8 iPadOS 18 features that bring it closer to being a Mac

As Apple continues to reinvent the iPad, it increasingly resembles a Mac computer. This isn’t just regarding its form factor when you add accessories like the Magic Keyboard and Folio Case, but also when comparing their processing power and interface. The latest Apple iPad Pro model skipped right to the Apple M4 chip, effectively making it more powerful than some Macs. Now with the upgrade to iPadOS 18, there are new features that help the iPad get closer and closer to being usable as a full-fledged computer. There are a few specific features in iPadOS 18 that will help drive this forward.

1 Apple Intelligence

Source: Apple

The most obvious way that iPad is becoming more like Mac is with the inclusion of Apple Intelligence, the company’s take on AI. Available for iPads with an M series chip (as well as M-series Macs and the iPhone 15 Pro and up), Apple Intelligence offers tons of assistance such as writing tools, image generation, Safari highlights and contextual information, plus more personalization overall across apps. While Apple Intelligence is coming to both iPad and Mac at the same time, the fact that almost everything it can perform on a Mac will be possible on an iPad leaves little distinction between the two.

2 The new tab bar design

Image via Apple

The new tab bar design, which will appear in certain apps like Apple TV, employs a floating design above the app so it doesn’t take up much room. When you hover over or select an item, a sidebar menu pops up with more information. This is reminiscent of the experience you might get with a Mac, and has a more computer-like feel overall to it.

3 The redesigned Photos app

In a way, the redesigned Photos app kind of looks like the Photos app on a Mac, with an endless scrolling view, curation, and collections. While it still has the same mobile device feel to which fans have become accustomed, once you start selecting and editing photos within the app, it feels a lot like you’re doing so on a powerful Mac. If more editing capabilities are added alongside new ones like Clean Up, which can remove distracting elements from the backgrounds of photos, those who have been editing images on a Mac might be able to easily switch to doing so on an iPad.

4 Better privacy and security

With features like the ability to hide apps with sensitive information, adjust how you share contacts with certain apps, and even how the iPad connects to different accessories, the tablet is beginning to function more and more like a Mac. Typically, tablets were viewed more as entertainment hubs for watching videos on a bigger screen than a phone, playing games, and doing some light productivity tasks. With these new privacy features, the implication is that you will be handling more sensitive data and doing more serious work from an iPad than you might have done in the past (creative professionals who have long used iPad for productivity excepted).

5 Customizable Home Screen

Macs have the option to use a beautiful backdrop as your wallpaper, as do iPads. But previously, iPad apps, much like with iPhone, appeared in a singular grid pattern. You could move apps into folders but you couldn’t move them around like you can with a Mac. Now, with iPadOS 18, you can. Relocate app icons to any position on the Home Screen, like shifting them to the sides as you might on a Mac. You can also adjust the color and even turn app icons into larger widgets to create a more streamlined and personalized look. The Control Center works much the same way, allowing you to better organize the controls that pop up when you open it, dividing them by type and customizing what shows up so that you can see the most pertinent information at a glance.

6 The Passwords app

Like Keychain, which any Mac user knows is integral to day-to-day productivity, the new Passwords app is a secure place to store all your passwords, verification codes, security alerts, and more. This instills confidence to create ultra-secure passwords for all your services, apps, and more, without worrying that you might forget a password or store it in an unsafe location where a hacker might easily be able to gain access.

7 SharePlay

Ever use an app like TeamViewer on a Mac? It’s a great way to permit someone else access to control your computer temporarily so they can show you how to do something or troubleshoot a problem. An enhanced version of SharePlay will work much the same way for iPad. Another person can tap and draw on their screen and the same will appear on yours to show you how to do something, like where to access Settings for a specific app or function. Further, you can give someone else permission to access your iPad to remotely control it, for example, in order to fix something or check settings to help you resolve an issue. It’s reminiscent of the type of IT service you’d expect with a Mac, but has not historically been done with an iPad.

8 The enhanced calculator app

With the new version of the Calculator app, which is finally making its way to iPad, you can not only perform simple calculations but also pretty complex ones, too. Combined with the Apple Pencil, the iPad becomes a pretty solid workhorse when working through math problems, solving equations, even working out physics problems or proper measurements to remodel a room or office, and more. With the Math Notes calculator, you can write things out in your own handwriting and get instant calculations, graphs, and even make adjustments on the fly, while all related calculations adjust with you. In effect, this actually makes the iPad even more robust than a Mac when it comes to mathematical-based tasks.

iPad isn’t quite there yet

While the best Apple iPads are more powerful than ever, particularly iPad Pro models, they aren’t quite there yet in terms of rivaling a full Mac experience. But with the right accessories, apps, tools, and now features in iPadOS 18, it’s getting there.

We may still be a long way away from replacing a Mac with an iPad, at least for some professions and uses. But the line between the two categories is slowly blurring. In the future, you might find that an iPad is more than sufficient to meet your needs, even if it’s just for working on the go while you still use your Mac at home.