Ten years after the iPad's launch, it has not come close to being revolutionary or living up to its potential because of its inconsistent multitasking software
Gruber's tenth-anniversary verdict lands mid-arc in a debate that predates it: back in 2017, iOS 11 on iPad Pro was already falling short of laptop replacement over missing pointer input, even as side-by-side multitasking improved. Two days after this piece, original iPad team members Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno voiced their own regrets about how the iPad evolved, making the anniversary moment an unusually candid audit of the platform.
What makes the critique durable rather than dated is that Apple itself kept conceding it: sources pointed to iPadOS 16's redesigned multitasking with resizable app windows in 2022, and by 2025 iPadOS 26 shipped fluidly resizable, movable windows plus a Mac-like Preview app — effectively rebuilding the desktop metaphor Gruber said was missing.
First-order effects
iPad buyers in 2020 get hardware that outclasses laptops but software that forces app-by-app workarounds for basic parallel tasks, capping the device's claim as a MacBook Air alternative — a rivalry The Verge had already flagged when the newest Air launched into competition from both Windows PCs and Apple's own iPads.
Second-order effects
Internal cannibalization pressures Apple to keep reworking iPadOS rather than leave the iPad as a consumption device — the iPadOS 16 windowing redesign and eventual iPadOS 26 release are direct responses to the laptop-replacement shortfall.
Third-order effects
If the iteration pattern holds, the iPad converges on Mac-style windowed computing, blurring the tablet/laptop boundary Apple drew at Yerba Buena and leaving the two product lines differentiated mainly by input and form factor rather than capability.
The trend: Apple's tablet is spending its second decade absorbing the desktop's window-and-file model, with each iPadOS release closing the software gap that hardware never had.
1/The announcement 10 years ago today of the “magical” iPad was clearly a milestone in computing. It was billed to be the “next” computer. For me, managing Windows, just weeks after the launch of Microsoft's “latest creation” Windows 7, it was a as much a challenge as magical. ht…
“The iPad awkwardly turns 10” @daringfireball https://daringfireball.net/... // I tend to agree w/complexity. OTOH, there's a certain awkwardness in arguing that large numbers of Mac users aren't routinely baffled by basic tasks. Today: watched pers flummoxed over dual monitor ou…
this is the harshest (??) i've seen @gruber on apple, but, it's all true — the app use / multitasking paradigms on the iPad are a mess, and to be honest, I can't imagine how they'd be fixed at this point: https://daringfireball.net/...
I never use iPad multitasking modes. I can't remember how to activate them, and like @gruber's mom I've gotten stuck with it on. I find cmd-tabbing between apps to be effective, except that the iPad memory limitation kicks tabs and sometimes apps out of memory. https://twitter.co…
To appreciate how non-discoverable multitasking is on the iPad, consider that I've used an iPad for 10 years and I only just now learned how to open a second app side-by-side via @gruber's article here: https://daringfireball.net/... Aaaand I've already forgotten it again.
I get what @gruber is saying here; his reasoning is sound. Speaking about a niche, because I write about a niche, I will say iPad *has been* revolutionary for accessibility. Especially in early education, device + OS is game-changing. Not trivial. https://daringfireball.net/...
This is a typically smart and revealing thread from @stevesi. It's a look at how the iPad's launch 10 years ago today looked through the eyes of a competitor and software veteran. Great stuff. https://twitter.com/...