Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

More Details on Jony Ive's Flat iOS 7 Design: Heavier on Black and White

bdkennedy1 said:
This should actually make the OS faster since the processor doesn't have to do extra work to display all of those bitmapped textures.
Click to expand...

Agreed - its the same argument used for flat and CSS based website design. Smaller footprint and better compatibility with high res (retina) displays.
 
What people like in terms of visual design depends from person to person. It doesn't matter what design changes Ive makes, there will always be a number of people who liked the previous look better.

But it's better that we move forward. iOS's design is over 6 years old. Just leaving it and never changing it isn't an option.
 
Pilgrim1099 said:
Exactly. It's WHAT Ive's trying to do here. I think they're going 'old school' in some aspect while retaining the iOS features but changing up the way it's being interacted, making improvements on functionality.

Just like Daft Punk used to say in their recent interview on Rolling Stone magazine that the electronic music scene was getting stale, so they, as artists, had to change the tone and direction of things, henceforth their new album. I can see why they did what they had to do because they grew up in a certain era of music to re-invent things.

The same can be said for such staleness in an OS environment. iOS is very 'static' and leaves a LOT of negative space around the icons in a grid format. The icons should be enlarged a bit and dynamic in some way, especially on the iPad.

So, in that sense when you think of the iPhone's metallic hardware design, the OS should relate to the hardware in terms of color schematic. It makes sense that Apple needs to get past the "toy" phase and get down to business. Making the iOS environment with fewer colors makes it look more focused and professional looking, and I'm quite sure they'll have some custom features for users to add or label in colors for their own.

Not everything has to be about purty looks and rounded corners. People need to open their eyes and see what's going on here. X-Box One has angled corners. So does Blackberry 10. That's the trend now. Even the HTC One. When you go for angular design, it makes it look 'lean and mean' in a futuristic manner.

And I say it's about damned time Apple is remaking iOS's look and design.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I for one will welcome a fresher, different look. Personally, I find the current iOS design to be a bit stale. It will be good to see it updated. Add a few features and you're good to go.
 
I hope they don't pull a Windows 8 / Metro with iOS 7... I know flat design is the trend these days, but a little bit of texture in the UI is a good thing. I'd really like them to keep the dark linen background texture in Notification Center, too. I still dig that.
 
itguy06 said:
Yes, but I've never seen a flat design that looks better than a non flat design. Gmail - nope, iTunes - not really. Flat deisgn screams "We don't care so we whipped this up!". It's not cool, trendy, or modern. Good design needs no constant refreshing. Look at companies that have been around for a long time. Their logos have not changed much in that time periofd. 3 that come to mind:

GM: Still an underlined GM
Ford: Still a scripted Blue Oval
Coca-Cola: Still a red background with a scripted Coca-Cola

There are numerous examples of design Failure:
Gap - tried to redesign their logo and so much backlash they went back
Tropicana - same deal

Even Pepsi's "new" logo looks like ****.



On my Droid X there was no way to turn it off.
Click to expand...

Logo design philosophy has nothing to do with the UI design. Two different things. Logo design is static while a UI is more dynamic and interactive. Interactive/Responsive design is a growing industry now.

Skeuomorphism is childish, I think. It's time for Apple to "grow up" and redesign the icons. They cannot keep that same iOS look for another 20 years. That's not how UI design evolves. Hell, take a LOOK at the old OS 9 Classic design and compare that to OS X.

Do YOU think OS X is gonna still look like it is now in 10 years? My answer? NO. It's going to look very different when technological advances require new ways of interacting, so does the UI design.
 
I will welcome improved contrast

I'll welcome the improved contrast and quick recognition of things on the home screen rather that going toward over-saturation of colors icons and motion of icons and 3d anything. My phone is becoming more of a tool than a toy.
 
Andy-V said:
What people like in terms of visual design depends from person to person. It doesn't matter what design changes Ive makes, there will always be a number of people who liked the previous look better.
Click to expand...

That is true, but visual design and interaction design has almost nothing in common. What I'm trying to say is, that there are some objective metrics that can be tested for that is beyond personal taste.
 
am I the only one who doesn't care what it looks like, but how it functions? lol
seriously...lack of colours? how cares!?! just keep up the great functionality and add some of what Android and Blackberry offer. (I know...blackberry isn't even close to being a player now, but their latest OS has some neat features).
 
Will have to wait till I actually see it

I doubt Ive's idea of flat is anything reminiscent of windows 8 and it's hard for me to pinpoint what the os will look like just from a description: the mind simply doesn't work that way at least not my mind. As of now my thoughts are Ive you are truly a great hardware designer and I hope you bring that same beauty to the os. I'm also rather more interested in functionality as well, particularly in bringing the functionality to what a modern smartphone should be able to do, as many people have been complaining of a lack of some basic features. Maps speaks for itself, won't bother going into that. And hopefully they'll bring in something new to the table :)
 
Andy-V said:
But it's better that we move forward. iOS's design is over 6 years old. Just leaving it and never changing it isn't an option.
Click to expand...

Why does it need to change? If there are specific problems or better ways of doing something, I'm fine with that. However, if it's just change for the sake of change, I'm not really for that. I can understand getting bored by something, but I feel that's just reason to have Apple make iOS & Mac OS X a little more customizable. But I don't think it's Apple responsibility to keep you entertained. There's a saying "Only boring people get bored."
 
torana355 said:
You really want a black and white design??? Apple are changing their strengths instead of improving the weaknesses. The Apple hardware and OS design is actually really good, its the software's features and lack of screen size options that is Apples weak points.
Click to expand...

Where did I say I want a black on white design? I simply pointed out that it makes no sense to complain about features in a thread focussed on design. That said, a black on white design when done right can be very striking, and I personally feel iOS could use a visual facelift. Many people have wanted one for years. It's not like black on white means devoid of colour in this case either. In fact, this very thread mentions colour. I reserve final judgment until I see it, but I'm optimistic.

I'd love for you to explain how the design of the current gamecenter app is a good one though.
 
Really?

itguy06 said:
I hope this is not true.

Flat Design is terrible. Really shows you have no clue about good design and/or how to do things. Anyone can use a Sans Serif font, lots of white space, bold and call it "Fresh", "Modern", and "Flat". In reality it looks terrible. Evidendce: Zune, Windows Phone, Windows 8. Horrible paradigms that leave most comfused and waste real estate. I've not seen 1 Flat Design that looks good!



Panoramic wallpaper is also horrible. Dealt with it on Android. Say want a pic of your kid, dog, spouse, etc. as your wallpaper. In iOS you see it all the time. In Android you would have 1 screen with the left part you, one with the middle, and one with the right. Really horrible, IMHO. Even if you used a pic of, say a scenic it was pretty bad.

I really think Apple needs to drive the design conversation like they did with OS X rather than immitate bad ideas from their competitors.
Click to expand...

Really?? Take a look at the new yahoo weather app.
 
Holding my breath on this one. Really hoping for a surprise on changes. May take time to adjust from current version if there are a lot of changes, but I'm excited.
 
Why do people see black and white and and assume it means all color is gone? No it most likely means fugly stuff like green felt, yellow legal style paper and faux leather are gone. Not that every app is going to be devoid of color.
 
omgwut said:
I hope they don't pull a Windows 8 / Metro with iOS 7... I know flat design is the trend these days, but a little bit of texture in the UI is a good thing. I'd really like them to keep the dark linen background texture in Notification Center, too. I still dig that.
Click to expand...

They probably won't copy the look of Metro but will take some of that inspiration and use it on iOS. Either way, they need to change the look of iOS fast.

So far, Microsoft and Blackberry both of done a good job rebuilding their UI design from scratch. I've seen the BB10 and it works pretty well. And it is quite speedy.

It's all about keeping it clean, functional and dynamic. Metro is the most 'dynamic' design I've seen so far.
 
If all the negative posters are smarter than Ive, why haven't we had the privilege of seeing the great software and designs they have created? Talk is cheap.
 
TroyBoy30 said:
sounds terrible
Click to expand...
I agree. One of the appealing things about iPhones and iOS is that they are just plain gorgeous. The look of iOS is, to put it simply, pretty. I fear that the new look will be too Android looking and ugly. iOS 7may be Apple's Vista or ME and followed quickly by iOS 8.
 
The Phazer said:
iMessage needs pulling out of the SMS app, not FT out of the phone app.
Click to expand...

Why? I thought the whole point of iMessage is exactly that it is built in to your SMS app, so there is no need to toggle between multiple apps. Separate them, and what incentive would I have to use it over whatsapp or hangout?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back