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Home Screen Widget 'Blocks' Imagined in New iOS Concept

I would love this!

If you don't like it, you won't have to do it, but for those who want it, it would make a great addition to iOS imo.
 
shareef777 said:
While I appreciate all the updates and features added inside the apps, I'd have to agree that you'd think they'd put SOME effort to making the MAIN page a bit more feature rich and functional.
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They've consistently devoted a lot of effort to resisting the urge to bloat the main page with unnecessary features and functions. The iOS home screen serves one purpose: it is the app launcher. All other functionality is handled by apps which launch nearly instantly and help you accomplish your intended tasks just as quickly.

There is no logical reason to want to stare at the home screen. It is not a digital photo frame.
 
iOS needs to implement something to compete against Windows Live Tiles/Android Widgets. The iOS Tile screen is dated now even after iOS 7 flattening. I'm seeing my friends with Live Tiles or better still Widgets and liking what Android KitKat has to offer compared to what I have on my iPhone 4s. When my contract is up if iOS 8 doesn't bring something in really fresh I may well "jump ship" to Android.
 
I like the idea of being able to have a preview for certain features of an app, in theory... but in practice I'm not sure how productive this would be for my needs.

I think I rather see the ability to load user chosen app preview data or mini-functions into Control or Notification Centers.
 
whoa we're really scraping the barrel with this one. Nothing so evolutionary coming, WWDC is going to introduce new API for perhaps touchID and iOS<->OSX integration, not this.
 
RedOrchestra said:
That's the best you can come up with?
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Honestly, I'm not opposed to the concept.....but one of the things I like so much about iOS is the design uniformity across the OS.

Am I a widget fan? No....I don't find them particularly useful (especially that music one...a swipe up from anywhere gives you control over the music playing), but that doesn't mean I'm opposed to the idea of them being added.

Perhaps I'm just reacting to how its laid out in the mock up....just seems too much like a Windows Phone wannabe. I'd rather see an Apple Implementation of widgets/live tiles.

For instance, since there's currently nothing to the left of the home screen, I could see Apple adding a "widget page" there similar to how you swipe left in OS X to get to widgets.
 
arkmannj said:
The way it was presented feels messy to me.

Also, can't we just get rid of the Settings App icon all together and just open the settings app directly from "Control Center"?

Always launching setting from "Control Center" would be a single consistent place that is always easily accessible, and be one less icon to find a place for it in the springboard/Home-Screen.


I'd be happy if we just got a better weather view in notification center (with 5 day forecast, etc...)
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Control Center is optional. For people who don't use it (have it disabled), how would they access their settings?
 
Love it.

For those of you who don't like it, it seems like if Apple implemented something like this, you could simply leave your icons the same size, like they have been for years. Problem solved. 🙄
 
okboy said:
Like it or not, it's a much better way of adding widgets than on Android.

Now please, I need that wallpaper.
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Wallpaper...
.
http://freeios7.com/download/freeios7.com_apple_wallpaper_blue_mountains_iphone4.jpg

freeios7.com_apple_wallpaper_blue_mountains_iphone4.jpg
 
at last, a UX mockup I actually like

Good idea, here's a better one:

How about the ability to have an app/widget span 2 tiles horizontally,
OR be a 4 tile square.

Weather for instance, doesn't need to take up 4 tile spots.
 
I like it. It's been awhile since Apple has come up with something clever like this on the UI side. I remember the "ooo's and ahhh's" when Steve would demo something like Stacks or Expose on the Mac during a Keynote. UI tricks that no one had even thought of yet. I miss that.

Seems like now all we see are videos of how the iPad is being used by children in Mongolia followed by announcements we have been reading about on MacRumors for weeks.🙁
 
I don't really understand why everyone's crapping all over this, if you don't like it, don't use it! I'd love to see this implemented! I love the live tiles of Windows Phone, it's a genuinely unique idea that set WP apart from iOS and Android.
 
I kinda like it. And if i didn't...it'd not be required. If you don't like it, don't use it. No harm done.
 
Interesting fiction, but Apple goes for simplicity.

A more likely compromise, I think:


1. Let any app (via efficient background updating, not "running all the time") update its own icon. Icons become display widgets when needed; tap to launch and see/do more. Like the way OS X icons can display live info. Like Calendar (but probably not constant animation like Clock).

2. Let any app choose "widget" as its screen size: when launched, it opens exactly like a folder, into a 3x3-sized rounded box surrounded by wallpaper; tap the background to close it (or click home) exactly like a folder. In addition to the size and quick-exiting, such apps would have to conform to whatever standards Apple implements (size/memory limits?) to allow true instant launching without load delay. Result: a bigger widget than just an icon, with room for interactive controls, but easy to toggle on/off.

The two would work well together, but could be used separately by developers.

This would be widgets without complicating one of the great things about iOS: the simple home screen that always works the same. That's a big benefit to most people. I wouldn't want them to abandon it lightly--but widgets do seem likely in some form, one of these years.

Second best: allow people to replace a row (not a box) of 4 icons with a widget bar. Probably the top row, and probably visible on all pages: clearly separate from, and not interfering with, the home icon system. You could swipe it sideways to cycle through more than one widget; or half-bar widgets might be allowed.
 
jclardy said:
Live updates on the homescreen? For something like checking stocks, weather or bitcoin prices it means you just unlock the phone and no other interaction is necessary.

If anything in iOS really needs an update it is the homescreen. There isn't even a visual indication that an app is running in the background, using GPS signal or downloading a file - all could be shown with a simple bubble icon like the push notifications are currently.

The one thing Apple sorely needs in iOS 8 is more system integration of apps. Right now every app is essentially constrained to its own little box which is great for security - but we can open the box a bit more while still staying secure.
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Opening the box even a little would mean a security vulnerability. Just like leaving your windows slightly opened during a storm.

The right approach would be creating (it may already exist to certain extent) a guarded common area for apps to share information such as files, data, etc..
 
I feel widgets belong on a secondary screen like Notification Center, not the Home screen, which Apple sees as a place only for apps.
 
widgets are useless. They took off on Android because it allows people to fill up the empty space those big screens. I have switched between iPhones and Android several times and I usually had widgets running just because I couldn't stand all the empty space. Even though I had them open I never really used them.

that being said, its still better to give users the option if they choose.
 
okboy said:
It only requires one hand.
Click to expand...

Nope, at least to expand the icon into the widget one hand holds the phone and the other one uses two fingers to pinch, that's two hands.

To me it doesn't make a lot of sense. Take the music App, in the current version you just tap on the App and control it right away in full screen, you also have playback controls when locked, physical button if you're using headphones and voice control.

Why would you pinch on weather when they could add the live info into the current size icon?

Messages and calendar are also immediately available by tapping + you have notifications center with slide to reply.
 
jrswizzle said:
Honestly, I'm not opposed to the concept.....but one of the things I like so much about iOS is the design uniformity across the OS.

Am I a widget fan? No....I don't find them particularly useful (especially that music one...a swipe up from anywhere gives you control over the music playing), but that doesn't mean I'm opposed to the idea of them being added.

Perhaps I'm just reacting to how its laid out in the mock up....just seems too much like a Windows Phone wannabe. I'd rather see an Apple Implementation of widgets/live tiles.

For instance, since there's currently nothing to the left of the home screen, I could see Apple adding a "widget page" there similar to how you swipe left in OS X to get to widgets.
Click to expand...

Didn't Apple practically invented widgets with Dashboard?
 
There's been quite a few widget concepts. This one from 2013 uses double-tap to display an icon's widget (starting at 0:46 secs).


Any other favorites?
 
I would use them. Weather, stock, calendar tiles that actually display information without needing to open them is logical and useful. I don't care how the home screen looks if it is more useful.

Amazing Iceman said:
Didn't Apple practically invented widgets with Dashboard?
Click to expand...

The first time I saw widgets on a computer screen was either Gnome or KDE desktop running on Linux, probably about 15 years ago.
 
It isn't bad. The best part about it is its an option, so you don't HAVE to use it. I would probably use the weather one.
 
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