A new Apple patent suggests that a future iPad or iPadOS version may offer the ability to provide a MacOS-like user experience when connecting the tablet to an external keyboard. The patent, first reported by Patently Apple, has a wide range of potential implementations. Apple routinely patents dozens of ideas, but only a few of them make it to the light of day.
Nonetheless, the patent describes an underlying device, such as a keyboard that includes keys and a trackpad, that could be combined with a computing device, such as an iPad, to provide a seemingly macOS-like experience via the Apple Pencil.
The patent describes an iPad and keyboard combination, and other images in the document show that the computing device can be detected from the keyboard and used independently, similar to how users can currently detach the iPad from the Magic Keyboard.
Alternatively, the patent could be envisioning a future MacBook and iPad combination, two devices in one. When detached from the keyboard, the combo works as an iPad with Apple Pencil. Then, when connected with a keyboard, it becomes a touchscreen-capable Mac.
Apple has long said that touch-screen Macs aren’t what it’s aiming for or what it wants to do, so maybe the iPad and MacBook combo is the future of Apple’s computer lineup. In his April 17 Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman proposed an idea that appears to be the same idea in a patent Apple filed earlier this week.
Gurman speculates that future iPads should consist of three modes: a touchscreen mode, an Apple Pencil-optimized experience, and a “Pro” mode that turns on when a keyboard or external monitor is connected. While pure speculation, Gurman reports that Apple is planning to improve the multitasking experience in iPadOS 16.
iPadOS 16 will be previewed a month later at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, which runs from June 6 to June 10. There, Apple will preview not only iPadOS 16, but also iOS 16, which is rumored to include new health features, improved notifications, and more.