Report: Apple to Unify iOS and Mac Apps Next Year

According to a report recently published by Bloomberg, it appears that Apple has plans to have developers create apps that can work on both iOS and Mac platforms by next year. In other words, we could start seeing apps that can easily function on iPhones and iPad tablet devices as on Apple computers and laptops. Moreover, app developers soon will never have to worry about creating specific versions for their creations in order to run on both platforms -- they can just sell an app that works on any Apple made machine.

As reported by Bloomberg, the iPhone maker is looking to start the unification process by fall of 2018, specifically as part of the roll outs of iOS 12 and macOS 10.14. Why in the autumn season? The third quarter of any given year happens to be the time when Apple officially unveils a new iPhone model, and having unified the iOS and macOS platforms by that time should make for impeccable timing.

Of course, developers will have to start working on their unified apps sooner, and there is a good chance that during next year’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), which is usually held in the summer, Apple could showcase and demo a few of the apps that will work in both iOS and macOS powered machines and gadgets.

The unification should also make things infinitely easier for Apple’s legion of fans. For one, the App Store could become a one stop shop for every app they will ever need, regardless if they are shopping for an app install on an iPhone or a Mac. And there is also the advantage of cross platform compatibility -- consumers who originally purchased an app for mobile can easily use the same app if they decide later to install it to their computers, too.

Apple is actually not the only one thinking of unifying apps. A few months ago, Google made a move to have its Android apps work on its Chrome OS desktop operating system. And Microsoft’s Windows platform has been offering a single OS for its desktop computers, laptops, and tablets (including hybrid devices).

But just to be perfectly clear about everything, Apple has not confirmed anything yet, which means that it is still quite possible for the plans for unification to bite the dust, or be postponed. But it is a good bet that Apple users everywhere will want to keep their fingers crossed in the next few months.