iPad apps

Capable, low-priced PDF editor is optimized for iOS 17

By

PDF Editor free offer
If you want a high-quality, feature-rich PDF editor but don't want to pay top prices, PDF Editor PDF Book Reader could be for you. Claim your free one-year subscription now!
Image: PDF Editor PDF Book Reader

For anyone who only needs a PDF editor to occasionally sign or modify a document, paying Adobe Acrobat’s monthly price may be too much. So it’s a good thing you have less-expensive yet feature-rich apps like PDF Editor PDF Book Reader to try.

People have relied on the app for years, and now it’s optimized with new features to work brilliantly on iPhones with iOS 17 and on iPads with iPadOS 17. Plus, Cult of Mac readers can get a free one-year subscription to the app (details below).

Best free weather apps for iPhone and iPad in 2023

By

The Best Weather Apps
There are SO MANY weather apps to choose from, but these are the best free ones.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

In a world with about 10,000 weather apps — that’s an actual estimate, not a huge exaggeration — how do you choose the best free weather app for iPhone or iPad that you can trust and that includes the features you want most? It’s not easy. But a mix of full-featured free weather apps (most with premium versions) and specialty apps can cover all the bases for you.

We’ll go over some of the best weather apps below, whether you just want to avoid getting wet or if you’re a total weather freak who can’t get enough data, visual or otherwise.

TikTok app finally optimized for iPad [Awesome Apps]

By

TikTok for iPad in Landscape
At long last, there's actually a reason to put the TikTok app on your iPad.
Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Awesome Apps

The TikTok application just got a major revamp for iPad users. And that includes both portrait and landscape orientations.

It’s a significant change for an app that previously emphasized handsets well ahead of every other device.

Edit video on iPhone and external drives with powerful LumaFusion [Awesome Apps]

By

Edit video on iPhone and external drives with powerful 'LumaFusion'
With LumaFusion, you don't need storage space on your iPhone to edit huge video files on an SSD.
Photo: LumaTouch
Awesome Apps

With an iPhone 15 Pro or Pro Max, you can record high-resolution video directly to an external SSD. And the latest version of the iPhone app LumaFusion lets you edit with the video still on the external drive, too. Don’t try that with any other video editor for iOS.

That’s on top of the many other features of the iPhone and iPad application, which offers multitrack video editing with a focus on controlling everything with touch.

Apple makes editing video easier with Final Cut Pro update

By

Apple makes editing video easier with Final Cut Pro update
Updates to Final Cut Pro video-editing software for Mac or iPad offer new features that help streamline workflows.
Image: Apple

The upcoming Final Cut Pro version 10.7 brings in improvements to timeline navigation and organization, as well as new changes that Apple says will simplify complex edits.

And Final Cut Pro for iPad 1.3 includes new features intended to enhance using the professional-grade video-editing application on a touchscreen.

Build a reading list and track your progress [Awesome Apps]

By

Reading Time for iPhone
A smarter way to keep your reading list organized.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Awesome Apps

Reading Time for iPhone and iPad lets you build a library of books, then tracks your progress as you read. It encourages reading by making everything easier and more fun.

You can easily scan books by their barcodes to add them to your library. When you start a reading session, a Live Activity will show up on your Lock Screen, in the Dynamic Island or in StandBy.

The Reading Time app keeps track of your progress with detailed stats — like your reading speed, and estimated time until you’re finished — in an organized dashboard of books.

How Final Cut Pro for iPad differs from Mac version

By

Final Cut Pro for iPad gives users the ultimate mobile studio for all their video and editing needs — no matter where they are.
Final Cut Pro for the iPad is a lot different from its Mac counterpart.
Photo: Apple

After a long wait, Final Cut Pro, Apple’s professional video editing software, is now available for M1 or newer iPads. Editors accustomed to Final Cut Pro on their Mac can easily switch to their iPad as a portable editing machine.

However, before starting with Final Cut Pro on your iPad, you need to know how it differs from the Mac build. Both versions enable pro-level video editing, but they are understandably different in key ways.

Unleash your creative side with 26 Adobe apps on sale

By

Unleash your creative side with a month-long access to over 20 Adobe apps, now only $29.99.
Make pro-quality art, design and more with Adobe Creative Cloud for just $29.99.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

What Microsoft Office is to the 9-to-5 worker, Adobe is to designers, photographers and almost anyone working in the creative field. That’s been true for a long time, but fees for this high-end software can be a significant barrier to entry for those looking to use these essential tools.

Not anymore, though. This special offer lets new customers work with more than 20 apps in the Adobe Creative Cloud for only $29.99 (regularly $82) for one month.

DaVinci Resolve pro video editing app launches on iPad

By

DaVinci Resolve pro video editing app heads for iPad
Yes, that's the popular DaVinci Resolve video-editing application running on iPad.
Photo: Blackmagic Design

Blackmagic Design introduced the promised iPad version of it’s DaVinci Resolve professional video editing application. Beyond editing, it also handles color correction.

The software is available for download now from the App Store.

These are Apple’s picks for the best App Store apps and games of 2022

By

2021 App Store Awards
App Store award winners are going to get a physical plaque from Apple.
Photo: Apple

Apple crowned 16 apps and games as winners of its 2022 App Store Awards for “making a profound cultural impact.” The App Store’s editorial team honored apps and games on five platforms: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV.

This time around, the company also selected five “Cultural Impact winners that have made a lasting impact on people’s lives and influenced culture,” Apple said in a press release Tuesday.

DaVinci Resolve pro video editing app heads for iPad

By

DaVinci Resolve pro video editing app heads for iPad
Yes, that's the popular DaVinci Resolve video-editing application running on iPad.
Photo: Blackmagic Design

Blackmagic Design confirmed Thursday that its DaVinci Resolve professional video editing application will be released for iPad before the end of 2022.

It puts the third-party software developer ahead of Apple, which has yet to bring Final Cut Pro to its tablets.

Why Mela is top chef of recipe apps [Awesome Apps]

By

Mela is the perfect culinary sidekick.
Mela is the perfect culinary sidekick.
Photo: cottonbro/Pexels

Forget your whisk, chef’s knife or food-mixer. Apple’s iPhone should be your go-to device when it comes to preparing delicious meals in the kitchen. While it’s incredibly handy having Siri nearby to set multiple cooking timers, our iPhones, iPads and Macs can also double as digital recipe-books. And when it comes to recipe apps, trust me: The best out there is Mela.

YouTube picture-in-picture rolling out for all iPhone users [Update: NOPE]

By

YouTube Picture in Picture is back. At least for now.
Watching a YouTube video in Picture in Picture is back!
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

YouTube said Sunday that it is rolling out picture-in-picture support for all users of its iOS app. Then it walked the announcement back on Monday. A mixup by a support person is the problem.

The convenient feature has been in beta testing for many months, and some people say they’ve begun getting access to the non-beta version several days ago. But not according to YouTube.

iWork 12 adds features to better compete with Microsoft Office

By

iWork 12 adds features to better compete with Microsoft Office
All the iWork 12.0 applications for iPad and iPad let users edit font sizes more precisely.
Screenshot: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The just-released Pages 12.0, Numbers 12.0 and Keynote 12.0 offer a variety of new features, including much finer control over font sizes in the iPad and iPhone versions.

And there are additional new features available in all versions of the iWork suite, including the one for Mac.

Wow, this stunning iPad drawing isn’t a photo

By

iPad art: Wow, this stunning iPad drawing isn’t a photo
It’s amazing what can be created with an iPad, Apple Pencil and Procreate.
Photo: Apple/Greg Joswiak/Cult of Mac

Greg “Joz” Joswiak, Apple’s marketing chief, shared an image of a surprised young girl today. It looks like a photo, but the image was instead drawn by an Apple employee using an iPad Pro and Apple Pencil.

Check Joswiak‘s post for the full image. And never doubt that iPad is a serious tool for creating amazing art.

Cash App breach compromises up to 8.2 million user accounts

By

Cash App suffers data breach
A former employee downloaded reports after leaving Cash App parent company Block.
Image: Block

Block, the parent company of Cash App, has confirmed that user accounts have been compromised by an internal data breach. It has 8.2 million current and former customers.

The incident, which involved a former employee who downloaded reports after leaving the company, was reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on April 4. Block said it has begun notifying Cash App users.

Hulu adds SharePlay support on iPhone and iPad

By

Hulu adds SharePlay support
Enjoy Hulu content with your friends, wherever they may be.
Image: Hulu/Cult of Mac

Hulu today joined the list of third-party video streaming services that offer SharePlay support on iPhone and iPad.

Its latest app update gives viewers the ability to enjoy movies and TV shows with their friends over FaceTime while everyone stays in sync. It also adds the ability to easily switch between channels for Live TV users.

YouTube TV launches picture-in-picture feature on iPhone and iPad

By

YouTube TV
Picture-in-picture support for iPhone and iPad comes to YouTube TV. But not to all YouTube users.
Image: YouTube/Cult of Mac

YouTube TV subscribers with an iPhone or iPad can now watch shows in a small window while another app is open. The feature is rolling out now.

However, picture-in-picture support is not yet available for all mobile users of the YouTube application, as has been promised.

VLC Media Player update is packed with useful new features

By

VLC Media Player update is packed with useful new features
VLC Media Player 3.3 has a re-written video playback interface. There are many other new features, too.
Photo: VideoLAN/Cult of Mac

A new version of VLC Media Player for iPhone, iPad and Apple TV includes some much-requested features, including support for accessing files from connected drives as well as spatial audio with AirPods Pro and Max

This is a popular — and free — choice for playing video and audio, and updates are fairly rare. That said, VLC Media Player 3.3 appears to be worth the wait.

Major update to Slack for iPad revamps user interface

By

Major update to Slack for iPad revamps users interface
Slack for iPad works more like the desktop version.
Graphic: Slack

Slack promises a “major update” for the iPad version of its application. It mixes the mobile and desktop versions into a design suited for a tablet.

With so many people working from home, iPad has become a computer millions depend on for their jobs. And Slack is a part of the daily routine for many of them, leading to complaints about the design of the previous version.

Nintendo revamps Switch Online app to make it a little more useful

By

Switch Online app update 2.0.0
You can now see which of your friends are online.
Image: Nintendo

Nintendo on Sunday rolled out a somewhat significant update to its Switch Online app that makes it a lot less rubbish than it was before. The version 2.0.0 release brings a refreshed design and the ability to see which friends are online.

Switch Online, which is required if you want to use voice chat inside some Nintendo Switch games, is still nowhere near as useful as its counterparts for PlayStation and Xbox. But it is at least better than it was.

Devs come together to fight Apple’s ‘anti-competitive’ browser restrictions

By

iPadOS 15 review
It's about time!
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

A group of software engineers have joined forces to form the Open Web Advocacy (OWA), which will fight Apple’s “anti-competitive” web browser restrictions on iPhone and iPad.

The OWA says that Apple’s tight controls, which prevent third-party browsers from using their own engines on iOS, has stalled innovation for the past 10 years and “prevented web apps from taking off on mobile.”

Instagram dashes hopes of a native iPad app

By

Instagram not coming to iPad
Instagram isn't coming to iPad any time soon.
Image: Instagram/Cult of Mac

More than 12 years after the iPad made its debut, it still doesn’t have a native Instagram app. And it doesn’t look like it’s going to get one any time soon. Instagram head Adam Mosseri believes that not enough people want it.

“It’s still just not a big enough group of people to be a priority,” Mosseri said Sunday in response to a tweet from Marques Brownlee (MKBHD).