which came out in 2009, IIRC, is still the gold standard for Apple's OS-Updates.

It's the same with some people seeing similarities in people where you don't see any - and vice versa. Everybody seems to construct his image of a face from different details.

Just if you can do something it doesn't mean you'll want to. When I got my first Mac, it was more about working on the computer than working for it. And the mac's unix-ish-terminal is still a nice thing to have, when you need it, compared to windows' command console. At least for me :-) The iphone sock is a limited edition luxury item. When you have millions of users, there's always a few with more money than brains, regardless of the OS they use.

shouldn‘t be more than $20 and offer similar quality

You might want to google the word "socialist" some day.

Still looks kinda AI-ish - overly chatty, no capitalization/spelling-errors. But nothing, that someone who has a clue how to prompt - like you - couldn't fix. (I hope that wasn't too polite).

I wonder how that would have fared.

My M5 ipad is pretty, pretty fast when locally using image models like stable diffusion or flux. The CPU also is probably the fastest single core CPU in existence, and the display is as color accurate as standalone displays four times the price of the ipad. So, underachieving hardware, this is probably not. But the software-situation is really holding it back. And yes, I use it on the go, I always got it in my man-purse - it's my main device for using the web, emails, etc. - can't be arsed to use a tiny phone screen for that or get up from the couch and fetch a laptop.

And, while it's much better with iPadOS 26, it's still held back by it. Subpar files app, hardly any software that uses it's power. Resident Evil 4 looks very nice on it, but AAA-games are not competitive on Apple devices with them costing more than on other plattforms. Locally rendering AI images in the draw things app is pretty impressive, but that's about the only app with which you can show off it's power (although I'm hoping that Blender for iPad comes out soon). iPadOS 26 is a bug-infested nightmare on the new iPad pro that only got moderately better with 26.1 - it's far worse than on other apple-devices, and it makes things like the 120hz display useless because it doesn't even run a smooth 60fps most of the time. E.g.: FaceID does not work as fast as one is used from older Apple-devices. It got a gorgeous display, but apart from that it's hard to justify the more than â300 premium over the iPad Air.

No, but you might consider that the statement that's commented on contains no sources to back it up.

Microsoft does something like this.

But if you order inline you get a limited edition shuttle and anRonLaren Minifig

It's the same in German supermarkets. If you use the self checkout, you have to scan the receipt to get out. Sucks because it's an extra step if you have full hands and if you're from another country you feel mistrusted (oh, those uber-controlling and obviously often stealing Germans) - but you can just get out by the manned checkouts if you didn't buy anything.

iOS 26, MacOs26,... are pretty obvious unifications towards future AR-use. e.g. some UI elements are not allowed to go from edge to edge but have to stand on their own.

Absolutely true, but the incident will still be used as an excuse to rant over poor technical security, maybe sack some people and spend millions of euros on "better" security that will do nothing but cost money and inconvenience visitors.