It would be more accurate to say that they are designed not to work that way. In modern times, every limited-purpose internet-connected gadget is actually a general-purpose computer that has been deliberately crippled.
The reason you can't run arbitrary software on "your" iPad is because they have locked it down so Apple owns the hardware, not you.
I think we need to look at this in terms of what was the stock product originally designed to do, as opposed to with unlimited skills and expertise what COULD I do with this general purpose computer that most others wouldn't be doing.
A Macbook is a laptop, an iPad is a touch screen tablet. It doesn't matter how much I COULD rip it apart and reshape it, they were originally intended to be used differently. Buying one and expecting it to function the same way as the other is fine, but if it doesn't who is to blame.
I could buy a hatchback to travel and sleep in, but I'd probably need to buy a caravan and perhaps replace the engine to tow it and add a tow bar. Whereas I could just buy a caravan. Complaining I can't convert the hatchback into a capable van is beside the original point.
The form factor is irrelevant: an iPad, a macbook, a tivo, a smart fridge, a raspberry Pi - they're all Turing-complete systems that can (in principle) execute any arbitrary code that can be compiled for that architecture.
It has nothing to do with ripping out engines or tearing anything apart. If Apple didn't deliberately prevent you from installing unsigned software or operating systems, you'd be able to do that.
A much better analogy would be the engine governor installed by manufacturers to prevent a car from going as fast as the hardware otherwise could.
I have the option of paying for every subscription service I use on my iPad without paying Apple a dime - ChatGPT, Google drive, Office 365, every streaming service, Kindle books etc
What’s wrong with using thier “cloud account”? The issue I was addressing is that subscription based services and software can be paid outside of the App Store and a lot of them don’t have an option to pay through the App Store like Netflix and Spotify.
> In modern times, every limited-purpose internet-connected gadget is actually a general-purpose computer that has been deliberately crippled.
The reason you can't run arbitrary software on "your" iPad is because they have locked it down so Apple owns the hardware, not you.
So you also blame Microsoft or Samsung for not letting you do this on an xbox or some fridge with a screen?:)
Yes, of course. I try to avoid buying nerfed toys. I'm mildly concerned that general-purpose computers able to run unsigned code will disappear from the marketplace in the next 15-20 years.
It would be more accurate to say that they are designed not to work that way. In modern times, every limited-purpose internet-connected gadget is actually a general-purpose computer that has been deliberately crippled.
The reason you can't run arbitrary software on "your" iPad is because they have locked it down so Apple owns the hardware, not you.