In iOS 5, Apple added some slick multitasking gestures to the iPad that allow you to four-finger swipe to pull up the multitasking drawer, swipe left and right between apps, and five-finger pinch to view the homescreen. They also added AirPlay mirroring, which allows you to view your iPad's screen on an Apple TV. Both of these features are great, but for whatever reason, Apple decided they were best relegated to the iPad 2. Here's how to enable the new multi-touch swipes and mirroring on your first generation iPad, no jailbreaking required.


Currently the iOS 5 jailbreak is tethered, meaning that in order to restart your device, you have to plug in your device and run your jailbreak app every time you restart. So while the iOS 5 tethered jailbreak includes an option to enable these features, the lameness of the tethering isn't really worth it. So here's a jailbreak-free, tether-free method for enabling multitasking gestures and display mirroring on your first-gen iPad.

What You'll Need

For this method, you'll need a first generation iPad and a Mac. (Windows users, jump to the bottom of the post for a Windows-friendly method.)


The Mac Method

This hack comes from a user called d.B. in the modmyi forums, who modified the jailbreaking tool redsn0w to do just one thing: Enable multitouch gestures and mirroring. Despite what the app says, no jailbreaking is actually happening. redsn0w is just tweaking a few settings on your iPad so gestures and mirroring are enabled. You can follow along in the video above or the text below. Here's how it works:

First, download the modified redsn0w download from this page Unzip and run redsn0w. Walk through the redsn0w wizard. If you've ever jailbreaking an iPhone or iPad, this is pretty basic stuff. You'll need to put your phone into DFU mode, which redsn0w walks you through, then allow it to perform its magic on your device. You'll be presented with a few checkboxes during this process; from what the user from modmyi says, you can check whatever boxes you want—this hacked version of redsn0w will do the same thing no matter what. But because it felt weird not to, I unchecked the Install Cydia box and checked Enable multitask gestures. (You can see it in the video.) This process will take a few minutes, and your iPad will restart a few times throughout.

G/O Media may get a commission Subscribe and Get Your First Bag Free Promo Code AtlasCoffeeDay20

Be patient, and once redsn0w is done, your iPad will restart. Unlock your screen, head to Settings > General, and you should now see the multitasking option enabled on your device. Go swipe crazy.

The Windows Method

I haven't tried this, but this guide from web site CopyBot walks through a more complicated Windows-friendly method that may work for you. I opted to take the Mac route because, well, it was easier.


Good luck gesture-ifying your iPad. Multitasking gestures are one of my favorite features of iOS 5 on the iPad, so it's worth the effort to get them working.

You can contact Adam Pash, the author of this post, on Twitter, Google+, and Facebook.