iPadOS 26 was unveiled one year ago with major upgrades for iPad productivity. I’ve been using the update on my iPad Pro since that first beta arrived, and here’s where Apple’s major update has worked for me, and where it still comes up short.

What’s working for me in iPadOS 26

It took 15 years, but Apple finally brought proper app windowing to iPadOS—and for the most part it’s been a success. I love being able to freely resize app windows to fit my needs. I generally have certain apps that I keep in a mostly fullscreen view, while others stay more compact on either the left or right side of my screen as popovers. This flexibility has completely changed how I multitask on the iPad. Previously, with Stage Manager, windows were constrained to set sizes and positions, but iPadOS 26’s windowing system gives me total control. I can have a large document editor in the center, a reference browser on the right, and a messaging app tucked to the left—all without covering up content.

iPadOS 26’s windowing system has also enabled one of my favorite new capabilities: keeping the dock on-screen at all times like in macOS. As long as windows stay away from the bottom of the screen, you can turn on a setting that keeps the dock visible. This has been one of my favorite overall changes—especially since you can now add more apps to the dock than ever, and file folders too. I’ve organized my dock with a row of essential productivity apps, a folder for communication tools, and another for creative apps. Having the dock always visible means I can switch between apps with a single tap or drag a file into an app icon to open it directly. It’s a small change that dramatically improves workflow speed.

The Files app in iPadOS 26, combined with the new Preview app, has been another highlight. File management on iPad now feels largely up to par with the Mac. I can browse network drives, compress and decompress archives, and even view Quick Look previews for a wide range of file types without opening the full app. The Preview app itself is a game-changer for anyone who works with images, PDFs, or documents: it supports annotations, signatures, and even basic image edits. This eliminates the need for many third-party tools I used to rely on.

I’m also a fan of the menu bar, though I’d love Apple to take it a step further and make it more Mac-like. But as it stands, the iPad menu bar is a useful hub for exposing an app’s features and controls. For example, in Pages, the menu bar gives me quick access to text formatting, track changes, and page layout options without digging into toolbar overflow menus. In Safari, it shows bookmarks, history, and tab management. This consistent placement across apps reduces the learning curve and makes the iPad feel more like a desktop operating system.

Finally, though it’s unrelated to productivity, I’ve been loving having Apple Journal on my iPad too. The larger screen makes journaling more immersive, and the intelligent suggestions for photos, music, and activities are surprisingly good. I’ve started using it as a daily log for both personal thoughts and work notes, and the integration with Focus modes helps keep me in the right mindset.

For the first time, iPadOS feels like it’s a match for the iPad’s powerful hardware, and that’s exciting. With the M4 and M5 chips, the iPad Pro has had desktop-class performance for years, but the software was always the bottleneck. iPadOS 26 finally bridges that gap, making the iPad a viable primary computer for many professionals.

Where iPadOS still feels like a work in progress

I use the iPad Pro as my full-time computer, and I can confidently say iPadOS 26 is the biggest software upgrade the iPad has ever had. But my heavy iPad use also shows where the software falls short.

For example, one feature Apple touts about iPadOS 26’s windowing system is ‘persistent size and placement.’ In other words, windows should stay where you place them, in the exact size you make them. This is often what happens. But also, probably every day or at least every other day, I’ll have an app crash and reset to fullscreen view. Thus, I’m forced to move and resize it again. I might understand this happening if my iPad was underpowered. But I’m using an M5 iPad Pro with 16GB of RAM and a 10-core CPU. This is the most powerful iPad you can buy. And this type of behavior just doesn’t happen on the Mac. At least not with anywhere near this regularity.

Another more serious issue involves Slide Over. I’m thrilled that Apple brought the feature back in iPadOS 26.1. But I still sorely miss the ability to keep multiple apps in Slide Over at the same time. For an update that pushes the iPad forward in most ways, it’s disappointing that iPadOS 26 offers a worse Slide Over experience than iPadOS 18. In iPadOS 18, I could stack several small apps—like Messages, Notes, and a calculator—in the Slide Over panel and swipe between them. Now, I can only have one app there, which forces me to either use it or keep it minimized. It’s a step backward for quick multitasking.

Some other minor complaints: Right-clicking in iPadOS often feels slow and laggy, while on a Mac it’s just instant. Even with a trackpad and cursor, app windows often get moved when I’m trying to resize them, and vice versa. Keyboard bugs in Safari mean I’ll often type a character in the address bar only to have it erased by a software auto-suggestion. When using certain websites, there are still plenty of times I have to use a Mac just because Safari on iPad won’t let me click a button that I need to click. For instance, some web-based CRMs and ERP systems have hover-dependent menus or drag-and-drop features that don’t work on iPad at all. The Safari rendering engine is the same as on Mac, but the way it handles touch events versus mouse events can break interactions on complex web apps.

I could keep listing smaller issues, but I imagine everyone has their own list of bugs and shortcomings. And the Mac isn’t perfect in this area too—I know plenty of Mac users aren’t thrilled with macOS Tahoe. But given that the iPad’s primary advantage is supposed to be simplicity and reliability, these persistent glitches undermine it.

Overall, iPadOS 26 still feels like a major leap forward for the iPad—despite some lingering issues. It’s a strong foundation for Apple to build on. I have plenty of questions about the iPad’s future in a world with foldable iPhones and touchscreen Macs. But I’m excited to see how much investment Apple has made in iPadOS. And hopefully iPadOS 27 continues that positive trend.

What are your highs and lows in iPadOS 26? What’s on your wish list for iPadOS 27? Let us know in the comments.

Best iPad accessories

• AirPods Pro 3
• 100W USB-C fast charging power adapter
• tomtoc Tablet sleeve bag for protection and style
• Baseus 10ft USB-C cable for extended reach
• Apple Pencil Pro

Source: 9to5Mac News