iOS 7

[Armand]

Was wondering that you iOS users thought of the iOS 7 preview?

It definitely welcome to see iOS get a lick of paint as it is badly needing it. I'm unsurprised how much it’s like Android (control centre, multi tasking in particular, 3D parallax stuff) since over the last while Google has done some great work with this type of flat design Apple are going for. Windows 8 metro deserves a nod too.

Call blocking and control panel stuff is very welcome. Updated notifications look good as well. Looks to at least bring them up to the level an old Android user is used to.

I’m also interested to see what the additional API stuff brings.

 

I’m guessing we are a few months away from actually seeing it (who says Apple don’t do show and tells!!) but will be nice to get it hands on.

[Jono]

In a fit of insanity last night, I installed it on my iPhone (if you've watched the keynote, you will note that they didn't show it running on the iPad and there is no iPad beta yet). I already like it, except maybe for some of the icons and the changes to the way folders work taking a bit of getting used to.

Control centre is handy, and I like the notification centre updates. Automatic app updates is really very nice. I had been using Mailbox for mail, but I like the updates to Mail.app (I don't hugely care about the lack of push, and I'd stopped using the time delay stuff in Mailbox). Because a lot of iPhone usage is 3rd party apps, the full experience will only come when apps are updated around the public release.

Ever since the introduction of the app store (in iPhone OS 2, I think) they've had a beta period, so that developers could have their app updates ready. Expect release to happen when the new iPhone comes out around September/October time.

[Armand]

On Tuesday, 11 June 2013 22:45:12 UTC+1, Jono wrote:

I had been using Mailbox for mail, but I like the updates to Mail.app (I don't hugely care about the lack of push, and I'd stopped using the time delay stuff in Mailbox).

 

I'm the same I stopped using the “later” functions and I actually moved back to Gmail app because i missed some basic stuff like tagging but I digged the swipe stuff Mailbox does. Will be interesting to see the Mail.app update but Push is still important to me so I’m not sure even this update will get around that.
 
iOS7 is proof though that all the software\design litigation needs to feck off. It’s now so incestuous (example) who stole from is basically unimportant because they are all guilty. While Apple have borrowed\stole\copied stuff from WebOS, Win Phone, Vista and Android...they are still doing it with their own twist. While I’m not a fan of all the changes (the garish colour pallet in places is not my cup of tea, total removal of button contrast & outline seems a mistake to me) we will see some of the things move back to other platforms for sure. It’s why competition is good...Apple push Android, android has pushed Apple. Sure there is a lot of design convergence but its because that’s what consumers have found works

 

One thing that Apple showed at WWDC which I really liked and to me showed more design innovation than the iOS stuff was the Mac Pro. That cylindrical design is class. Forget price, the lack of expansion or the other things I’ve seem Pro users complain about...I want one (I’ll never own one..but thats neither here nor there).
The sign fan, central thermal core and in a shape you never see in servers. Class. It’s what Apple does best in a single box. we shall see the market copy this design for sure..

[Sharkwald]

I'll give apple the benefit of the doubt for the moment, but quite a few of the screen shots of iOS7 I've see online have looked downright garish, and I'm not at all keen. Functionally it looks like an excellent improvement (yay auto-updating apps) but some of those colour choices... Hmm

I use a very muted background on my phone and iPad though, so I'll be interested to see how not having a bright blue photo of a seascape effects the translucency.

The Mac Pro looks like the cube mk2, and I loved the cube, but I'd never buy one.

I *really* liked the stuff in OSX Mavericks though. That power management stuff was genius, and we've FINALLY got file system-level tagging. I won't be getting a MacBook Air (no retina, no sale), but will eventually get a MacBook Pro, and by then, battery life should be something interesting.

[Sharkwald]

PS, if I was going to implement a fake file system for iOS, tagging is what I'd use, not folders. Fingers crossed that's what we get in iOS 8, assuming it goes ok in desktop land.

[Armand]

If additional gaming controllers are going to take off, the standardized games controller API in iOS 7 should help. Outside of Apple releasing a controller (which I cant imagine) this is as much as they can do. At least if you now go and buy a controller case it should work with any game that now supports that type of input.

[Armand]

So I installed iOS 7 last night. Some thoughts

 

·         Not as garish as when it was first rolled out. But part of that is picking a plain background. A Multicolored background is not pretty when you have so much transparency layers.

·         The OS now seems much more in line with the plastic C rather than the metal backed phone. It seems slightly less serious. More Consumer less business.

·         It has taken another big step to looking and feeling more like an Android. Parts of it a stole from touchwiz, native android or Sense...given it the Apple make over though. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

·         The Animations seem a little wonky to me. The timing on them is a bit strange. I feel I’m waiting for them to finished. Not sure if they are actually shorter than iOS6 or they are more flashy making the  the animations just seem longer. Either way it feels a little more sticky then before

·         Only  9 icons show in a folder now. You have to swipe to see the rest. Fucking shite...I want to see the full folder!

·         Spotlight being a downstroke does make it easier to get to

·         Notifications x buttons is a bit bigger but still wish I could swipe away or clear all notifications

·         Control Centre is definitely welcome

·         Lock Screen is much nicer

·         Parallax effect is so subtle as to be nearly nonexistent (not sure if I’m missing something)

 

Overall is feels like a lick of nice new paint (which is badly needed) rather than a revolutionary change.

[Sharkwald]

re: Parallax, aren't some phones unsupported? I know that my iPhone 4 won't support it when I install iOS7.

[Jono]

On Thursday, 12 September 2013 12:13:30 UTC+1, Armand wrote:

·         Only  9 icons show in a folder now. You have to swipe to see the rest. Fucking shite...I want to see the full folder!

On the other hand, there is no longer a limit to the number of things you can have in a folder.