File this one under Too Crazy to Ignore: A leak on Twitter claims that Apple is working on a “smaller version of macOS” that will run “exclusively” on the new iPad Pro M2 next year.
We are with you; there are many reasons to be skeptical. For one, the leaker, Majin Bu, doesn’t have much of a story beyond case leaks and the yet-to-be-confirmed 14-inch iPad. On the other hand, there is very little evidence that Apple is working on merging the iPad and Mac lines apart from the two sharing the same Stage Manager feature in iPadOS 16 and Ventura. And finally, limiting such a dramatic change to a single iPad Pro model would raise the ire of many users.
According to my source, Apple would be testing a smaller version of macOS exclusively for the new iPad Pro M2! “Mendocino” should be the codename for macOS 14. A stripped down version should be planned for the M2. pic.twitter.com/f4RrainlZ1
— Majin Bu (@MajinBuOfficial) October 20, 2022
But still, it’s an interesting, if not exciting, rumor. The iPad Pro is still a device with untapped potential, with a fast processor, a stunning ProMotion display, Thunderbolt and Face ID. However, while there are some features in iPadOS 16 that are unique to the M1-powered iPads, Apple hasn’t really elevated the iPad Pro above its other less expensive iPads.
Bu claims that the “simplified” version of macOS will have “a 25% larger macOS user interface” that is presumably optimized for touch. But since iPadOS already supports trackpad navigation with the Magic Keyboard, the overall macOS experience shouldn’t change. And now that Apple has added Stage Manager to both iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura, there’s also a unified navigation system.
So maybe it’s not that crazy. As it stands, there’s not much reason to buy an iPad Pro over an iPad Air, and a “lite” version of macOS would absolutely change things in a big way. We won’t know if this rumor is true until next fall, or until Mark Gurman or Ming-Chi Kuo corroborate it, but for now, we’re happy to keep dreaming.