Stage Manager on both the iPad Air and iPad Pro allows users to have up to four apps open simultaneously on the iPad's screen. When connected to an external display, users can have up to four more apps open, totaling eight active apps at any given time[5][6]. This capability is not limited by the device model (iPad Air vs. iPad Pro) but rather by the Stage Manager feature itself.
However, Stage Manager is only available on iPads with M1 chips, which includes the iPad Air (5th generation) and iPad Pro models (12.9-inch 3rd generation and later, and 11-inch models)[3][4]. The limitation to M1 chips is primarily due to the memory swap feature in iPadOS, which Stage Manager relies on for smooth performance with multiple apps open[3][7].
In terms of handling multiple heavy apps, both the iPad Air and iPad Pro with M1 chips should perform similarly well, as the primary factor is the M1 chip and the available RAM, rather than the specific model of the iPad. Higher storage tiers of these devices may offer more RAM, potentially improving performance with multiple resource-intensive apps[3].
Overall, while Stage Manager does not differentiate between the iPad Air and iPad Pro in terms of the number of apps it can handle, the underlying hardware (M1 chip and RAM) plays a crucial role in ensuring smooth multitasking performance.
Citations:[1] https://www.theverge.com/23787477/apple-ipados-17-stage-manager-ipad-multitasking
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeNMG9gdreA
[3] https://9to5mac.com/2022/06/08/stage-manager-ipad-m1/
[4] https://www.techrepublic.com/article/multiple-windows-stage-manager-ipados/
[5] https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-to-use-stage-manager-on-your-ipad/
[6] https://www.nextpit.com/stage-manager-apple-ipad-how-to-use
[7] https://www.reddit.com/r/ipad/comments/v8b1oj/apples_explanation_for_stage_manager_limitation/
[8] https://www.reddit.com/r/ipad/comments/1f4hq92/the_ipad_pro_and_stage_manager_is_a_productivity/