The Tablet mode is one of the many fantastic features introduced with Windows 10. While the Tablet mode is turned off by default on non-touch devices, the functionality is turned on by default on tablets.
When the Tablet mode is active, the Start menu goes to full screen to become the Start screen, and app icons don’t appear on the taskbar by default (can be changed under settings), File Explorer adds extra padding between files/folder. Some other areas of the operating system are also optimized for touch.
No desktop in tablet mode
If you have used the tablet mode for any significant time or have been using the same on your device all the time, then you probably have observed that the desktop is turned off by default, meaning there is no desktop unlike that you see on a traditional PC.
That is, when the tablet mode is turned on, you won’t be able to access the desktop as well as icons on the desktop. This also means that you need to perform a couple of more steps to access program icons, files, and folders on the desktop.
If you find yourself often using the Tablet mode, you can use one of the following given below methods to quickly access the contents on the desktop or saved in the Desktop folder.
Method 1 – access contents on the desktop
Method 2 – pin desktop folder to Start
Method 2 – access desktop folder via jump list
Method 1 of 3
To access the content saved on the desktop in tablet mode
Step 1: Tap the menu icon located at the top-left of the Start and then tap the File Explorer icon to open the same.
Step 2: On the left-pane of File Explorer, under Quick Access, tap Desktop to open the Desktop folder and access your contents on the desktop.
The only catch, however, is that you can’t access Recycle Bin using this method. To quickly access the Recycle Bin, turn off the Tablet mode for a while, touch and hold Recycle Bin icon on the desktop, tap Pin to Start option to pin to the Start. Turn on the Tablet mode.
Method 2 of 3
Add desktop folder to the Start
Step 1: Tap the small menu icon in the top left of the Start (refer to the picture below) and then tap File Explorer.
Step 2: On the left-pane of File Explorer, under Quick Access, tap and hold the Desktop folder icon to reveal the context menu and then tap Pin to Start to pin the desktop folder to the Start.
Method 3 of 3
Use the Desktop folder from the Jump list
If you have changed the default settings of the Tablet mode to show app icons on the taskbar when in tablet mode (can be changed by navigating to Settings > System > Tablet mode), simply touch and hold File Explorer icon in the taskbar and then tap Desktop to access the same.
If the File Explorer is not pinned to the taskbar, open File Explorer, touch and hold File Explorer icon in the taskbar and then tap Pin to taskbar option.
