iPadOS 14 is here and looks pretty good -- Hands-on preview of iPadOS 14 explains if you should download it now (you can) iPadOS 14 revamps the user interface in a desktop-like way that takes advantage of the large screen. Not only does it make the Apple Pencil a much more valuable accessory, it also makes the Apple Pencil a much more useful accessory.

The big iPadOS news announced at WWDC 2020 on June 22 was that the iPad also got the best new features of iOS 14, with Scribble, a tool that turns handwriting into text. iPad also got third-party Thanks to the ability to choose apps, I feel more productive than ever. [iPadOS 14 makes the iPad look like a MacBook.

For the past several years, the iPad has received major updates every other year, only to be tweaked in its quieter years. Those days seem to be over; here's what we know so far about iPadOS14.

iPadOS 14 will be released today (September 16), probably around 1:00 p.m. ET / 10:00 a.m. GMT Apple announced the iPadOS 14 release date yesterday (September 15) at its Time Flies event.

We got our first official look at iPadOS 14 at the WWDC 2020 keynote; there is a seasonal gap between the reveal and release as Apple gives developers time to prepare their apps.

iPadOS 14 will work on all iPads with iPadOS 13. This seemed certain, but the iPad mini 4 (made in 2015) and iPad Air 2 (made in 2014) are so old that it was not surprising to see them lose support.

See the list of iPadOS 14 compatible devices here:

Apple's new Scribble feature turns handwriting into text. This allows you to mark up to-dos on the fly.

It also allows handwritten notes to be moved around like groups of objects. Handwritten notes can also be copied and pasted between applications.

I want to delete text. Simply "scratch" the tip of the pencil over the text to erase it. Like a more powerful cursor, you can also use the pencil to select and change large groups of written items.

The iPadOS is much like macOS, starting with the redesigned search. The new search field looks and works like Spotlight on the Mac and can be used to find document content or locate apps and facts.

In addition, many apps, including Photos and Notes, will have a left-hand menu, which will look much like the Mac app version. Items can be dragged and dropped from this menu. Calendar will also add a more powerful menu connected to the toolbar buttons.

The Music app has a new way to listen to music. When you start playback, you are now in full-screen player mode and the lyrics are displayed larger than before.

Phone calls now appear as notifications at the top of the screen, so they don't take up the entire screen; Siri now appears in the corner of the screen as well, adding something to look at and not obfuscating the screen.

The previous system, where incoming phone notifications would take up the entire screen, felt like the iPadOS was clinging to the iPhone interface. Today, all three devices are unified, with the Mac always displaying incoming call notifications in the upper right corner.

In the background of the iPadOS 14 feature slide, it was revealed that the default email and web browser apps will be newly configurable.

This is a long awaited option for both iOS and iPadOS, and the iPhone will get it too. Options for a default calendar app and a default maps app are still awaited.

The iPad also inherits new features from iOS 14. They include widgets, which stay in the smart stack and do not go into the apps section of the home screen as they do in iOS 14. There is also device dictation, group photos of messages, and pinned conversations of messages (for those favorites who don't always send messages).

The iPadOS 14 beta is surprisingly stable and was released shortly during WWDC, with updates continuing throughout the summer. I used the beta on my iPad Pro for an extended period of time and rarely encountered any glitches.