iPhone users have long decried the platform’s multitasking experience, especially compared with side-by-side apps on the iPad or windowed apps on desktop computers. The App Switcher just doesn’t cut it for users who want to get stuff done as quickly as possible.
Thankfully, a free jailbreak tweak dubbed Zetsu by iOS developer Dcsyhi promises seriously enhanced multitasking capabilities on any pwned iPhone or iPad running iOS or iPadOS 14 with the help of performantly optimized windowed apps.
Zetsu works either one of two ways: 1) by using a 3D Touch/Haptic Touch gesture on an app icon from the Home Screen and tapping the Zetsu option; or 2) tapping and holding on an app’s dedicated card in the App Switcher interface:
After using one of the aforementioned methods, the app in question pops up over the top of whatever interface you’re already in. After you have some Zetsu windows available, you can tap anywhere inside of them to interact with the apps’ interfaces.
You can also drag on the app’s topmost bar to move them around and you can tap or drag on the app’s lowermost bar to resize the interface. Two buttons along the lowermost bar allow the user to either minimize or close the app that the window represents.
Once installed, Zetsu adds a dedicated preference pane to the Settings app where users are free to configure a few different options to their liking:
Things you can do here include:
- Toggling Zetsu on or off on demand
- Choosing between one of two different app resizing options (keep a fixed ratio or resize freely)
- Kill any app that you close the window of
Zetsu isn’t the first jailbreak tweak to provide windowed multitasking for iPhones and iPads, but it’s certainly the most recent release with support for all jailbreakable versions of iOS & iPadOS 14.
It competes with jailbreak tweaks like MilkyWay 3, but is entirely free to download by comparison and offers an arguably better user experience with fewer snags.
Citing the tweak’s depiction page, Zetsu was made using the source of konban13, and Dcsyhi credits iOS developers Nepeta and nicho1asdev for helping to make Zetsu possible.
If you’re interested in giving Zetsu a try for yourself, then you can download it for free from the Chariz repository via your favorite package manager app.
What are your thoughts about using Zetsu to supercharge multitasking on your pwned iOS or iPadOS 14 device? Be sure to drop us a comment below.