Tim Cook Insists Merging Mac and iPad Would Result in Compromises

Apple CEO Tim Cook remains against the idea of merging the Mac and iPad to create one unified hardware and software experience, according to a brief conversation he had at Apple's education event in Chicago last month.

merged ipad mac
"We don't believe in sort of watering down one for the other," said Cook, speaking with The Sydney Morning Herald's Peter Wells. "One of the reasons that both of them are incredible is because we pushed them to do what they do well. And if you begin to merge the two … you begin to make trade offs and compromises."

"So maybe the company would be more efficient at the end of the day, but that's not what it's about," he added. "It's about giving people things that they can then use to help them change the world or express their passion or express their creativity. So this merger thing that some folks are fixated on, I don't think that's what users want."

Cook reiterated that he generally uses a Mac at work, and uses an iPad at home and for travel, but added "I use everything and I love everything."

Apple's boss also revealed that an Apple IIc, released in 1984, was his first computer. "I first used it for a project, as a senior in engineering school, making an inventory control program or for a rental business that was close by," said Cook, who majored in industrial engineering at Auburn University.

Cook's comments echo those he shared with the Irish Independent in 2015, when he said Apple is not interested in creating a "converged Mac and iPad."

"What that would wind up doing, or what we're worried would happen, is that neither experience would be as good as the customer wants. So we want to make the best tablet in the world and the best Mac in the world. And putting those two together would not achieve either. You'd begin to compromise in different ways."

While the Mac and iPad will remain distinct products, Apple has and will continue to bridge the gap between its desktop and mobile platforms. In 2014, for example, it introduced Continuity features like Handoff and Universal Clipboard that enable more seamless experiences across Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch.

continuity apple
Apple may go one step further in iOS 12 and macOS 10.14, as Bloomberg's Mark Gurman recently reported that developers will be able to design a single third-party app that works with both a touchscreen, and a mouse or trackpad, depending on whether it's running on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, starting later this year.

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Top Rated Comments

racerhomie Avatar
89 months ago
He is absolutely correct.
Score: 69 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bladerunner2000 Avatar
89 months ago
They should make a good laptop first.
Score: 50 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Will.O.Bie Avatar
89 months ago
Then maybe he needs to stop pushing the iPad as a "computer". If he's adamant about keeping them apart, and they do have systematic benefits to themselves, then just stop with the nonsense of an iPad "What's a computer?" campaign. I use my iPad pro on the go and it has it's limitations that I wouldn't get on my MacBook, although, I love the versatility of my iPad Pro so it has its own benefits as well.
Score: 49 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Gaprofitt Avatar
89 months ago
It's already watered down, the Ipad isn't a computer.
Score: 47 Votes (Like | Disagree)
viperGTS Avatar
89 months ago
Well, they were originally against the stylus too, so... it's still possible.
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chrisbru Avatar
89 months ago
It's already watered down, the Ipad isn't a computer.
What's a computer?
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)