Best iPad apps for unleashing and exploring your creativity

Best iPad apps for unleashing and exploring your creativity | TechCrunch

Tech-news Apple, evergreens, ipad apps November 28, 2025

If you’re looking to explore your creativity, there are a number of iPad apps that can help you get started. Although the iPad started off as a simple device that could be used to stream content or browse the web on the go, Apple has essentially turned its iPads into powerful machines that can be used to do things like create digital art and edit videos.

We’ve compiled a list of some of the best iPad apps for creativity that are available on the App Store.

Before we get into the list, it’s worth noting that although Adobe’s creative apps are often top choices for creativity on the iPad, this list won’t include them because they are already well-known. The list will instead focus on somewhat lesser-known apps.

Procreate

Image Credits:Procreate

Procreate is one of the most popular drawing apps for the iPad, and for good reason. The app lets you create digital paintings, sketches, and illustrations using dozens of different types of brushes. Procreate is easy to use and features built-in gesture controls, along with a simple interface.

The app allows for high-resolution canvases up to 16K by 8K on compatible iPad Pros. It also lets you create storyboards, GIFs, animatics, and simple animations. Plus, you can import image files such as JPG, PNG, and TIFF. Procreate includes several features that are designed to help you during the creative process on your iPad, such as QuickShape, StreamLine, Drawing Assist, and ColorDrop.

Once you’re finished creating your piece, you can relive your creative journey with the app’s time-lapse “Replay” feature and share a 30-second time-lapse video on social media.

You can access Procreate with a one-time payment of $12.99.

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LumaFusion

LumaFusion is a great app for editing videos if you’re ready to graduate from iMovie. The app features numerous user-friendly features that make it perfect for aspiring videographers or indie filmmakers on a budget.

With LumaFusion, you can create multiple layer edits with 4K ProRes and HDR media. You can add different effects, choose from dozens of transitions, and record voice-overs. The app lets you create multilayer titles and import fonts and graphics. Plus, you can fine-tune audio with Graphic EQ, Parametric EQ, Voice isolation, and more.

The app lets you create projects with a variety of aspect ratios, including 16:9 landscape, 9:16 portrait, square, widescreen film, anamorphic, and more.

LumaFusion is available for a one-time payment of $29.99. You can also purchase additional features, such as multicam editing and the ability to send your project to Final Cut Pro for Mac.

Canva

Canva offers a user-friendly platform that allows anyone to create visual content, even without graphic design experience. You can use it to create presentations, infographics, videos, websites, social media posts, and more with over 250,000 templates.

Canva features tools for editing photos, personalizing content with logos and images, adding audio, and cropping and speeding up video.

The platform also has a series of AI features that are designed to make the creation process easier. For instance, you can extend an image using “Magic Switch” or turn ideas into images with “Magic Media.”

Canva is free but offers a $12.99 monthly subscription if you want unlimited access to its AI features, premium templates, and more.

Affinity Designer 2

Affinity Designer 2 is a graphic design app that combines vector design, pixel-based textures, and retouching into a single platform. It’s great for professional illustrators, web designers, game developers, and other creatives.

The app lets you create illustrations, branding, logos, icons, UI/UX designs, typography, posters, labels, fliers, stickers, concept art, digital art, and more. It supports Apple Pencil’s precision, pressure sensitivity, and tilt functionality.

Affinity Designer 2 features gesture controls to speed up your workflow, and it lets you customize keyboard shortcuts. You can also do things like create your own custom font and zoom to over 1,000,000% for absolute precision.

You can access the app through a one-time payment of $18.49.

Concepts

Concepts is a great app for exploring your ideas and experimenting with designs. You can use the app to sketch plans, make notes and mindmaps, and draw storyboards and designs.

The app features Nudge, Slice, and Select tools that allow you to easily change any element of your sketch without redrawing it. The app features realistic pens, pencils, and brushes that flow with pressure and tilt.

Concepts gives you access to scale and measurement tools that calculate real-world dimensions, and also features a tool wheel or bar that you can personalize to your liking.

The app’s basic features are free. Concepts offers a $4.99 monthly subscription if you want access to additional features, such as the ability to create your own brushes and premium editing tools.

Tayasui Sketches

Tayasui Sketches is a good, user-friendly sketching and drawing app. It has several different features such as a realistic watercolor brush, digital acrylic brushes, the ability to blend two colors to get the perfect shade, gradient and depth tools, and more.

The app lets you multitask by opening up another app and dragging lawyers and documents between the two. There’s also a “Zen Mode” that lets you create without distractions.

You can also upload your images to incorporate them into your creations. Tayasui Sketches lets you store your creations into personalized folders.

Tayasui Sketches’s basic features are free. The app offers a $2.99 monthly subscription that unlocks unlimited layers, new brushes and markers, an extended brush editor, the ability to backup your drawings, and more.

Dudel Draw

Dudel Draw is a bit different from the other apps on this list: It’s designed to unleash your creativity by giving you a new shape every day that serves as a starting point to sketch on top of.

These daily shapes vary from basic geometrical forms to more complex and abstract designs. Plus, you can explore your creativity further by choosing to view the shape from all angles with the app’s “flip” and “rotate” features.

You can also get your friends in on the creativity with some fun competition by comparing your different creations each day. Dudel Draw offers a great way to sharpen your artistic skills, challenge yourself to create something new every day, and just simply express yourself.

Dudel Draw is available for free.

Sketchbook

Sketchbook is an easy-to-use app for sketching, painting, and drawing. The idea behind the app is to make it feel like you’re drawing on paper, as the digital brushes and pens behave like the real thing.

The app’s interface is simple and lets you tuck away palettes and tools to make it easier to focus on drawing.

You can customize brushes by tweaking the size, opacity, flow, and more to align them with your personal style. There’s also a “predictive stroke” feature that helps smooth out the lines of your drawing.

Sketchbook is available for free, but you can unlock premium features for a one-time payment of $2.99. Premium features include the ability to import additional brushes and color palettes, adjust the size of your canvas after you’ve started working, export multiple canvases or an entire album as a PDF, and more.

This story was originally published in December 2024 and is updated regularly with new information.

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The Hottest Gifts for Fans This Season? Preloved Baskets

Researchers Built a Scuba Suit for Cyborg Cockroaches
Scientists in Singapore and Japan have developed a tiny 3D-printed scuba suit for cyborg cockroaches, allowing them to survive and move underwater and other low-oxygen environments for up to three hours. The suit can transform a regular cockroach, and potentially other insects, into “an amphibious cyborg robot capable of operation across land and water,” according to a new research paper published this week in Nature Communications. The study was conducted by scientists at Nanyang Technological University and Waseda University. So, why do researchers want half-robot cockroaches to breathe underwater anyway? Apparently, they hope to one day be able to use cyborg cockroaches in search and rescue missions, pipeline inspection, and other complex tasks. NTU Professor Hirotaka Sato, who led the study, has been working on cyborg insects for more than a decade. These hybrid robots combine living insects with electrodes that allow humans to remotely control their movements. Sato and his co-authors argue that this setup can make them more useful than traditional robots in some situations.

Unlike conventional robots, cyborg insects consume less energy because they use their own muscles to move. They are also small enough to move through confined and cluttered spaces that larger robots may not be able to reach. These cyborgs have already been used in actual search-and-rescue operations, including Operation Lionheart after the 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar in March, according to NTU.

There is one obvious drawback, though. These tiny cyborgs still have biological limits. They need oxygen, which makes them much less useful underwater. “This is important because real disaster sites can be challenging after heavy rain or flooding, blocking access routes in the rubble, drains and narrow gaps,” Sato said in a news release on the study. “By expanding the operating parameters of our cyborg insects to include underwater travel, we believe that they can enhance search and rescue efforts.”

The new scuba suit is meant to solve that problem. How the suit works Cockroaches breathe through small holes on their bodies known as spiracles. To protect those spiracles from water, the researchers made a flexible 3D-printed shell that wraps around the insect’s body. Four small tubes then attach to the cockroach’s spiracles and deliver oxygen directly to them. Attached to the shell is an oxygen-generation tank that contains a small sponge soaked in manganese dioxide. To activate the system, the team injected diluted hydrogen peroxide into the tank, then sealed it with ultraviolet adhesive to prevent leaks. The chemical reaction inside the tank slowly releases oxygen, which is then delivered through silicone tubes into the cockroach’s spiracles.

According to the study, the suit was tested on Madagascar hissing cockroaches in plastic tubes that simulated different environments. Cyborg cockroaches equipped with the suit were able to move around underwater for two to three hours. Cockroaches in the control group suffocated within two minutes. The team said this suit could potentially be adapted for other robot bugs like locusts and beetles, as these insects have similar body structures and respiratory systems. #Researchers #Built #Scuba #Suit #Cyborg #CockroachesInsects,Robotics

mwasimuddin125 0

Scientists in Singapore and Japan have developed a tiny 3D-printed scuba suit for cyborg cockroaches, allowing them to survive and move underwater and other low-oxygen environments for up to three hours.

The suit can transform a regular cockroach, and potentially other insects, into “an amphibious cyborg robot capable of operation across land and water,” according to a new research paper published this week in Nature Communications. The study was conducted by scientists at Nanyang Technological University and Waseda University.

So, why do researchers want half-robot cockroaches to breathe underwater anyway?

Apparently, they hope to one day be able to use cyborg cockroaches in search and rescue missions, pipeline inspection, and other complex tasks. NTU Professor Hirotaka Sato, who led the study, has been working on cyborg insects for more than a decade. These hybrid robots combine living insects with electrodes that allow humans to remotely control their movements. Sato and his co-authors argue that this setup can make them more useful than traditional robots in some situations.

Unlike conventional robots, cyborg insects consume less energy because they use their own muscles to move. They are also small enough to move through confined and cluttered spaces that larger robots may not be able to reach.

These cyborgs have already been used in actual search-and-rescue operations, including Operation Lionheart after the 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar in March, according to NTU.

There is one obvious drawback, though. These tiny cyborgs still have biological limits. They need oxygen, which makes them much less useful underwater.

“This is important because real disaster sites can be challenging after heavy rain or flooding, blocking access routes in the rubble, drains and narrow gaps,” Sato said in a news release on the study. “By expanding the operating parameters of our cyborg insects to include underwater travel, we believe that they can enhance search and rescue efforts.”

The new scuba suit is meant to solve that problem.

How the suit works

Cockroaches breathe through small holes on their bodies known as spiracles. To protect those spiracles from water, the researchers made a flexible 3D-printed shell that wraps around the insect’s body. Four small tubes then attach to the cockroach’s spiracles and deliver oxygen directly to them.

Attached to the shell is an oxygen-generation tank that contains a small sponge soaked in manganese dioxide. To activate the system, the team injected diluted hydrogen peroxide into the tank, then sealed it with ultraviolet adhesive to prevent leaks.

The chemical reaction inside the tank slowly releases oxygen, which is then delivered through silicone tubes into the cockroach’s spiracles.

According to the study, the suit was tested on Madagascar hissing cockroaches in plastic tubes that simulated different environments.

Cyborg cockroaches equipped with the suit were able to move around underwater for two to three hours. Cockroaches in the control group suffocated within two minutes.

The team said this suit could potentially be adapted for other robot bugs like locusts and beetles, as these insects have similar body structures and respiratory systems.

#Researchers #Built #Scuba #Suit #Cyborg #CockroachesInsects,Robotics">Researchers Built a Scuba Suit for Cyborg Cockroaches

Scientists in Singapore and Japan have developed a tiny 3D-printed scuba suit for cyborg cockroaches, allowing them to survive and move underwater and other low-oxygen environments for up to three hours.

The suit can transform a regular cockroach, and potentially other insects, into “an amphibious cyborg robot capable of operation across land and water,” according to a new research paper published this week in Nature Communications. The study was conducted by scientists at Nanyang Technological University and Waseda University.

So, why do researchers want half-robot cockroaches to breathe underwater anyway?

Apparently, they hope to one day be able to use cyborg cockroaches in search and rescue missions, pipeline inspection, and other complex tasks. NTU Professor Hirotaka Sato, who led the study, has been working on cyborg insects for more than a decade. These hybrid robots combine living insects with electrodes that allow humans to remotely control their movements. Sato and his co-authors argue that this setup can make them more useful than traditional robots in some situations.

Unlike conventional robots, cyborg insects consume less energy because they use their own muscles to move. They are also small enough to move through confined and cluttered spaces that larger robots may not be able to reach.

These cyborgs have already been used in actual search-and-rescue operations, including Operation Lionheart after the 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar in March, according to NTU.

There is one obvious drawback, though. These tiny cyborgs still have biological limits. They need oxygen, which makes them much less useful underwater.

“This is important because real disaster sites can be challenging after heavy rain or flooding, blocking access routes in the rubble, drains and narrow gaps,” Sato said in a news release on the study. “By expanding the operating parameters of our cyborg insects to include underwater travel, we believe that they can enhance search and rescue efforts.”

The new scuba suit is meant to solve that problem.

How the suit works

Cockroaches breathe through small holes on their bodies known as spiracles. To protect those spiracles from water, the researchers made a flexible 3D-printed shell that wraps around the insect’s body. Four small tubes then attach to the cockroach’s spiracles and deliver oxygen directly to them.

Attached to the shell is an oxygen-generation tank that contains a small sponge soaked in manganese dioxide. To activate the system, the team injected diluted hydrogen peroxide into the tank, then sealed it with ultraviolet adhesive to prevent leaks.

The chemical reaction inside the tank slowly releases oxygen, which is then delivered through silicone tubes into the cockroach’s spiracles.

According to the study, the suit was tested on Madagascar hissing cockroaches in plastic tubes that simulated different environments.

Cyborg cockroaches equipped with the suit were able to move around underwater for two to three hours. Cockroaches in the control group suffocated within two minutes.

The team said this suit could potentially be adapted for other robot bugs like locusts and beetles, as these insects have similar body structures and respiratory systems.

#Researchers #Built #Scuba #Suit #Cyborg #CockroachesInsects,Robotics

For our very first WIRED Book Club livestream, Kate Knibbs will be joined by the author of The Yahoo Boys: Love, Deception, and the Real Lives of Nigeria’s Romance Scammers, Carlos Barragán.

Barragán, a journalist and researcher at The New York Times, flew to Lagos to embed himself with a group of young, desperate grifters. The account he brings back is a funny, sad, enraging read about how the internet can fuel heartbreak.

On the Panel

Kate Knibbs: senior writer at WIRED, covering prediction markets, the future of media, and how AI is changing the internet. She also leads WIRED Book Club.
Carlos Barragán: reporter and researcher for The New York Times based in Madrid. He was formerly a reporter at El Confidencial before receiving his MFA in nonfiction writing from Columbia University. The Yahoo Boys is his first book.

Ask a Question

Submit your burning questions about the book in the comments section below. The event will be streamed right here, so bookmark this page and mark your calendar to return on July 16 at 12pm ET / 9am PT.

How to Watch

This livestream is reserved as a subscriber benefit. For subscribers who are not able to join, a replay of the livestream will be available after the event. Not a subscriber yet? Subscribe now to get access to this livestream, plus full access to WIRED.

Join WIRED Book Club

If you’d like to start following along, you can catch up on past weeks discussions, and sign up for WIRED Book Club here.

In the meantime, check out past livestreams on how AI is changing work, big tech and the military, and more.

#Submit #Questions #World #Online #Romance #Scamslivestreams,q&a,scams,wired book club,books">

mwasimuddin125 0

For our very first WIRED Book Club livestream, Kate Knibbs will be joined by the author of The Yahoo Boys: Love, Deception, and the Real Lives of Nigeria’s Romance Scammers, Carlos Barragán.
Barragán, a journalist and researcher at The New York Times, flew to Lagos to embed himself with a group of young, desperate grifters. The account he brings back is a funny, sad, enraging read about how the internet can fuel heartbreak.
On the Panel
Kate Knibbs: senior writer at WIRED, covering prediction markets, the future of media, and how AI is changing the internet. She also leads WIRED Book Club.
Carlos Barragán: reporter and researcher for The New York Times based in Madrid. He was formerly a reporter at El Confidencial before receiving his MFA in nonfiction writing from Columbia University. The Yahoo Boys is his first book.
Ask a Question
Submit your burning questions about the book in the comments section below. The event will be streamed right here, so bookmark this page and mark your calendar to return on July 16 at 12pm ET / 9am PT.
How to Watch
This livestream is reserved as a subscriber benefit. For subscribers who are not able to join, a replay of the livestream will be available after the event. Not a subscriber yet? Subscribe now to get access to this livestream, plus full access to WIRED.
Join WIRED Book Club
If you’d like to start following along, you can catch up on past weeks discussions, and sign up for WIRED Book Club here.
In the meantime, check out past livestreams on how AI is changing work, big tech and the military, and more.

#Submit #Questions #World #Online #Romance #Scamslivestreams,q&a,scams,wired book club,books">Submit Your Questions: Inside The World of Online Romance Scams

For our very first WIRED Book Club livestream, Kate Knibbs will be joined by the author of The Yahoo Boys: Love, Deception, and the Real Lives of Nigeria’s Romance Scammers, Carlos Barragán.

On the Panel

Kate Knibbs: senior writer at WIRED, covering prediction markets, the future of media, and how AI is changing the internet. She also leads WIRED Book Club.
Carlos Barragán: reporter and researcher for The New York Times based in Madrid. He was formerly a reporter at El Confidencial before receiving his MFA in nonfiction writing from Columbia University. The Yahoo Boys is his first book.

Ask a Question

How to Watch

Join WIRED Book Club

If you’d like to start following along, you can catch up on past weeks discussions, and sign up for WIRED Book Club here.

In the meantime, check out past livestreams on how AI is changing work, big tech and the military, and more.

#Submit #Questions #World #Online #Romance #Scamslivestreams,q&a,scams,wired book club,books

#British #livestream #watch #free">

mwasimuddin125 0

TL;DR: In the UK, Channel 4 will be providing live coverage of the 2026 British Grand Prix for free. In the U.S., sign up for a 7-day free trial of Apple TV+ through Prime Video Channels to watch select F1 races for free.

Watch the British GP for free with a 7-day trial

The Austrian GP offered another thrilling weekend of racing from the best drivers in the world. George Russell came out on top after holding off the advances of Verstappen and Antonelli. Ferrari and McLaren constantly swapped positions just behind in what was one of the most interesting GPs of the season.
Will we get more of the same from the British GP? We certainly hope so.
SEE ALSO: ExpressVPN review: A stylish VPN service with proven privacy and a large U.S. presence

If you want to watch F1 2026 for free from anywhere in the world, we’ve got all the information you need.

When is the British GP?

The British GP is the ninth race of the 2026 F1 season. Here’s the full schedule from Silverstone:

Practice 1 — 7:30-8:30 a.m. ET on July 3
Sprint Qualifying — 11:30 a.m. to 12:14 p.m. ET on July 3
Sprint — 7-8 a.m. ET on July 4
Qualifying — 11 a.m to 12 p.m. ET on July 4
Race — 10 a.m. ET on July 5

Fans can follow all the action from this race weekend without spending anything.

How to watch the British GP for free

It’s important to note that Channel 4 will be providing live coverage of the 2026 British Grand Prix for free in the UK. That’s nice and easy for fans in the UK.

If you’re based in the U.S., you’ll need to take a few additional steps to watch this race weekend for free.

I subscribe to Amazon Prime. I subscribe for the fast shipping, exclusive Prime Day deals, and access to Prime Video. It’s the access to Prime Video that becomes all-important for F1 fans.

It is now possible to sign up for a seven-day free trial of Apple TV+ through Prime Video Channels. F1 is exclusive to Apple TV in the U.S., so by accessing this free trial, you can watch select races for free this season. The subscription costs £9.99 per month after the trial ends, but you can cancel this renewal at any time. By cancelling ahead of the renewal, you can watch the British GP this weekend without spending anything.

Mashable Deals

By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

I understand the argument that I’m not really watching for free because I subscribe to Amazon Prime. I get that, but Amazon Prime does offer a 30-day free trial period if you’re new to the service. By signing up for this free trial and then gaining access to Apple TV through Prime Video Channels, you can truly watch select races for free this season.

If you’ve already used this hack to watch a race this season, there are some alternatives.

My recommendation is to go direct to Apple TV. This popular steaming service comes with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. Alternatively, Apple One bundles Apple TV with Apple Music, Apple Arcade, Apple Fitness Plus, Apple News Plus, and 50GB of iCloud Storage for $19.95 per month after a one-month free trial.

The best Apple TV free-trial offer comes with purchases of new Apple devices. New subscribers can get three months of Apple TV for free after purchasing any eligible Apple product. If you’re planning on buying something from Apple, you could gain access to Apple TV for a pretty large chunk of this season. You will obviously need to buy something, but if you were already in the market for an upgrade, this method makes a lot of sense.

How to live stream 2026 F1 for free in 2026

Best Apple TV Deal

Apple TV

7-day free trial

Best Apple One Deal

Apple One

30-day free trial

#British #livestream #watch #free">British GP 2026 livestream: How to watch F1 for free

TL;DR: In the UK, Channel 4 will be providing live coverage of the 2026 British Grand Prix for free. In the U.S., sign up for a 7-day free trial of Apple TV+ through Prime Video Channels to watch select F1 races for free.

Watch the British GP for free with a 7-day trial

The Austrian GP offered another thrilling weekend of racing from the best drivers in the world. George Russell came out on top after holding off the advances of Verstappen and Antonelli. Ferrari and McLaren constantly swapped positions just behind in what was one of the most interesting GPs of the season.

Will we get more of the same from the British GP? We certainly hope so.

If you want to watch F1 2026 for free from anywhere in the world, we’ve got all the information you need.

When is the British GP?

The British GP is the ninth race of the 2026 F1 season. Here’s the full schedule from Silverstone:

Practice 1 — 7:30-8:30 a.m. ET on July 3
Sprint Qualifying — 11:30 a.m. to 12:14 p.m. ET on July 3
Sprint — 7-8 a.m. ET on July 4
Qualifying — 11 a.m to 12 p.m. ET on July 4
Race — 10 a.m. ET on July 5

Fans can follow all the action from this race weekend without spending anything.

How to watch the British GP for free

It’s important to note that Channel 4 will be providing live coverage of the 2026 British Grand Prix for free in the UK. That’s nice and easy for fans in the UK.

If you’re based in the U.S., you’ll need to take a few additional steps to watch this race weekend for free.

I subscribe to Amazon Prime. I subscribe for the fast shipping, exclusive Prime Day deals, and access to Prime Video. It’s the access to Prime Video that becomes all-important for F1 fans.

Mashable Deals

If you’ve already used this hack to watch a race this season, there are some alternatives.

How to live stream 2026 F1 for free in 2026

Best Apple TV Deal

Apple TV

7-day free trial

Best Apple One Deal

Apple One

30-day free trial

#British #livestream #watch #free

Procreate

LumaFusion

Canva

Affinity Designer 2

Concepts

Tayasui Sketches

Dudel Draw

Sketchbook

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When is the British GP?

How to watch the British GP for free

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