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Apple Patent Suggests Future iPad Could Transform Into macOS-Like Experience When Attached to a Keyboard

I know Apple says they won't be bringing macOS to the iPad and that they won't be making a touchscreen Mac...

They could be "technically" honest and create a third product line that splits them. How about they bring back the "iBook" name and call it an iBook Pro ? Maybe instead of "macOS on iPad" it's "iPadOS on Mac". I'd probably buy one in a heartbeat ?
 
theotherphil said:
That 3rd docked mode, is likely going to enable cross compiled MacOS apps to run under iPadOS. I think this was the grand plan for Catalyst all along....not just allowing iPad/ iPhone apps to run on the Mac, but to also allow MacOS apps to run on the iPAD.
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It's maybe a niche use-case, but for me this would be enough, provided they gave me the macOS version of the Music app to manage my music library.
 
Mcckoe said:
I’m down to an iPad Pro and an M1 Mac Mini I remote into. I also remote game from PS5 and XBSX to iPad Pro… To be honest, at this point… a merger like this… would be a nice to have when i need the extra flexibility traveling; but, besides that, I’ve solved this issue with the remote M1 Mac Mini(got it for like 500 bucks at Costco). M1 Mac Mini also replaced an old data server, energy savings alone is somewhere around 60 dollars a year; in ten years the thing will have paid for itself.
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What do you use to remote into the Mac mini?
 
Apple have a problem. They really want to put the macOS power into iPads, but you can't give it a proper file system and *nix terminal without giving it sideloading, they go hand in hand. And the Apple Tax on the app store revenue is a lot of profits to pass up on.

Not quite sure why they're so adamantly against adding a touch screen to the MBP/MBA though. Just make it an extra user input method, on top of the existing keyboard/trackpad inputs, so you can simply choose not to use the screen as a touch screen if you don't want to.
 
AFPBoy said:
Not my idea - but eventually the iPhone will be our computer, with the phone itself being the trackpad in a device, almost like a docking station.
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Exactly what Samsung can do right now with DeX. Use the phone as the computer and connect to a monitor or screen.
 
From WFH experience with multiple meetings at once, I need separate computers not one device to do it all.
 
rumz said:
It's maybe a niche use-case, but for me this would be enough, provided they gave me the macOS version of the Music app to manage my music library.
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This is called an ‘edge case’.

People already say use case way too much…
 
My only complaint about the ipad with the magic keyboard setup, is that it has soooo much power that’s not being used, I mean reading e books, web browsing, glorified in pro motion but no dice lolol.

I’m already dreading upgrading this magic keyboard, shelling out the big bucks was painful as it was last time
 
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That would be great! Use the iPad as workstation, connected to my big screen the whole day and after that disconnect it and use it in tablet mode for consuming media.
Tim, please give it to us!
 
At least we know Apple's plans for "What will Apple Do After They Finish Unifying the Hardware Architecture Across All Their Product Lines?"

Do it with their OS software...

Likely quite a ways from the next "Universal" app being for mobile/desktop M-series devices.

Funny thing is Europe pushing Apple to standardize on the USB-C port, will force them to add a Thunderbolt port. Making switching an iPad into desktop mode easier.
 
Doesn’t have to be MacOS but a system more versatile than iPadOS - and either Apple will have to stop restricting Apps like the ones that are found in Cydia or allow sideloading.
 
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This modular design in the age of touch screen is the future. Laptops with attached keyboard redundant now. All Apple have to do is design a really sleek and sturdy keyboard that feels weighty and not top heavy, seamless switch between different OS and good buy laptops - they’ll start to feel like mobile phones with an actual keypad on them.
 
iZac said:
Finally, my $2,250 iPad might do something more than doodle on ProCreate ?

(yes I'm the idiot who spent two grand to use a $10 app)
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Right behind ya some hundreds dollars. On which I have doodled 10% of the time and watched tutorials on how to doodle the rest of the 90% ?

Best weekend device though, after the work week I don’t touch a desktop or laptop until next monday. All is done on the iPad.
 
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Freeangel1 said:
they got a lot of work to do. to make iPadOS just like macOS.

Like change the whole file system to save things locally on an iPad.

right now it seems all cloud based.

And if they do this people will just buy an iPad and Mac laptops will take a huge hit in sales.

Most people want the touch screen experience. a regular MacBook will get left behind if touch screen is never implemented on Macs.
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You can already save files directly on your iPad in whatever folder structure you’d like using the Files app and the “On my iPad” location in the sidebar. This does not sync to the cloud. If you don’t see the option you can enable it by clicking Edit Sidebar from the options menu.
 
Technically we have this product. Running iPad apps on the Mac today works nicely. Add removable keyboard and pencil. All done. The important aspect, Mac OS. Scrap iPad OS.
 
rumz said:
What do you use to remote into the Mac mini?
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I’m actually using a developer app I made. But, “screens” is pretty close… if your looking for a universal solution… For gaming: the PlayStation Remote app streaming from a PS5, is probably the best I’ve seen; PS5 adaptive haptics are absolutely perfect, so even if you lose a frame the game play never feels bothered.
 
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Horses for courses.

Apple won’t make a touchscreen Mac because of the ergonomics of arm fatigue when using one for extended periods. This is why Jobs opposed it: it is just bad design.

The reason you will never see the iPad become a Mac is because Apple know you will pay £1k for the privilege. The iPad is both Apple’s entry level computer as well as a do-anything studio for creatives. You can pay £300 and get everything you need for mass market computing and you can pay £700 for a portable studio that does loads of cool stuff.

But you want a Mac? That’s an extra £300 at least.
 
jakey rolling said:
You're missing the point. Theoretically, you can't patent something that already exists. Whether MS patented the Surface or not is beside the point - if Apple were to try to patent something that already exists in the Surface (or Samsung Dex as others have mentioned), that patent shouldn't be granted.

Now, of course, that is the theory. As we've seen for pretty much the entirety of computer history, companies have managed to patent all sorts of inventions that are apparently either obvious designs or that other companies had already invented. It is apparent that the US Patent office has taken the position that it is up to the courts and not the patent office to decide when an idea is patentable or not.
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The point is, if Apple applied for the patent before the other devices were released and before other companies applied for a patent, then it changes a lot of things now that the patent has been granted to Apple.
 
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