Following Scott Forstall’s departure at Apple last October, and the executive shuffle that took place at the company as a result, Apple design guru Jony Ive took on s greater role at the company as the new VP of Human Interface – and as many noted, that meant Jony Ive would be more involved with the design of iOS and other Apple platforms.
Speculation quickly led many to believe that future versions of iOS could drop the skeumorphic design elements that Forstall seemed so fond of, in favor of Ive’s preference towards cleaner, flatter designs. According to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, that is indeed exactly what is now happening.
WSJ:
Ive, who is well-known for his sleek, iconic hardware designs, now sits in on the human interface team’s regular review sessions to vet new designs, these people said. While he and Christie, known as a blunt talker, have very different styles, the people familiar with the process described the sessions as “pleasant and cordial.”
Some suggested that in Apple’s next mobile operating system, Ive is pushing a more “flat design” that is starker and simpler, according to developers who have spoken to Apple employees but didn’t have further details. Overall, they expect any changes to be pretty conservative. For the past few years, Apple has unveiled versions of its mobile operating system in the summer.
Design is one example of the increased “collaboration across hardware, software and services” that Apple said it was aiming for when Cook pushed senior vice president and mobile software chief Scott Forstall out of the company last year.
According to the report, this is all part of Apple’s plan to increase collaboration across hardware, software, and services, as Apple indicated in their October statement on the executive shuffle.
Skeumorphic design is a controversial topic – msny just don’t appreciate software or web design that mimics thee look and function of real-world objects, arguing that flatter, more modern design techniques are more functional and professional overal.
So, what would a “flatter” iOS look like? It appears that we may be about to find out! In the meantime, these rough mockups will just have to suffice…
