Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, OS, Odds and ends, Snow Leopard
Could Apple be moving to a spectrum of operating systems?
I was eating a late post-Christmas breakfast this morning and perusing my email when I came upon a note from my friend and fellow Apple Consultants Network member Michael Kimble. Mike's been involved with Apple products since before the Mac arrived, so he has seen product trends come and go for decades. In his email, he mused that:It's not that far a stretch to see Apple adding another variety of OS X to the family tree. As a result of yesterday's post about the as-yet-unannounced Apple tablet, TUAW reader Dillon made a similar observation to Mike's:"I've been wondering if Apple, on their Jan. 26th product announcement, won't start to differentiate OS X to include OS X Mobile, OS X Touch, OS X Desktop & OS X Server. But rather than discreet versions of the OS, it is a spectrum where features of one version can slide up and down the scale depending on the functionality of the hardware platform it's running on. It seems to be moving in that direction whether a formal acknowledgment is made or not."
Three of the four operating systems already exist (and there's always the family member they keep locked in the closet -- the Apple TV -- with its odd edition of Mac OS 10.4 Tiger). All it would take is for Apple to add a new version of the OS that would, as Dillon points out, allow background processing and true multi-tasking, yet pull out a lot of the more weighty components of OS X."Just a thought, but if the new Apple tablet ran straight iPhone OS, then it would probably be released in June with annual iPhone update... meaning that the Mac tablet will probably run a cross between Mac OSX 10.6 and iPhone OS or just Mac OSX 10.6.
Apple really won't release something unless it is speedy enough. They don't even let you run a background app or multitask on the iPhone due to speed issues. If they wanted to make a speedier tablet it would make sense that they would [deliver] a hybrid of the two operating systems, allowing better speed, battery, and more functionality than the iPhone, yet something not as relatively bulky as Snow Leopard."
What do you think? Is a new, formal acknowledgment of a new Apple OS on the way, or will the tablet run a beefier version of the iPhone OS? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
jeffehobbs said 3:32PM on 12-27-2009
The iTunes App Store is the software distribution model Jobs has always wanted -- safe, integrated, ubiquitous, auto-updating, and best of all: Apple gets a cut. There's little reason for Apple to release any OS that doesn't work on the App Store model.
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Tacoman said 3:41PM on 12-27-2009
I really hope that it is either Snow Leopard or a hybrid. Otherwise it is just a big iPhone. In reality I just want to see something other than app squares all over the screen. I want finder, but I want the music to be similar to the iPhone app. A hybrid would be the best choice in my opinion.
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kakapo said 3:41PM on 12-27-2009
I think it (if "it" exists - donncha just love speculation) will be a paired down version of Mac OS X 10.6.
Ans I think it will be first component registered OS for Apple. Currently the only difference between a single install and a "family" version is the price and people's integrity. I think this new version with be client (iSlate, iTablet, iPad, IGnuNewton ;) )specific and registered to the host computer that you connect you new goodie to update (or wirelessly connect to WiFi, etc.
Apples's thrust into multiple but distinct OS platform iterations is for functionality and not profit based. It does drive sales because you need a specific OS for the goodie you are running but it isn't just to gouge the customer based. (Like some other OS company we know).
And I agree it will be iTunes connected.
Cheers from Oz
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Bob Patin said 3:47PM on 12-27-2009
My prediction is that the tablet will run a version of Mac OS X that will also allow iPhone apps to run without any modification. Similar to using Rosetta in Snow Leopard, the OS will include an enabler that brings the entire iPhone app spectrum to the tablet, while at the same time allowig users to put any OS X apps on the tablet as well.
I don't see Apple introducting yet another OS at this point; developers would hate it. This would mean that, in order to release their app for the tablet, they'd have to develop a version for this specific platform. I just don't see that happening; instead, it would make much more sense to have a device that could run both flavors of OS X.
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JKT said 4:01PM on 12-27-2009
Strongly disagree. If anything I see Apple moving the OPPOSITE direction. They are adding features to OS X that mimic the iPhone and features to the iPhone to bring it up to par with OS X. Long-term, you'll see one OS not a dozen.
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mike said 3:19AM on 12-28-2009
BZZZT. Wrong, because there are many different interfaces.
Going by screen size you could say they have a range of interfaces from a 2 inch screen all the way up to the home theatre OS 30 inch screen+ which is called AppleTV.
They're all OS X at the core, of course, but that's not the question here.
The point is for each different interface, there will be a different UI.
If they were stupid they would do what MS tried to do, slap the standard Windows 98 interface on everything under the sun, including phones. *puke
Scott said 11:26AM on 12-29-2009
Mike, there's no reason they couldn't use the same OS with a different interface layer for each device. It would be especially easy in Apple's case because they use a lot of scalable graphics already in OSX.
I'm not sure if the iPhone OS uses these same scalable graphics yet.
Luke Bornheimer said 4:14PM on 12-27-2009
I think the idea of Apple putting full Mac OS X (10.6) on the tablet (7") is way off. If they are selling the thing for $500-700, why would they undercut full computers like that. PLUS, the tablet isn't trying to be a fanboy-killing device with full desktop apps.
This thing is going for the BIG consumer market (e.g. Kindle, PSP, etc.). The way it will do that is to use iPhone OS and be simple, clean, and spot on.
It will allow background apps and multi-tasking, but not full screen apps. As we've all seen with the Archos, a full OS is not good on a tablet like this.
MAYBE Apple will release a fanboy-esque tablet a year or two down the line, but IMHO, devices are SUPER niche market products, and that's not Apple's game. They aim for the BIG markets.
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axel.golden said 4:08PM on 12-27-2009
im hoping for a hybrid OS that would be the same iphone OS but with snow leopard GUI and have text edit and finder and you would use the actuall itunes app the download apps.. so it would basically be a big iphone that i could take notes on in class.. SO SICK!! and even sicker if i could use my iphones 3g connection on the slate.
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Thomas said 4:10PM on 12-27-2009
I wish Apple would release a version of the iPhone OS for laptops giving MacBook and MBP owners a quick-boot option. They should release this to all Apple laptop owners via download. This would be a major advantage in the notebook space. Although HP already offers something similar, surely Apple could create something vastly superior using products they have already developed (i.e. iPhone OS and Boot Camp).
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Luke Bornheimer said 4:14PM on 12-27-2009
To add to my comments, if you think about all Apple fanboys (myself included), we carry an iPhone (most of us) and a MacBook/Pro, and some of have mac desktops as well. Clearly, this device isn't for us.
It's for the person who wants the ALMOST Apple computer, but is afraid of Mac OS X and the complexity/fear of switching.
Look at what has happened with the iPhone. You take away the name "Mac" from the device completely, and all of sudden everyone wants one. Even businesses are switching to them (at a much higher rate than Mac computers, if I may point out). If Apple attaches the word "Mac" anywhere to this device, it becomes a 10% marketshare device. Call it an "i_____" device and it has entire market potential.
Think about it for a second...
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BJ Nemeth said 5:18PM on 12-27-2009
You imply that the word "Mac" is a turnoff for consumers. That's absurd! Apple and Mac have a very high favorability rating among consumers. Yes, Macs only represent a small minority of the marketshare, but that isn't because of the name -- it's because Apple only competes at the smaller, high end of the market. (The most profitable market.)
The majority of consumers that don't buy Macs are usually in the sub-$1,000 market, and don't have a choice.
The "Mac" name is very powerful, and very positive among consumers. Don't let the marketshare fool you into thinking otherwise.
Luke Bornheimer said 5:26PM on 12-27-2009
I'm not necessarily implying that Mac is a turnoff for consumers, but rather that when Apple tries to compete in a non-computer kind of way, they use the letter "i" and no "Mac" to draw attention away from it being Mac-oriented. Instead, its saying, this thing cooperates with PCs and the PC world. See: iPod, iPhone.
Also, its important to point out, when the Apple TV first was announced, remember Steve was accidentally calling it the iTV, but insisted on it being the AppleTV? Clearly, they realized that it was a more niche product for Mac users and not for the consumer public (yet...). If they wanted it marketed to the ENTIRE public, they would have called it the iTV.
Mr Lizard said 6:19PM on 12-27-2009
@Luke,
They couldn't call it the iTV because ITV is a television channel.
Luke Bornheimer said 6:52PM on 12-27-2009
@Mr Lizard
Good call and my mistake, but still, do you see the reasoning behind not calling it anything "Mac" or "Tablet"?
Arvid said 6:26AM on 12-28-2009
You might want to consider that Apple don't want to target all possible markets. Brand management is more than just a fancy logo.
Also, switching from other phones to iPhone is a significantly smaller step then replacing a Windows environment, the most obvious reasons being software incompatability and maintenance plans.
Dwayne.Alton said 7:16PM on 12-30-2009
I think the underlying OS will depend upon the hardware architecture. If they go Intel, it will probably be more like Mac OS under the hood. If it is ARM, it will be more iPhone-like under the hood. I just don't see Apple splitting off to another underlying OS and instruction set.
I see them going with ARM. It would allow applications to be developed for both the iPhone and the tablet more easily for developers. One thing that Apple knows is how to build on a new piece of hardware by getting apps and content onto it. Being able to build applications for the two devices at once (only having to address the screen size / resolution differences) seems like the easiest way to get developers moving to the new device quickly. I think it is further evidenced by the reports of Apple approaching developers to adapt their applications to a larger screen for a January time-frame.
I think the UI will be unique. I see them going for the app store distribution model and a UI somewhere in between the iPhone and Mac OS. The iPhone UI and multi-tasking limitations would be too limiting for a larger more expensive device. But I don't see them giving it full Mac OS capabilities. I think the entire iPhone OS was actually designed from the beginning to be more capable than it is on the iPhone (allowing multi-tasking and more robust applications). I think that it has been restricted on the iPhone because of hardware limitations.
The tablet will need to:
(1) Be fast enough to use for general use applications - more so than the iPhone.
(2) Will need to have exceptional battery life, because I think that Apple is going to market this as an E-Book reader plus general use device. In order to replace textbooks in school or college, it needs to last an academic day.
(3) Run cool enough to be comfortable to use on your lap (unlike traditional laptops).
For these reasons, I see it being an ARM machine with a hybrid UI based upon the iPhone OS with a scaled up feature set. I still see it being very restricted for the initial release so that Apple can ensure a long enough battery life to market the e-book and digital reader aspect. I think they will trickle out features as they see real-world usage patterns and feel more confident that their hardware can support the additional features while maintaining good battery life - sort of like the iPhone.
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Maneki Nico said 5:17PM on 12-27-2009
I, for one, am looking forward to these new "discreet versions of the OS" that won't rat me out when I've been surfin' the pr0n.
Discrete: (adj.) separate; distinct; individual; non-continuous.
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sam k said 5:18PM on 12-27-2009
apple already avoids any clear distinction between the desktop/laptop version of os X and the phone/ipod version... i think we already have the situation proposed in the article. apple servers, desktops, laptops, and phones already have more that unites them than divides them. the iphone *does* run os x, with iphone-specific bits added on. an xserve *does* run os x, with server bits added. if and when we see the slate, i don't think we'll see any fanfare about its operating system. it will run os x with slate bits added and that will be that.
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dbfreq said 5:45PM on 12-27-2009
As a developer interested in developing a single app that runs across the desktop, iPhone and tablet, I certainly hope they're heading towards a single OS. I think the signs are there -- there are some multi-touch methods in 10.6 (supposedly for the multi-touch touchpad and external touchpads, like Bamboo, but there's no reason I can see why they wouldn't work with a tablet or a touchscreen).
I think they're just waiting for speedier processors on the iPhone to add bindings and some other critical 10.6 features. A number of people have been suggesting the tablet will run iPhoneOS. Releasing a tablet with a 7 - 10" screen and iPhone OS, as it exists today, would be a little silly. A table view on the iPhone is a single column -- no need to restrict a table to a single column with as much screen real estate as would be available on the tablet. Also, browser views, outline views, IKImageBrowserView, etc. *should* be available on a tablet. A tablet running today's version of iPhone OS just doesn't make sense.
I also think we're going to see iMacs with multi-touch touch screens from Apple before the end of 2010. With the FingerWorks folks on board and the number of touch-related patents they've filed, Apple has invested a lot in multi-touch. There's no reason not to add it to iMacs or even Cinema Displays. That doesn't mean people are going to stop using their keyboards and mice, but, in some situations, multi-touch just makes more sense.
I also think the tablet will come with a PixelQi display with a resolution capable of playing back at least 720p, and optical touch.
I think 10.7 (or 10.8 or 11.0) will bring a unified OS that runs across all three major platforms. I also think the AppleTV will morph into something bigger and may open itself up to third party devs, with an App Store of its own. If so, there's no reason to think that it won't also run on the same OS.
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