Getting a new iPad is one of the most exciting experiences. You get a beautiful pane of glass that just happens to be a tablet, capable of doing basically anything, if set up correctly. The most tedious part of an iPad is setting it up and learning how to navigate it. Especially now with the update to iPadOS 26, people quietly changed how the iPad works in some pretty meaningful ways. So before you start to set things up, and download a ton of apps, here are the things you should do right away to make your iPad feel faster, cleaner, and more intentional from day one.

I’ve been using an iPad Pro as my primary computer since the big redesign in 2018. Back then, it was still running what was essentially an iPad version of iOS. But I loved the design and the raw power it offered so much that I decided to commit to the iPad full-time. Every year after that, Apple teased the idea that the iPad was becoming a more genuine computer replacement. And every year, the software fell just short.

Then Apple released iPadOS 26 in 2025, and for the first time, it genuinely changed what the iPad could be for a lot of people. It was transformative in many ways, but it also introduced a level of nuance that left some users hesitant. So the question is: was this update finally enough?

As 2025 comes to a close, I wanted to take a step back and look at the tech that I used and actually made a difference in my day-to-day. This is not going to be a list based solely on specs, but rather a personal rundown of the gear that I gravitated towards throughout the year because it was either very useful or just enjoyable to use. I wanted to shed some light on a few non-Apple products, but of course, I also chose my Apple product of the year at the very end. These are my favorite tech items of 2025!