With simply days to go earlier than WWDC, the consensus is that Apple will unveil an enormous, visionOS-inspired redesign throughout its working programs. And whereas some is likely to be dreading a repeat of the iOS 7 announcement from a decade in the past, it’s been lengthy sufficient that many readers won’t keep in mind (or might have by no means even seen) what that overhaul really regarded like.
So right here’s a fast refresher on what occurred, and why this yr will seemingly (I imply, hopefully?) be completely different.
The years between 2011 and 2013 have been fairly busy at Apple. Following Steve Jobs’ passing, Apple fired Scott Forstall (then SVP of iOS Software program) over the botched launch of Apple Maps. That left a niche in software program design management, which was crammed by Jony Ive, who additionally led {hardware} design.
Quickly after, rumors started swirling that he was planning a serious visible overhaul of your complete system.
Flat
Within the run-up to WWDC 2013, the Wall Road Journal reported that Ive had been engaged on “a extra ‘flat design’ that’s starker and less complicated,” a pointy departure from the nice skeuomorphic visuals of the time (suppose linen textures, paper-like folders, glass results, and sure, Corinthian leather-based).
A while after that, 9to5Mac solely shared mockups of the redesign, which had been leaked to Mark Gurman.
It was chaos.
I vividly keep in mind considering it was reckless to publish such unfairly primitive sketches of what would definitely be a extra polished overhaul. After weeks of intense debate and fierce expectations that the rumors had been fallacious, Apple launched iOS 7:
Within the years that adopted, Apple scaled again its over-flattening of the system, evolving towards what we now have right now. Now, that’s about to alter as soon as once more.
Why iOS 26 most likely gained’t be like iOS 7
Presently, most stories are likely to agree that the redesign might be deeply influenced by the visible language of visionOS, with its translucent layers, depth results, and tender glassy textures. And even when you’re like me and also you’ve by no means worn an Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional, likelihood is you’ve seen what visionOS seems like. Apple has already laid the groundwork, so the change gained’t be such a jarring shock, like with iOS 7.
And from a design perspective, talking as somebody who’s labored in graphic design for over 20 years, the perfect transfer Apple might make is precisely what’s been reported: updating all programs directly.
When you’ve ever needed to adapt interfaces and key visuals to a number of ideas, similar to extensive, slender, sq., rectangular, massive, small, and so on., that with each new facet ratio, you develop into slightly extra acquainted and extra comfy with every particular person aspect.
By beginning out with the just about boundless, unconstrained setting of visionOS, then more and more transferring to smaller interfaces throughout macOS, iPadOS, iOS, and watchOS, each choice informs previous and future visible diversifications. In different phrases, a redesign this broad will be iterative in each instructions.
Will or not it’s lovely? That’s subjective. Even iOS 7 had a handful of defenders. However one factor is for certain: Apple’s design staff is aware of how a lot this second issues.
That is the most important activity they’ve been given since Ive left the corporate, and they’re effectively conscious of the contentious historical past of iOS design updates. The mere undeniable fact that the brand new design hasn’t leaked but factors to the absence of dissidents contained in the staff, and contemplating how shut we’re to the announcement, that’s already a victory in itself.
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