iPadOS 26 is so dangerous I’ve changed it with Android

It’s a story as previous as time. iPads are higher productiveness machines than Android tablets. A minimum of, that’s what folks need you to suppose. As an iPad proprietor (2020 iPad Professional 11) and a Galaxy Tab S10 Plus consumer, I feel the alternative is true. Other than one or two particular makes use of, I can get extra executed on my Tab S10 than I can on the iPad for one cause: iPadOS 26 sucks. It’s dangerous sufficient that, after 5 years of enjoyment, I hate utilizing my iPad now.

As I stated within the introduction, I’m utilizing a six-year-old iPad and a Samsung pill that’s a few yr and a half previous. The variations in efficiency and energy don’t issue into what I’m writing about right this moment, although. All of my points with iPadOS 26 are based mostly on the software program design, not the efficiency of the gadget.

Earlier than iPadOS 26 got here alongside, the iPad’s multitasking options had been restricted however straightforward to make use of. You would solely have two apps cut up side-by-side without delay till you launched Stage Supervisor, which supplied extra freedom and a extra desktop-like expertise. There have been frustrations with it; there was no approach to snap home windows into frequent layouts, for instance, however it was sufficient for many customers.

iPadOS 26 fixes these limitations. That feels like an excellent factor, and it could be if the way in which it addressed these annoyances didn’t damage the whole lot that was good about it. You may’t drag and drop apps into split-screen from the app switcher anymore. Now it’s important to drag one app and flick it to the facet of the display screen and repeat the method with the opposite app, or long-press on the MacOS-inspired visitors lights and select whichever window-snap structure you need.

So, what’s the issue with this new UX? For starters, the UI is tiny. Attempting to faucet the visitors mild buttons or something within the menu bar is tough to do shortly with out tapping the unsuitable factor. Having to decelerate and make a aware effort to pick out the suitable factor is annoying, and it solely will get worse if you happen to’re utilizing an iPad Mini.

Slideover apps have been closely nerfed in iPadOS 26 as properly and had been truly lacking totally till iPadOS 26.1 got here out. In older iPadOS variations, you can have as many slideover apps open as you needed, and you can simply change between them. In iPadOS 26, you’ll be able to solely have one slideover app at a time. Including one other one sends no matter app you already had there again to the app switcher. The one improve slideover apps acquired was the power to resize them, however that doesn’t make up for the limitation of 1 app at a time.

The largest mistake Apple made in iPadOS 26 was making all of those adjustments within the iPad’s default mode. I’m the go-to tech help for a big group of older members of the family and household buddies, and the iPad has at all times been one thing I like to recommend. Ever since iPadOS 26 got here out, nearly all of these folks have wanted assist to be taught the brand new window administration UX, with a number of of them feeling anxious that in some way their iPad is damaged. All of those adjustments ought to’ve been made part of Stage Supervisor, leaving the default habits because it was. As an alternative, the product that’s purported to “simply work” and be easy to make use of feels nothing of the kind.

Check out One UI 8 on Samsung’s tablets, and the scenario couldn’t be extra totally different. Samsung’s split-screen and multitasking options have at all times been straightforward to make use of, and a redesigned DeX mode builds on that basis.

In older variations of One UI, DeX mode was handled like a distinct working system to the place you probably did the whole lot else together with your pill. Turning on DeX mode would make you wait via a boot display screen, and also you couldn’t carry apps that had been already working within the standard Android area over to DeX. One UI 8 overhauled DeX mode, bringing it into the core Android expertise and making it seamless. As an alternative of getting to launch DeX and anticipate it in addition up, all you should do is swipe into the overview display screen and faucet the add desktop button on the suitable.

DeX lets you might have a number of desktops, too, which you’ll swipe between with the contact display screen or keyboard shortcuts. The adjustments Samsung has made in One UI 8 are extra intuitive, however most significantly, they haven’t interfered with the traditional operation of my Tab S10 Plus. If I by no means open a desktop on it, then the pill carries on because it at all times was: no damaged or nerfed options, nothing new to be taught for many who aren’t as tech-savvy.

That’s to not say issues are excellent. Samsung’s DeX mode solely helps you to snap two home windows side-by-side, regardless that you’ll be able to have three columns of apps in the usual Android surroundings. That’s embarrassing on a 12.4-inch show, particularly when iPadOS 26 can tile 4 home windows at a time on tablets considerably smaller than my Tab S10 Plus.

I don’t do any hardcore work on my tablets. You received’t discover me hooking up a mouse and keyboard and utilizing them to put in writing. I do use them for researching work, although, and that at all times includes intensive use of no matter multitasking options the gadget has. I’m a kind of madmen who makes use of split-screen apps and pop-up home windows on a 6.2-inch Galaxy S25, so you’ll be able to solely think about how far into the weeds I get on a pill.

Neither Samsung nor Apple has perfected pill multitasking. The iPad on its newest OS model is tough to make use of with out a mouse and has nerfed fan-favorite options, and the Tab S10 Plus on the newest model of One UI has some quirks that restrict window snapping. After I’m choosing between the 2, I’m selecting which set of compromises annoys me the least, and that’s arms down Samsung’s implementation. On a pill, One UI 8 is simpler to make use of and, extra importantly, hasn’t led to my getting dozens of telephone calls from confused individuals who suppose their tablets are damaged or have a virus, in contrast to iPadOS 26.

Do you agree? Do you discover the newest model of iPadOS 26 a irritating mess in comparison with iPadOS 18, or do you like it to what Samsung’s executed with One UI 8? I’d love to listen to from you within the feedback.