iPad app ecosystem is superb, to the point it’s tempting to immediately launch the App Store and spend a frenzied hour downloading everything you see. Yet even though we recommend plenty of amazing third-party apps for iPad, we also suggest you spend time getting to know built-in ones, because they might surprise you. For example, Notes looks basic, but supports lists, tables, sketches and annotation (with a finger or Pencil), and smart button-like links you can share to it from Safari and Maps. And Files can integrate with the likes of Dropbox and Google Drive, so you can easily manage files.

6. ACTIVATE ACCESSIBILITY SETTINGS

People too often regard accessibility features as something geared only towards people with vision, hearing or motor issues. In reality, accessibility benefits a much wider audience. In General > Accessibility, the Vision section has options for emboldening skinny text, and swapping eye-thumping animations for basic crossfades by way of Reduce Motion. And if you do a lot of writing, delve into the Speech section, which enables you to add a Speak button to the menu that appears when you select text. The iPad will then read your selection back to you – great for finding typos.