Apple has given better details on the reasons why it is that Stage Manager to iPadOS 16 is only available on iPads with M1 capabilities, which have memory, storage speeds and connectivity with an external monitor as the reason for the choice.
Stage Manager is one of the features in iPadOS 16 that adds overlapping windows to the multitasking user interface in addition to more efficient organization and speedy switching between applications. This feature is also one what is only available for external displays that connect to a USB-C connection.
The feature is only available for M1 iPad models, namely the 12.9-inch iPad Pro, the 11-inch iPad Pro, and the iPad Air. A first explanation of the limitation was announced on June 8, however, Apple has since issued the full explanation regarding the issue.
Tweeted via Twitter via Rene Ritchie, Apple explains the basics of Stage Manager by first describing “Stage Manager is a fully integrated experience that offers a brand new windowing that is extremely quick and responsive, and lets users run up to 8 apps at once on iPad and an external monitor that can be up to 6K in resolution.”
“Delivering this experience with the speed and convenience that people want from an iPad’s touch-first experience, requires massive internal memory, extremely fast storage, and a flexible external display I/O and all of this is offered by iPads that have an M1 processor,” the statement continues.
In the previous explanation, Apple said Stage Manager required the speedy memory swap feature of the latest iPadOS to function. It transforms flash storage that is free into temporary RAM. Since it is a resource-intensive system, Apple reasoned that it needed the power of the M1 processor.