iPad's biggest enemy...is Apple.

When Steve Jobs introduced the iPad in 2010, it changed the way we thought about personal computing. No longer limited by a mouse and keyboard, the touch interface gave us a completely new way of interacting with technology. Between Steve and Jony Ive, the vision was to achieve one flat piece of glass that felt like an extension of the mind.

Since then, Apple has made incredible strides with the iPad to achieve this vision. Bringing the M-series chips to their devices, the iPad is insanely fast, silent, and completely cool to the touch during even the heaviest of tasks, while being thinner and lighter than ever before.

As you can tell, I’m a fan, and have been since I got my first Macbook in 2011.

But being a fan doesn’t mean that I’m not going to be critical either. And when it comes to iPad, I know I’m not alone when I say that Apple is missing the boat in favor of profit margins.

My M2 iPad Pro is literally the apex of what I want out of an every day device. It’s portable, lightweight, interactive, and power-efficient. And with the addition of M4, iPad is more powerful than ever.

It’s also like a Lamborghini forced to drive the speed limit thanks to it’s operating system.

iPad OS is in desperate need of an overhaul, and I think that Apple knows this, but choose to ignore it out of fear of cannibalizing Mac sales. The updates to the system feel lazy, uninspiring, and almost encouraging to users to buy it as a companion device rather than a standalone product.

Some want Apple to bring MacOS to iPad. I don’t subscribe to that thought. I want Apple to do what Apple used to best, and reimagine what this device could be.

Think about how versatile this device is:

It can be a productivity machine with the addition of the Magic Keyboard.

It can be a mobile recording studio for the musician with an audio interface and a microphone. (Logic Pro on iPad is amazing)

It can be an easel for the graphic artist with the Apple Pencil.

It can be a production/editing rig for the cinematographer.

To me, iPad is the most “Apple” product there is, at least what in terms of what Steve Jobs stood for. It can be whatever you need it to be, and kitted out however the creator would like — the ultimate, utilitarian computer.

Yet, I’m still sitting here, programming & producing music on my Macbook because of lack of 3rd party plugin support and no decent code editor (not even XCode) available for the platform.

As an Apple fan, I’m dreaming of a day that Apple decides to put it’s loyal fans first again, and deliver us a reimagined experience for iPad. This piece of tech is too good to be put off to the wayside, and with Intel and Qualcomm nipping at the heels of the M-series chips, I think it’s time to think different again.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Paps.