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How a Home Button and Function Bar Could Work on the 'iPhone 8'

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The iconic home button has been a mainstay of Apple design ever since the first iPhone debuted in 2007. Even the buttons on the elevators at Apple Park are said to resemble it. The button's tactile circularity promises an escape route to familiarity should users get lost or apps go wrong. However, its delicate components converge upon a recess in the phone's bezel, an area that could otherwise provide extra space to fit a larger display within the same handset profile.

Rumors that the "iPhone 8" will replace the home button as we know it with an entirely virtual one can be traced back to April 2016. More recently, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed that Apple will introduce a functionally distinct area below the screen exclusively for displaying virtual buttons, with a rumor over the weekend seeming to suggest that such a "function bar" is the reason behind conflicting reports over the display size of an upcoming OLED iPhone.

kuoiphone8size-800x470.jpg

Before the "function bar" rumor first surfaced, MacRumors forum member deuxani shared concept images, reproduced below, that offer some context for imagining how the bar might work.


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Article Link: How a Home Button and Function Bar Could Work on the 'iPhone 8'
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2017/03/05/how-home-button-function-bar-could-work-iphone-8/
As with many new concepts, it will come down to how Apple implements it. I, for one, am looking forward to seeing what they come up with. I think there is potential here.

One of my favorite things about iPhone 7 is the non-mechanical home button. I've let friends use my phone as guinea pigs and not one of them have noticed that it was not a button until I tell them.

And no, they aren't idiots.
 
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Not sure I like this mockup featuring the virtual home button all alone along the touchbar "bottom row". Shrink the home button down some and allow for standard dock icons to flank it on either side. Seems like wasted space otherwise.
 
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The home button isn't a one trick pony anymore. How are they gonna fit all those functions into a virtual equivalent? Unless they offload them to other fixed virtual icons. But then you can't make the function bar contextual. Hm.

I'm sure Apple has it all figured out. ;)
 
Hopefully if the edge-to-edge thing happens, the corner radius of the phone will be tighter. The instagram mockup is a good example of how dumb it would look with the current rounded corners. Cool concept though. I'm excited.
 
If it makes the usable screen less than 5.5" I will opt for the Plus model with my upgrade this year. I would go larger but 5.5" is my minimum "usable" screen size.
 
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The way I could see this working is if there as a constant virtual "home button" in the center of the function bar; perhaps only disappearing in specific circumstances. Then, the left and right sides of the function bar could dynamically change depending on which app you're in.

Moving the "back" button down next to the home button would be amazing and long overdue. Some app-specific functions in the function bar could include text predictions while typing, a scrubbing bar while watching videos, and even some sort of scroll buttons while browsing the web. The less my fingers obstruct the display for simple gestures, the better.
 
My hope is that the extra screen in the area formerly occupied by the home button can be used for video (hiding the home button) so it can display wider than 16:9 cinema content without letterboxing.
 
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This could work very well, for example if the "fiction area" could change depending on what app you are in much like the Touch Bar on the new MacBook Pro's, i think that would be great on the iPhone 8.
 
You could've just said it will be like Android's on screen navigation setup... Seems fitting that Apple would copy one of the most iconic differences between iOS and Android for their 10th anniversary phone. I look forward to my iPhone friends demonstrating their "brand new" back button!
 
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Loge said:
This, once you get used to the size of the 5.5 screen, anything less is going feel like a downgrade.
Click to expand...

I would agree. Mainly because I primarily used The the 4.7 inch iPhone, then I Switched to the plus variant in the last two years. And having the extra screen real estate has made a huge difference in viewing angles and also having a vantage of Portrait/landscape mode. I guess you could use the theory, once you have something that's larger, having anything less than that seems so insignificant at times, mainly when it comes to viewing a display.
 
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One of the main reasons I moved away from Android to iPhone many years ago was that I was fed up with always accidentally hitting the soft buttons on the bezel, and always having to look down at the bezel to press home. Jumping onto the iPhone with its one physical home button was like... coming home. Simple design at its absolute best. Apple, please don't sacrifice something classic and great for something new and kinda cool.
 
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Ive never understood why the home button has to occupy screen space. Id rather have it as a physical button on the left side of the phone somewhere alongside the mute and volume buttons. Especially if now it wont have to icorporate the fingerpeint sensor.

Also, speakers could be located on the very top and double function as speakers for phone calls. Would save some more space.
 
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Rainshadow said:
As with many new concepts, it will come down to how Apple implements it. I, for one, am looking forward to seeing what they come up with. I think there is potential here.

One of my favorite things about iPhone 7 is the non-mechanical home button. I've let friends use my phone as guinea pigs and not one of them have noticed that it was not a button until I tell them.

And no, they aren't idiots.
Click to expand...
You! Oh, you.

1. Thank you so much for the balanced comment! I wish I saw more such critiques on MR.
2. I totally agree that this concept has so much potential. If anyone can implement it correctly, it's Apple.
3. You used the 'iPhone' moniker correctly, as a pronoun! For example, 'I like iPhone 7', instead of the usual 'I like the iPhone 7', which is grammatically similar, yet incorrect, to saying 'I like the Apple, Inc.'

More, please!
 
Just like the touch bar on the MacBook Pro line. Not sure why that wasn't predicted when it came out (I saw the connection but never saw an article on it)
 
subjonas said:
One of the main reasons I moved away from Android to iPhone many years ago was that I was fed up with always accidentally hitting the soft buttons on the bezel, and always having to look down at the bezel to press home. Jumping onto the iPhone with its one physical home button was like... coming home. Simple design at its absolute best. Apple, please don't sacrifice something classic and great for something new and kinda cool.
Click to expand...

totally agree...Whenever I touch Android devices (which is not often) I need a moment to check what is what down there...Whereas with the home button it's intuitive as hell.

My guess for this year is that, since it has been a favorable legacy feature for so long, they will keep somewhat of a circular cut out area of the home button, even if it's integrated on the screen. It will be nearly seamless, but not entirely.
 
Wouldn't the option of leaving the Touch ID area visible even when the screen is off cause a crazy amount of burn in? I could just imagine that circle there for 5-8 hours a day. Would look great to see its ghost as I try to watch videos
 
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