But Apple has been moving in this direction for a while. In 2020, the Magic Keyboard brings extra ports and a full trackpad to the iPad. Then in 2022, the company introduced external display support, and finally, in the 2024 update of iPad Pros, the webcam was moved to portrait mode. But this year’s update does feel like it has reached a critical point. Apple also sells the premise in two very wise ways.
First, most iPad users may never even realize the windowing feature. Like many deeper iPad features, windows are purely optional and hidden by default. Open an app on your iPad and still defaults to full screen. It seems that the average person will never notice the minor-sized icon in the lower right corner of the application. This is an important design decision as it keeps the iPad’s primary identity the same, which is a simpler interface.
Second, Apple never called these new elements what the Mac looks like in its keynote, but simply called them “familiar.” In the presentation, it is even far apart from each other, be careful not to pay attention to the similarities between the two products. Apple will never want to fight both of its products against each other and always hint at the reason why someone has both an iPad and a Mac. But with iPadOS 26, let’s be a reality: This requires trusting some serious cognitive dissonance now.
I don’t recommend that iPad replace MacBook Pro. People who really need extra performance will always flock to those more powerful Macs. But what about Apple’s more popular laptop, MacBook Air?
The price and specifications of the iPad Pro and MacBook Air have been confusing, and Apple will be able to eat its own products. I have no doubt Apple will be as long as possible, but I’m more inclined to compare the two directly than ever. This is even more so, as the iPadOS update will even be available on the basic iPad and iPad Mini even when it officially launches later this fall.
So, does this mean that the proper combination between iPados and Macos is in progress? Or how about a touch screen MacBook? In the past, Apple has made it clear that it has no plans to merge its operating systems. This is a statement that won cheers among the audience at WWDC in 2018. However, despite how far the concept sounded seven years ago, almost everything seems possible at this time.
From the new liquid glass interface to the iPad’s MAC-like features, here is all the news from Monday’s WWDC keynote.
