We have previously covered that the OLED iPad Pro is one of the best tablets on the market, possibly the best as far as the hardware is concerned. However, the device still can not compete against a real computer, something that Apple really wants the iPad to be. While the hardware and internals are ideal, iPadOS is holding it back from achieving its true potential as a computer replacement. The former president of Microsoft has now stated that the idea of a dual-boot iPad, which switches between iPadOS and macOS, is not desirable.
The idea of a dual-boot iPad is nuts, says former Windows head at Microsoft
As mentioned, the former Windows head at Microsoft, Steven Sinofsky, has stated that the idea of a dual-boot iPad "is just nuts." The executive states that an iPad with the ability to boot into iPadOS and macOS would not be as good as a dedicated product. We know that Apple would never offer macOS on the iPad, but the fact that it features all the internals is a bit let down for the device itself.
iPadOS might be optimized for performance and efficiency on the M4 iPad Pro, but it does not offer any Pro-level features. For instance, the company's entry-level iPad 10 houses almost all the features of the M4 iPad Pro, and it only poses the question of whether the company only has performance gains to offer on the premium models. The term was originally coined by Joanna Stern from the WSJ:
At first, maybe it’s dual boot. That is, just let the iPad Pro load up macOS if it’s attached to the Magic Keyboard and use the screen as a regular (but beautiful) monitor – no touch. Over time, maybe macOS is just a “mode” inside of iPadOS – complete with some elements updated to be touch-friendly, but not touch-first. I’m sure it’s not exactly simple to do all of this, but it is straightforward and obvious now with such technology.
There is a reason why Microsoft's former president suggests that a dual-boot iPad is "nuts". Sinofsky admitted that Microsoft's Surface lineup of products failed to position itself as a tablet and laptop hybrid. He even admitted that desktop interfaces can not be used with touchscreens. He further stated that it would not be wise for Apple to ship the iPad with macOS or offer Macs with touchscreen capabilities.
It is not unusual for customers to want the best of all worlds. It is why Detroit invented convertibles and el caminos. But the idea of a “dual boot” device is just nuts. It is guaranteed the only reality is it is running the wrong OS all the time for whatever you want to do. It is a toaster-refrigerator. Only techies like devices that “presto-change” into something else. Regular humans never flocked to El Caminos, and even today SUVs just became station wagons and almost none actually go off road 🙂
The executive advised that Apple could ship macOS in the iPad as a secondary operating system that can be accessed when connected to the Magic Keyboard. However, he emphasizes that the port should not be touch-first but touch-friendly. If Apple does go ahead with the plan, the final product would resemble Samsung's implementation of DeX in its Galaxy S9 Ultra tablet.
If Apple must change things, it should revamp iPadOS for the iPad Pro models with a new desktop-like interface and feature set. Only then would the powerful internals be justified. In terms of hardware, the M4 iPad Pro is nothing short of amazing, and given the size and form factor, the device is a major upgrade over its predecessor.
