Apple previewed iPadOS 26 during its WWDC 2025 keynote. Unlike previous years, the company outdid itself with the new features introduced in this software update. After all, it’s going to be easier than ever to use the iPad as a computer replacement.
Some of the new functions include:
- Better windowing system: Apple is ditching Split View and Slide Over in favor of a new windowing system. You can open as many windows as you want and control them with a familiar menu bar and Mac-like controls.
- Background Tasks: Apple finally lets tasks run in the background, including exporting a video, downloading large files, and more. A simple yet important functionality that finally lets users take advantage of up to 16GB of RAM on the iPad.
- Preview app: Apple built a new app for iPad users to open, edit, and mark up PDFs and images with ease. Cupertino says Preview was designed with the Apple Pencil in mind, so users can sign documents and take notes faster than before.
That said, these aren’t the only features iPadOS 26 offers that make it a great computer replacement. There’s also a supercharged Files app and the ability to add folders to the Dock. I still think iPadOS 26 needs a few tweaks to become the only computer I want to use every day.
iPadOS 26 needs to work a bit more like the Mac
Apple says that even though it improved the multitasking functionality on the iPad, it continues to be a touch-first experience. I couldn’t agree more with the differences between the iPad and the Mac. That doesn’t mean Apple can’t make iPadOS 26 slightly better.
Here are some tweaks that could make iPadOS 26 truly perfect for iPad users:
Multiple desktops: Apple is not expected to greatly increase the display size of the iPad Pro (even though larger screens have been rumored). The best way to manage multiple open windows would be to offer different desktops. This would let users organize their workflows more effectively.
Always-visible dock: As personal as it might seem, I think having the dock visible at all times is the way to go. On macOS, you can’t overlay the dock with a window. I wish iPadOS 26 behaved the same way.
Files and photos on the Home Screen: To make the iPad work more like a Mac, let users save images and files on the Home Screen. Apple could make Stacks mandatory so documents don’t clutter the experience. This would make it easier to drag and drop files into apps, Safari, and so on.
Wrap up
Apple is still in the early days of the iPadOS 26 beta. While I don’t think the company is rushing to add these features, they would be great additions for Pro users.
BGR will keep bringing you the latest iPadOS 26 features as we learn more about them.
