Author: Thord Hedengren

Author, designer, developer, and editor of Switch to iPad, among other things.

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Issue #83: Finding a place for my iPads

🆓 This member post is free for all, thanks to our paying subscribers. Enjoy!

Hi!

I hope this letter finds you well. Me, I was so very positive last Sunday, full of energy. Unfortunately, I’ve been feeling unwell all week, which is also why this letter reaches you a day later than usual – sorry about that.

I have had time to think, though, and my thoughts have been on the iPads in my house. Namely, all three of the current generation that I use – I’m not counting iPads for development, testing, or betas. I’ve been selling off a few older devices, and a couple of newer ones (yes, there is such a thing as too many iPads), and I got the question, why so many?

Well, for work, and Switch to iPad, and because I can’t help myself, obviously!

But, it did get me thinking about how I use my iPads, how they fit in my workflow.

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Where does my iPad fit? (#83)

By Thord Hedengren NewsFebruary 17, 2022

This week’s issue of the Switch to iPad newsletter is a day late. Sorry about that. It starts like this:

I hope this letter finds you well. Me, I was so very positive last Sunday, full of energy. Unfortunately, I’ve been feeling unwell all week, which is also why this letter reaches you a day later than usual – sorry about that.
I have had time to think, though, and my thoughts have been on the iPads in my house. Namely, all three of the current generation that I use – I’m not counting iPads for development, testing, or betas. I’ve been selling off a few older devices, and a couple of newer ones (yes, there is such a thing as too many iPads), and I got the question, why so many?
Well, for work, and Switch to iPad, and because I can’t help myself, obviously!
But, it did get me thinking about how I use my iPads, how they fit in my workflow.

📧 Switch to iPad #83 is free for all to read! Go read it, post-haste.

PSA: You should update your iPad to iPadOS 15.3.1

By Thord Hedengren NewsFebruary 11, 2022

It feels like we just updated our iPads, and that’s because we just did. Nevertheless, Apple has released a security update for iPadOS, as well as iOS, macOS, and watchOS, that patches a Webkit vulnerability.

Available for: iPhone 6s and later, iPad Pro (all models), iPad Air 2 and later, iPad 5th generation and later, iPad mini 4 and later, and iPod touch (7th generation)
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited.
Description: A use after free issue was addressed with improved memory management.

That this issue has already been exploited is of course worrisome, so make sure you update all your devices post-haste.

Airport operator: An interview with Jordan Singer

By Thord Hedengren FeaturesFebruary 10, 2022

Apple’s App Store isn’t the only place to find apps for your iPad. There’s a whole world of apps that exist parallell to the App Store, either because they’re not done yet, or because they clash with some Apple policy. You can obviously use side-loading and various services for that, but there’s one alternative store that stand out, I think, and that’s Airport.

Airport is the brainchild of Jordan Singer. I check in there a couple of times a week. It was there I stumbled upon TaskFox, reviewed earlier this week, an app I’d missed in the App Store thus far.

Apps on Airport are limited to TestFlight versions, meaning that it’s a great way to discover apps in beta, or looking for beta testers. That doesn’t mean that you can only find Airport apps on Airport, the app developers can, and often do, submit them to the App Store as well.

I did a short interview with Airport creator Jordan Singer, discussing Airport, and why it was conceived in the first place.

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When is it time to upgrade? (#82)

By Thord Hedengren NewsFebruary 9, 2022

There’s a rumor going around that Apple will release a new iPad Air in March (alongside a new iPhone SE, if you were waiting for that). It makes sense, the iPad Air is due for a spec bump. Currently, it sports the A14 Bionic chip, which is fast, but not as fast as the A15 Bionic that’s in the iPad mini 6 released last year. It also has worse cameras, and you can’t get it with 5G if that’s your jam. In other words, due for a spec bump, not a refresh, so expect the new iPad Air, which’ll be the 5th generation, to move up on par with the iPad mini.

That’s how Switch to iPad #82 starts. The issue isn’t so much about the rumor, or iPad Air, though. Instead, I’m discussing when it’s time to upgrade your iPad to something newer, more shiny.

📧 Switch to iPad #82 is out now, and requires a paid subscription.

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Issue #82: When to upgrade 🆙

🆓 This member post is free for all, thanks to our paying subscribers. Enjoy!

Hi!

There’s a rumor going around that Apple will release a new iPad Air in March (alongside a new iPhone SE, if you were waiting for that). It makes sense, the iPad Air is due for a spec bump. Currently, it sports the A14 Bionic chip, which is fast, but not as fast as the A15 Bionic that’s in the iPad mini 6 released last year. It also has worse cameras, and you can’t get it with 5G if that’s your jam. In other words, due for a spec bump, not a refresh, so expect the new iPad Air, which’ll be the 5th generation, to move up on par with the iPad mini.

⭐️ Read my reviews of the new iPad mini (gen 6) and the new iPad (gen 9).

Which is fine, a great deal, in fact, if you’re looking for a larger iPad, but won’t go Pro. The iPad Air is an interesting alternative, a step up from the default iPad, using the Pro form factor (albeit with that Touch ID button), but without the premium price-point. Well, I guess that’s a matter of opinion, the pricing, but when looking at, and thinking of iPads, then it’s an intriguing middle ground. A14, and A15, is more power than most need, after all.

I can see why you’d want to get an iPad Air, and I can see why a new model interests you. In fact, you might be eying for an upgrade come March, maybe?

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TaskFox – a review

By Thord Hedengren ReviewsFebruary 7, 2022

I’m always interested in trying new productivity systems, to-do list apps, and the like. Last week, I used an app called TaskFox, which is free to try, but you’ll probably want to unlock the pro features for €5.

TaskFox is a to-do list app that puts all your tasks in its calendar. That means that even if it’s just a five-minute task, it goes in the TaskFox calendar. This is taking time blocking to a different level, something I’ve dabbled with before.

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Miyamoto – a review

By Thord Hedengren ReviewsFebruary 3, 2022

I’ve been spending the better part of the week recuperating in bed, and what better companion than an iPad mini with some games on it? One of the games I’ve been playing is Miyamoto, a digital strategic board game meets roguelikes, something I think work pretty well on tablets overall.

Miyamoto is easy to get into, if you give it a chance because it sure won’t help you. There are no tutorials or any on-boarding at all, it’s just a title screen with a couple of game modes. Granted, the game asks you to swipe up – open the box, as it were – which throws you into its ladder-style view.

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It’s all about mind maps in #81

By Thord Hedengren NewsFebruary 2, 2022

Mind mapping is something a lot of people swear by. I used to, too, but lately, things have gotten a bit more chaotic.

Today, I started thinking about mind maps. I used to do a lot of mind maps and flow charts, but not so much anymore. My thinking has moved from the structured setup of a typical mind map, to the more chaotic process of a free-form pen. Or, Pencil, as it were.
But, why is that? That felt like an interesting line of questioning to dive into, so I installed SimpleMind, the app I used to use. Now to find out if mind mapping is something I’ve missed, or if I’ve replaced it with my scribbling.

📧 Switch to iPad #81 is all about mind maps, the two ways to do it, and if you – and I – should. This issue requires a paid subscription, which costs $5/month or $50/year, at the time of writing.

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Issue #81: Let’s talk mind maps

🆓 This member post is free for all, thanks to our paying subscribers. Enjoy!

Hi!

How are you? Me, I’m working through a bunch of stuff, as I regularly do. Some of it is because I’m trying to achieve my quarterly goals for Q1 2022, but there are other reasons as well.

Today, I started thinking about mind maps. I used to do a lot of mind maps and flow charts, but not so much anymore. My thinking has moved from the structured setup of a typical mind map, to the more chaotic process of a free-form pen. Or, Pencil, as it were.

But, why is that? That felt like an interesting line of questioning to dive into, so I installed SimpleMind, the app I used to use. Now to find out if mind mapping is something I’ve missed, or if I’ve replaced it with my scribbling.

Continue reading →