Apple designer Jony Ive receives honorary doctorate from University of Oxford

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Apple's chief design officer, Jonathan Ive, was one of nine "distinguished" people to receive an honorary doctorate on Wednesday from the University of Oxford.




Ive became a Doctor of Science during the university's annual Encaenia ceremony, according to the official Oxford website. Other notable figures receiving degrees included director Pedro Almod?var, economics professor Paul Krugman, and composer Arvo P?rt.

Jony Ive has picked up numerous awards over the years, including several from British organizations like the Royal Society of Arts and the Royal Academy of Engineering. At the latter group, he is also an Honorary Fellow.

For years Ive has been responsible for design work on many Apple product lines, ranging from iPods and iPhones through to Macs and the Apple Watch.

As chief design officer Ive has stepped back from some day-to-day involvement in design work, although he is still thought to be playing an important role in things like the company's electric car project. That initiative is effectively an open secret, even if no shipping vehicle is expected to arrive until at least 2019 or 2020.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 15
    AI_liasAI_lias Posts: 436member
    Oh, boy, now there's nothing in the way of Jonathan Ive's tendency to just make everything thinner.
  • Reply 2 of 15
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,919member
    Everyone gives Jony Ive a lot of crap, but I have to admit he does have nice designs for products and things are pretty well thought out. Sure, its not for everyone but you're never going to make everyone happy with a design of anything. Someone may like the new Honda Civic's design, and just and many others can think its ugly as sin. I think the products he's design are for the most part exceptional and far better than anything else on the market today. There's a reason why other companies copy design cues from Apple into their own products. Its not just coincidence. 

    When Jony does leave Apple, I'd like to see what Apple does with both its OS UI and its hardware designs (for better or worse)
    edited June 2016
  • Reply 3 of 15
    prokipprokip Posts: 178member
    Honorary degrees now from both Oxford and Cambridge (as well as a KBE).  With his schooling at Chingford Foundation School and an undergraduate degree from Newcastle Polytechnic, it's time for Sir Johny to flick the birdie at those Oxbridge stilts!
  • Reply 4 of 15
    irelandireland Posts: 17,799member

    As chief design officer Ive has stepped back from some day-to-day involvement in design work...
    Yeah I just don't buy that theory at all.
    macxpressSpamSandwichlolliver
  • Reply 5 of 15
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,822member
    Not too many lads went from Newcastle Poly and ended up with a PhD from Oxford :)
    equality72521
  • Reply 6 of 15
    analogjackanalogjack Posts: 1,073member
    How do we now address the unassuming chief of minimal, Sir Jony, or Dr Ive?
    edited June 2016
  • Reply 7 of 15
    singularitysingularity Posts: 1,328member
    How do we now address the unassuming chief of minimal, Sir Jony, or Dr Ive?
    Sir, it out ranks Dr.
  • Reply 8 of 15
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    macxpress said:
    Everyone gives Jony Ive a lot of crap, but I have to admit he does have nice designs for products and things are pretty well thought out. Sure, its not for everyone but you're never going to make everyone happy with a design of anything. Someone may like the new Honda Civic's design, and just and many others can think its ugly as sin. I think the products he's design are for the most part exceptional and far better than anything else on the market today. There's a reason why other companies copy design cues from Apple into their own products. Its not just coincidence. 

    When Jony does leave Apple, I'd like to see what Apple does with both its OS UI and its hardware designs (for better or worse)
    Nothing good ever happens when the neckbeards take over design. Take a look at one of those Alienware gaming PCs. Multi-colored flashing led lights, fans that sound like jet engines, flat black paint on every surface. Well you get the picture.
    macxpresslolliver
  • Reply 9 of 15
    GymkhanaGymkhana Posts: 45member
    In my view, he failed when he moved the power button directly opposite the volume buttons in the iPhone 6 series.  That was a basic ergonomics failure, not something I would expect from somebody receiving such accolades as a design genius.
  • Reply 10 of 15
    benonebenone Posts: 1member
    Congrats! He has the best job. First he was able to get away with updating the iPhone once every 2 years. And now, if rumors are true, there will only be minor update for iPhone 7. Good job, he now gets away with re-designing the iPhone once every 3 years!
  • Reply 11 of 15
    volcanvolcan Posts: 1,799member
    benone said:
    Congrats! He has the best job. First he was able to get away with updating the iPhone once every 2 years. And now, if rumors are true, there will only be minor update for iPhone 7. Good job, he now gets away with re-designing the iPhone once every 3 years!
    If it ain't broke don't fix it.
    lolliver
  • Reply 12 of 15
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    How do we now address the unassuming chief of minimal, Sir Jony, or Dr Ive?
    Sir, it out ranks Dr.
    "Sir Doctor" it is, then.  B)
    singularity
  • Reply 13 of 15
    singularitysingularity Posts: 1,328member
    Sir, it out ranks Dr.
    "Sir Doctor" it is, then.  B)
    LOL
    although as a honourary award it's not considered correct to use the honourific Dr.
  • Reply 14 of 15
    anomeanome Posts: 1,544member
    Sir, it out ranks Dr.
    "Sir Doctor" it is, then.  B)


    I believe, if one were to use both titles (which one rarely does), it should be "Doctor Sir". The more important title goes closer to the name.

    Of course, one wouldn't call him "Doctor Sir Jony Ive", but either "Sir Jony", or "Doctor Ive", or "Sir Jony Ive KBE PhD(Oxon)", or most commonly "Sir Jony Ive"

    People who actually know him will probably just keep calling him "Jony", though.

    Then, if he ever becomes a peer of the realm, he would lose the Sir, and become "Lord Ive of Pacific Heights".

  • Reply 15 of 15
    kevin keekevin kee Posts: 1,289member
    How do we now address the unassuming chief of minimal, Sir Jony, or Dr Ive?
    anome said:
    "Sir Doctor" it is, then.  B)


    I believe, if one were to use both titles (which one rarely does), it should be "Doctor Sir". The more important title goes closer to the name.

    Of course, one wouldn't call him "Doctor Sir Jony Ive", but either "Sir Jony", or "Doctor Ive", or "Sir Jony Ive KBE PhD(Oxon)", or most commonly "Sir Jony Ive"

    People who actually know him will probably just keep calling him "Jony", though.

    Then, if he ever becomes a peer of the realm, he would lose the Sir, and become "Lord Ive of Pacific Heights".

    A good guy Sir Jony in the day and the evil Dr Ive at night. They should make a movie for that.
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