Reports have emerged that iPadOS 13.5.5 beta contains evidence of keyboard shortcuts for changing the brightness of the iPad’s display and an attached keyboard’s backlighting.
According to a system analysis of iPadOS 13.5.5 beta’s code by 9to5Mac, there is evidence that suggests that Apple may add keyboard shortcuts to control screen brightness and the brightness of keyboard backlighting. However, the source was unable to make sense of the available shortcuts within the beta code, suggesting that the update may take a while to release.
Keyboards are mostly designed to support a row for function keys on the top that can quickly enable or disable features and make various adjustments like display brightness, volume, WiFi, and others. However, iPad keyboard’s compact size stands in the way of adding keys for easier access to various functions on the tablet.
Apple’s recently launched Magic Keyboard is loved by users, but yet again, the company did not include function keys for keyboard shortcuts. The lack of function keys requires iPad users to navigate to the Settings app to adjust features like brightness, WiFi connectivity, and other features.
iPad’s current alternative for function keys
iPadOS currently enables users to remap modifier keys. Magic Keyboard comes unequipped with an ‘Escape’ key but users can use a modifier key to work as the Escape key on their Magic Keyboards. Apple enables users to customize five different types of keys as modifier keys, namely:
- Caps Lock
- Control
- Option
- Command
- Globe
Users can navigate to Settings > General > Keyboard > Hardware Keyboard > Modifier Keys to remap keys. However, remapping a key to another key’s function can be confusing. For example: If you remap Caps Lock to perform the function of an Escape key, the Caps Lock key will then need its own modifier key to perform a function. Or, you will have to get used to the Shift key for capitalization, instead of Caps Lock.
iPadOS already has a proper user interface for indicating brightness levels for users who connect external keyboards with function keys to their iPads. It is unclear whether the final iPadOS 13.5.5 update will include these shortcut keys or not, but if these leaks are true, it will bring convenience to iPad users for performing basic functions from their keyboards.
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