iPadOS 26 Beta 4 Now Available With More Mac-Like Features
As the testing cycle continues, Apple has just released iPadOS 26 beta 4 to developers. With this version, Apple continues to improve on the new Mac-like features coming to iPad, as it makes transitioning between these two devices more seamless.
In the last beta, iPadOS 26 got a new Mac-like cursor. When you're using your tablet with a Magic Keyboard or a third-party trackpad or mouse, you can just shake back and forth rapidly to make it temporarily bigger. This can be especially useful when using Sidecar or multiple displays at once.
Besides that, iPadOS 26 beta 4 offers a new windowing system, which is a huge improvement over Stage Manager, Split Screen, and Slide Over. With this feature on, you can add as many open apps on your Home Screen as you want. In addition, Apple now lets tasks run in the background, making it easier to export a video, download a document, or something similar while working on something else.
There's even more coming to iPadOS 26
For the Files app, users can see every file in list view and resize columns, while a new Preview app makes it easier to sign documents, mark details in a PDF, sketch, and more. Of course, a big part of turning the iPad into a Mac-like machine comes from the Liquid Glass design, which makes these different experiences feel more similar.
Apple Intelligence also plays a big role in iPadOS 26 beta 4. After all, Apple is deepening the ChatGPT integration, which means you can get onscreen awareness from OpenAI's AI model, more Image Playground styles, and improved Writing Tools capabilities. Apple also has a new AI-powered Shortcuts app that lets you create your own Apple Intelligence chatbot.
Alongside beta 4 of iPad's upcoming software update, Apple is releasing the fourth test versions of iOS 26, macOS Tahoe, watchOS 26, tvOS 26, and visionOS 26.