Well-informed sources say iPadOS 17 will release alongside the iOS 17 update in September instead of being delayed into October like iPadOS 16 last year.
Windowed multitasking with Stage Manager | Image: Apple
It sounds like iPadOS is really returning to its usual release schedule because Apple is rumored to launch the refreshed software alongside iOS 17 in September.
The public version of iPadOS 16 dropped in October 2022, fueling speculation Apple has put its mobile operating systems on two different release schedules.
Gurman’s well-informed sources claim Apple is treating the current eighth beta of iOS 17 as the final version of iOS 17.0 that will launch publicly in September.
iPadOS 17 and iOS 17 should release simultaneously
Mark Gurman, Bloomberg’s Power On newsletter:
This past week, the company put out the eighth beta versions of iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and watchOS 10. The quick succession of releases for the sixth, seventh and eighth betas tells us that Apple is fast approaching the finish line. The company needs to complete the software in time to start installing it on iPhone 15 models coming off the assembly line. Indeed, I am told that, bearing any unforeseen circumstances, the company is considering the eighth beta test as the final version of iOS 17.0. And, in a shift from last year, it sounds like iPadOS 17.0 will arrive simultaneously with the new iPhone software.
So, last year was an exception, after all. In 2022, if you remember, Apple couldn’t finish iPadOS 16 on time, forcing it to delay the software’s release. Instead of launching in September alongside iOS 16, iPadOS 16 officially arrived on October 24.
The exact release date for iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 hasn’t been made official yet. We expect the updates to arrive after Apple announces the new iPhone 15 and Apple Watch Series 9 lineups at the upcoming “Wanderlust” event on September 12.
Why did iPadOS 16 launch in October?
Apple has kind of forked iOS with the release of iOS 13 in 2019, marking the first iOS version that couldn’t be installed on iPads. Instead, Apple gave the iPad a dedicated operating system, marketed as iPadOS.
iPadOS 13, iPadOS 14 and iPadOS 15 all launched in September alongside corresponding iOS updates. Why didn’t iPadOS 16 arrive in September? Blame it on Apple’s botched work with Stage Manager, a new multitasking feature that was initially too rough around the edges and suffered from bugs and instability.
Apple has addressed these pain points and introduced new capabilities. Stage Manager on iPadOS 17, for example, finally lets you move and resize windows the way you like instead of restricting you to an invisible grid. And when used with an external display, Stage Manager can support the monitor’s built-in cameras.