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[RetroGamingUK]

Apple is reportedly planning a design overhaul for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS

New looks.

www.theverge.com

Apple plans to significantly redesign the look of iOS, iPadOS, and macOS later this year, Bloomberg reports.

The changes, which are set to arrive with iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16, will touch many parts of the operating systems, including “updating the style of icons, menus, apps, windows and system buttons,” Bloomberg says.

The updates are also intended to simplify how people use Apple devices and make things more consistent across its software.

The new design apparently takes some inspiration from the Vision Pro’s visionOS.

Looks like iPhones, iPads and Macs are going to sport a visual style similar to Vision Pro from later this year

Images from VisionOS

 

[AJUMP23]

I don't know if I want the VISION look on my phone.

Vision is a dead product I think, or Niche.

 

[jufonuk]

Well seeing as they can’t justify planned obsolescence anymore (I think) they need to do something to leave the old products behind and force users to update. So why not make the OS as confusing as possible.

 

[Dacvak]

I hope they don’t change things up just for the sake of it. The smartphone design is essentially perfect, for both Apple and Android at this point. It least the user interface is refined enough.

The main problem I have with my phone is just that I use it too much.

…hmmm, come to think of it, maybe designing it worse would be helpful then.

 

[Makoto-Yuki]

they'll update some things to the new UI and then release the rest with iOS 20.

Apple software is shit these days. They are so behind on AI stuff and playing catch up.

 

[ReBurn]

Who is asking for something like this?

 

[Pagusas]

Who is asking for something like this?

no one. In fact I think most of us apple fans have been asking for more tools to theme things out ourselves, which they've *far too slowly* been giving us.

I can understand a slight refresh, but if its to the level of the ios6 to ios7 transition was... no thanks.

 

[jason10mm]

Please make it more like android. I"m already lost enough trying to help my kids with their damned ipads because the UI is incredibly non-intuitive, no need to make it worse.

 

[RetroGamingUK]

The main takeaway here is consistency across iOS, iPadOS and MacOS

Gradually, over the last 15 years we’ve seen iPadOS become more like MacOS and MacOS (to a lesser extent) become more like iPadOS.

I think Apple are very hesitant (you only have to look at the Windows 8 disaster) to suddenly merge their tablet and desktop operating systems into some bastardised OS that pleases nobody.

However I do think they’re increasingly moving towards to goal of having a single OS that works just as well with a touch screen as it does a keyboard/mouse.

After all, if you showed iPadOS 16 to someone who hadn’t used iPad for a few years they’d probably think you were using a Mac

 

[Trilobit]

The main takeaway here is consistency across iOS, iPadOS and MacOS

Gradually, over the last 15 years we’ve seen iPadOS become more like MacOS and MacOS (to a lesser extent) become more like iPadOS.

I think Apple are very hesitant (you only have to look at the Windows 8 disaster) to suddenly merge their tablet and desktop operating systems into some bastardised OS that pleases nobody.

However I do think they’re increasingly moving towards to goal of having a single OS that works just as well with a touch screen as it does a keyboard/mouse.

After all, if you showed iPadOS 16 to someone who hadn’t used iPad for a few years they’d probably think you were using a Mac

Very interesting post. I voted no on the poll not because I don't want to have iPadOS be more like MacOS, but because I've been waiting for a much better OS that can use the power in my iPad Pro M1. It's been incredibly disappointing to see the tiny incremental steps Apple's taken that never feel like they actually improve my daily usage. I'd like to have the option to boot a MacOS Lite shell on it just so that I can enjoy a proper file system and desktop apps. I understand their design ethos concerning iPad, but I think it's keeping back the Pro models to the point where there's really no reason to get an M4 iPad Pro. iPadOS as it stands now feels more like a glorified iOS at best.

 

[Quasicat]

I dropped my MacBook Air a few years ago and moved onto an iPad with a keyboard. I still have my Mac Mini so that does the heavy lifting with Plex, Handbrake, etc, but the iPad is so fast and is always charged because I use it everyday, unlike my laptop which sat in the corner with a dead battery most days.
I love typing up my Bible study notes on my iPad and having them immediately available on my Mac and iPhone. It’s really convenient!

 

[Magister]

Reminds of Microsoft Windows 8. Making an OS for tablets first was utter failure in their case. Let's see if Apple fucks up too.

 

[Puscifer]

they'll update some things to the new UI and then release the rest with iOS 20.

Apple software is shit these days. They are so behind on AI stuff and playing catch up.

I wish everyone would let me opt OUT of AI, it scans literally everything including bank information and encrypted messaging vs before the os would produce a black screen.

Going back to grapheneOS just feels good

 

[Trilobit]

Reminds of Microsoft Windows 8. Making an OS for tablets first was utter failure in their case. Let's see if Apple fucks up too.

I've read about DexOS and I really like how it turns your Android into a desktop OS once plugged in to a display. I feel like Apple which is the world's most valued company should be able to come up with something like that, but far superior. Time will tell.

 

[ResilientBanana]

Apple is performing a very Windows like maneuver. Even the styling of vision OS is reminiscent of a more refined windows 11. Getting tired of all the bloat on these OS’s.

 

[bender]

I dropped my MacBook Air a few years ago and moved onto an iPad with a keyboard. I still have my Mac Mini so that does the heavy lifting with Plex, Handbrake, etc, but the iPad is so fast and is always charged because I use it everyday, unlike my laptop which sat in the corner with a dead battery most days.
I love typing up my Bible study notes on my iPad and having them immediately available on my Mac and iPhone. It’s really convenient!

I've wanted to do this for a while but I use my laptops far too often in my lap.

 

[Quasicat]

I did too, until I bought an iPad. After that, I would do all of my reading and video watching on it instead. I use the keyboard maybe once a month at the most and didn’t want anything that could have a dead battery at the rare times that I needed it, so I got one that pulls it’s power from the iPad itself. If I did more typing, then I would definitely need the laptop.

 

[ResilientBanana]

One thing I would love to see on iPad is multi user logins. A tablet is more of a household device. So why not let it have multiple users using it?

 

[rm082e]

*Android trolling noises*

 

[EverydayBeast]

Consistency across all devices I can agree with.

 

[Pimpbaa]

I dunno what to think about this. I like IPadOS as it as now. Simpler to use than my android phone (i use a Samsung phone, not sure what extra crap they add to android). Then again this new design I might find even easier to use.

 

[RagnarokIV]

Basically cluttered mess.

I miss Snow Leopsrd and Windows XP.

More stupid bullshit I don’t care about. Widgets popups , iMessage popups, reminders, calendars, popups to look at pictures of the kids while some weak ass gay maroon 5 shitty song starts playing.

Recording acoustic guitar track when the Mac started dumping notifications of 3 weeks of iMessages at me.

 

[RetroGamingUK]

Basically cluttered mess.

I miss Snow Leopsrd and Windows XP.

More stupid bullshit I don’t care about. Widgets popups , iMessage popups, reminders, calendars, popups to look at pictures of the kids while some weak ass gay maroon 5 shitty song starts playing.

Recording acoustic guitar track when the Mac started dumping notifications of 3 weeks of iMessages at me.

I know it won’t happen, but I’d love the Aqua aesthetic from 2001 back…

 

[Panajev2001a]

After all, if you showed iPadOS 16 to someone who hadn’t used iPad for a few years they’d probably think you were using a Mac

Then once they started using it thinking it is like a Mac run run the F away before they figure out how it actually works and they need help . I get what you are saying but iPadOS is holding the device back a lot (what do you do with an M4 and 16 GB of RAM???).

 

[Trilobit]

I heard that Apple is pulling back their AI right now? If true then I don't have to mourn being inside the EU with its anti-AI shenanigans.

Basically cluttered mess.

I miss Snow Leopsrd and Windows XP.

More stupid bullshit I don’t care about. Widgets popups , iMessage popups, reminders, calendars, popups to look at pictures of the kids while some weak ass gay maroon 5 shitty song starts playing.

Recording acoustic guitar track when the Mac started dumping notifications of 3 weeks of iMessages at me.

Snow Leopard was the first MacOS I used and boy was it great. It's still to this day the best OS I've experienced, but I haven't been on Mac since 2010 so that doesn't say much. But Snow Leopard is still the gold standard I compare every desktop OS to. What you wrote about popups is exactly what I don't want an OS to be. I want to be completely focused on what I'm doing on the device I'm presently on, I've even turned off most notifications on all my devices as I'll be too scatterbrained otherwise. Being able to seemlessly update notes and such between the tablet and computer is of course cool, but that's as far as my needs would go. If I could I'd even go back to having a landline phone and an answering machine. And a smartphone without phone capabilites. There's something almost magical about mono-functional devices, like ereaders.

 

[ResilientBanana]

I know it won’t happen, but I’d love the Aqua aesthetic from 2001 back…

This is completely dated and old looking

 

[Bry0]

The main takeaway here is consistency across iOS, iPadOS and MacOS

Gradually, over the last 15 years we’ve seen iPadOS become more like MacOS and MacOS (to a lesser extent) become more like iPadOS.

I think Apple are very hesitant (you only have to look at the Windows 8 disaster) to suddenly merge their tablet and desktop operating systems into some bastardised OS that pleases nobody.

However I do think they’re increasingly moving towards to goal of having a single OS that works just as well with a touch screen as it does a keyboard/mouse.

After all, if you showed iPadOS 16 to someone who hadn’t used iPad for a few years they’d probably think you were using a Mac

True but also these pictures are both with stage manager on, and stage manager is kinda hot garbage.

 

[RoboFu]

the new iPads are basically MacBooks so why not give them the full OSX funtionality now? it makes sense to integrate them together more.

 

[RetroGamingUK]

This is completely dated and old looking

I’m not saying they should, I just really love the Y2K aesthetic style, something that Apple were one of the biggest contributors to.

 

[RetroGamingUK]

the new iPads are basically MacBooks so why not give them the full OSX funtionality now? it makes sense to integrate them together more.

Because MacOS isn’t touch friendly, any attempt to make it so should be slow and considered.

We’ve all seen what a rush to turn a desktop OS into a tablet OS looks like…

I would, however like to see more MacOS functions on iPadOS, namely multi-user support.

 

[Fake]

Whatever they make, Android will follow.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

I hope they don’t change things up just for the sake of it.

That is literally Apple's software development model.

 

[LordOfChaos]

I dread this after at least a decade of buggy half working features released that never get touched again, interface hitches and glitches, and just a culture of slop that is very unlike peak Apple.

All I want is a Snow Leopard year for all their OS's, a full year of dev work on perfecting performance, squashing old bugs, getting rid of as many weird animation hitches and stutters as possible, make it stable and appliance like again, and then a full year after that of continuing that work while it's the main OS out



They can't seem to manage this yearly OS release cycle on so many platforms well now. And this after almost lapping themselves with iOS18 AI features announced last year and still not out and WWDC coming up in years? Did they need an ambitious OS overhaul this year, or did they just need a feature freeze to get their crap worked out

 

[Trilobit]

Because MacOS isn’t touch friendly, any attempt to make it so should be slow and considered.

We’ve all seen what a rush to turn a desktop OS into a tablet OS looks like…

I would, however like to see more MacOS functions on iPadOS, namely multi-user support.

There's always the DexOS path. I don't think people desire to use MacOS with their fingers, but rather that when they plug their M-chip iPad Pro into a monitor or keyboard/mouse then you can choose to run MacOS, or at least a GUI styled after it, together with Mac apps and a proper file system.

 

[Ovek]

They need to leave MacOS the hell alone.

 

[Mr Reasonable]

the new iPads are basically MacBooks so why not give them the full OSX funtionality now? it makes sense to integrate them together more.

If I had to guess, I'd say it was to do with positioning and pricing. I haven't kept up with pricing of the Macbook Air or the Ipad Pro, but I bet that once you get them running the same software, if performance is comparable, someone will be saying "So, why is this one more expensive than that one?" and it could end up pushing a decent number of people towards a lower profit margin machine who'd otherwise buy the other one.

If it turns out they come out at about the same price for the same performance, I agree with you though.

 

[IntentionalPun]

The main takeaway here is consistency across iOS, iPadOS and MacOS

Gradually, over the last 15 years we’ve seen iPadOS become more like MacOS and MacOS (to a lesser extent) become more like iPadOS.

I think Apple are very hesitant (you only have to look at the Windows 8 disaster) to suddenly merge their tablet and desktop operating systems into some bastardised OS that pleases nobody.

However I do think they’re increasingly moving towards to goal of having a single OS that works just as well with a touch screen as it does a keyboard/mouse.

After all, if you showed iPadOS 16 to someone who hadn’t used iPad for a few years they’d probably think you were using a Mac

My iPad just looks like an iPad lol

Is that for iPad Pro? Or maybe it’s based on enabling a bunch of options or using some gestures?

 

[WhiteWaterM00se]

I know it won’t happen, but I’d love the Aqua aesthetic from 2001 back…

I would like to piggyback this. I would love to have some retro version that we could run. Even if it was considered “more simplistic”. If they were to do this, i would also love them to incorporate some of the AOL software vibes into it.

Similar to iWeb, and iWorks aesthetics back in the day.