Oliver Cragg / Android Authority
It’s been nine years since Apple released an ad for the 2016 iPad Pro, which asked, “What is a computer?” That ad has been mocked ever since, as the iPad has always been seen as too compromised compared to a MacBook, Chromebook, or Windows laptop to serve as a full computer replacement for most people. However, iPadOS 26 brings some significant changes to the iPad, and I think it might be enough for the iPad to replace my aged Google Pixelbook.
So, I installed the iPadOS 26 developer build on my 2020 iPad Pro 11-inch. I know — it’s the last iPad Pro to use an A-series Apple chip rather than an M-series, so it won’t be lightning fast, especially on a developer build. However, I won’t hold any lag against it here, as this iPad has always experienced issues in the first few betas but has always been perfectly smooth by the time the stable update is released. No, today we’ll be evaluating the changes to iPadOS 26 to see if they’re conducive to getting work done.
Proper Windows
Zac Kew-Denniss / Android Authority
Apple attempted to improve the multitasking experience on the iPad in 2022 by introducing Stage Manager, but it didn’t make the kind of difference I needed. There was no easy way to snap windows together, and most of the time, my apps would overlap each other. All of that changes in iPadOS 26, which has overhauled everything to resemble macOS.
Each window features traffic light buttons, which minimize, maximize, or close the app. Long-pressing them displays a window-snapping menu with templates, allowing you to arrange your windows using the most common layouts. It’s a massive improvement to the iPad experience, even on the 11-inch model I’m using. I split-screen and window apps on the 6.2-inch Galaxy S25, so I can get plenty done on this 11-inch iPad.
Zac Kew-Denniss / Android Authority
Another Mac-inspired addition is the menu bar, which you can summon from the top of the screen with a swipe or by nudging the cursor against the top edge. I’ve never used macOS, but from what I can tell, it has most of the same functionality, letting you perform certain tasks and actions within the app you’re using. What I found most useful was using it to remind me which keyboard shortcuts are bound to certain functions. I was born and raised a Windows user, so getting used to new keyboard commands was a learning curve.
The mouse loses aim-assist
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