How to Multitask in Gmail on IPad
Before you start reading this, take out your iPad, open the App Store and make sure you update to the latest version of the Gmail app. If you’re using iPadOS 13 or newer, you can now multitask – finally – which means you can access your numerous emails while downloading and displaying other apps at the same time (like Calendar.)
I will never know why Gmail has been working with this feature on iPadOS 13 for so long. But here we are. In case you’ve forgotten, here are some ways to interact with multiple apps on your iPad at the same time.
Split View
To get started, you can launch Gmail, then swipe up from the bottom of your iPad to reveal the dock. Press and hold the app, which also supports multitasking like any native Apple app on your device, and drag it to the left or right of the Gmail app to split the screen between both: iPad ‘s Split View feature . (And you can drag the bar that separates the two apps to the left or right to make more space for one than the other.)
Slide on
You can press and hold on the white bar at the top of any app, and then drag the app across the interface of another to set it as a floating window: “slides” on the iPad in function. However, this is probably not the best option if Gmail is at the bottom, as you won’t be able to read the right side of any of your messages.
Landscape> Portrait
If you are discerning, you will have noticed that I have shown screenshots taken in portrait mode. This is another big mistake. Multitasking on iPad is much more convenient when you choose landscape orientation – at least for Gmail – because horizontal space is more valuable than vertical space. I find emails look best when they are thick rather than slender. At the very least, you’ll have a lot more room to preview upcoming posts.
Closing an app while multitasking
When you’re done using multiple apps at the same time, simply drag that middle divider – the one you’ve previously configured to give one app more space at the expense of the other – onto the app you want to close. You will just go back to one application.