iPadOS 14 can be downloaded on any compatible iPads, as the beta version was already released quite some time back. Most of us had been applying the beta versions for months on end now, but since the full version has been brought out- no point not utilizing the iPadOS 14 features.
And while it would have been possible to provide every single feature that the iPadOS 14 boasts of, it was pretty evident that not many of the features were actually usable by iPads. Most of the features that seemed to be promising aren’t available for iPads, which seemed to be a poor bargain considering the iPadOS 14 price.
But, that shouldn’t be a cause for worry as Apple has a habit of not putting all the cards on the table in the beginning. Most of the features that are not available right now would be made available in the coming months. Also, some of the features could be made available for the newer versions- say iPadOS 14.5.
We know that most of us would be quite keen on downloading the new OS and enjoy all the features that it promised. So, here is a list of all the positives that can be derived from the iPadOS 14- with the negatives in mind too.
iPadOS 14 Pros
The best iPadOS 14 feature continues to be the hand-writing recognition. It doesn’t matter how many times one used that feature- the OS would recognize it. This feature, for the uninitiated, turns hand-written notes into texts- which is quite a novel feature in itself. The feature is so good that it can also recognize bad handwriting and turn it into texts.
It has been assumed that people who actually have good hand-writing would love this feature. People with a bad handwriting wouldn’t mind it either. Yet, it is not guaranteed if the iPadOS 14 would actually be updating this particular feature in the future to recognize our handwriting even more.
The Apple Pencil also comes in handy at this particular point, as people could use it for several purposes. Not only could one use it to write, but it can also be used to edit particular texts. One simply has to draw a straight line through any of the texts to highlight it, while drawing a line vertically between texts would ensure a space is created. This would be a boon for those who would rather prefer the pencil than their own fingers.
To be frank, nothing beats a keyboard folio- for typing on a keyboard is much better than the keypad. But there are times when a pencil is all that you have- so this becomes your trusted feature for iPadOS 14.
The other feature that has been greatly improved is the search bar. The improvement made has improved the speed of the OS navigation. Previously, apps would line up under your search bar as you searched with keywords. But not, the app that seems most similar to what you have typed would appear below the search bar and open up straight away as you press enter. To give a short example, if you press ‘In’, the first app to come up will be Instagram. And all you need to do is press enter, rather than go up and personally click on the app. Goes without saying, this feature of iPadOS 14 is actually very easy to use, and has slowly become second nature to anyone using it.
iPadOS 14: Cons
Although the hand-writing feature is quite a major positive of iPadOS 14, it might be a negative. For, there are times when your Apple iPad probably wouldn’t recognise your need to use the feature. There have been times when one would try to write using the Apple Pen but the iPad wouldn’t respond. Instead of selecting a specific portion of the text, one would end up dragging the entire text along the length of it. It isn’t clear why the drawing app doesn’t work at times, which is when we have to revert back to using fingers.
The biggest nuisance is probably Siri. You would think that the iPadOS 14 would actually increase the artificial intelligence of the digital assistant- but it looks the opposite. The main problem with Siri is that it pops up at the most inopportune moments. There have been times when we are simply listening to songs, or playing a game, and any word even resembling Siri would tick it off.
The glowing orb on certain occasions would simply glow up- waiting and listening. And on certain other occasions, it would simply bring up search results that match the words that have been said. If you don’t believe us, we can bring out an example.
During the last Apple event that showcased the Apple Watch Series 6, Siri came up every single time the word ‘Series’ was uttered. And let’s just say, the number of times the word was uttered wasn’t less. For some obscure reason, Siri also decided that the best course of action in an event like this would be to bring up the Wikipedia page for Supernatural. The only way to solve this- completely shutting down Siri on the iPadOS 14.
According to Apple, the iPadOS 14 version of Siri claims to have twenty times the information than the Siri three years back. While we are not denying that, we can’t also help but witness Siri actually turning out to be quite a problem.
Missed Potential
The information about better widgets brought about major excitement amongst circles, who were anticipating the iPadOS 14 to bring out good widgets. Sadly, the Beta version didn’t have many, and the full version too seems to not have much. While there are several apps for iPad, the lack of widgets for those apps seems like a missed potential by the iPadOS 14. There are some apps like Google Maps, or Mubi’s Film of the Day, which have their share of good widgets. But then you also have apps like LinkedIn, IMDb, or Outlook which have pretty useless widgets. The biggest disappointment- not all apps have widgets.
And let’s just say- widgets make things much easier. For social media apps, widgets can have tiny bars that would display notifications. For streaming channels, iPadOS 14 could easily bring out small blocks that would show the latest releases. While it is estimated that widgets might be coming out in the next few months- the first impression hasn’t been good.
The Missing Features
Ironically, there are a lot of features that were promised along with the iPadOS 14- but they haven’t been released yet. One of them, the ‘low power mode’ isn’t present in the updates- nor can it be found in the Batter section or Control Center.
Another feature, which is the basic iOS 14 security feature, is also missing. This app was supposed to inform us of all the apps that would require our permission before we downloaded them or not. But if the App Store were to be checked, this app would be suspiciously missing.
The ‘Privacy’ feature- specifically developed to ensure that we can check up on the websites on Safari- has not been introduced yet. So, there is no way to check if a website is actually authenticated or not.
The biggest feature to be missing has to be the widely touted ‘Maps’ that Apple said would rival Google Maps. Yet, we can’t complain fully about this app for the company had previously mentioned that the app would be spread over regions over a period of few months. Goes without saying, there must be some regions with iPadOS 14 that are currently receiving this feature- hopefully.
App Clips haven’t been on the rise either. They were supposed to help us check on apps from websites rather than downloading them. To be precise, we would be able to use one feature of that app without downloading. And we can’t deny that this is an ingenious idea to stop your storage from getting overcrowded. But we are assured that the app clips would keep coming up with time.
We aren’t stating that the iPadOS 14 is by any means a bad move over the previous iPadOS 13. We are simply saying that it would be much better to be patient for all the features and updates to roll out. If there is anything that can be said from a lifetime of dealing with Apple Devices, it is that the company usually holds up its end of the bargain. Just that, it may take some time.
