Jony Ive Pushing for 'Flat Design' in iOS 7 Amid Greater Hardware-Software Design Collaboration

dazed said:

...but for crying out loud the icon for the weather app doesn't even update.

Click to expand...

It's kinda funny. Back when I had my iPhone jailbroke, I came across this app on Cydia that did just that. The little icon would change to match the weather and temp outside. It was pretty damn nifty, and I always wondered why Apple never included it themselves.

dazed said:

I quite like some of those windows 8 phone images. The idea of live tiles is something that has to happen in ios.

I'm not saying it has to copy win 8, but for crying out loud the icon for the weather app doesn't even update.

Click to expand...

If they could just find a way to take the win 8 concepts and implement them in their own way... apple would be on track with iOS7

donnaw said:

Please note that my post was in response to the statement of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'. If society lived by that premise no progress would ever be made.

As I stated before, whatever changes Apple comes up with will excite some, some will hate it, and most will simply accept it. For some it will be seen as progress and improvement. For some, not so much. But I highly doubt it will be a 'change for the simple purpose of change.' Software development just doesn't work that way. And Apple has no track record of 'change for the sake of change'.

People need to stop getting their panties in a wad over this. Deciding you will hate it before even knowing what they have in mind is just ridiculous. In fact, nobody even understands exactly what is meant by 'flattening'. Most are speaking of icons, etc. I believe it is more of a different menu structure since that is the usual term when designing software and the goal is limiting the number of layers involved in order to actually get to an action.

Apple will do whatever they want.

Click to expand...

I never said I would hate it. To be clear: I'm not fussed about th lock screen. I'm sure apple have come up with numerous alternative designs, tested them and the not released them because they had no advantage over the current design. Therefore, saying it has to change seems pointless, unless they one of their designs does turn out to be an improvement.

lordofthereef said:

I assume those are examples of what you consider ugly? To each his own I guess. I don't find iOS or wp8 to be ugly, just different looks/means to achieve the same basic end goal. I still find windows tiles to be marginally better than iOS in that they can display information (more than "you have x number of alerts in this app"), but even that can and should be worked on IMO. It's not ubiquitous thought the os and apps, even those that are preloaded.

Click to expand...

Yes I do find them ugly. My point was "flat" design doesn't doesn't necessarily equate to good design. Just like there is some skeuomorphism that's just fine. Problem is most of Apple's skeuomorphism is just plain fugly. If Ive can rid us of the fugly (regardless of whether the design language is flat or not), more power to him. I'm not opposed to some type of implementation of live tiles or widgets. I just want it to be Apple's unique take, not a rip off of Android or Windows.

I'd be happy if the weather icon actually displays the local weather.
In 2007 it supposedly didn't work because of A) no GPS and B) too little power, but in 2013, updating the stats once per hour shouldn't be that big of a deal.

Why is Ives pushing for flat design exactly? First of all, flat design it is but ass ugly and I see no benefit of implementing flat design into iOS as it will only ruin the aesthetics of iOS as a whole. I code and design websites so other than an emerging trend (flat design) it will serve no purpose of performance gain by implementing it.

Giuly said:

I'd be happy if the weather icon actually displays the local weather.
In 2007 it supposedly didn't work because of A) no GPS and B) too little power, but in 2013, updating the stats once per hour shouldn't be that big of a deal.

Click to expand...

That would require it to become a widget. Apple is too cool for widgets.

So basically it will look like iOS6 but this time, the new great feature of Siri, will be able to look up public restrooms and tell me how to get to them right?

----------

Manderby said:

I personally get confused when there are too many icons. I am faster with reading. So I did a quick photoshop. If the icons would be less 3D, I could see something like this (maybe with a different color):

Click to expand...

I think outside of the very basic icons, they should allow us to install all the apps, so for those who do not want apps, you do not have to have apps you do not want, like Newstand, I do not use it and do NOT want it on my iPhone. Apple give us the ability to hide icons without having to Jailbreak please.

thekeyring said:

I never said I would hate it. To be clear: I'm not fussed about th lock screen. I'm sure apple have come up with numerous alternative designs, tested them and the not released them because they had no advantage over the current design. Therefore, saying it has to change seems pointless, unless they one of their designs does turn out to be an improvement.

Click to expand...

Well, that's kind of what I said. But what the software designers at Apple think of as 'improvement' won't feel like that to some people. That's just the way the world of software design works.

But as I said, I doubt the use of the word 'flat' means just icons. Guess we will see.

cwwilson said:

That would require it to become a widget. Apple is too cool for widgets.

Click to expand...

I have a win8 phone with live tiles and frankly they are actually very cool and useful. I guess if you haven't used them you might not understand. And some people don't have a use for some widgets/live tiles. I don't use the Facebook live tile. But I do use several others and have come to appreciate having that information avaliable on my Home screen without the need to drill down to the actual app. It's a real time saver for me.

Just having the ability to place shortcuts on the Home screen is great. Like Bluetooth, wifi, airplane mode, even a shortcut to my family members so I can call or text with one selection. I don't have an iPhone (I do have several iPads in my family) so I don't know if those are avaliable on the phone but they aren't on an iPad unless you jailbreak. I hate having to drill down in the Setting menu to do some things that I use often. Shortcuts/widgets are wonderful.

Actually Yes

adder7712 said:

Then both of you have never used any Android phone, just observations from a distance.
It also depends on the phone, Samsungs AMOLED screens are known to oversaturate colours. HTC's screens have more realistic colour reproduction.

Click to expand...

Yes I have used an Android phone. I had one for several months. I didn't like it. This was before I ever had an iPhone so it wasn't fan-boy-itis or anything. To me, Android just seemed...unfinished. Like it was a beta or something. I was frequently having to power cycle because it would loose data connectivity. Had to pull the battery several times because it locked up. Several co-workers experienced similar issues with same model phone. Motorola Bionic. Traded it for an iPhone and never looked back. MUCH better experience for ME. I'm not foolish enough to think any phone is "best" But for me, the iPhone 4S and now iPhone 5 have been as nearly perfect as I can imagine. In the nearly year and a half I have had them, I have never, not a single time, had to restart for any reason related to being locked up or anything. Only restarts have been when updates are installed.

To each his own though. Variety is the spice of life for sure!

25ghosts said:

Make IOS Flat... What do you have... Samsung with Android @ 4 Times the price tag....

I hope that Ivy means compact when THIS editor says flat.. IOS has identical preferences in 10 different places... The IOS is a jungle... Make it Flat and I am on Samsung... As so many others are...

Click to expand...

I never got the notification on this quote notification...

I have always used an iPhone. Always used Apple since //e and Macs since... well 1984

My dislike of Flat design comes from being a web designer. Go to a average or poorly designed Flat website and you may spend too much time hunting for a button. Anyways....

So iOS7 is flat and fruitless. The iPhone 5s is great but the OS makes me pissed.

Did you sell your iPhone and buy a Samsung, like you said you would?

modernmagic said:

I never got the notification on this quote notification...

I have always used an iPhone. Always used Apple since //e and Macs since... well 1984

My dislike of Flat design comes from being a web designer. Go to a average or poorly designed Flat website and you may spend too much time hunting for a button. Anyways....

So iOS7 is flat and fruitless. The iPhone 5s is great but the OS makes me pissed.

Did you sell your iPhone and buy a Samsung, like you said you would?

Click to expand...

I changed my primary smartphone from an iP5S to a Galaxy Note 3 and I'm positively thrilled with its speed, smoothness and lighting fast SWYPE keyboard. The large spacious keyboard is priceless.

I'll continue to enjoy this smartphone until Apple decides to release their rumored iP6 if it comes equipped with a modern sized display of 5.0" or greater. Then if it's bug free and of good quality I may try Apple again.

macnerd93 said:

If Ive pulls it off I'll be very impressed, but there is a difference between hardware and UI design.

Click to expand...

Sorry Ive should stick to hardware, his ui design sucks!!!!

It's a sad, sad commentary

When we live in the age of Real3D movies and IMAX, 3D printing and yes, even Minecraft, that the major software interface designers have decided to trade in Reality for Cartoons.
It has been weakly suggested that a Flat, Bland, Blah, Ho-Hum user interface somehow helps speed up the experience.
This is an age of CPUs and GPUs getting smaller, faster, leaner, and run way cooler than their clunky predecessors. It doesn't make any sense that we would need to go back to the stone age to accommodate the hardware. It seems more plausible that designers have just gotten lazy and would rather draw a cartoon sketch than get off their collective asses to get up and go take a picture.
Be that as it may, I still have an appreciation for the old photorealism incorporated in the user interfaces. They just had a style and class of their own. Like the cars of the 30's to the 50's, where today, they're all just basically boxes on wheels.
One thing I have really come to loathe, especially where Apple is concerned, they don't even give me a choice of themes. Flat versus photorealsitic. I'm basically told, it's our way or the highway, screw you paying customer. And Apple used to be known as the OS for Artistic Designers. Oh well.
I suppose the days have come and gone, when Apple was throwing the hammer at Big Brother, IBM, and now they've become Big Brother themselves that someone else is going to throw the hammer at.

http://www.fastcodesign.com/1669879/can-we-please-move-past-apples-silly-faux-real-uis

Is there enough reason to pull a thread from last year just for that rant? iOS 7 has been out for months...

Still the Flat-Earth iOS we all know and...

This changes anything how, exactly ?
I still don't have a choice.

Oh no, a spammer. Anyway, I'll never understand why they put an industrial designer do digital design..