if there is one usability issue with iPhone it is the lack of a physical button for the camera appp. Make the Home button available to user apps and your problem is solved. I absolute detest the Touch to snap a pic interface.
Not that I'm opposed to remapping a button for pictures is that's what the user wants, but clicking a button, particularly the home button, would be about the worst way possible to take a picture without movement. A touch 'lift' (the camera does not trigger on touch, but on the release) is probably the least movement inducing method.
I tend to agree with Gruber that advanced finger-swipes are a great shortcut, but that you need some clear anchor for new users... you can't expect someone picking up an iOS device for the first time to understand multi-finger pinches and swipes. The beauty of iPhone was that with one click, you were in business.
One problem, however with no button on an iPhone is the glass back. When I reach for my iPhone in the dark, the only way I can tell orientation is by feeling for the home button. Without it I'd have to fumble around the edges, probably for the volume buttons.
I am betting that Apple will ultimately stray from the glass back design. It is pretty, but too much opportunity for breakage. Of course even if they do eliminate the glass back, I still vote for a physical button. It just makes sense.
If Apple did indeed remove the home button, it would essentially be blatantly ripping off Android 3.0's new feature of no physical navigation buttons and all done on-screen. Yet another attempt of Apple in trying to catch up to the competition.
Right. Apple just released the leak so the Android designers would definitely make a phone with no buttons, a feature that apparently everyone hates. "See, we were right all along. No buttons is the future. Apple confirmed it."
I doubt very much that Apple will eliminate the Home button on iDevices, and the evidence that they are "planning to" is so thin as to be non-existent. There's no reason to think that adding new functionality means they will take away existing; nothing wrong with having more than one way to do something, and let the user use the most convenient at the moment.
I tend to agree with Gruber that advanced finger-swipes are a great shortcut, but that you need some clear anchor for new users... you can't expect someone picking up an iOS device for the first time to understand multi-finger pinches and swipes. The beauty of iPhone was that with one click, you were in business.
Gruber is all wet. The iPad in particular has no correct orientation, therefore no need for an anchor. The only reason orientation is even slightly important is because of the home button. if Apple can figure out how to eliminate the home button, then more power to them. Good thing Apple doesn't listen to the posters on this board. If they did, they'd have to believe that nothing can be improved, and that change is automatically a bad thing.
You and I should be a comedy team. You know, I make a funny or smartass comment, and then you chime in with your perfectly timed factoid that misses the point entirely. We would kill with this routine! Who knows, if we really hit it really big, we might even be booked to appear on Wake Up Westchester with Mike and Mary Beth.
Sorry.
Comedy and sarcasm are both hard to do on the net. Your so dry I always end up assuming that your being straight when you're not.
I'd hate to see the home button go away, just like taking away the ipad rotation lock button really sucked. But not a huge deal either way for me, I could remember a gesture.
but on the other hand, the ipad is an amazing device for young kids, even 2 year olds. Mine need that button to 'reset' the app when they get lost, then they can find an app again and get back in. Foolproof gestures are NOT possible for young kids.
Haha! Just kidding. But seriously, if Apple does this, I expect Android phones to do the same. By coincidence. Because Samsung never copied Apple... (yeah right)
Will never happen, because this would make entering debugging / DFU mode very hard. You can't do multitouch when your device isn't booting.
A physical button is a million times better then a "soft" button because it is harder to tap by accident and it can work without the device itself being able to boot.
What will happen is a choice. You can do the finger gesture for speed, or button for familiarity/debugging.
Bullshit. What happens when an application locks up? Press the power button and lock\\unlock? Reboot? That would be a fantastic UX...
The controls are best placed in the bezel. So for example, swipe left-to-right on the black strip is the switcher, swipe-right-to-left goes home. The swipes would be large enough that they couldn't be accidental.
It means that an application hanging won't prevent being able to quit the app and it means one less physical button to wear out after years of use. It means the controls work from the same place in any orientation too.
I'm not sure if Apple will do it, it could go either way but I think they should do it.
Not everyone has all 5 fingers. How would they access the home screen? I'm sure Apple will think of some elegant solution in future updates.
Heck some only have use of one finger, perhaps two. And accessibility is something Apple has always been keen on. For the handicapped, the elderly etc.
Which is part of why I don't think they will remove the home button, just change it to something other than in the bezel.
Not necessarily. I think the a4 chip actually sits on top where the speaker is, and the bottom space houses the dock connector and loud speaker. I don't think Removing button itself will save that much space.
I hope they get rid of it. Gestures work fine, software rarely locks up anymore unless you jailbreak, and the power button could be expanded in functionality / new button could be added to the side on the top right.
Imagine the iPhone without Home button. Dreams, dreams..
I think identity is important. This is one thing that always separates popular items. Look at any brand, McDonalds, Coca-cola, AT&T, UPS, HBO, Starbucks, The Simpsons. Any number of them have an identity that you associate with the name. The iPhone has an identity and you could draw a picture of an iPhone based on that association. If I said draw an EVO 4G or Google Nexus, it's not so easy.
I think the above image loses the identity. Even if you push the screen further out to the edges, it doesn't look like an iPhone:
I think making the screen taller is all they can do but they will be limited as the speaker at the top is circular. If they just made it taller, the aspect ratio changes, which isn't great for developers but I don't think it would be too bad because Apple can make the search box permanent and have unobtrusive notifications:
For game devs, it doesn't matter much as it's just OpenGL so they just extend the OpenGL context and they can choose to run apps within a cropped window.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sheff
Will never happen, because this would make entering debugging / DFU mode very hard. You can't do multitouch when your device isn't booting.
A physical button is a million times better then a "soft" button because it is harder to tap by accident and it can work without the device itself being able to boot.
You could have a sensor in the bezel that works without the device booted up or maybe use the accelerometer. Hold the power button and shake the device or some combination of power button presses.
Kind of digging that classy little notification area-- although I think Apple uses a non-serif typeface, no?
I could see Apple doing something along these lines to address the woeful notification situation. I'd be curious to see your ideas about something similar to give us more info on the home screen. I suspect they'll never give in to the flashy Android billboard idea, no matter how much fans of that platform seem to feel a phone isn't fully alive until you have all kinds of shit going on all the time every time you look at it. I could see some very refined, user selectable data.
I think the above image loses the identity. Even if you push the screen further out to the edges, it doesn't look like an iPhone:
Do you really believe in what you are saying? If Apple tried to keep "the identity", the new Mac Book Air would still have resembled the Apple-I (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_I)
Large iPhone and iPad bezels are nothing more than a design compromise. It should and will go away.
They have to innovate and move on. The extra space for browsing and for wide screen HD viewing would be the sweetest thing they could give to you... well unless you care about the product identity too much.
Comments
if there is one usability issue with iPhone it is the lack of a physical button for the camera appp. Make the Home button available to user apps and your problem is solved. I absolute detest the Touch to snap a pic interface.
Not that I'm opposed to remapping a button for pictures is that's what the user wants, but clicking a button, particularly the home button, would be about the worst way possible to take a picture without movement. A touch 'lift' (the camera does not trigger on touch, but on the release) is probably the least movement inducing method.
I just wish the shutter 'button' was bigger.
I tend to agree with Gruber that advanced finger-swipes are a great shortcut, but that you need some clear anchor for new users... you can't expect someone picking up an iOS device for the first time to understand multi-finger pinches and swipes. The beauty of iPhone was that with one click, you were in business.
One problem, however with no button on an iPhone is the glass back. When I reach for my iPhone in the dark, the only way I can tell orientation is by feeling for the home button. Without it I'd have to fumble around the edges, probably for the volume buttons.
I am betting that Apple will ultimately stray from the glass back design. It is pretty, but too much opportunity for breakage. Of course even if they do eliminate the glass back, I still vote for a physical button. It just makes sense.
If Apple did indeed remove the home button, it would essentially be blatantly ripping off Android 3.0's new feature of no physical navigation buttons and all done on-screen. Yet another attempt of Apple in trying to catch up to the competition.
Right. Apple just released the leak so the Android designers would definitely make a phone with no buttons, a feature that apparently everyone hates. "See, we were right all along. No buttons is the future. Apple confirmed it."
If it does happen it will be because of Steve's hatred of buttons.
And not because of kotatsu's demonstrated hatred of Steve, and all things Apple.
I tend to agree with Gruber that advanced finger-swipes are a great shortcut, but that you need some clear anchor for new users... you can't expect someone picking up an iOS device for the first time to understand multi-finger pinches and swipes. The beauty of iPhone was that with one click, you were in business.
Gruber is all wet. The iPad in particular has no correct orientation, therefore no need for an anchor. The only reason orientation is even slightly important is because of the home button. if Apple can figure out how to eliminate the home button, then more power to them. Good thing Apple doesn't listen to the posters on this board. If they did, they'd have to believe that nothing can be improved, and that change is automatically a bad thing.
You and I should be a comedy team. You know, I make a funny or smartass comment, and then you chime in with your perfectly timed factoid that misses the point entirely. We would kill with this routine! Who knows, if we really hit it really big, we might even be booked to appear on Wake Up Westchester with Mike and Mary Beth.
Sorry.
Comedy and sarcasm are both hard to do on the net. Your so dry I always end up assuming that your being straight when you're not.
but on the other hand, the ipad is an amazing device for young kids, even 2 year olds. Mine need that button to 'reset' the app when they get lost, then they can find an app again and get back in. Foolproof gestures are NOT possible for young kids.
Haha! Just kidding. But seriously, if Apple does this, I expect Android phones to do the same. By coincidence. Because Samsung never copied Apple... (yeah right)
I would rather they made the home button more rectangular to take less space on iPhone and iPod touch.
This makes sense not.
A physical button is a million times better then a "soft" button because it is harder to tap by accident and it can work without the device itself being able to boot.
What will happen is a choice. You can do the finger gesture for speed, or button for familiarity/debugging.
Bullshit. What happens when an application locks up? Press the power button and lock\\unlock? Reboot? That would be a fantastic UX...
The controls are best placed in the bezel. So for example, swipe left-to-right on the black strip is the switcher, swipe-right-to-left goes home. The swipes would be large enough that they couldn't be accidental.
It means that an application hanging won't prevent being able to quit the app and it means one less physical button to wear out after years of use. It means the controls work from the same place in any orientation too.
I'm not sure if Apple will do it, it could go either way but I think they should do it.
Not everyone has all 5 fingers. How would they access the home screen? I'm sure Apple will think of some elegant solution in future updates.
Heck some only have use of one finger, perhaps two. And accessibility is something Apple has always been keen on. For the handicapped, the elderly etc.
Which is part of why I don't think they will remove the home button, just change it to something other than in the bezel.
That would mean - replace the home button with the new on one of the edges.
Also this would probably mean a redesign of the top - where the proximity sensor, front-facing camera and a phone-speaker are located.
Imagine the iPhone without Home button. Dreams, dreams...
Imagine the iPhone without Home button. Dreams, dreams...
http://i983.photobucket.com/albums/a...one-nohome.png
Not necessarily. I think the a4 chip actually sits on top where the speaker is, and the bottom space houses the dock connector and loud speaker. I don't think Removing button itself will save that much space.
Would be nice to have a clean bezel.
Imagine the iPhone without Home button. Dreams, dreams..
I think identity is important. This is one thing that always separates popular items. Look at any brand, McDonalds, Coca-cola, AT&T, UPS, HBO, Starbucks, The Simpsons. Any number of them have an identity that you associate with the name. The iPhone has an identity and you could draw a picture of an iPhone based on that association. If I said draw an EVO 4G or Google Nexus, it's not so easy.
I think the above image loses the identity. Even if you push the screen further out to the edges, it doesn't look like an iPhone:
I think making the screen taller is all they can do but they will be limited as the speaker at the top is circular. If they just made it taller, the aspect ratio changes, which isn't great for developers but I don't think it would be too bad because Apple can make the search box permanent and have unobtrusive notifications:
For game devs, it doesn't matter much as it's just OpenGL so they just extend the OpenGL context and they can choose to run apps within a cropped window.
Will never happen, because this would make entering debugging / DFU mode very hard. You can't do multitouch when your device isn't booting.
A physical button is a million times better then a "soft" button because it is harder to tap by accident and it can work without the device itself being able to boot.
You could have a sensor in the bezel that works without the device booted up or maybe use the accelerometer. Hold the power button and shake the device or some combination of power button presses.
I could see Apple doing something along these lines to address the woeful notification situation. I'd be curious to see your ideas about something similar to give us more info on the home screen. I suspect they'll never give in to the flashy Android billboard idea, no matter how much fans of that platform seem to feel a phone isn't fully alive until you have all kinds of shit going on all the time every time you look at it. I could see some very refined, user selectable data.
I think the above image loses the identity. Even if you push the screen further out to the edges, it doesn't look like an iPhone:
Do you really believe in what you are saying? If Apple tried to keep "the identity", the new Mac Book Air would still have resembled the Apple-I (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_I)
Large iPhone and iPad bezels are nothing more than a design compromise. It should and will go away.
They have to innovate and move on. The extra space for browsing and for wide screen HD viewing would be the sweetest thing they could give to you... well unless you care about the product identity too much.