avkills
macrumors 65816
That would be my guess also based off the window border design. I guess the roundness at the top does not bother me since it is basically just the title bar; and extra bonus pixels because of the notch.
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macOS Tahoe: A Pattern of Poor Usability and Design Regression
- Thread starter Deuce2
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Kal Madda
macrumors 601
Also, a note on the iOS Status Bar. People keep referencing it (even though it isn’t a macOS design feature, but iOS), so I figured I would address it here.
First of all, most websites use a header for their sites that stays persistent and blocks content beneath the Status Bar from mingling with it and causing visibility issues. In fact, Apple’s own site does this. Apple’s site uses a persistent header, and Apple’s first party apps use shading to keep it clearly contrasted and visible. You can see it in the screenshots I included. The things in Apple’s control: their website and apps, the Status Bar isn’t an issue.
The Status Bar is not a visibility issue in Apple’s apps and website.
Nor is it a visibility issue on many common third-party webpages or apps either.
It’s just that some third-party apps and websites don’t use the proper tools and solutions for this. That’s on them, not Apple. It’s not a problem with Apple’s design, it’s actually a problem with the design employed by third-parties… So the fault for the claimed visibility issues of the status bar actually lies on third-party developers who don’t employ proper practice for their site or apps, not on Apple… Apple can’t fix everyone’s bad app design or webpage design, nor should they be expected to… 🤷🏼♂️
And another thing to note, it is not as if you can’t make the Status Bar hard to see in previous versions of iOS. This is a post from 2 years ago:
So claiming this is somehow unique to iOS 26 is quite the stretch…
First of all, most websites use a header for their sites that stays persistent and blocks content beneath the Status Bar from mingling with it and causing visibility issues. In fact, Apple’s own site does this. Apple’s site uses a persistent header, and Apple’s first party apps use shading to keep it clearly contrasted and visible. You can see it in the screenshots I included. The things in Apple’s control: their website and apps, the Status Bar isn’t an issue.
The Status Bar is not a visibility issue in Apple’s apps and website.
Nor is it a visibility issue on many common third-party webpages or apps either.
It’s just that some third-party apps and websites don’t use the proper tools and solutions for this. That’s on them, not Apple. It’s not a problem with Apple’s design, it’s actually a problem with the design employed by third-parties… So the fault for the claimed visibility issues of the status bar actually lies on third-party developers who don’t employ proper practice for their site or apps, not on Apple… Apple can’t fix everyone’s bad app design or webpage design, nor should they be expected to… 🤷🏼♂️
And another thing to note, it is not as if you can’t make the Status Bar hard to see in previous versions of iOS. This is a post from 2 years ago:
So claiming this is somehow unique to iOS 26 is quite the stretch…
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star-affinity
macrumors 68020
@Kal Madda
I guess we can conclude Apple's OS releases this years contain more visual bugs if you think all those ”lack of contrast situations” aren't intentional and are just bugs. 😀 😉
Anyway, the glass background in the App Switcher staying the same in Light Mode and Dark Mode was something I too reacted to and actually sent feedback to Apple about it a couple of months ago. One would at least think it should get darkened when choosing ”Tinted” in the Liquid Glass options.
Oh, well… Let's see how it evolves.
I'll end by saying that I do think the glass effect looks good in most scenarios, it's just that I want to from many to all scenarios. 🙂
Edit:
Good point on the status bar examples not being an iOS 26 issue! Because I remember now seeing it before iOS 26. Up to the developer to fix I guess.
I guess we can conclude Apple's OS releases this years contain more visual bugs if you think all those ”lack of contrast situations” aren't intentional and are just bugs. 😀 😉
Anyway, the glass background in the App Switcher staying the same in Light Mode and Dark Mode was something I too reacted to and actually sent feedback to Apple about it a couple of months ago. One would at least think it should get darkened when choosing ”Tinted” in the Liquid Glass options.
Oh, well… Let's see how it evolves.
I'll end by saying that I do think the glass effect looks good in most scenarios, it's just that I want to from many to all scenarios. 🙂
Edit:
Good point on the status bar examples not being an iOS 26 issue! Because I remember now seeing it before iOS 26. Up to the developer to fix I guess.
Kal Madda
macrumors 601
So I don’t know if all the things you’re talking about are bugs or not, but everything that I’ve seen so far, which is the app switcher thing, and a few rarer cases where the text color didn’t change with changing from Light Mode to Dark Mode or vice versa, this I think are bugs. 🙂👍🏻. And I think some of these bugs may be getting more attention than bugs in prior versions because some are assuming that it’s normal behavior of the new design because it’s a major new design language, and so some don’t know what the UI elements are supposed to look like, so don’t realize it’s a bug. 🙂👍🏻
I think it’s unfortunately going to take some time to incorporate the proper Liquid Glass design across all the systems in every corner. So I think some things like that evaded notice somewhat in the early versions, and so haven’t been fixed yet. Hopefully subsequent updates will fix it. 👍🏻
Yeah, I’m sure it will improve with some time. 👍🏻
And I agree, I want it to look good in all scenarios as well. I think it’s very close with the exception of a few bugs, and subsequent updates should hopefully fix those bugs. 👍🏻
Thanks. Yeah, I thought I remembered that from prior versions of iOS as well. 🙂👍🏻
I think we mostly agree. I don’t believe there aren’t any ways that Tahoe and Liquid Glass can be improved, I think it can. I just disagree with some of the more extreme takes. But I certainly don’t think it’s the best it will ever be, and is perfect and can’t be improved in any areas. I just don’t think it’s as big of a deal as some make it out to be. And I think you’re saying similar. 🙂👍🏻
Kal Madda
macrumors 601
We got 26.2.1 the other day. Either that or 26.3 Beta 3 are what he was talking about. 👍🏻
capamac
macrumors 6502a
Yeah 26 was obviously gonna be awful ... you could tell the design was wrong from the early screen shots alone, before the OS was even officially released to users.
It's a shame coz one of Apple's major strengths since the Apple II era and the early 1990s Macs was design. Both in terms of the hardware aesthetic, and the UI aesthetic. And now Apple's apparently forgotten how design works. I imagine it's coz Apple has put people who lack backgrounds in art education or art appreciation in charge of the UI.
Even if a UI top manager doesn't understand art or design, they could at least make sure to hire someone who does.
But Apple did not. And as a result the update of 26 is super low. Coz users notice these things. And Apple users in particular, coz the biggest design nerds are also gonna be Mac fans more than not. Apple's ticking-off a core audience.
It's a shame coz one of Apple's major strengths since the Apple II era and the early 1990s Macs was design. Both in terms of the hardware aesthetic, and the UI aesthetic. And now Apple's apparently forgotten how design works. I imagine it's coz Apple has put people who lack backgrounds in art education or art appreciation in charge of the UI.
Even if a UI top manager doesn't understand art or design, they could at least make sure to hire someone who does.
But Apple did not. And as a result the update of 26 is super low. Coz users notice these things. And Apple users in particular, coz the biggest design nerds are also gonna be Mac fans more than not. Apple's ticking-off a core audience.
Kal Madda
macrumors 601
star-affinity
macrumors 68020
I decided to try and see how the icon for ”flip between front or back cameras” behaved on iOS 26.2 when in a FaceTime call if the video made the icon be over a bright object. This is what happened:
Intentional or a bug or not I hope we can all agree that the icon isn't very clear in that scenario. 😀
What do you think of this @Kal Madda?
I think it's quite bad that a second bug fix iOS release from Apple still have such visibility issues in the user interface and like I mentioned before it feels very un-Apple, since these kinds oi things has historically been something they are good at overall.
Intentional or a bug or not I hope we can all agree that the icon isn't very clear in that scenario. 😀
What do you think of this @Kal Madda?
I think it's quite bad that a second bug fix iOS release from Apple still have such visibility issues in the user interface and like I mentioned before it feels very un-Apple, since these kinds oi things has historically been something they are good at overall.
Kal Madda
macrumors 601
That’s odd, this is what I get on a FaceTime call for the camera switching button, it’s visible bottom center:
Looks entirely different, I wonder if this was possibly something changed in the current version. Because I’m on iOS 26.2.1. For me, it’s maintaining good contrast. 🙂👍🏻
star-affinity
macrumors 68020
OK, try and make the video behind the Flip icon get positioned over a very bright object and see…
But that icon isn't as problematic – the one I have in my example is what you see when you tap the icon with the two arrows in the upper left of your screenshot (to minimize the view of your device) and then tap the big video of the remote participant to get up controls on the screen. This is where the ”Flip” icon of your video feed gets small like the one in my screenshot and that icon is more sensitive to legibility than the large Flip icon in your screenshot.
So like I've said Liquid Glass and legibility is fine in many (most?) situations, but the problem is there are too many scenarios where it's not.
But again, I think/hope Apple is on top of it. UI legibility shouldn't be dependent on the content being viewed.
Kal Madda
macrumors 601
I can try later with a lamp, after I took my pic, I noticed you had put it over a lamp. But I did try using it over a window with bright sunlight coming in, and it was still clearly visible. 👍🏻
I can probably try that later as well. I guess I’ve never used it that way. 👍🏻
To be honest though, I really don’t think it’s that big of a deal. 🤷🏼♂️. To be fair, it’s going to be the very rare occasion where users purposefully aim the camera so a button is positioned over a lamp or extremely bright object. FaceTime is usually used for, well, faces…? 🤷🏼♂️. This seems like a very niche and odd scenario, not a visibility issue most will encounter with regular use…
But sure, if Apple makes it more visible with a lamp behind it, I won’t be opposed to it. I’m certainly not opposed to changes with some such things. 👍🏻
CrabQueenInc
macrumors regular
An older version of Pages contrasted with the recently released Tahoe version. (I'm not sure if links are allowed, but I saw these examples on Mastadon). I have a hard time understanding how the new version of Pages is more accessible or useable. The loss of the title bar alone is frustrating enough, but all of the selectable buttons in the format sidebar appear as if they have already been selected or are not selectable.
That lower left corner is definitely a design choice.
Apple Knowledge Navigator
macrumors 601
For context, I put the same document with the same window size and controls side-by-side. The new version of Numbers hides several controls and the title is partially hidden.
How is this an improvement?
Apple Knowledge Navigator
macrumors 601
It's truly pathetic. Some people will actually defend this.
You don't appreciate progress. This is another step towards the new version of Notepad, where you will have to pay each time you want to save a document.
That’s the garbage iPadOS UI now on macOS.
So we can’t see the document name, the toolbar looks all crammed and for some stupid reason the sidebar cuts through the toolbar.
Even if this idiotic concept was for a touch screen enabled Mac the rest of us who don’t want to touch buttons should not need to suffer eyesore because of it.
macOS is not iPadOS. Apple says they don’t make sporks but we got sporks.
Apple Knowledge Navigator
macrumors 601
A part of me does think this is prepping or a touchscreen Mac; but beyond my concerns with the actual hardware itself, I think there still too much of macOS that simply isn't optimised for touch input.
Here’s something. We already have Macs (and PCs) with touch and stylus input when we connect a Wacom or Huion display tablet.
If you watch the YouTube hardware reviews from people like Brad Colbow they aren’t asking for big round buttons and a messed up UI. They are only asking for macOS to have better graphics acceleration when using touch and gestures. At the moment that is much more responsive in Windows and Microsoft didn’t need to add ridiculous round buttons and ruin the UI.
So at the moment Windows 11, for all its shortcomings, has a better UI than Tahoe (but not Sequoia). That’s a disgrace.
TumbleDryer
macrumors 603
I've just gone to open Numbers and "There's an upda..."
Nope!
Nope!
Kal Madda
macrumors 601
I love the new design. Much nicer and more modern and unified with Apple’s other platforms. And I love the rounded window corners, they actually look modern instead of the square ugly corners that were used before. So glad to see more modernization. 🙂👍🏻