With the next iPadOS 16 update, Apple has announced two new features for the M1 iPads. The virtual memory swap and Stage Manager are both included in this. The iPad Air 5th generation’s base model will not include virtual memory swap, despite the fact that all three M1 iPads will have these features.
This reserved portion of the device’s storage can be used as virtual memory if the system memory on the device is depleted. iPadOS 16 has a virtual memory swap function that can reserve up to 16GB of storage space for use as system memory if necessary.
Apple has opted to restrict this feature to smartphones with at least 128GB of internal storage because of its memory sensitivity. The two iPad Pro variants with 128GB of storage don’t have this issue. However, because the 2022 iPad Air 5 only has 64GB of storage, this feature will only be available on the 256GB model, and not the 64GB model.
However, this goes against Apple’s stated reasoning for excluding Stage Manager from iPads that aren’t M1-compatible. Stage Manager also uses the 8GB of RAM and the virtual memory swap functionality to load and run multiple apps at once, in addition to the M1.
However, others have wondered whether the M1 is still required for Stage Manager given that the iPad Air 5 doesn’t include virtual memory swap out of the box. Perhaps a more limited version of Stage Manager might have been provided on the previous iPads, despite the fact that there is still a performance differential between the M1 and A14 used on the iPad Air 4.
Naturally, the CPUs and system memory go slower and lower as we move down the iPad line, making a function like Stage Manager less viable. The fact that this feature isn’t available on previous iPads is understandable given that Apple places a high value on speed.
The feature should only be available on M1 iPads, in our opinion. A comparison of the 256GB and iPad Pro models compared to that of the entry-level iPad Air 5 would be fascinating.