Wesley Hilliard
A leaker has claimed that Apple is working on a version of macOS exclusive for the M2 iPad Pro, with it expected at some point in 2023.
One of the leading complaints surrounding the iPad is its lack of desktop-class software support. There have been constant calls for Apple to port not just Final Cut Pro, but also a full version of macOS to the iPad.
Leaker Majin Bu's sources have shared that Apple is working on a "smaller" version of macOS exclusively for the M2 iPad Pro. It is said to be codenamed Mendocino and will be released as macOS 14 in 2023.
Testing is being done with a 25% larger macOS UI so it is suitable for touch. However, apps run on the product would still be iPad-optimized versions, not macOS ones.
It isn't clear why Apple would move the iPad to a macOS interface in a half-step like this. Those clamoring for macOS on iPad do so for the software more than the interface.
Rumors about software testing should always be taken with a grain of salt. Very little, if any, detail ever leaks out about Apple's software plans.
Rumors have been floating around about macOS on iPad for more than a decade, and rumors about the original iPad said that macOS was a possibility before that device's release. Also, Apple likely has versions of macOS running on iPads for internal testing and configuration. This leaker could have seen an iPad in a debug state rather than an actual operating system.
According with my source Apple would be testing a smaller version of macOS exclusively for the new iPad Pro M2!
"Mendocino" should be the codename for macOS 14. A simplified version should be planned for the M2. pic.twitter.com/f4RrainlZ1
The other possible explanation is this wasn't macOS at all. Apple could be working to bring iPadOS even closer to macOS by adding a Menu Bar and other Mac-like interactions. It already introduced a Mac windowing feature in iPadOS 16 called Stage Manager, this could be the next iteration.
Majin Bu also suggests that the exclusivity to M2 iPad Pro could be a marketing push. If the feature is only available on that iPad, more people would buy it.
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Charles Martin
Oliver Haslam
Marko Zivkovic
Amber Neely
79 Comments
This rumor makes no sense.
Almost a dozen years, when the Mac App Store was introduced, there was a lot of teeth-gnashing that Apple was aiming towards a MAS-only version of macOS that would lock out outside purchases. Apple shot that down that concern, but I wouldn't actually be too surprised if an Apple-regulated version of macOS was being reconsidered.
As long as 'regular' macOS for Mac machines continued (and there's no reason why not), Apple could offer App Store-only A-series dual-OS iPads as a more easily-managed, updated, and security/privacy-oriented alternative in the vein of iOS. You wouldn't have to buy it if you didn't want it, but maybe a lot of people would go for it. I don't know.
As someone who loves his iMac and iPad mini, I'd personally consider going for a (large) iPad Pro if I could run Mac apps and have iPad apps too.
But I think that the Surface machines show how grafting touch onto Windows is sometimes good but usually a kludge, so I'd hope that if this was true then touch/Pencil support would be intelligently but very lightly integrated into macOS itself.
MacPad Pro!