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iPadOS 26 is a big change in the name and its feature set that many people think brings it closer to the Macs but will Apple ever make this transition?
Apple plans to keep iPad and Macs separate but integrate the features
Apple’s biggest news from the WWDC 2025 this year was the surprising changes coming to the iPadOS 26 version. Most people saw the highlights and thought that the macOS is coming in a new avatar to the Pads.
However, Apple has always maintained its belief that iPads should never run macOS but can surely get inspired by some of its functionalities that can be ported to the iPadOS platform. And we are surely getting to a stage where the iPads are as powerful as the Macs, so why not just make one platform that fits all the devices?
The company’s chief Craig Federighi has been grilled about the Siri AI delays, the new iOS 26 initiation and other subjects. So, when he was asked about the prospect of macOS running on iPads, he quickly pointed out the strategy behind the development of the iPadOS 26 version.
iPads And Macs, Never The Same
Federighi, speaking to MacStories, also referred to a chat between Steve Jobs and journalist Walt Mossberg back in 2010, where Jobs cited iPads as the cars and Mac as the trucks, which the Apple chief believes is still relevant 15 years later. In many ways, you can understand the logic of having both the platforms but one cannot deny that they serve a different audience.
After all, iPads come with a touch screen like all the other tablets, while the Macs are still reliant on the physical keyboard like PCs and most of the Windows laptops. Bringing macOS to the iPad could make it an easy choice for buyers, who can spend less and get additional features that Mac tends to miss out. The company will also look at the business side of its product lineup and not try to cannibalise the demand for iPads and Macs in the market.
There is a reason why we might never see a Mac get touchscreen support, even though Apple did introduce the Touch Bar for a few years and then discarded the idea.
It is refreshing to see Apple make changes to the iPadOS 26 version that does its best to utilise the immense power stored under the hood with the M-series chips. And with the iPad foldable plans supposedly going in full swing for 2026, the new platform does feel like a start into the uncharted for the company and its ambitions to become a PC giant alongside Microsoft and Google with these cross-platform integrations.
S Aadeetya, Special Correspondent at News18 Tech, accidentally got into journalism 10 years ago, and since then, has been part of established media houses covering the latest trends in technology and helping fr…Read More
S Aadeetya, Special Correspondent at News18 Tech, accidentally got into journalism 10 years ago, and since then, has been part of established media houses covering the latest trends in technology and helping fr… Read More
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