As someone that grew up with a Windows desktop, and then transitioned to the Mac during college, I consider myself pretty proficient with the standard laptop experience. Working professionally as a software developer, I also know my way around a command line. So my preference for iPadOS/iOS over macOS and Windows doesn’t come from a place of ignorance or unfamiliarity. It comes from the belief that the desktop metaphor and keyboard + pointer interface isn’t the be-all and end-all for personal computing. This paradigm has served many of us well for decades, but for others, the experience of using a traditional laptop os has and continues to be one of frustration. But on June 29th, 2007, the iPhone was released with a breakthrough user interface that brought a new, more accessible way to compute for everyone.

Breaking Free Of The Desktop

The iPhone was the first successful computer to break free of the desktop/laptop computer paradigm since its introduction. One of the biggest knocks against Windows Mobile/Pocket PC devices that existed pre-iPhone was that it seemed like Microsoft was just cramming the Windows interface into a handheld form factor and calling it a day. BlackBerry and Palm OS interfaces were better, but not by much. When the iPhone came along, even though Apple declared “iPhone runs OS X”, its interface was seen as a breath of fresh air compared to its incumbents’.

There was no pointing device/stylus required for navigation. You didn’t need to dig through menus and file hierarchies to get things done. You didn’t even have to worry about a filesystem, apps managed their own data. You weren’t annoyed by “where is that audio coming from?” because starting one audio or video stream paused anything else that was playing.

These are features that “pro users” are chafing against with iOS and iPadOS, but made the original iPhone experience simple and magical. And people understood it. Normal people understood it. They didn’t need a manual. They didn’t need to look up blog posts to figure out how to use it. They didn’t need their techie friends to hold their hand through the experience. And this largely remains true today, across both iOS and Android. People of all ages and walks of life can pick up a smartphone or tablet and just use it. Without fear of viruses or getting hacked or a malicious app stealing all of your information (much more likely to happen in the cloud anyway). They can pick up a smartphone or tablet and use it to accomplish the things they do everyday. And all without a desktop, keyboard, or mouse.

The True PC

The term “personal computer” is now a better fit for a smartphone than a Mac or PC. These are the machines that people live their lives on. You may work on a Windows machine, but your life is on your phone. Looking at the computing landscape from that lens, it makes more sense that Apple has worked to keep iPadOS closer to iOS than macOS.

This is why I get annoyed with the discourse around turning iPad Pro into a Mac. I want to see something different be successful in the personal computing space. After 40 years, we can absolutely do better than a traditional laptop OS interface. Does that mean that iOS and iPadOS are the answer? No, not necessarily. But the fact that there’s so much pressure around forcing iPadOS into macOS makes it seem like, outside of the smartphone, we’ll never get to any kind of meaningfully new and potentially better paradigms. A very vocal contingent can’t get past what exists today to ever make it to what could be, in the future. visionOS gets a pass right now because its only a few months old and Apple wisely added the Mac mirroring feature to satiate the Mac die hards. But mirroring your Mac display doesn’t move anything forward, and it won’t be long before the “turn it into a Mac” people turn their signs on Vision Pro.

Simplicity vs. Complexity

The challenge for both the iPhone and iPad going forward is how to you continue to add capability without adding complexity. These devices were successful because of their simplicity, and they were simple because they didn’t do much. They were light, fast, and simple in a way the Mac and PC weren’t, because they didn’t have to do everything. However, in order to remain competitive, Apple needs to continue to advance iPhone and iPad with new features, which despite their best efforts, adds complexity.

I don’t envy the position Apple has placed themselves in. To try to tame this inherent complexity behind simple interfaces. Especially since most all of the low hanging fruit in iOS has been tackled. Adding a straightforward interface for cut, copy, and paste is one thing, managing multiple lock screen and wallpaper configurations with an obnoxiously complex interface is another.

“Pro” users and users familiar with the desktop paradigm may continue to push for iPhone and iPad to be more complicated, but I hope Apple remembers that these devices appeal more to normal people that don’t really need any more complexity in their lives. They want to pick up their phone or tablet, complete a task, and put it back down again. These devices should remain simple enough to do just that with as little friction as possible.