I recently picked up an iPad after not having one for a few years. I definitely don’t need it but I find them very fun. iPadOS 26 pushed me over the edge to get it and am currently rocking the current beta.
The features they added with window tiling and just overall making it more computer-y is very welcome. I probably won’t replace my MacBook Air when the time comes because an iPad with a keyboard can do whatever I was doing on the laptop. But there’s new window management is actually too computer-y, especially when trying to use it as a tablet.
The current version of iOS does a really nice job of easily allowing you to have 2 things on the screen and resize those two apps, slide over can also get you a third thing in a pinch. The new version of iPadOS does not allow you to just drop in two things on the screen and get to work. Settings gives you three options:
- Full screen apps
- Windowed apps
- Stage manager
Let’s start with that last one. Is anyone actually using stage manager? With windowed apps I can’t really see a point in them. Windowed apps is the new feature, it’s great, works like a computer wonderful. Full screen apps I expected to act like how iPadOS has acted in previous versions but it’s not. It’s how iPadOS was like ten years ago. Literally one screen, one app, no multitasking at all.
In a perfect world, for me, that multi tasking screen would contain two options. Windowed apps and “simple multitasking”. 95% of the time, I just want one or two apps on the screen. I don’t want to have to mess around with moving windows around on the screen to be in the right place. iPadOS had this nailed down. The power of iPadOS 26 is that I always have the ability to turn this little tablet into a computer when I need it to be. Or for other power users that it’s the default but they have the ability to dumb down their “computer” into a tablet when they want to go into vacation mode.
It is incredible, every iPadOS version seems like it’s closer to replacing your laptop. This year it actually seems to be the case for the vast majority of people. I just worry that they’re also getting rid of the fun tablet in the process.