Will the iPad Become a Laptop Alternative for Creatives and Video Producers?
[10:16 Thu,26.June 2025 by Rudi Schmidts]
The upcoming iPadOS 26 brings not only a new user interface but also useful features specifically for video and audio professionals, such as a flexible window system, Apple Intelligence, and background rendering.
The new Liquid Glass design is intended to bring more dynamism and clarity to the home screen by having transparent and reflective surfaces reminiscent of water droplets. This has so far been received with mixed feelings in the Apple community.
And behind the announcement of the completely renewed look, other features faded into the background in the media, although these could open up completely new fields of application for creatives and video producers on iPads: App windows can now be freely scaled, positioned, tiled, or minimized. In combination with Stage Manager or an external monitor, the iPad can act like a multitasking desktop.
iPadOS 26 dares more desktop
The revised Files app enables more efficient project management. With customizable folder icons, colors, and emojis, the structure becomes more individual and clearer. Folders can now be dragged directly into the dock for even faster access. The preview app is also new on the iPad: PDFs and images can be annotated, filled out, and edited directly with the Apple Pencil.
A particularly practical feature awaits us with the new background rendering. With this, apps like Final Cut Pro or Resolve can perform computationally intensive processes like a film export in the background without the user having to interrupt their workflow. While an export is running, such as when rendering a video or exporting large audio files, a live activity shows the progress – without the app having to remain open.
Thanks to background rendering, an export runs in the background
Especially in video editing on the iPad, this is a real game changer: Exports, transcoding, or AI-based analyses run in the background, so users can immediately continue with the next step.
For video production on the iPad, iPadOS 26 also brings further significant innovations:
Local Capture: Audio and video recordings can be recorded locally in studio quality directly from any compatible app – including echo cancellation and voice isolation.
Microphone selection per app: Users can specifically determine the audio input – perfect for interviews or podcasts.
In conjunction with the new AirPods Pro 2, there is also a mobile recording option available, which Apple says is comparable to professional equipment. This probably also works through AI algorithms.
Speaking of AI: With Apple Intelligence, an AI framework should of course not be missing. This can run natively/locally on Apple devices and thus offer smart functions with strong data protection at the same time, because no personal data migrates to the cloud. Here, for example, there should be live translations in "FaceTime" and "Messages", but also automatic text summaries or transcript comparisons. In addition, there will be more playful and creative generators for images or special Genmojis.
For anyone who wants to edit videos, record podcasts, or capture ideas on the go, the upcoming iPadOS 26 should certainly be an exciting affair.
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