padOS? iPad Pro specific iOS 13? Why not simply give us a macOS tablet?

With iOS 13 certain to be unveiled at June’s Worldwide Developer Conference, several folks and publications — such as Cult of Mac — expect some serious operating system updates for the iPad Pro, such as mouse support and an improved file system. Others want Apple to go even further.

For example, in a 2015 Techpions article, Jan Dawson, founder and chief analyst at Jackdaw, a technology research and consulting firm, says the iPad Pro is hampered by its reliance on the traditional iOS and suggests a special, modified version of the operating system for the super-sized iPad.

He calls it podOS. Clever, but why not simply give us an iPad Pro (or MacPad) running macOS? Yes, I know Apple says it’s not going to give us a hybrid tablet/laptop, but it’s time for the tech giant to reconsider.

Here’s Jim’s suggestion: “What a separate padOS would allow Apple to do is break the set of expectations that come with iOS and to start to allow this new operating system to flourish in a way it can’t when it’s strapped so tightly to the rest of the iOS portfolio. UI changes, new interaction models, and more would make perfect sense on the iPad Pro that would be nonsensical on the iPhone and vice versa. Separating the two would allow the best features that make universal sense to exist on both platforms, while also allowing each flavor to be optimized for the devices that run it. 

He adds that padOS wouldn’t be a  “touch-first” operating system. If that’s the route, Apple wanted to take, why not go with macOS instead?

As I’ve said before, if an iPad (or Mac) offered support for touch input and a mouse/trackpad, users could choose between the input that works best for them. And choice is a good thing.

BTW, the accompanying fanciful mock-ups are courtesy of ZDNet and Cult of Mac.