My main problem with iOS 7 is that it introduces a lot of ambiguity into the UI - it's not as clear how you're supposed to interact with it - and it does it solely for reasons of style. That, to me, is a huge step backwards. I think much of the skeuomorphism had to go because it was unnecessary, and also to make the UI framework more flexible so they can explore new functionality, but I think they went too far. Somewhere between aping print design and over-the-top skeuomorphism is the sweet spot of UX and they've leapt from one extreme to the other.
Simply awful. I agree with the sentiment that it looks like bubble gum garbage, designed by the Chinese for 10 year old girls. I've been an Apple loyalist since the release of the Apple ][. I even stuck with them through the PowerPC days. But if this is their look of the future, they are going to lose me as a customer. I just can't envision myself looking at that cheesy crayola color pallet on a daily basis. So long, Apple, it was fun while it lasted.
Another reason I think a lot of things are being refined is we don't have an iPad beta yet. And it could be several weeks before we get it according to the keynote.
One question I have is who pushed for this complete re-design on such an aggressive timeline? Did Ive and Federighi bite off more than they could chew? Or were they getting pressure from Cook or others to have something major to show off at WWDC?
Biggest problem is that new icons look like from very very cheap Chinese copy of some Android phone (the icons are seriously ugly). <img alt="irked.gif" id="user_yui_3_10_0_1_1371073270434_675" src="http://forums-files.appleinsider.com/images/smilies/irked.gif" style="line-height:1.231;" name="user_yui_3_10_0_1_1371073270434_675">
Another thing is that new GUI is quite bright and option to choose the Theme between "Bright" and "Dark" would be nice to have ("Dark" would look better on black iPhones).
Yeah the icons are as ugly as sin. I love the apps however. The dark theme idea is a killer idea! Imagine you could set it to auto-switch to the dark theme after sunset?
Oh lawdy, please PLEASE please allow folders to be dragged into and out of other folders, and the creation of subfolders. Halfway there now with the toy limit of 20 objects in a folder removed, give us subfolders and we can actually organize our stuff.
Good to know they will work on the icons. The only other thing that stood out to me is the rightmost image in this article, the way tabs are handled in safari. The 3D file system feels out of place with the rest of the OS, don't understand their thinking on that one. Reminds me of coverflow, which I never personally liked.
Almost everything else looks great to me, cant wait to use it.
It reminds me of the Evernote app. Cover flow was horizontal. There's a big diff between this and Cover flow. CF felt like a gimmick. This feels practical..
There will undoubtedly be rapid iterations on the UI front during the beta cycle. Personally, I find myself liking a lot of the changes but many are still unrefined. Color schemes and icon designs are largely subjective.
The ugliness of these icons is not subjective. Most die hard Apple designers dislike the majority if the new app icons, but love everything else. It's pretty unanimous.
This Lineup shot really shows the across-the-board inconsistency, and poor quality, of the iOS 7 system design. I remain stunned that they actually published this work. I'm glad they are walking back the design 'finality' of what they showcased. But being that UI is the primary headline feature of this release it indicates to me that they are severely behind schedule. I am worried, and I urge them not to release iOS 7 until it's ready.
I will be very shocked if iOS 7 is released exactly as it looks right now. As I've said before I have no doubt the higher ups at Apple are aware of some of the negative feedback. I'm sure this is a work in progress and the teams are probably working overtime to get it ready for the fall. We had rumors of it being behind schedule. Those rumors now appear to be accurate.
The Safari navigation icons immediately struck me as half-baked (especially the Share icon that looks more appropriate for an elevator) and no where near a design language that Jony Ive would let out of Cupertino.
I think the new share icon makes more sense; if you look at it and think about what's going to happen. It's probably that it's just so different to the curves action button you are used to. What I do dislike about those new buttons however is how thin their iconography is. I don't mind the thin fonts.
The ugliness of these icons is not subjective. Most die hard Apple designers dislike the majority if the new app icons, but love everything else. It's pretty unanimous.
I'll eat my hat if some or all of these app icons don't change prior to release. It almost feels like they were placeholders put there in a rush to get something done.
I was hoping for more of a classy design motif after hearing of the "flattening" of iOS. The current lollipop colour design is hopefully just placeholder art and will be changed through the betas. Shoot for a design that enterprise users would like and the regular consumer user will follow. Keep repeating "elegant" and "classy" over and over again while re-designing.
Yep and then they would have waited another year and people would have complained that the UI looks the same, and Apple can't innovate, is doomed, etc.
I think we need to reserve judgement until closer to release. If we get a final beta that looks exactly like this then yeah I will grudgingly agree they should have waited until it was more finished,
- I don't think it would take another year, but another 4 to 5 months would probably do it.
I'm a developer, usability professional, and UX architect. I design and code software for the major platforms, including IOS, Windows8, etc. I happen to have devices running all of these major operating systems, and I use them regularly. I've been using IOS7 daily.
One of the subtle aspects of IOS7 that troubles me most is that, frankly speaking, it is just so derivative that it is hard to tell you are using an Apple product. As a matter of fact, when using it, I find it disturbingly easy to think I am using an Android device. It feels like an Android product - it has the same c=kind of unfinished, haphazard, and sloppy feel of Android... which by and large is an operating system lacking in thoughtfullness. And, at a time when IOS7 needs to strongly differentiate from its competitors, the UI layer is becoming much less distinctively different. That's a problem if you are a company that is used to commanding massively higher margins than your competitors, because when your product stops being obviously different in look and feel to its target demographic, it stops being something they will pay more to acquire.
Ive once said that he hates it when he gets the feeling that a designer is wagging their tail in his face. In that comment, he was touching on gratuitous design flare that serves no useful purpose in a UI. But I find that stance ironic when juxtaposed against IOS7, which is imbued with clearly design driven choices that do not make the operating system easier to use. For example, take the fonts used in the UI: the use of very small, very thin fonts... in colors that vary from their backgrounds in insubstantial ways, is virtually everywhere. And this makes the operating system much more difficult to use. I have dozens of screen snaps I have taken over the last few days where fonts essentially blend into the background such that the text cannot be read at all, or with great difficulty.
For another example, consider the icons themselves. They are often so minimal that they completely fail to communicate in a meaningful way. They are desaturated and they have no edge treatment. The result is that they bleed into the visual field and as meaningful points of communication in the UI, they are degraded.
One of the things that irritates me most about IOS7 is the virtual elimination of shadows of any kind. It's like someone said 'get rid of the shadows' and some junior designers went and made it so in an absolutely thoughtless manner. The reality is that shadow is one way of separating figure from ground in a user interface. It is a method of making the important visual stimuli stand out from the nonessential stimuli, so that a user can more easily disambiguate that stimuli in a complex visual field. IOS7 combines small, exceedingly thin fonts with a shadow that is so diffused it provides no edge distinction for the font. The result is that the fonts tend to blend into the background in ways that make text very hard to read. This is true of icons as well. I have tried almost every wallpaper that comes with IOS7, and all have the same problem; I have many screen snaps where icons and text simply disappear. I've seen pundits here argue that the user can change the font size, but no amount of size change will make a white font easily readable against a light grey or cream background. There must be a way of clearly separating the font (foreground) from the wallpaper (background) and because if the interplay of font color and the variable colors of a wallpaper, there needs to be some layer of neutrality in between the two. That's why IOS6 and earlier give fonts an obvious shadow. It is an effective and necessary visual treatment.
In general, the contrast between figure and ground in IOS7 is so narrow that elements of a design simply blend together in ways that make the important control points very difficult or impossible to disembed. That proclivity is made worse by lighting condition; looking at springboard in sunshine is essentially a wasted effort, because the fonts and icons all blend with the wallpaper so badly that it is very difficult to use.
I cannot imagine what thought process went into such a wholesale elimination of the meaningful visual cues in a software UI. Well, actually, I can... but it is one more thing that disturbs me. In Ive's blurb-spot, he talked about harmonizing the elements of the design. And that sounds nifty, really. But actually, it isn't; UI design is not about composition. Not just about it, anyway. The things that make a composition good - like harmony of the elements such that they flow together - are not effective strategies in UI design. UI design is about effective communication, and one of the most important jobs of a software UI is in reinforcing separation both conceptually and logically - the act of grouping, clarifying, and making the differences between logical and operational components obvious. And since a UI is in essence a visual language, it must employ methods of making such distinctions obvious. That's the only way that a user can come to understand a UI.
The thin fonts of IOS7, the lack of shadow, the way that the UI diminishes visual tension between elements... all of these are excellent compositional efforts. But they suck at being effective usability mechanisms; they erode the usability of the operating system rather than improve it.
To those that don't like the new UI design, can't you just get a different launcher from the app store if you don't want to use the stock one? Problem solved. No need to get worked up. Besides, I think the new design looks good. Give it a chance and you may end up liking it. I'm not really a fan of the wallpaper they're using, but that's easy enough to switch as well.
I'm a developer, usability professional, and UX architect. I design and code software for the major platforms, including IOS, Windows8, etc. I happen to have devices running all of these major operating systems, and I use them regularly. I've been using IOS7 daily.
.... (snip)...
The thin fonts of IOS7, the lack of shadow, the way that the UI diminishes visual tension between elements... all of these are excellent compositional efforts. But the SUCK at being effective usability mechanisms; they erode the usability of the operating system rather than improve it.
I wish I could get Ive to read this.
You make some fine points. Like I say, a hardware designer cannot become a seasoned graphic designer overnight, much less in one or two years. It is a lifelong commitment, same as industrial design, if one intends on mastering the craft. We know Jony Ive has good taste, but Jobs provided the final stage of approval. Is he exploring endless iterations with no end game in sight? I have no idea, but there is a lot of room for improvement over what we've seen.
People seem to be forgetting about some of the great new functionality that's finally coming to iOS. One I just found out about today is Notification center providing traffic information based on places you frequent. Federighi seemed like he was rushing a bit during the demo so I'll bet there's a lot of cool features (especially for 3rd party developers) that he didn't get a chance to show off.
Speaking of maps, there were unmarked cars zipping through town today making streetview photos ... I wonder if they were from Apple or Google...?
Comments
My main problem with iOS 7 is that it introduces a lot of ambiguity into the UI - it's not as clear how you're supposed to interact with it - and it does it solely for reasons of style. That, to me, is a huge step backwards. I think much of the skeuomorphism had to go because it was unnecessary, and also to make the UI framework more flexible so they can explore new functionality, but I think they went too far. Somewhere between aping print design and over-the-top skeuomorphism is the sweet spot of UX and they've leapt from one extreme to the other.
Simply awful. I agree with the sentiment that it looks like bubble gum garbage, designed by the Chinese for 10 year old girls. I've been an Apple loyalist since the release of the Apple ][. I even stuck with them through the PowerPC days. But if this is their look of the future, they are going to lose me as a customer. I just can't envision myself looking at that cheesy crayola color pallet on a daily basis. So long, Apple, it was fun while it lasted.
http://furbo.org/2013/06/11/been-there-done-that/
Another reason I think a lot of things are being refined is we don't have an iPad beta yet. And it could be several weeks before we get it according to the keynote.
One question I have is who pushed for this complete re-design on such an aggressive timeline? Did Ive and Federighi bite off more than they could chew? Or were they getting pressure from Cook or others to have something major to show off at WWDC?
Yeah the icons are as ugly as sin. I love the apps however. The dark theme idea is a killer idea! Imagine you could set it to auto-switch to the dark theme after sunset?
Oh please.
Puh-lease!
It reminds me of the Evernote app. Cover flow was horizontal. There's a big diff between this and Cover flow. CF felt like a gimmick. This feels practical..
The ugliness of these icons is not subjective. Most die hard Apple designers dislike the majority if the new app icons, but love everything else. It's pretty unanimous.
I think the new share icon makes more sense; if you look at it and think about what's going to happen. It's probably that it's just so different to the curves action button you are used to. What I do dislike about those new buttons however is how thin their iconography is. I don't mind the thin fonts.
I was hoping for more of a classy design motif after hearing of the "flattening" of iOS. The current lollipop colour design is hopefully just placeholder art and will be changed through the betas. Shoot for a design that enterprise users would like and the regular consumer user will follow. Keep repeating "elegant" and "classy" over and over again while re-designing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogifan
Yep and then they would have waited another year and people would have complained that the UI looks the same, and Apple can't innovate, is doomed, etc.
I think we need to reserve judgement until closer to release. If we get a final beta that looks exactly like this then yeah I will grudgingly agree they should have waited until it was more finished,
- I don't think it would take another year, but another 4 to 5 months would probably do it.
- Fair enough.
I'm a developer, usability professional, and UX architect. I design and code software for the major platforms, including IOS, Windows8, etc. I happen to have devices running all of these major operating systems, and I use them regularly. I've been using IOS7 daily.
One of the subtle aspects of IOS7 that troubles me most is that, frankly speaking, it is just so derivative that it is hard to tell you are using an Apple product. As a matter of fact, when using it, I find it disturbingly easy to think I am using an Android device. It feels like an Android product - it has the same c=kind of unfinished, haphazard, and sloppy feel of Android... which by and large is an operating system lacking in thoughtfullness. And, at a time when IOS7 needs to strongly differentiate from its competitors, the UI layer is becoming much less distinctively different. That's a problem if you are a company that is used to commanding massively higher margins than your competitors, because when your product stops being obviously different in look and feel to its target demographic, it stops being something they will pay more to acquire.
Ive once said that he hates it when he gets the feeling that a designer is wagging their tail in his face. In that comment, he was touching on gratuitous design flare that serves no useful purpose in a UI. But I find that stance ironic when juxtaposed against IOS7, which is imbued with clearly design driven choices that do not make the operating system easier to use. For example, take the fonts used in the UI: the use of very small, very thin fonts... in colors that vary from their backgrounds in insubstantial ways, is virtually everywhere. And this makes the operating system much more difficult to use. I have dozens of screen snaps I have taken over the last few days where fonts essentially blend into the background such that the text cannot be read at all, or with great difficulty.
For another example, consider the icons themselves. They are often so minimal that they completely fail to communicate in a meaningful way. They are desaturated and they have no edge treatment. The result is that they bleed into the visual field and as meaningful points of communication in the UI, they are degraded.
One of the things that irritates me most about IOS7 is the virtual elimination of shadows of any kind. It's like someone said 'get rid of the shadows' and some junior designers went and made it so in an absolutely thoughtless manner. The reality is that shadow is one way of separating figure from ground in a user interface. It is a method of making the important visual stimuli stand out from the nonessential stimuli, so that a user can more easily disambiguate that stimuli in a complex visual field. IOS7 combines small, exceedingly thin fonts with a shadow that is so diffused it provides no edge distinction for the font. The result is that the fonts tend to blend into the background in ways that make text very hard to read. This is true of icons as well. I have tried almost every wallpaper that comes with IOS7, and all have the same problem; I have many screen snaps where icons and text simply disappear. I've seen pundits here argue that the user can change the font size, but no amount of size change will make a white font easily readable against a light grey or cream background. There must be a way of clearly separating the font (foreground) from the wallpaper (background) and because if the interplay of font color and the variable colors of a wallpaper, there needs to be some layer of neutrality in between the two. That's why IOS6 and earlier give fonts an obvious shadow. It is an effective and necessary visual treatment.
In general, the contrast between figure and ground in IOS7 is so narrow that elements of a design simply blend together in ways that make the important control points very difficult or impossible to disembed. That proclivity is made worse by lighting condition; looking at springboard in sunshine is essentially a wasted effort, because the fonts and icons all blend with the wallpaper so badly that it is very difficult to use.
I cannot imagine what thought process went into such a wholesale elimination of the meaningful visual cues in a software UI. Well, actually, I can... but it is one more thing that disturbs me. In Ive's blurb-spot, he talked about harmonizing the elements of the design. And that sounds nifty, really. But actually, it isn't; UI design is not about composition. Not just about it, anyway. The things that make a composition good - like harmony of the elements such that they flow together - are not effective strategies in UI design. UI design is about effective communication, and one of the most important jobs of a software UI is in reinforcing separation both conceptually and logically - the act of grouping, clarifying, and making the differences between logical and operational components obvious. And since a UI is in essence a visual language, it must employ methods of making such distinctions obvious. That's the only way that a user can come to understand a UI.
The thin fonts of IOS7, the lack of shadow, the way that the UI diminishes visual tension between elements... all of these are excellent compositional efforts. But they suck at being effective usability mechanisms; they erode the usability of the operating system rather than improve it.
I wish I could get Ive to read this.
To those that don't like the new UI design, can't you just get a different launcher from the app store if you don't want to use the stock one? Problem solved. No need to get worked up. Besides, I think the new design looks good. Give it a chance and you may end up liking it. I'm not really a fan of the wallpaper they're using, but that's easy enough to switch as well.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tt92618
I'm a developer, usability professional, and UX architect. I design and code software for the major platforms, including IOS, Windows8, etc. I happen to have devices running all of these major operating systems, and I use them regularly. I've been using IOS7 daily.
.... (snip)...
The thin fonts of IOS7, the lack of shadow, the way that the UI diminishes visual tension between elements... all of these are excellent compositional efforts. But the SUCK at being effective usability mechanisms; they erode the usability of the operating system rather than improve it.
I wish I could get Ive to read this.
You make some fine points. Like I say, a hardware designer cannot become a seasoned graphic designer overnight, much less in one or two years. It is a lifelong commitment, same as industrial design, if one intends on mastering the craft. We know Jony Ive has good taste, but Jobs provided the final stage of approval. Is he exploring endless iterations with no end game in sight? I have no idea, but there is a lot of room for improvement over what we've seen.
Two letters: B; S.
Any evidence/poll you can cite, or did you just pull it out of your....hat?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogifan
People seem to be forgetting about some of the great new functionality that's finally coming to iOS. One I just found out about today is Notification center providing traffic information based on places you frequent. Federighi seemed like he was rushing a bit during the demo so I'll bet there's a lot of cool features (especially for 3rd party developers) that he didn't get a chance to show off.
Speaking of maps, there were unmarked cars zipping through town today making streetview photos ... I wonder if they were from Apple or Google...?