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# The iPad Main Menu concept: the Next Game Changer?
- URL: https://numericcitizen.me/the-ipad-main-menu-the-next-game-changer/
- Published: 2020-04-08T12:01:33.000Z
- Updated: 2023-03-23T16:47:40.000Z
- Description: I rarely write about mockups of potential new user interfaces or new devices. But when I see something that is profoundly good, I have to pass it along. Yesterday I came across the release of a study made by Alexander Käßner, a young UI/UX and digital product designer based in Berlin, Germany (it is
- Author: JF Martin
- Tags: Apple, iPad, iPadOS, User Interface, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2023-03-23 12:41, #numericcitizen

I rarely write about mockups of potential new user interfaces or new devices. But when I see something that is profoundly good, I have to pass it along. Yesterday [I came across the release of a study](https://numericcitizen.micro.blog/2020/04/07/another-potential-ipados.html?ref=numericcitizen.me) made by [Alexander Käßner](https://www.alexkaessner.de/?ref=numericcitizen.me), a young UI/UX and digital product designer based in Berlin, Germany (it is one of the guys behind the excellent diagramming application: [Diagrams](https://numericcitizen.me/2020/02/05/diagrams-for-mac-a-promising-beginning/)). The thesis subject: ***an iPad main menu concept***. Think of it as a reimagined menubar but for iPadOS. Let’s dig in a bit more.

## Why a menu on iPadOS?

Well, if we look at macOS, a menubar is a quick way to access an application feature. By sitting there, unobstructedly, a menubar helps a user to discover the application’s features. Discoverability is one of the major problems *with iPadOS since day one of the iPad*. The iPad Main menu concept is an excellent answer to this problem.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/90/db90e17a-b0ed-4eb3-8db1-a5b434dbead1/content/images/numericcitizen.me/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/advanced-settings.png)

The iPad Main menu imagined for Keynote

## A deeply thought out concept

The iPad main menu concept covers many usage contexts: from being available as a system menu to the split-screen use case. The latter is particularly smart, as shown in the following example. While using two applications side-by-side, the iPad main menu supports a dual view by proposing a segmented control so the user can select which menu to use for which application.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/90/db90e17a-b0ed-4eb3-8db1-a5b434dbead1/content/images/numericcitizen.me/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ipad-main-menu-split-screen-1.png)

The iPad main menu concept supports split screen scenarios

The iPad’s main menu is available from the dock or with a three fingers gesture. It can be invoked at any time. The beauty of this concept is to keep iPadOS simple and mainly unchanged. The iPad dock gets a new icon on the left; that is it. For keyboard users, menu items come with shortcuts, just like on macOS. Each menu items come with colour-coded mini-icons on the left of menu items, which make it more user-friendly, an important attribute of the iPad.

Other notes of interest are the support of the slide-over, draggable portion of the menu and the support for sub-menus. To get the full experience, head to the website to see clips and videos.

## Is Apple listening?

I hope that Apple finds this concept and take it as is. Period. It could mark another milestone in the long journey of the iPad becoming a mature computing device. iPadOS 13.4 with mouse support is one of those turning points. The iPad main menu concept is another. I’m crossing my fingers.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/90/db90e17a-b0ed-4eb3-8db1-a5b434dbead1/content/images/numericcitizen.me/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/slide-over.png)

Slide-over is supported by the iPad Main menu concept