Apple love to preach "the UI gets out of the way of your content" with each new redesign, but how true is that in practice? Let's compare the total height of the Safari UI with a toolbar, favourites bar and tab bar visible, across the three latest Mac OS design languages – Yosemite, Big Sur and now Tahoe. I've added a red line for emphasis.
It sure looks to me like the UI is eating more into my content with each redesign.
Gestures like pinch to zoom or swiping photos are easier with touch. Drawing a shape or writing a signature are another thing.
Multitouch is something a mouse can’t do at all. Macs have quite a nice set of gestures that can be used with the touchpad. A touch screen could use similar gestures.
For laptops touch screens are useful. Especially on convertible laptops, that transform into a tablet when folding over the screen completely. Also when you’re using it with more than one person at the same time.
For desktops, I don’t really see much of a benefit. Apple’s touchpads are pretty nice for that use case. I used to have a mouse on the right and a touchpad on the left of my keyboard.
Apple has completely failed to build a great convertible laptop for many years now. Windows laptops do it somewhat okay, but this is the product category where Apple could actually build something great. Apple Pencil on a convertible MacBook would fly off the shelves.
Since Tim Cook’s reign started there has been little vision regarding product design.
Apple should go beyond iOS, iPadOS, macOS to a unified operating system with an adaptive UI. I want to connect my phone with an M-series chip inside (or watch) to a thunderbolt hub and have a full desktop experience. iOS/iPadOS are too neutered. macOS is too neglected. VisionOS is a dead end toy.
I don’t want synchronization between four devices, I want one device that does everything and connects to various peripheries.