All iPads iPad with full OS

I think there's a market for such a device, though I question if that's large enough to justify such a product.

Microsoft struggled in the pre-ipad era trying to get their hardware partners to produce a tablet. The OS, and apps were ill designed for usage.

Even now with win8, MS' own tablet is not all that popular (though that is probably more due to the price).

I don't see apple producing an OSX enabled iPad, but the opposite, seeing more iOS features and design philosophies built into OSX.

maflynn said:

I think there's a market for such a device, though I question if that's large enough to justify such a product.

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I think you're right here. Microsoft has proven time and time again that a very small segment wants a Windows/OS X running tablet. Neither of these OS's (besides Microsoft's Metro Skin) are really touch compatible.

Even now with win8, MS' own tablet is not all that popular (though that is probably more due to the price).

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Windows 8 switches back to a Windows 7 type interface in many cases. Windows 7 is awful for touch. If either Apple or Microsoft or Google is serious, they need a full OS that is 100% touch compatible.

That raises another issue. I'm convinced there is no one size fits all solution. The laptop is not built for touch software (go to the Microsoft Store, everything is a touch interface and it's all awful).

I don't see apple producing an OSX enabled iPad, but the opposite, seeing more iOS features and design philosophies built into OSX.

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I hope you're wrong. If Launchpad is any indication, I'll pass on iOS X. The App Folder is a better method to access programs. Mission Control/Expose is a much better method of switching between apps (with multiple windows, too) than anything in the mobile realm.

TouchMint.com said:

They are making a huge push to get apps designed for their touch interface. Msft is even reaching out to developers on ios to build apps for win 8 touch.

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Yes. The Windows 8 Metro interface (or whatever they are calling it now) is a real, touch OS. I don't know if it will gain traction, but they have finally given themselves a chance.

I used a touch-enabled Windows device for several weeks. After getting used to it (there is definitely a learning curve), it was a pretty decent experience. The biggest problem is that I would often have to switch to classic desktop apps and would have to dock the thing, grab the mouse and keyboard, and go at it the old way. Having mouse/keyboard UIs along side touch ones was pretty awkward.

On the main topic, I think the most likely way this is going to happen is if iOS morphs into a full OS. Part of the problem is defining what that means. I think it means different things to different people.

There's some aspect of the system being more accessible and open. That, I don't think apple will do unless tge market absolutely forces them. But other things i think will open up over time. E.g., it seems likely to me that future versikns of the OS will allow multiple apps running and on-screen at the same time, more flexible environment for running user agents (so that they can be running in the background all the time), etc.

I don't think it needs a full blown OS [OS X]. I do wish there was a native way to share files easier though. Specifically, when accessing/using documents. I'd love to be able to connect to our corporate VPN, and then just access files on a server remotely, in an easy way. Then being able to save them back, easily. At the moment it's a bit laborious, using 3rd party apps.

Other than that, I love the simplicity of iOS on the iPad. I messed around with a Surface for about 45 minutes in a Microsoft store. It had some neat features, and I did like the keyboard. However, I felt overall it just didn't really meet my needs, especially on the simplicity side...

iThinkergoiMac said:

I got the idea that you thought it was a good idea. If that's incorrect, I apologize. You never did answer my question, though: considering the abysmal history of running a desktop OS on a tablet, what would be the motivation for trying again?

There are lots of things that could be done. Simply stating that something is possible doesn't add much to the discussion without a a reason to do it.

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I honestly don't give a rats ass if iPad gets OS X or not. It serves my needs just fine as it is. That being said, to answer your question, to improve on what we have now. iOS for the ipad is great, but it's a technically limited OS. Windows XP Tablet edition was the problem with tablets years ago. It was horribly implemented and didn't work well. Plus, the hardware sucked at that time. We've come a long way since then. That doesn't mean the notion of a desktop OS on a tablet is a lost cause.

The Surface hasn't picked up because people don't care anymore. Microsoft joined the game way too late.

Just because something didnt pan out in the past, doesn't mean it isn't worth looking into again. Considering the abysmal history of tablet computing, what was Apple's motivation for trying again? As far as everyone was concerned around 2006-7, the tablet was a huge failure. If the folks at Apple had your kind of thinking, we wouldn't even have the iPad today.

There would need to be a lot of changes to OSX to make it work smoothly. It would need to be more like iOS. Try running Splashtop Remote or Logmein on the iPad to get a feel of what it is like running OSX on that small of a screen. Personally, I will use it out of necessity, but I usually just pick up a laptop if I need to use OSX.

nefan65 said:

I don't think it needs a full blown OS [OS X]. I do wish there was a native way to share files easier though. Specifically, when accessing/using documents. I'd love to be able to connect to our corporate VPN, and then just access files on a server remotely, in an easy way. Then being able to save them back, easily. At the moment it's a bit laborious, using 3rd party apps.

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What apps are you using? I use FileBrowser to access shared drives on my network, and I find it works well for me.

Night Spring said:

What apps are you using? I use FileBrowser to access shared drives on my network, and I find it works well for me.

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FileBrowser as well, and it does work. It's just not as simple, or intuitive as doing this native. Such as using Finder, etc.

I should have been more specific, in that I'm doing kind of a quasi case-study using an iPad as a laptop replacement in the enterprise. Using the iPad4, with Apple BT KB. It's working well for 95%; it just the little nuances that prohibiting me to go 100%...

nefan65 said:

FileBrowser as well, and it does work. It's just not as simple, or intuitive as doing this native. Such as using Finder, etc.

I should have been more specific, in that I'm doing kind of a quasi case-study using an iPad as a laptop replacement in the enterprise. Using the iPad4, with Apple BT KB. It's working well for 95%; it just the little nuances that prohibiting me to go 100%...

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I'm not sure how a Finder on iOS would work, though, considering that all iOS apps are sandboxed from each other. While I'm sure Apple could make a Finder app that is more polished than FileBrowser and other similar apps, the more critical issue would be to figure out a way for apps to share files through the sandbox without ending up with multiple copies.

As for things that prevent me from going 100% iPad, I'd say it was a bit more than little nuances here and there. There are still some tasks that I can't do on my iPad, such as converting file formats, and editing ID tags for mp3 and epubs. But I think we are getting there. Compared to when the iPad first came out, there's tons of things that it can do now that it couldn't back then. Some of it are due to iOS improvements, and some due to third-party apps. I think eventually iOS will be as powerful as OS X, just with a touch UI instead of keyboard+mouse.

Night Spring said:

I'm not sure how a Finder on iOS would work, though, considering that all iOS apps are sandboxed from each other. While I'm sure Apple could make a Finder app that is more polished than FileBrowser and other similar apps, the more critical issue would be to figure out a way for apps to share files through the sandbox without ending up with multiple copies.

As for things that prevent me from going 100% iPad, I'd say it was a bit more than little nuances here and there. There are still some tasks that I can't do on my iPad, such as converting file formats, and editing ID tags for mp3 and epubs. But I think we are getting there. Compared to when the iPad first came out, there's tons of things that it can do now that it couldn't back then. Some of it are due to iOS improvements, and some due to third-party apps. I think eventually iOS will be as powerful as OS X, just with a touch UI instead of keyboard+mouse.

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Yes, there's a couple of Apps that are not available that I'd need to go 100%. But I agree, it's almost there. Like you said, once they make iOS as powerful as OSX, the sky is the limit. And with the iPad hardware only getting faster, and lighter, I can't wait. I love the portability now...so it can only get better IMO.

Use screen sharing such as VNC

For obvious reasons I don't suggest this as a workable solution, but it is interesting to try as a concept of what a full OS would be like on the iPad.

What I have found when using either Win7 or OS X is that the desktop operating systems just aren't meant for touch screen and that it takes a lot of touches and gestures to accomplish things. Also, many controls are so small that I find myself zooming in and out a lot (zooming in to access the control, then zooming out so I can see the overall picture again).

You could argue Win8 solves this problem, but it only does so for apps that use "the UI formerly known as Metro". Many full desktop apps are going to keep using the traditional mouse-optimized UI, and those are probably the apps you needed the full desktop OS for in the first place, because the tablet-UI apps work just fine on a tablet OS anyway.