Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iPad Pro Why does the iPad Not have its own OS ?
- Thread starter TheRealAlex
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
MacBooks and OS X, yes. There would be little point in evolving the MacBook (or desktop Macs) without some major overhauls to the OS - at least in terms of UI.
Agreed. This may not be the popular view here on a Mac site, but even though MS got off to a rocky start with Windows 8 in 2012, they've moved in the right direction with hardware and software innovations while Macs and OSX have been pretty stagnant. If Apple is worried about iPad sales hurting Macs, they need to look at how they can improve Macs to keep them relevant rather than keeping iPads limited.
Microsoft is moving in the right direction - Continuum is still a lot more talk than implementation. Microsoft's UI is still VERY touch un-friendly - it's not much better than if Apple were to release Mac OS X with a touch screen and call it a day. In terms of UI, they reversed course in the progress they made in Windows 8 (Windows 8 was awesome for tablet, but sucky for Desktop - they should have kept the Windows 8 UI elements for "tablet mode" in Windows 10 - at least for a starting point).
I have hope that Microsoft will (eventually) do right by tablet/touch users (and Mobile users) - they're still talking about it but they have yet to put it into action... but the foundation has been built!
It makes zero sense than a 12.9" device and a 4.7" device share the same iOS. The iPad Pro's glorious screen and powerful internals are ridiculously underutilized as it is, and that is a shame
So an 11 inch MB Air and a 27 inch iMac shouldn't be sharing the same OS by your logic?
Yeah it's unfortunate in my book. Image if you could run full applications for example like InDesign on your iPad Pro.
To me it's a big iPhone. Makes a good toy it's really good for entertainment but I don't see doing serious work with.
I don’t have to imagine - I can do that on a Surface... and it’s a pain-in-the-rear trying to run most of those “full” applications on a tablet using touch instead of a keyboard and mouse.
I know a lot of people think that’s what they want but the truth is, unless the UI for those apps are redesigned, it’s just not practical. If that’s really what you want, try it on a Surface.
Oh, and Adobe tried to redesign the “full” application UI for tablets and it turned out terrible (illustrator and InDesign).
Exactly. Production work requires a production machine/setup. Which is a very different beat (See Mac Pro machinations!) This should not be a mystery.
Personal productivity and personal use is very different game and this is where Apple led and others followed.
I had an early windows tablet, before the iPad was even a thing. It was a poor experience. It even had a pressure sensitive stylus. They hadn't the vision to understand what the platform required, a new Vision a new re-imainign of the interface and how it would be used. The poor hardware manufactures had to cobble together a machine just about good enough to manage to deal with M$ OS at a core 2 duo level. The screen was very low bit it was like going back to my early LCD. It was more a regressive experience. That was a production machine. It was mainly aimed for the medical environment. I'd like my doctor to spend more time looking at me than wrestling with a crappy interface on a slow machine.
Superficial? So drag and drop, split view, the new pencil support stuff, the dock - I wouldn't call these superficial. These are differentiating features from the iPhone.
And if they're going to bake so many iPhone or iPad specific features in any iOS, why not split them up anyway?
They’re superficial in that they’re not Core OS features, they’re add-ons to the OS.
Because none of those features require a new OS.
I’m not sure the layman understands just how close iOS, macOS, tvOS and watchOS actually are under the covers.
They’re called different things but they’re essentially almost the same os kernel, much of the same frameworks but with a specific UI and a few device specific frameworks.
So my point exactly. If they are so similar and yet Apple differentiates between them all, then why not do it with the iPad.
No, I’m not an engineer by any means, but what if Apple had a dedicated team just for the iPad line?
Actually, it’s the opposite of your point - the differences between iOS on the iPad and iOS on the phone are at such a high level that there’s no point to making an iPad OS.
If you think of it like a layered cake, the differences between the iPhone and the iPad are frosting level.
Because buy a laptop?
iOS wasn’t designed for phones. They had iPad in the idea tank when the first phone was released. If they wanted to have separate OS’s they would have.
It’s not only an Apple issue but also 3rd party developer issue. Few if any apps do anything to make use of the larger screen. Not all apps are even supporting split view.
I agree that Apple should do more to make the iPad more capable. iOS 11 was a good step so I hope they add as many improvements to iOS 12.
They do differentiate the iPad
Whether the OS is called ipadOS or not is irrelevant; the feature set will depend on what is developed and the things people are demanding from the iPad are simply not core OS features. They’re generally UI sugar or security policy.
Well not everything can run Windows or android so that’s why Apple devices have iOS. It’s what Apple does best.
phone os came from ipad os. The original project was for the ipad. After some development Steve Jobs saw it could be adapted to the smaller form factor of a phone.
All of them are from the same family tree from osX. Origins in BSD with the Mach Kernel.
All of them are from the same family tree from osX. Origins in BSD with the Mach Kernel.
I don't understand why people say "iPad is just a big iPhone" as a negative. The iPhone is a very capable computer except that its screen is small, which the iPad addresses. So when they say it's a big iPhone, they are mostly correct, but that's a good thing.
People who say "the iPad is just a toy" seem to not like following up with specific criticisms. Those few who do specify seem to call out features that don't fundamentally transform the device, they just make it easier to do what the iPad already does. So if it's a toy, with those requests it's just a better toy.
I'm not saying iOS on iPad is perfect. It could use enhancements all over the place. But it's not as fundamentally far from productivity as people lament. And of course I'm talking about mainstream use cases. The main issue here is app developers. The onus is on them to add full functionality to their apps, and to utilize Apple's platform.
People who say "the iPad is just a toy" seem to not like following up with specific criticisms. Those few who do specify seem to call out features that don't fundamentally transform the device, they just make it easier to do what the iPad already does. So if it's a toy, with those requests it's just a better toy.
I'm not saying iOS on iPad is perfect. It could use enhancements all over the place. But it's not as fundamentally far from productivity as people lament. And of course I'm talking about mainstream use cases. The main issue here is app developers. The onus is on them to add full functionality to their apps, and to utilize Apple's platform.
Okay here is what the iPad is. The iPad is not a toy. It is highly technological tablet made by Apple. People who say that it’s a toy do not understand that it can be used for more than just games. It is not a phone all though it can be used like one in some ways. I think I said enough for now.
As someone who is trying to use the ipad as his primary mobile device.... i get the "its just a toy" comments from some people.
It's less true today, but what apple REALLY need to do for it is enable mouse or trackpad support.
I know exactly why they didn't - originally jobs wanted to ensure that it didn't just get garbage ports from other platforms that were not touch focused, but that period is over now - there is an established touch application library.
NOW the lack of ability to handle a mouse cursor via an external peripheral is a huge pain in the rear.
Remote windows sessions, spreadsheet applications, selecting text... all would be SO MUCH EASIER with a mouse.
Here's hoping that by the time iOS 12 comes around, Apple have come to their senses...
But again - this does not require a new OS.
iOS is basically macOS under the covers anyway...