Apple Still Expected to Allow iPhone and iPad Apps to Run on Macs Later This Year

[Cesar Battistini]

Living in a bubble?
Take iMessage. Sometimes I receive them on my iPhone sometimes on my iPad. How is that for working very well?
Photos, take a pic with iPhone wanna retouch it on iPad... gee, where’s that pic? No, it does not work very well. I have to send it via Airdrop or iMessage (really) to my iPad.
Apple under SJ: “it just works”.
Apple under TC: “we try to get it work as soon it comes out of the pipeline”.
“You be amazed what we have in our pipeline” “If we can make it work, that is”

Not living in a bubble, guess i'm just lucky, because I have none of the problems you reported! Maybe your network is trash? When i take a photo I have have to erase it very quickly for it not to go to my Photo Stream. And every time I get a message it spreads everywhere!
But they will focus on fixing this issues this year (rumored) so the it just works will come back!.
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My iMac 2017 OS is way, way smarter than my old Powermac G4, or my 2011 MBP, so not sure when the "dumbing down" began, if ever.

Haters gonna hate.
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So we will soon see simplified apps on the Mac, and non optimized app on iOS ... cool!

Why develop specifically for one or the other? Let's make half baked mixed stuff.

Because now many great apps are not even on the Mac! Developers know that the scale on mobile is way bigger than on mac, so it's harder to justify writing an app for the Mac.
That measure would make it easier for developers to deliver a unified experience across all Apple products.
The landscape of mac apps will change dramatically.

 

[RogerWilco]

Phil and Craig also expect HomePod to eventually replace the current Mac Pro -- what? -- it's the same damn shape!

 

[tevion5]

Real gamers would use a 250 liter GTX 1080 ti hackintosh with watercooling and LEDs.

 

[BlendedFrog]

I think of it this way:
iPhone X runs on the A11 bionic cpu with the embedded M11 co-processor
2nd gen iPad pro runs on the A10x cpu with the embedded M10 co-processor

New iMac Pro runs the Intel Xeon W with the embedded T2 security chip

Think what would happen if the rumors are true of Apple moving to a new line of laptops/desktops using Apple designed chips (i.e. A12/A13), the M co-processor, and the T security chip. It would be able to merge iOS and macOS into one ecosystem. Sounds pretty neat to me.

 

[tevion5]

LOL.

Real gamers use PC + Windows, with a GPU a Mac could only dream about being shipped with

I was joking about playing an walking around ARG like Pokemon Go on a desktop dude.

I'm an Apple zealot but I still game on a self built PC!

 

[guzhogi]

Not if it means dumbing down macOS to the level of iOS.

Not that I'd like it, but I can kind of see Apple making Macs glorified Chromebooks. No local accounts; just login with your AppleID. Maybe some local storage for apps and some local files to help when not connected to the internet.

 

[thisisnotmyname]

I'm looking forward to this personally.

 

[drugones]

Mac will not be able to run iOS Apps, but Apps will be able to be developed on a cross platform framework.
That is Devs will need to implement the new framework to allow anything to run on Mac, and vice versa.

Good move; assuming Apple will manage it better than Google and Microsoft did so far.

 

[Stella]

I was joking about playing an walking around ARG like Pokemon Go on a desktop dude.

I'm an Apple zealot but I still game on a self built PC!

I know .

Self built PCs are the way to go for gaming - you get to choose the components and often cheaper / better quality than an off-the-shelf brand named PC.

 

[guzhogi]

"Marzipan" sounds like an Android codename... Not a good sign

Anyone else remember the character from Homestar Runner when they hear "Marzipan"

 

[4jasontv]

Seams about right. Apple has shown a desire to merge iOS and MacOS over the last 10 years or so. At first they brought features from iOS to MacOS. Then they brought parts of MacOS to iOS. Then they started sticking ARM chips in Macs. Bringing iOS apps to MacOS would help them blur the lines even more before launching iOS based Macs.

But what do I know? I can't see the future. I can only remember.

 

[bice]

But thats thinking about things under the current framework, where iOS and MacOS live in their separate silos. If the two were to merge I'm sure there would be some simple apps that have Mac functionality that would be used there (like the NYT and FT apps you referenced), but you wouldn't be boxed in to using the app anymore than you are now on iOS. There are already plenty of developers (Omni Group & Pixelmator being the first two that come to mind) that have created complex and desktop class apps on iOS. No reason to think that section of the market would do anything other than expand if Apple makes it easier for devs to roll out features across all platforms.

True, there are App types that perform simple tasks that would be convenient to access on my mac. To me, the dashboard widgets fulfilled this very well. They automate a http-call and display the result in a pleasing way with minimal interaction. Or take a quick input entry and return the conversion, like a exchange rate or a calculation.
However, widget developing practically died. If this change would give me access to more widget style applications on the desktop, then that is only good.

Also true, there are some pro grade apps on ios. But the majority of apps, both in numbers and in grossing, are simple apps. They are also very very touch-screen driven apps.

Touch interface is great for some tools. Mouse/Keyboard is great for other tools. I just don't think there is a large number of applications where both interfaces are great, and where the only thing the developer needs to do is to slap on a different interface depending on release platform.

 

[Darajavahus]

This is why T2 can do what it can in iMac Pro which also is suspected to have A10 Fusion, all macs since iMac Pro, regular iMacs, Macbooks and Mac minis will have T2 and A10 Fusion. Can't wait for the new base 27" iMac.

 

[jonnyb098]

Fix the Photos/iTunes sync issue with large photo libraries and a lot of people will be happy. In short, this is a good move to concentrate on stability and performance.

As far as the rest, don't spread the engineers too thin.

Who still uses iTunes to sync?!

 

[forerunnerg34]

Imagine High Sierra with iOS 11 code combined. What could possibly go wrong...

 

[DNichter]

I think the article is a bit misleading. I expect developers to be able to create 1 app that works on all platforms, but I don't expect existing iPhone apps to run on a Mac. They will look and feel different obviously, dictated by how you interact (touch vs point and click). Still a good move, just not what the title says.

 

[Bacillus]

Who wanted this?

The less courageous at Apple that lament to develop a hybrid touch/mouse OS

 

[Leguna24]

And the dumbing down of the mac continues.

They are discontinuing mac apps?!?!! Oh NO!!!!!!!!!

(seriously, your comment doesn't put you in the best light, but I suppose you're aware of that)

 

[unobtainium]

This will likely work only with apps the developer decides to make “universal”. So expect very few apps to actually be cross platform. A lot of developers have cheap iOS versions and more expensive Mac versions. They’re not going to suddenly start selling universal licenses for all apps.

 

[mdelvecchio]

this is being misreported — universal apps doesn’t mean “iOS apps running on Mac”. it means universal apps. iOS has universal apps today, and nobody says it’s an iphone app running on tvOS or iPad. they’re different apps with different screens. same thing here with macOS — it won’t be an iphone app, it will be a mac app.

 

[georgB]

Just to add my voice, too:

To Apple: Please remember that computers, tablets, and even phones have other uses besides social media, socializing, and playing music. In other words, think of the WORK (yes, that 4-letter word) some of us want/need to do.

1. don't dumb down Mac OS and its apps
2. could this even mean smartening up some iOS apps?
3. and please add a cursor to iOS, at least on iPads

and, as long as I'm at it:

4. Re-create a really integrated app, like AppleWorks of yore, with Keynote, Numbers, Pages, and a database; a graphics app would be welcome in that, too.

 

[Dave245]

I’m really hoping that Apple don’t plan on adding a touch screen to the Mac, leave that to the iPad keep the Mac a mouse and trackpad only device. I personally have no interest in a Surface like device they are not helpful in the slightest.

 

[firewood]

But in most likelihood, will they be emulating iOS on the Mac?

iOS apps already run on a Mac. Any developer can configure an Xcode script to include an x86 slice in their iOS app. Just drop that ipa bundle on an iOS Simulator on any other Mac, and it will run natively (as x86 code). The Cocoa Touch libraries already run natively in a Mac (inside a Simulator window).

I send these fat iOS apps to my beta testers all the time to test my iOS apps on Macs as well as iOS devices.

However, currently, a developer can’t submit those combined x86/arm “fat” app bundles to the App Store. So if you don’t know the developer, you can’t get them.

 

[macduke]

Please don't dumb down Mac apps. We need the inverse—we need more iPad Pro apps that are Mac caliber. The iPhone is already complicated enough for what it is.

 

[Dave245]

Please don't dumb down Mac apps. We need the inverse—we need more iPad Pro apps that are Mac caliber. The iPhone is already complicated enough for what it is.

I agree one app I wish they would bring to the iPad Pro is Final Cut Pro X, it would be brilliant to be able to edit on my Mac and then use my iPad Pro on the go with Final Cut Pro X.