My Thoughts on the Design of the iPhone 5

[Fausty82]

I'm sure he already had probably the i6 and i7 designs already planned out so the new ceo could use those and since he will still be on the board he will have a strong presence and influence on design.

That's a very real possibility.

 

[dreamre]

So do you guys think the design is based off of the iP4 or a brand new tapered back?

I'm not sure if I should wait or not...

 

[Eileen89]

So do you guys think the design is based off of the iP4 or a brand new tapered back?

I'm not sure if I should wait or not...

Many rumors both ways on this. In the end no one really knows because Apple hasn't made the announcement on the new iPhone yet.

 

[BLiNK]

i do like the tapered back look as well..

however, at this point, i don't give 2 craps what it looks like. i have an upgrade burning a hole in my pocket!

 

[Eileen89]

i have an upgrade burning a hole in my pocket!

This is exactly why I keep my money in the bank and not my pocket.

 

[Fausty82]

This is exactly why I keep my money in the bank and not my pocket.

But I can agree with BLiNK... I'm ready to plunk down my money...

 

[Calebswag7]

Honestly until jobs is dead the iPhone and any apple product will be brought to him before it's released and if he doesn't think it's right it will be fixed until it is. He's not gone out of the company, just stepped down to the board head. It's all said that he's still going to have major influence on design and every aspect of future apple products. I love tapered look like the iPad 2 though. I hope that's what it looks like. A bigger screen doesn't seem necessary. It's already great for me


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Free time apple enthusiast

 

[david.e.crocker@gmail.com]

I completely agree here, Sean. No way Apple eliminates the volume buttons. Ever. They will always have to be there in some capacity... and there will also always be a need for a reset procedure, which, again, will require some kind of hardware switch - either a button, or a recessed button activated with a paperclip, a la the current crop of routers/hubs/switches... but there needs to be a way to force the device to reset.

I could see the home button going away someday, but I doubt it will be in the iPhone 5... They could put the 5-finger pinch in the OS, but the next iPhone/iPad/iPod will have a home button.

Think the 5 finger pinch to home all the way through......will ALWAYS require two hands.

I doubt that will be what will eventually replace a dedicated home button. I believe a gesture area with an integrated home button.

 

[riley9dy]

Think the 5 finger pinch to home all the way through......will ALWAYS require two hands.

I doubt that will be what will eventually replace a dedicated home button. I believe a gesture area with an integrated home button.

This would just defeat the purpose of a multi touch gesture enabled screen... I have never had a problem with the home button on my iPhone or iPad. IMO, there's nothing wrong with the home button and they should never change it.

 

[SockRolid]

Re: multi-finger pinch to replace "home button"

That gesture just seems a bit awkward and non-intuitive. It could eliminate moving your hand off the screen to hunt for the home button, for users who actually learn and remember the gesture. A time-saving short cut for power users. But probably not a replacement for the home button. Just imagine the frustration for users who haven't been trained to 5-finger pinch yet and can't turn on an iPad.

Re: physical volume up/down buttons

I'd expect the buttons to stay. Just look at the non-iOS iPod line for hints. Apple seems to use the iPod line (especially the nano) as their fashion-forward user interface testbeds. For example, the previous-generation shuffle lacked any buttons. Users were expected to use the control built into the earphone cable. And apparently it didn't sell as well as before.

So Apple went back to the circular button arrangement for the current generation shuffle. It's almost a skeuomorph for the original iPod's click wheel. It's familiar, iconic, and easy to find and use without looking.

But the cable control requires a little more fumbling and fiddling than on-iPod buttons require. You need to find the control on the cable, then twist it so that one of your finger pads is touching the clickable surface of one of the buttons, then squeeze. You can't operate the buttons just by squeezing from any direction. I think it's less convenient and slower.

And if you are listening without earphones through the built-in speaker, what are you going to do? Remember to swipe up and down on the screen or something? And what if your iPhone is upside down in your pocket? Would you need to find the end with the earphone cord connector and remember that that end is the "top"? And what happens when Apple finally gets rid of the earbud cord? It could happen soon.

Re: physical buttons required for easy restarting

That's the real killer, isn't it?

So I'm just not convinced (yet) that there is any compelling reason to eliminate the physical home button. It's not an expensive component. It fits in the iPad's bezel, which can't be eliminated. The bezel is necessary to prevent thumbs from inadvertently tapping or swiping the iPad's screen, so the home button will always have a place. The home button could even be made somewhat smaller to save space, without making it harder to use.

And how different does Apple want to make the iPhone and iPad? iPad with bezel, iPhone without bezel? That might confuse users who switch between the two devices.