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Apple supremo Tim Cook rules out OS X fondleslab, iOS merger

Reg staff stunned – some Cupertino news we can get behind

Apple CEO Tim Cook is telling customers not to expect a Mac answer to the Microsoft Surface Pro any time soon.

The Apple boss said in an interview with Ireland's Independent that the Cupertino giant has no desire to merge its iOS mobile operating system and its Macintosh desktop and notebook lines with a "hybrid" tablet that would run OS X.

"We feel strongly that customers are not really looking for a converged Mac and iPad. Because what that would wind up doing, or what we're worried would happen, is that neither experience would be as good as the customer wants," Cook was quoted as saying.

"So we want to make the best tablet in the world and the best Mac in the world. And putting those two together would not achieve either."

Instead, Apple would much rather you buy both a tablet and laptop. And an iPhone and Apple Watch, while you're at it.

The approach from Cook is a stark contrast to rival Microsoft, who has been making every effort possible to merge desktops, tablets, and mobile devices under the banner of Windows 10 and the Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book models.

Apple, meanwhile, has tossed its own entry into the enterprise tablet market with its iPad Pro. The 12.9-inch iOS slab went on sale last week and online orders are currently listing anywhere from one day to 5-7 days shipping wait.

The iPad line, in general, hasn't seen the success that other Apple products have enjoyed in recent quarters. In Apple's most recent quarter, both shipments and revenues for the iPad line were down 20 per cent from the previous year.

Cook, meanwhile, has been over to Europe speaking at Trinity College Dublin and sitting down with the press to preach the virtues of various Apple devices.

For some reason, that tour did not include a sit-down with El Reg, perhaps because of this, this, this, or this. ®

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