As our phones become ever more brawny and wise , their capableness are increasing — so much so that we ’re using them more and more like reckoner these day ( quite literally sometimes ) . It also think Android and iOS are becoming better at multitasking , and here are the better way of speeding through whatever it is you ask to get done when you ’re using multiple apps .
A fast note : when we blab about Android here ( unless otherwise state ) , we ’re talking about the most late , gillyflower edition of the software — Android 9 Pieon a Google Pixel phone . If you ’ve got an elder handset or one from a dissimilar maker you might find oneself some variations on your handset .
Android
1 ) Multitasking basics
The old twofold - water tap on the recent apps button ( a square button , often with small lines through it ) worked a treat for switching back and forth between the current app and the one you last had unresolved , but in this brave Modern gesture - controlled geological era there ’s an equivalent weight : Swipe right briefly on the home pill button to flick between the two apps you ’ve been using most recently on your earpiece . The birth control pill button is the small white bottom you ’ll find at the very bottom of your screen .
Swipe and moderate the home pill button and all your late apps appear . you may then swipe left or right to go through the carrousel . or else , you’re able to swipe up on the home lozenge to see your most recently used app , with other recent apps a swipe off . Android also expose your frequently used apps down at the bottom of the screen in this view .
Photo: Sam Rutherford (Gizmodo)
2 ) Go disconnected screen
Split screen does n’t always ferment that well , depending on the size of your sieve and the layout of the apps you ’re using , but it might come in handy now and again . pinch up on the base pill button , then choose the app you want to start out split block out with by tapping on its ikon at the top ( swipe left or veracious if the app is n’t immediately visible ) .
break up Split screen and your chosen app docks up at the top . You then get to take another app from your Holocene epoch list — again , hook to find it , or pick a ofttimes used app from the bottom . The inglorious streak in the middle of the screen can be trail around or hang back to the edge to exit rent - blind mode . It works in both portrait and landscape orientations .
3 ) Cutting and pasting
If you ’ve got text edition to turn over between apps then a long press will highlight it and show the Copy option ; another long jam in the other app at the cursor point bring up Paste . Use the puritanic handles or the Select all selection to change the selection . you’re able to also imitate text from the multitasking screen cite above ( swipe up on the home tab button ) .
Unfortunately copying and pasting figure is n’t as easy on Android , unless your phone maker has add the functionality — you require to partake in images instead ( see below ) . Long push an epitome in most apps ( or the multitasking screen door ) and you ’ll only get the option to share the photograph , or to download it to local store if you ’re viewing it in a web web browser .
4 ) communion between apps
Android ’s sharing capableness are very comprehensive but can at times be overwhelming . If you ’ve have something to move between apps , chances are the Share button can do it — in most apps it appear as three dots relate by two argumentation . If you ca n’t now see the clit , try tapping or wiretap and holding on the point to share .
In Chrome , for good example , long press the universal resource locator at the top of the screen to find the Share option . You ’ll then see a innkeeper of options , including your most commonly used apps and various contact on various serving . You ca n’t do too much to edit this menu , but you may pin apps to the top ( and unpin them again ) by tap and obtain on the relevant icon .
5 ) Expand Android ’s capabilities
Android being Android , you ’ve got plenty of apps uncoerced to bestow a hand to make it a little easier to switch quickly between apps and habituate them on top of each other . TakeFloating Apps(freemium ) , for example , which get you coif subject apps more like a Windows or macOS desktop — it can be really helpful if you ’ve got enough screen real estate to part with .
batch of apps , includingShortcutter(freemium ) andLaunchify(freemium ) , contribute up shortcut menus with a swipe or a usance gesture . Then there are the Android rocket launcher of class — such asNova Launcher(freemium ) andEvie Launcher(free)—which let you do everything from swot up in more icons on sieve to switching apps with gestures .
iOS
6 ) Multitasking basics
Assuming you ’re using an iOS twist with no home clit , swipe up from the bottom and keep to see late apps , then swipe left and right to move through them . Alternatively , swipe left on the dwelling house cake at the bottom to go through your apps one by one .
If you do have a home button , double - tap it to see the carousel of late used apps . If you ’re on an iPad , you could swipe up a shortsighted distance from the bottom of the silver screen to see the dock , as well as swipe right with five fingers to get to your most recent apps . Tap and hold an icon on the home screen door then drag it down to add it to the pier at the bottom .
7 ) Go disconnected screen
Not all iOS twist can do split screen , but if you have a new iPad or a Plus - size iPhone you ’re skillful to go . You ’ll first need to put your gadget in landscape painting fashion . With an app open , drag another over it from the wharf to use Slide Over — you could then make the second app disappear and re-emerge with a swipe on the handgrip at the top . tangle an app all the way to the side of the screen , then adjust the black bar in between to use Split View , two apps side by side .
These split - screen mode also enable simple retarding force - and - fall functionality , which can be really helpful for Io multitasking : bug and concur on a block of text or an range in one app , then move it over to the other app . Assuming the app supports text and image pasting ( you ’re in a Google Doc , for model ) , the target you ’ve copy gets pasted in .
- Cutting and pasting
A spigot and a hold are enough to spotlight a block of textual matter quick for copying ( use the blue handgrip at each end if you take to make modification ) . For images , depending on the app , you might involve to tap and defy and then scuff up to get the Copy option on CRT screen ; alternatively , you might have to run into Share ( the upward pointer button ) then Copy .
In the receiving app , another tap and a hold will bring up the Paste option wherever in the app the cursor happens to be . Thanks to some magic recently add to Io by Apple , this transcript and paste quotidian works across multiple iOS machine as well — like an iPhone and an iPad , for example — as long as you ’re signed into both machine with the sample distribution Apple ID .
9 ) Sharing between apps
In some multitasking scenarios , share between apps using the standard Share button — that upward arrow rising out of a boxwood — might knead better than imitate and glue . As on Android , you ’ll chance a whole emcee of options here , include share to specific apps , saving to your gimmick , add to a note , or sending to someone else via an AirDrop link .
To customize the options that appear when you call on the iOS share activity , scroll to the right to regain the More … buttons ( there ’s one on each of the bottom two wrangle ) . When you ’ve done that , you could show or hide specific apps and options using the toggle electric switch , or change the society of your alternative by dragging the handgrip on the right .
10 ) Finding apps more quickly
Do n’t draw a blank the Siri Suggestions pane , which you may find by lift to the far left of all your home screen : Frequently used apps look here , and if you tap Show More you may see two row of them rather than one . The same Siri Suggestions list of apps can be reached with a four - finger swipe down on the place screen , which you might find easier .
However you get to the Siri Suggestions pane , you ’ll also see a hunt choice above it — this is another style of finding apps , contact , document , file , calendar event , euphony , mathematical function location , and more . If you ’re working between multiple apps at the same time , it ’s an choice to remember if you require to get to something you need more promptly .
AndroidMultitasking
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