Users don't want iOS to merge with MacOS, Apple chief says

[DrMacintosh]

Quote

Despite rumors that a merger is in the works, Apple chief executive Tim Cook believes mobile devices and desktop computers should remain in separate worlds with their own bespoke operating systems.

Some time ago an analyst at Bloomberg claimed that Apple was working on a project to merge macOS apps and iOS apps into one. Meaning, in theory, you could have one app that ran on both platforms.

 

I never thought much of it and you can say Apple is dumb for a multitude of other things but knowing not to screw with their desktop OS is not one of them. Doing this would single handedly kill the Mac is if was not implemented on only a few devices.....but that comes with the catch of not catching on if Apple were not to go all out. Therefore they can't do it. 

Quote

"I generally use a Mac at work, and I use an iPad at home," Cook tells me, "And I always use the iPad when I’m travelling. But I use everything and I love everything."

 

Later, when I ask about the divide between the Mac and iOS, which seems almost conservative when compared to Microsoft’s convertible Windows 10 strategy, Cook gives an interesting response.

 

"We don't believe in sort of watering down one for the other. Both [The Mac and iPad] are incredible. One of the reasons that both of them are incredible is because we pushed them to do what they do well. And if you begin to merge the two ... you begin to make trade offs and compromises.

Yes, Tim is right here. Merging macOS and iOS would effectively castrate macOS to a point where not even I would probably not want to use it. I like macOS because it is not Windows and because it is an established desktop os that runs desktop software...... iOS does not. 

 

Microsoft tried this, and failed. Personally I believe that Apple would be able to pull it off, but it would be a rough transition and could easily kill the Mac and I doubt anyone in any position at Apple wants that. 

Quote

"So maybe the company would be more efficient at the end of the day. But that's not what it's about. You know it's about giving people things that they can then use to help them change the world or express their passion or express their creativity.

Translation, you need a PC to do the work that makes the world go round. Sure an iPad "can" write an essay or edit a film.....but come on, don't kid yourself into believing that. 

 

Quote

So this merger thing that some folks are fixated on, I don't think that's what users want.

And with this, I think it is safe to say that macOS as we know it today, is not going anywhere anytime soon. 

 

Source: https://www.smh.com.au/technology/users-don-t-want-ios-to-merge-with-macos-apple-chief-says-20180416-p4z9t9.html 

[Arika]

was that ever on the cards though? this is the first time i've heard of this.

[DrMacintosh]

1 minute ago, Sierra Fox said:

was that ever on the cards though? this is the first time i've heard of this.

An Apple analyst at Bloomberg said it was in the works a little while ago and he is who Tim Cook is referring to. 

[Arika]

2 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

An Apple analyst at Bloomberg said it was in the works a little while ago and he is who Tim Cook is referring to. 

Quote

Bloomberg

that makes a lot of sense.

[Streetguru]

14 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

 

So basically Apple is going to be using Ryzen CPUs/APUs at some point in the near future?

[meenmeen1103]

And just like that, the extremely watered down version of Steve Jobs known as Tim Cook became Captain Obvious.

[DrMacintosh]

Just now, Streetguru said:

So basically Apple is going to be using Ryzen CPUs/APUs at some point in the near future?

If AMD can give Apple better pricing than Intel, is willing to pay the Thunderbolt licensing fees (nothing is going to happen with Ryzen unless Apple gets Thunderbolt on it), and if Apple can get the chips to fit in the thermal envelope of a MacBook Pro. Unless they can fit it in the MacBook Pro I don't think we would see it in any of Apples desktop class Macs. 

[meenmeen1103]

7 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

If AMD can give Apple better pricing than Intel, is willing to pay the Thunderbolt licensing fees (nothing is going to happen with Ryzen unless Apple gets Thunderbolt on it), and if Apple can get the chips to fit in the thermal envelope of a MacBook Pro. Unless they can fit it in the MacBook Pro I don't think we would see it in any of Apples desktop class Macs. 

I thought Intel already made TB royalty free? Unless they took back their announcement from mid last year or it just hasn't been done quite yet, they did say it was gonna be this year.

[DrMacintosh]

Just now, meenmeen1103 said:

I thought Intel already made TB royalty free? Unless they took back their announcement from mid last year or it just hasn't been done quite yet, they did say it was gonna be this year.

I heard that too. Though I’m not sure as to it’s current status. 

 

Also I forgot to mention Apple would have to optimize their Pro apps to use all those cores. Granted Apple’s most intense Pro app is FinalCut Pro and that hot piece of software renders 4K video on CoreM series chips faster than most PCs with wayyyyy better hardware could in Premiere  

[Blademaster91]

18 minutes ago, meenmeen1103 said:

I thought Intel already made TB royalty free? Unless they took back their announcement from mid last year or it just hasn't been done quite yet, they did say it was gonna be this year.

It is supposed to become royalty free, not sure I can't find anything recent on TB. Apple probably wasn't too pleased about it though lol. Intel apparently has plans to add it into the CPU sometime later. AMD would probably still have to buy chips from Intel or wait fro another manufacturer to produce a Thunderbolt chip if not integrating their own solution. Back OT, Apple would actually be smart to add messaging and apps to make a seamless connection between your phone and computer, their "power user" base might be pissed but the average Facebook & Instagram macbook user would likely want this.

[DrMacintosh]

6 minutes ago, Blademaster91 said:

Apple would actually be smart to add messaging and apps to make a seamless connection between your phone and computer

Lol you mean iMessage and iCloud? Also Handoff and continuity. 

 

iOS tells any Macs you own that are nearby that you are using an app and if that app supports Handoff you can click it in your dock and pick up where you left off. 

 

iMessage just syncs across your AppleID and can be sent from any device that’s logged in. If you are on the same network a Mac or iPad can even send/receive SMS texts and make/receive phone calls. 

 

iCloud syncing of SMS messages coming soon™️

6 minutes ago, Blademaster91 said:

their "power user" base might be pissed but the average Facebook & Instagram macbook user would likely want this.

There is certainly the possibility for this to be an option for the devs rather than the standard.

 

Kinda like how there are iPhone apps, iPad Apps, Mac apps, and Watch apps, there can be a hybrid app that works on all of the above.

 

Could defienlty work for some basic apps like those. 

[suicidalfranco]

and yet every new iteration of MacOS makes my MacBook feel more and more like a glorified accessory for the iPhone

[Trixanity]

1 hour ago, DrMacintosh said:

Also I forgot to mention Apple would have to optimize their Pro apps to use all those cores. Granted Apple’s most intense Pro app is FinalCut Pro and that hot piece of software renders 4K video on CoreM series chips faster than most PCs with wayyyyy better hardware could in Premiere  

Which would be impossible. Any switch to Ryzen, Threadripper or even just good ol' Skylake-X would run slower. Because they can't do QuickSync. There's not really any particular secret sauce Apple could use. At best they can minimize it or try to collaborate with AMD to implement a similar path in Vega or future graphics. It's simply hard to beat QuickSync in speed but that's only in speed hence the name. If speed was the only factor, it'd be the standard today (lazy developers aside).

[Streetguru]

31 minutes ago, Trixanity said:

Which would be impossible. Any switch to Ryzen, Threadripper or even just good ol' Skylake-X would run slower. Because they can't do QuickSync. There's not really any particular secret sauce Apple could use. At best they can minimize it or try to collaborate with AMD to implement a similar path in Vega or future graphics. It's simply hard to beat QuickSync in speed but that's only in speed hence the name. If speed was the only factor, it'd be the standard today (lazy developers aside).

What does Quick Sync do that an APU/GPU can't do or a semi-custom chip with H264/H265 hardware encoders?

[D13H4RD]

Still, I would not be surprised if a MacPad becomes real 

[Sauron]

I don't think it would hurt for macos to also run ios apps, but certainly it shouldn't come at the expense of the current experience. I wish MS would understand that.

[Trixanity]

23 minutes ago, Streetguru said:

What does Quick Sync do that an APU/GPU can't do or a semi-custom chip with H264/H265 hardware encoders?

Nothing new from what I can tell. It's just really fast and it's essentially ubiquitous on mobile and mainstream desktop. Nvidia's enc/dec block seems to be better in some scenarios but I get the impression from searching that AMD's isn't particularly good but it's hard to get a clear picture because most results are about twitch streaming. I obviously want to find a proper benchmark for video editing.

[captain_to_fire]

2 hours ago, DrMacintosh said:

Some time ago an analyst at Bloomberg claimed that Apple was working on a project to merge macOS apps and iOS apps into one.

Fake news Bloomberg 

12 minutes ago, D13H4RD2L1V3 said:

Still, I would not be surprised if a MacPad becomes real 

If by real you mean working prototypes then yes, Apple made Mac touchscreen prototypes many years ago and it’s confirmed by Steve Jobs himself (2010 Back to the Mac event and D8 conference) and Craig Federighi (CNET) that they’re not doing it because it will create compromises in user experience.

 

My mom currently owns a HP x360 2 in 1 convertible and I think for the most part, the touchscreen is nice but it’s only for a few occasions. She’s a teacher and she only uses the touchscreen l to zoom in to her Excel spreadsheets because the trackpad is iffy. While Windows 10 for the most part is very touch responsive especially Microsoft Edge, there are areas l that you still need a trackpad or mouse like Control Panel. If she wants to play games, she’ll just pick her phone because the Windows Store still have a lot of catching up to do with the App Store and Google Play when it comes to apps and games. 

[divito]

I'm not sure I follow how it would kill the Mac. If I were to ever have a breakdown and use an Apple product, having something like UWP where I can buy or download some software for MacOS, and get a specific version tailored to each device I may also want to use it on sounds more than fine personally.

I don't know that "merging" the OSes, whatever that even means, is necessary. The horsepower and way in which one interacts with their software on either platform is quite different, so there's no real way of realistically merging them to the satisfaction of everyone.

[abazigal]

6 hours ago, DrMacintosh said:

An Apple analyst at Bloomberg said it was in the works a little while ago and he is who Tim Cook is referring to. 

It's possible that Apple did test the feasibility of such a move, and ultimately concluded that it simply wasn't feasible for them. 

[Doobeedoo]

I remember years ago there were sayings that users actually wanted the merge. Obviously without watering down the main OS but more bringing it to handheld with appropriate UI and more function. 

Now I don't follow this much but it just crossed my mind. 

I also get why they don't want to bother with it too. 

 

As on MS side, they're more into it per say. Making OS run on everything, hardware being the only limit what device can do. So no RT or S shit. But full W10 OS as it should be. It runs on ARM but screw that, haves limitations due to it, so X86 or no go. 

Now, they definitely have more work to do with it. For sure not there yet. 

For start they should stop with so many unnecessary Windows editions and kill off 32-bit already. 

[mrchow19910319]

leave macOS alone. make it more stable. then add features later

 

User: WE WANT INNOVATION! APPLE HAS NOT BEEN INNOVATING SINCE STEVE JOBS DEAD! 

 

Also User: WHY THE FUCK IOS11 SO BUGGY??? WTF APPLE???? STEVE JOBS DEAD SO YOU CANT EVEN DEBUG BEFORE YOU SHIP YOUR OS?

 

 

I hope I am not the only one that is really glad that apple is just being apple and not listening to everyone else's "opinion". 

[bcredeur97]

I dont think they should merge... but i do feel a need for innovation in the market and a desire for something new.

But just what could it be? What will be the next big thing like the smartphone market was when it first came to be? That was quite exciting... now everything is kinda just... meh

[captain_to_fire]

40 minutes ago, mrchow19910319 said:

I hope I am not the only one that is really glad that apple is just being apple and not listening to everyone else's "opinion". 

macOS High Sierra is somehow a dead ringer of Windows Vista and Windows Me, both are known for being buggy and unstable we might as well call High Sierra as “Apple Vista”. 

48 minutes ago, mrchow19910319 said:

IOS11

The shitiest iOS release ever which is worse than when iOS 7 was released. 

[Princess Luna]

Excessive innovation has been more harmful to the technology industry than many seem to realize, but what can we do... capitalism and all these companies needs to shove down the same yet new product every year to keep those billionaire profit margins optimization be damn.