How to use Stage Manager in iPadOS 16 - Is it actually useful?

Our detailed guide on how to use Stage Manager for iPad Pro. We explain how stage manager works, show a step-by-step guide on its functionality, and give our recommendations for getting the most out of stage manager.
Read the article on iDB: www.idownloadblog.com/2022/11...
How you can reach me:
Twitter: / michael_billig
Contact for business inquiries: [e-mail]
iDB Socials:
/ idownloadblog
/ idownloadblog
/ idownloadblog
About: iDownloadBlog (iDB) was founded in May 2008 as a weblog focused on delivering news, reviews, editorials, and tutorials about everything Apple!
FTC: This description may include affiliate links, including Amazon, of which I receive commission.

[@KOKOBC]

Wow it works really well I’m my 12.9” iPad Pro 2018, I’m impressed how well this 4 year old device is holding up

[@urban.reign.bgmi.]

I was amazed today after updating to 16.2,,,,i got it working on ipad pro 2018 wow wow just wow, charging bugg is the tho,,did u face charging issue too?

[@chrisbogart687]

This is the absolute best tutorial on iPad stage manager I have seen. So clear and concise. Answers all my questions. Thanks

[@DonKangolJones]

I was hesitant at first to try Stage Manager, since I mainly wanted to use it for the now postponed external monitor functionality. But I’ve started testing it out over the past couple of days and I’m sol on it. At first it felt messy and confusing, but with a little practice it really feels like the promise of multitasking is coming true on iPads. I use a 12.9” Pro, and do a lot of intensive photo editing, and it has worked great so far.

[@waltroseberry9712]

Michael, you did a great job with this video explaining a pretty esoteric subject. Thanks.

[@robhowen]

Good overview. I just got an iPad 12.9 for use on my boat for navigation, anchor alarm, wind, tides, etc. I'm not a big iPad user so I didn't know this functionality existed. I can see Stage Manager as helpful in having a couple of apps open and visible at once such as wind and anchor alarm while anchored or navigation charts and wind while underway. I will be giving it a try.

[@bb1111116]

Best overview of Stage Manager I’ve seen. Great channel.

[@hasanal-haidari3531]

Perfect video and perfect explanation. Thank you so much 💐

[@dpmike32819]

Thank you for your excellent review of Stage Manager

[@SM_H_1]

Gosh 😅 you are the only one who managed to explain it so simply and make me understand

[@grahamcurl5026]

Excellent video and, very clear explanation 👍🏼 I’m definitely going to be using this, as I can see many cases, where it would be useful.

[@jeffharder8706]

Great little walkthrough on Stage Manager. I haven’t mucked around yet (cause I didn’t know I had to manually start it in settings or control center. Good job mate!

[@taichihass]

Thanks Michael, clearly explained 👍🏼 🙏🏼

[@RussBearie]

Nicely done. Thanks!

[@gmom525]

Helpful. Thanks. I’ve got the pro 6th gen - stage manager was annoying at first but now i see how it can be very helpful

[@masvas1]

Thank you for this great video. It's a great intro to Stage Mgr for me. I like what I see here. Time to try it out.

[@farfrob]

Great tutorial. Thank you for doing this. I am going to give SM a try

[@shannone9594]

Thank you for this video! I almost bought a budget Laptop just because I needed something that can open several windows on my screen at the same time (vacation planning, research, etc) I wasn‘t looking forward to swiping up just to switch from one app to the other all the time. This is such a useful feature!

[@KawaiiLuckyGirl]

thanks for breaking this down so clearly. I’m a content creator and video editor, so i’m always using split view. Stage Manager seems like a great tool for multitaskers in this space.

[@hugodl]

Congrats for 400k subscribers!

[@terencebull6340]

Very good presentation now I understand it

[@user-oq9rv6hl4i]

Great tutorial. Very clear and didn’t wander all over the place. Direct. You can do . . .

[@yijieliang8845]

Thanks for the info

[@uwematthes1954]

Excellent Demo + Explanation!😎👌

[@panthericegirl]

Thanks for sharing excellent, I will start using my iPad now, it makes the experience a lot better.

[@Micahswf]

I’ve been using it on my 2018 pro 12.9 and i haven’t had any issues everything is smooth

[@mgmoms485]

Cool work on my old 2018 iPad Pro 11

[@molnarandrassandor3448]

I am using it on my Ipad Air, it is a great feature.

[@brentwalton8854]

You can also use Stage Manager and Dual Monitor support on the iPad Air 5th gen (the 2022 model with the M1 chip).

[@gabe6959]

I have an A12z iPad. I’ve found it useful to jump between multiple applications while doing homework. But tbh, thats all its really good for. even if I had an external display to connect to, I don’t see it being any better.

[@RockrohrMissions]

Thanks for the video. iPad Pro 2018 12.9, I probably will got to 16 now after seeing your demo. I usually have about 3 apps I can use at once.

[@TTrq01]

Hi! Excellent overview and tutorial on how to use Stage Manager. 😊 Not sure if you mentioned this but if you populate the “stage” with multiple windows/apps and end up seeing the side strip minimize (go away) by itself, you can usually bring it back by doing single right to left swipe with your finger starting on the left-hand side outside of the display.

[@Benzinewagen]

In the software tradition of of 👨‍⚕️ Cook, this is something nobody knew he needed, and indeed nobody really does in its current reincarnation

[@calvin659]

Excellent tip, John. Very helpful!

[@cynthiamcdonald3096]

Thanks for the tip!

[@MyDateCoach]

As a writer I can use Nebo on the landscape mode with a wider window than the vertical mode. I can then have two research windows open I can easily toggle to of the same size. This means I won’t need to carry two tablets when I go out to write. To have different groups of screens separately able to be recalled instantly is brilliant as well. This is seriously useful but I’ve doubts about how my M1 12.9 will handle the load. It will probably do it with ease. My hope for this type of functionality is one of the reasons I purchased the iPad with the M1 chip. The iPad is my main device. Attached Keyboards for me I don’t need, they just get in the way. The iPad Pro is now my professional tool of trade. (I do have a Magic Keyboard I use occasionally.) thanks for the review, it was well laid out and helped me to quickly and easily understand the possibilities of stage manager.

[@nickhansbauer]

It's cool to hear from people that use the iPad Pro as their main device for work! How is it with file management? Do you sometimes feel limited not having constant access to a desktop where you can drop and fetch files from?

[@MarcosFMolina]

You could actually have Twitter in full screen, and have your music in a side card, still accessible by one swipe. I think the usefulness of this mode comes in when you have a workflow that requires precise and quick switching between multiple app groups.

[@curtisemery807]

That is a very well presented demonstration of how Stage Manager works on an iPad. It’s no wonder people get turned off from using SM because it is confusing and annoying if you haven’t seen it simply explained, as it is on this video. It seems to me that SM is basically Split View’s bigger and flashier ‘older brother’, with four-window capacity rather than two, and a few other ‘tricks’. It’s annoying that Apple users have to rely on independent ‘people’ like iDB to do what they should have done in the first place - explain in simple terms how a new ‘product’ works. Thank heavens for people like iDB and Proper Honest Tech. They deserve a pat on the back.

[@ConsciousnessRC]

Good introduction. But you didn't mention how to create groups, or 'piles' of apps. I loved Stage Manager immediately and use on both iPad and Mac Ventura.

[@charlieputhfan850]

So glad this is on my IPad 12.9 5th gen iPad lol I bought it early for Christmas ❤ I’m 18 😊

[@solarflare1008]

I guess that Stage Manager is only for new models my 4 gen iPad Pro 9.7 does not have it. Great video.

[@andrejstemmle606]

Thanks a lot, 4 this very interesting, intuitive and HIGHLY professional video. It’s funny though, because of "Stage Manager" I‘ve bought an M1 iPad Pro 11° and a M1 IPad Air5. Apropos Air 5, also "Stage Manager" able, not only iPad Pro‘s after 2018. Although, I‘ve bought these two iPads mainly because of the "Stage Manager-Feature" I‘ve never really used it, because there wasn‘t any need for it. But after your video I’m excited to test it more intensively

[@life-is-a-game-we-play]

Nice bro 👍

[@Eirlex]

Thank you for this! I wish the windows behaved more like the ones on Mac.

[@aslprobro]

I use the 3 window feature for work. I’m still pretty clumsy when it comes to navigating the windows and opening and closing things. But in general, I like stage manager. I still switch between it and the default setting just about every day.

[@Qj_empire]

How did you manage to open the 3 full windows? I can get the traditional split screen, but I can’t get a 3rd on there.

[@aslprobro]

It’s not 3 full windows. It’s 3 windows side by side. They’re all just slender and tall when the iPad is in landscape.

[@slob5041]

Stage manager works really well in MacOS

[@quxro_]

it works well on my ipad 7😊

[@yashishmistry1767]

Cool!

[@2660016A]

Hi. I was just wondering if you could tell me a bit about your filming setup. Particularly, how do you avoid glare, get good sharp images of the screen without granulation/pixelation effects and how do you do those ‘zoom ins’? Oh and what camera do you use.

[@umar_m411]

One thing Stage Manager has unlocked for me on iPad is the ability to have KZbin music playing in the background, even though it’s not available as a default feature on iPads without premium 😂😂

[@MechanicalTriage]

How do you close the screens, without expanding them first? So i can go back to seeing what’s under the stages without turning it off?

[@UrAvgRider]

Good Ol’ Edmonton boy, right here. Great video. Is there a way to stop the previous app from opening when closing an app from the 3 dots at the top. I find that the most annoying aspect of Stage Manager. Thanks so much.

[@PhaniKondapani]

Great overview! It’s clear and concise to get to know Stage Manager features.

[@thestumblingchef3146]

The side bar isn’t recent apps, it’s stages. You can switch between created stages that have multiple apps open in each

[@JimzAuto]

6:15 covered in the ‘multiple views’ chapter.

[@f1remandg]

Excellent! I am much clearer now, I need to understand why the keyboard on 12.9. “ iPad is different and there is another thing about sizing that actually reduces the whole screen like when you change to a higher screen quality. Cheers

[@tombombadilofficial]

No tutorials for external monitor?

[@roguemyst1244]

Here's the big question I have: how do the magic keyboards' swipe gestures work with the shelf? I think it's a three finger trackpad swipe to switch between single apps in normal mode--with stage manager, does that switch between entire shelf stages?

[@BougieBlkRose]

I had a question, so is stage manager only for the pros? Bc I also have a iPad Air and once I did the update, I didn’t get the option to use stage manager but I did get it on my iPad Pro.

[@johnsr1975]

Best video on Stage Manager out there.

[@iscaro78]

I like Stage Manager on my M1 iPad Pro 11” even if the screen is not so big for many applications at the same time, but I really hate when I’m using un single App not in full screen, I rotate my iPad and the app goes full screen even if I rotate back in landscape view 🤔

[@rafisics]

Is there any way to get this type of equivalent feature in iPad 9th gen? I basically want to split screen for two apps in top-bottom way instead of keeping side-by-side.

[@6irardo]

M1 iPad Air Also supported.

[@seanthetraveler]

Just came here to find out what it was. I have an iPad Pro 3rd gen. Using IOS 16.1.. I’ll tune in later and let you know how I’m enjoying it

[@omarkawan]

I have tried Stage Manager to do actual work on my iPad without an external screen. I ended up in every case placing 2 windows side by side. I then realize that the old split screen multitasking setup is better for me. It is just too much work to set up the windows correct in stage manager. You also don’t have enough screen space for such an interface on the iPad screen. Honestly, what benefit, from a productivity point of view, is having 4 windows on the screen? It actually may be counter productive as you may actually be working on 2 screens and the extra apps on the screen are a distract. Stage Manager may be designed to work on external screens, where you have bigger screens and are using a mouse. For touch screen use on the iPad screen, I don’t like it

[@Poketroid23]

Stage manager is a good first step, but we really need Mac OS on the iPad. The Mac Mini and iPad Pro/Air have the same M1/2 chipset, the only limit is Apple. Unrelated but I thought it was funny that you used Twitter to showcase a larger window, all it did was add more white space. I do think it's a great feature on other apps.

[@happyspaceinvader508]

Excellent tutorial… but, unless I’m mistaken, the stage manager view to disables“swipe down to search for apps”. If you have a keyboard, you can still use cmd + space, but is there a way that doesn’t involve using the keyboard (besides temporarily disabling stage manager)?

[@themomorain]

Just tried it and it worked fine for me. (on the homescreen) not while in an application dont even know if that was possible before

[@warrenthorp]

I’d like to open several apps at once, tiled vertically, like you did at end, but you didn’t show us how to do that and I can’t seem to work it out.

[@DeputyBurbank]

Why not a other row of icons on the top and some to the right. That way you have the dock at the bottom and icons all around the perimeter leaving you a 3x3 spit for your open windows. Then of you have a 65” iPad you could see tue content.

[@Modi939]

I had mini

[@chimkennuggies3731]

I use iPad Air 4 I need this

[@rozsmith6850]

I just got an iPad Pro, and hope to be able to Skype and share a KZbin video with a student. Would they be able to see the video, too?

[@subwaytrain2710]

I can’t find stage manager thing in my switch controls and settings in my ipad air 3

[@PabloAustralia]

I feel like it drains the battery faster, is it really happening or just a placebo effect? 🤔

[@tejasgavtade107]

Does it works on ipad pro 9.7?

[@bradhayashi1106]

You don't need to tap-hold the three dots on top to move a window--just tap-hold the top of the window anywhere.

[@VincentBounce]

Sadly, the native photo module is impossible to reduce at a thumbnail size. Is someone does know an app to display the iPad front cam as a floating thumbnail like when playing a video? That way, it will be possible to record a video or stream like OBS with multi apps + face of the narrator on display, directly from one iPad😊

[@jeffharder8706]

@@Qj_empire he literally just explained it

[@Qj_empire]

@@jeffharder8706 you’re right …. He did explain, but he didn’t demonstrate. It’s no need to be a condescending smart ass about it. I’m totally new to the IPAD Pro. Mine was so outdated it no longer supported updates. Anyway, I figured it out. Take care😀

[@emanuelvlaicu9319]

If i have I have 500 gigs of photos on my personal library and choose to make a shared photo library with all 500 gigs, will I have 1 terra storage on my iCloud occupied?

[@TaylorC-ir3bi]

Also iPad 12.9 has to be in landscape mode to use stage manager from what I can tell. Maybe it was just me but I was like WHAT AM I DOING WRONG lol but that was it

[@mharrinaraine5131]

I’m on m1 iPad , I use it on external monitor. I would give it almost a perfect 10 if they allowed you to put the iPad screen to sleep and just use the external. That would make it really good. It’s sad we only can dim the iPad screen down.

[@twoone7159]

Maybe in future update just have to wait and see

[@bluej1n333]

I think there’s an option to set the screen time out of the iPad to never and when you close the lid, external display would still be on

[@simonsgoprovideos2840]

Go to settings and click display and brightness and then scroll to bottom and turn off the lock/unlock button …then your iPad screen can turn off and monitor stays on

[@mharrinaraine5131]

@@simonsgoprovideos2840 reallly, wow I will try this later and get back To you !

[@mharrinaraine5131]

@@simonsgoprovideos2840 ok I tried it and it doesn’t work.

[@viffer94]

It doesn’t feel super intuitive, certainly not like working on a MacBook but I suppose I’ll get used to it as I work with it more. No performance issues with an M1 Pro, more than enough power to be running three or four applications at once.

[@super_nova4637]

i dont have that option on my control centre nor my settings

[@jeffreygan7028]

Can you run multiple instances of the same app at the same time?

[@VictorIbelles]

Only with some apps, I can do it with safari and GoodNotes for example

[@RobHelmink]

iPad 5 Air M1 latest gen. Stage Manager supported, lower price then iPad Pro models.

[@Animated_Chicken]

Mine might be to old but I can’t use it even though I updated.

[@martinwildmann8268]

Finally i can use more aplication than only Instagram

[@nighter5995]

My ipad doesn’t show any stage manager settings on control centre or homepage and multitasking. Doesn’t show up if i search it too, is my ipad outdated ( its a 6th gen) or is it just bugged?

[@warwolf192]

Not even the ipad 10 is supported

[@medihaazhar951]

Why there's no stage manager on my ipad? Im using ipad air 4

[@omarkawan]

I decided to give Stage Manager another try. After a few minutes, I decided to create a quick note. The swipe from the bottom right corner didn’t work. I searched the web for an explanation about creating Quick Notes when using Stage Manager. Found none. Turned it off. Quick Notes is actually a great feature. Much cooler than Stage Manager

[@lemonclam]

Quick notes still works you just need to use the pencil to activate it. You can also use keyboard shortcuts-fn+q or globe+q on Magic Keyboard. When in Stage Manager, however, using your finger to activate it no longer works.

[@samirm9097]

Bruh i really wish we can do this on iPhones because this is what android been doing since Nougat

[@DeputyBurbank]

Stage manager, Touch Bar, Dynamic Island … table for three. Your table is ready.

[@PDCDeafChurch]

On my iPad Pro 2020 there is a bug in stage manager. In the message app, the field where I type often is invisible. I can still type, ,but can check for errors before sending.

[@chilly1661]

On my 2021 iPad Pro theres also a bug when opening any app from search and stage manager is turned off the app will open halfway like its in stage manager mode but then fully open. It’s pretty annoying

[@chilly1661]

Also another bug is when using stage manager sometimes half the app will be black like youtube i can see the video but not the comments, i won’t be using stage manager at all because of this.

[@neti2745]

Does the state manger work on an ipad 8th gen?

[@ArmedBread]

No, only on models without home butona

[@emilioposts]

I don’t have the feature 😢

[@johnyoungs3174]

Does Stage Manager also work on gaming apps?

[@m.s.a.s9194]

I think it works on all apps but if you have more than 1 game on or a game with another app it’s gonna suck the battery pretty fast

[@VictorIbelles]

Just tested Minecraft , genshin and Roblox, you can use them on stage manager but you can’t resize them more than 1 inch

[@MG6]

I love stage manager! It still needs a little polishing but damn as a casual it makes my use so enjoyable

[@BlueBeeXD03]

My iPad doesn’t seem to have stage manager…

[@marek8902]

You have iPad Pro 11 od 12.9” ???

[@vded13]

He said that on the end of the video. It’s a 2018 11”.

[@AldyPradana17]

👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@infox8]

koszi a videot ez legalabba rool szol amirol kell, de ezeket tudja a samsung galaxy tab s8 ultra alap uzemmodban, ugyhogy meg a dexet sem kell hasznalni, es az ablakok nem feherek hanem sotet modban vanank, bar lehet hogy itt is me lehet ezt csinalni..nem tudom, azert kosz a videot.

[@apparently_sonam]

Just downloaded 16. No stage manager in settings or drop down. What’s up with my iPad…..

[@apparently_sonam]

Ok, couldn’t delete this comment. But my air 4 doesn’t have the privilege…so done with the kool aid.

[@xingxing85]

Wow this guy is such a pretty boy 😊

[@JonasReichert1992]

Its annoying that Apps start in a small window instead of a big one…i wanna start from fullscreen an resize it from there…

[@Rayray_unicornplayz567]

Sadly stage manager is not available in budget IPads😢

[@dazgodbold]

Consoom up to 4x faster