Does the Mac even matter anymore?

In a couple of months, Apple will release macOS 26, which brings some nice features to your Mac, including Liquid Glass, a new Phone app, and vastly improved Spotlight Search. But like other recent updates, it lacks an eye-opening feature that leaves users in awe.

When you take macOS 26 into context with the rest of Apple’s upcoming software releases, the Mac was vastly overshadowed. It could make a devoted Mac user wonder if the platform even matters anymore.

iPadOS 26: The future

The most exciting release this fall will be iPadOS 26 and its new windowing system. Not only is it a much-needed feature, but it’s also well done–it works like it does on the Mac but with a more modern flair. After trying to implement a multitasking environment tailored speifically for tablets, Apple has finally realized that the best system already exists, and Apple made the right decision to bring a macOS-like system over to iPadOS.

iPadOS 26 puts the iPad in a new spotlight that portrays the iPad as a possible Mac replacement, depending on your use case. Many kids and students grow up using iPads, and iPadOS 26 is the best of both worlds: the new windowing system makes it a viable platform for multitasking and doing more sophisticated work while still allowing the iPad to be an iPad.

It all adds up to the iPad becoming a more prominent platform in Apple’s lineup for productivity. And while there isn’t a direct competition between iPadOS and macOS–the Mac is still the most competent platform for numerous professions–the iPad is now a more viable choice as a workstation and playstation.

macOS 26: The past

Apple announced nice new features for macOS 26, such as next-gen Spotlight, a Games app, and icon tinting. in fact, half of the items on my macOS 26 wish list were fulfilled, so that’s something. But we didn’t get any shining new features that stole the show.

Apple focused the spotlight of its macOS 26 presentation on Spotlight and its powerful enhancements. To me, the highlight is the intelligent actions in Shortcuts. But both features, which greatly improve productivity, aren’t the overarching improvement that clearly stand out to users of all levels. Here’s an anecdote to make my point: at a friend’s get-together, a few people I met asked me what I thought was cool about macOS 26, and when I mentioned these two features, their response was, “What’s Spotlight/Shortcuts?” They barely knew they were existing apps.

Part of the problem is that the Mac hasn’t really gotten any exclusive features in a while. The two most notable recent additions—Universal Control and Stage Manager—are more iPad features than Mac ones, and the rest—Apple Intelligence, Continuity, Settings, customization, etc.—are all iOS features that made their way to the Mac in the most rudimentary of ways. It’s the same with hardware. The M4 Macs are excellent machines, but there’s nothing about them that brings the kind of attention that a new iPhone gets.

The Mac, even more so than the iPhone and iPad, has an extremely wide range of user expertise. Some (likely anyone reading this) know every little bit about macOS, while others don’t even know how to power off a Mac. Coming up with a feature (a graphical makeover to Liquid Glass doesn’t count) that appeals to the masses might be impossible at this point for Apple’s oldest product.

Apple

Apple’s approach

The Mac will never go away, nor will it merge with the iPad to create a new device, according to Apple’s Craig Federighi, who invoked Steve Jobs’ cars (iPads) and trucks (Macs) metaphor from 15 years ago. But Federighi also thinks that each platform can draw inspiration from the other.

However, there’s one major reason why Apple would want the iPad to gain more traction as a workstation: like the iPhone, the iPad is a closed system. Apple controls and limits what you can do with it (outside of the European Union). For example, to install software, you must go through the App Store. You can’t really customize iPadOS with system extensions in the same way as macOS. Apple won’t let you.

The Mac is much more open, which means Apple doesn’t have as much control as it would like. Yes, Apple has a Mac App Store, but nothing is stopping you from buying software through a third-party or directly from the developer, which gives Apple far less control (and revenue). And there are several ways to install software to enhance macOS in ways that you can’t on the iPhone and iPad. The Mac may be an inherently riskier platform compared to iOS and iPadOS, which is Apple’s key argument for a closed system.

The openness of macOS is precisely why we’ll never see a full port of macOS on the iPad. Instead, what we’ll see is continued improvements that enhance iPadOS to function like a Mac until macOS is completely irrelevant to all but a small subset of users.

Why people love trucks

In the cars and trucks metaphor used to compare iPads and Macs, cars/iPads are the everyday devices everyone uses, while trucks/Macs are the utilitarian devices for when it’s time to get serious work done.

However, there’s an irony to the metaphor: Trucks are by far the best-selling type of automobile in the U.S. Their utility, size, and stature are their appeal. That’s the same reason why so many longtime customers prefer the Mac to the iPad. No matter what Apple does with the iPad, it will never be able to do many of the things the Mac can do. And it’s starting to feel like Apple wants people to use an iPad more than a Mac.

But after another year without any innovative macOS features, it’s hard not to wonder how much longer Apple will keep giving it just enough to stay on the road while faster sports cars keep passing it by.