Apple has released iPadOS 18, adding a Calculator app to the iPad for the first time as well as bringing with it new customization options for the Home Screen and Control Center, a fully redesigned Photos app, improvements to Messages, and more.
Similar to iOS 18, iPadOS 18 includes an all-new customizable Home Screen, a redesigned Control Center and Photos app, a long-awaited password manager app, the ability to lock apps with Face ID or Touch ID, iMessage improvements, including the ability to use any emoji as a Tapback reaction and schedule messages, format text with bold or underline, RCS support for improved messaging with Android devices, and more.
Users areto arrange apps and widgets in any open space on the Home Screen, allowing for a new personalized experience. Users are able to choose a light, dark, or tinted look for their Home Screen, with customizable app icons and widgets. The introduction of the Passwords app builds on the foundation of Keychain, offering users a centralized hub for managing passwords, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords, and verification codes.
For the first time in the history of iPad, Apple is releasing its own Calculator app, offering basic and scientific calculators to users as well as new tools like calculation history and unit conversion.
Later in the year and throughout 2025, Apple will be launching and expanding on Apple Intelligence, bringing advanced AI capabilities to the iPad. With Apple Intelligence, users will be able to streamline everyday tasks, as AI provides personalized assistance by learning user behavior and offering more context-aware recommendations. Siri will become more proactive, handling complex commands and offering suggestions before they’re requested, enhanced text prediction and autocorrect will improve based on personal language styles, making communication smoother and more intuitive, and real-time translation will make multilingual interactions more seamless.
Apple Intelligence will also include Image Playgrounds, which will allow users to create an entirely new image based on a text description, suggested concepts, or even someone from their Photos library. Genmoji will allow users to create completely custom emoji based on a description, and allow them to be sent in iMessage, and in 2025, Apple Intelligence will feature OpenAI ChatGPT integration, allowing Siri to tap into ChatGPT for certain requests, broadening the capabilities of Apple Intelligence alone.
iPadOS 18 is available on the following devices: iPad Pro (M4), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation and later), iPad Pro 11-inch (1st generation and later), iPad Air (M2), iPad Air (3rd generation and later), iPad (7th generation and later), and iPad mini (5th generation and later).
To install the iPadOS 18 update, open Settings > General > Software Update on your iPad and follow the on-screen instructions to download and install the update. It is recommended to connect the device to Wi-Fi and ensure it has at least 50% battery life or is plugged into a power source during the installation.
