The iPadOS 26 developer beta has transformed my iPad

I somewhat called it! In the run-up to WWDC 2025, I asked Apple to please introduce true multitasking to iOS (and by extension, iPadOS). We didn’t get it in iOS, but Apple did unveil an entirely new windowing system on iPadOS 26. With it, they’ve transformed the iPad for me and likely for millions of customers as well.

It’s not just about multitasking: Apple saved the best till last during its WWDC keynote, and the iPad has a host of other features that are further transformative to the iPad experience. I’ve been using the iPad OS 26 developer beta for the past 24 hours, and here’s how it’s transformed my iPad Pro experience.

It’s worth noting that this is a developer beta and the first beta in Apple’s new software lineup. This means that it’s not designed to be for public use — save that for the public beta next month — and many things will be improved with each additional beta release before the public release in the fall. This is a first look at the new iPadOS and how it could transform your iPad Pro.

The key new features in iPadOS 26

Apple rightfully chose its name change to match a sizable update for all its platforms. The new Liquid Design interface brings the great user experience from visionOS to all of Apple’s devices, and makes everything feel refreshed and new again. 

The visual changes are apparent as soon as you install iPadOS, but there are also new features across three key areas: Multitasking, Files, and Audio and Video. The first two are transformative for everyone, while the latter feature is ideal if you’re a creator and looking at the iPad Pro as a portable editing or creativity machine.

One of the biggest complaints about iPadOS versus a Mac has been the lack of background tasks. However, as part of the new multitasking feature — and in a bid to draw more creatives to the iPad — the new iPadOS 16 enables background tasks for any app that wants to support them. The example that Apple used? A creator is exporting a video in Final Cut Pro in the background while working on something else. It’s also tied into Live Activities for at-a-glance notifications on the status of the background task.

Like the rest of Apple’s new software, iPadOS 26 also comes with live translation in FaceTime calls and when sending messages. There’s also a new dialer app that’s the same unified app with the new design found in iOS 26. 

That covers the major stuff, but let’s dig deeper into the key reasons I’m loving this platform.

True multitasking is the feature I’ve been waiting for

I love smaller devices or those that serve multiple functions at once, like the best folding phones. Since Apple first unveiled the concept of the iPad as a computer, I’ve dreamt of a day when the iPad can replace a Mac for portable work, especially when Apple stopped making 11-inch MacBook Airs. This hasn’t been feasible until iPadOS 26 for one key reason: lack of true multitasking. If you’ve been waiting for a strong Mac-like experience in an 11-inch form factor, this update will make it possible with the iPad Pro M4.

Initially, the iPad had little to offer those seeking portability, power, and productivity, as, while it excelled in the first two areas, it lacked essential productivity features. Apple introduced limited multitasking features like SlideOver and PopOver, but we’ve all been waiting for a window and file system that can rival the Mac.

Thankfully, iPadOS 26 offers exactly this. It combines the resizable handles from Stage Manager with a new windowing system that’s instantly familiar, as it’s inspired by the one found on macOS 26. There are resizable windows, the ability to have multiple windows open, quick keys and corners for split screen views, and the ability to return to the previous multitasking approach if you’d prefer something simpler.

Menu bar and Cursor

Every app also has a new Menu bar that automatically hides. Accessing options and in-app menus has always been awkward on the iPad, as it tried to be both a phone and a laptop, often failing to provide a cohesive interface for either approach. Now, you have an interface that’s designed with the iPad in mind and finally a platform that combines the best of Mac and iPhone in one, just like the iPad was originally designed to do.

Apple deserves a special shout-out for the new cursor as well. The iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard combination often felt overkill, as the cursor was a large circle that morphed into different shapes as it hovered over various menu items. Frankly, it was a far-too-simplified version of the desktop cursor, but thankfully, iPadOS 26 comes with a proper desktop-like cursor. 

As far as quality-of-life improvements go, the cursor in iPadOS 26 is the biggest: it’s a small fix that makes the whole experience far more enjoyable when using a keyboard.

The new Preview and Files apps fix another key issue

My hopes and dreams around the iPad being a portable computer have existed since the first iPad. At the time, I lived in the UK and ran my first tech blog while working in retail sales. Every day, I would write thousands of words using the on-screen keyboard and the big iPad display while battling all the iPad quirks that prevented it from working like a true computer, even in later years when I added a keyboard.

IPadOS 26 fixes many of these thanks to a revamped Files app and the new Preview app. The former is essentially a touch-friendly version of the Finder app on the Mac, while the latter renders several third-party PDF, image viewing, and manipulation apps redundant by incorporating the same features as Preview into the Mac.

Together, they also make file management far easier, even though a walled garden still exists between the competing approaches. You can access and preview all the files on your iPad, but you can’t access the Photos library. It’s these little limitations that Apple is gradually resolving, but in the meantime, you have a platform that offers 90% of the Mac experience, with a key added component: touch.

This will likely be the best iPadOS update in years

The first developer beta is just that: the beginning of the iPadOS 26 journey. I expect many of the features to be considerably refined before the public beta next month, and then further still before the stable release in the Fall. For now, iPadOS 26 finally gives the iPad an identity of its own. It’s an excellent bridge between the all-touch nature of the iPhone and the powerhouse that is the Mac. 

I judge technology by how it’ll impact people like my mother or sister, and I already know this will transform how she uses her iPad. I’ve tried to get her to understand a Mac or a PC, but she struggles; yet, she finds the iPad easy and effortless. This could be the first step towards getting her to use a computer, especially since macOS 26 uses the same design language. However, it is more likely that this will be her computer of choice. 

There will be many people who want a Mac or advanced Mac-like features on the iPad, but like my mum, there are also millions more who find computers confusing, yet find the iPad friendly. For those people, this update could be transformative, especially as these features are coming to every iPad that can run iPadOS 26. I’m running the beta on my iPad Pro 11, which — thanks to its M4 processor — is also the fastest 11-inch notebook I’ve used.