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Should Apple change the home screen for their iOS devices?
- Thread starter Joel Was Right
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How? App icons have to exist somewhere so Apps can be made, sold, bought, used, etc. As it stands, App icons are organized in a grid, 2 dimensionally (page/folder). Aside from allowing people to move the icons wherever they want (no grid, or a grid that permits empty slots like Android) how could it be changed to be better/easier/cleaner? Developers get to pick out their icons, and Apple already has some rules on the icon shape to make it look nicer.
There is not much room for change IMO, so when people say they want it to be better, it would be nice if they were to describe how it could be improved cause I'm not seeing it.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
Assuming you want to know, and not just asking rhetorically...
Allowing you to organize better, and get more stuff off the desktop.
In the Android world, this is done with the App Drawer. No matter what else you do with your apps, there is one (giant) "folder" that you can reveal to go get stuff you only use occasionally. And then you can take the stuff you do use often and organize it into convenient to reach and use folders or icons. You don't even have to have an icon for this folder, you can bring it up any number of ways (configurable).
Technically, this is not simpler to set up, but it's not hard and it make actual use easier and more visually appealing.
At the top of the last page I showed my screenshot. I have 3 icons, no status bar and a clock/weather widget visible. It's more appealing than even the tidiest iOS screen. the three icons containing 25 icons each (a single non-scrolling page) of my most-used apps. Games, Media, Apps. The icons match in style and are lovely. If I had more than 75 apps I wanted to use often, I could add one more icon.
I have plenty of apps (as do most people, I think) that don't get a lot of regular use, that have a specialty function, and they can go in the big "drawer of all apps." Any function I use regularly is one or to touches away. Touch icon, touch app.
Then, there's widgets. I have the most-used data I personally want in the corner, weather, time, date, battery. All more appealing than an ugly status bar across the top (which I hide). Other widgets-- music, calendar, voicemail-- are one screen left of right of home.
If I had iOS, I'd have to have a bunch of folder icons stacked up in an ugly manner, and I'd have to limit myself to 12 apps per icon, and then I'd have to subdivide games and media arbitrarily. One failing of the iOS launcher is that it doesn't have any notion of some things being more important than others. The best you can do is folder-ize them, and that has problems.
Here is is again. Old wallpaper, that changes a lot.
*looks at WP7/8, Android, other OS's*
Yes, obviously there is no other way to do it.
I was saying in regards to iOS being iOS and not just shamelessly ripping off some other OS.
Ignatz Mouse: Thank you. I think a problem with many users of iOS is that they either sort using pages, or folders instead of using the two together. Basically if I understand you correctly, you are saying that everything you want in app management could be done if Apple were to simply allow for custom folder icons and more than 12 apps per folder, and a live weather app icon right?
Luckily, Apple agrees with us. Barring any major changes for the new ratio coming in the Fall, I have at least one more year of comfort to look forward to.
Comfort is the key word. The iOS home screen is comfortable. I know where everything goes, I know how it works, and it does what I want.
Considering the variation between those other OS's, I'm quite sure there are plenty of untapped options someone could come up with.
That said, it's not like iOS hasn't already shameless ripped off features from other OS's. It certainly has. They all do it to each other. Competition is actually good.
You'd rather something stay shit so you can tell yourself it hasn't borrowed ideas from others? iPhone would be completely useless if that were the case. Actually it wouldn't even exist.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
Mostly. Also, make the dock and status bar optional/hideable. My weather widget is pulling multi-duty as an indicator for weather, time/date, battery so I don't need a status bar (it shows up when most apps are running though). Touching the widget launches my alarm clock.
These aren't hard things, but iOS is clearly trying to be *so* simple that IMHO it's gone too far.
I use widgets as well, but other than that one I use them sparingly (and could use apps instead). But that one is very important.
nVidiot_Whore
Banned
Yeah it certainly could use some updates.
I spend so little time actually searching for apps to launch that it doesn't really matter much to me though.
Swipe right, type first letter, click icon.
I spend so little time actually searching for apps to launch that it doesn't really matter much to me though.
Swipe right, type first letter, click icon.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
That's how I use my mac and Spotlight. Never touch the OS X dock *ever*.
No, I genuinely think Springboard is superior. Basically it sounds as if people are saying that they want an intermediary screen between the lockscreen and homescreen (app drawer). Put all apps in an icon, put icon on homescreen (but call it a drawer).
iOS has apps front and center, as it should be. That's all it is concerned about, everything is an app, apps earn Apple money, they sell the iPhone to people who want apps, they sell Macs to people that want to develop and sell apps. They advertise using apps, they advertise apps by putting it on the homescreen. Apps keep people coming back to buying another iPhone to run their apps, etc. Apps are Apple's concern, iOS's focus. If you want a clean homescreen in iOS start with putting apps only on page 2 and beyond, then they are out of sight and mind. Just imagine the swipe to page 2 as if it were a tap to open the apps drawer.
It's fine to swap ideas, it happens constantly, and is good for the industry. It would be BAD for Apple to just adopt Android's system because they could hurt their revenue stream by annoying customers, forcing users to do more micromanagement, making it harder to get to the apps they want, which in turn makes it harder for developers to make money selling apps. Springboard/iOS works, people are comfortable with it and use it. I don't think it is any surprise that iOS while not having the largest marketshare does have the largest AppStore, and the largest group of users of apps, that specifically buy the device to use apps.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
Are you one of those people whose computer desktop is covered edge to edge with icons?
What I have is just like FOlders on iOS, only more configurable/aesthetic.
What I have is just like FOlders on iOS, only more configurable/aesthetic.
nVidiot_Whore
Banned
I think, at the very least, they could just have unlimited folders and sub folders.
Seems so basic.
Not that I would use them.. since again.. swipe right, type first letter.. boom.
Seems so basic.
Not that I would use them.. since again.. swipe right, type first letter.. boom.
Nope, quite the opposite, I'm the kind who turns off the write bit on ~/Desktop to keep from ever having a file on it. But iOS doesn't have a desktop, it has a springboard, which is supposed to be a wall of apps.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
Which is an ugly and inefficient way of launching apps.
Buddha Beam
Banned
I can't stand the Android home screen, myself. I find it so impractical. I like that iOS just lays it all out in front of you. It's utilitarian, but still elegant.
Metro is alright, but the flipping panels thing would eventually drive me nuts. It's almost like an annoying Flash ad in a way. I assume you can turn that off though. I don't have much more than a cursory experience with Windows phones... I don't know anybody who has one :/
The only thing I might do to change iOS would be to add multi-column or -row spanning icons that can display information. I suppose I wouldn't be opposed to greater icon placement flexibility either if it made rearranging things in general less of a pain in the ass than it is now. But I rather like the grid layout, as I said.
Metro is alright, but the flipping panels thing would eventually drive me nuts. It's almost like an annoying Flash ad in a way. I assume you can turn that off though. I don't have much more than a cursory experience with Windows phones... I don't know anybody who has one :/
The only thing I might do to change iOS would be to add multi-column or -row spanning icons that can display information. I suppose I wouldn't be opposed to greater icon placement flexibility either if it made rearranging things in general less of a pain in the ass than it is now. But I rather like the grid layout, as I said.
I honestly don't know how people can stare at wall of icons and say it's pratical. It's impossible you use more than 15 apps everytime, unless you basically stare at your phone the whole day.
in my android setup I eliminated all widgets, only have 3 homes screens with the apps (8) I use constantly scattered in 2 of them, with my main homscreen serving as a basic information screen (that means weather, hour, date, battery %) the dock has the apps I use the most for easy access. it's simple, doesn't look like shit, and I customized it myself to make it look like that.
how can anyone argue that kind of flexible customization is bad and apple shouldn't allow it is beyond me. I admit that iOS runs better overall than Android, but it's a trade off I'm willing to take given the amount of customization Android allows. I'm not on ICS yet, though, so I don't know if ICS runs better than GB.
saying android homescreen is impractical is weird, when you can customize to make it as practical as you'd like...
in my android setup I eliminated all widgets, only have 3 homes screens with the apps (8) I use constantly scattered in 2 of them, with my main homscreen serving as a basic information screen (that means weather, hour, date, battery %) the dock has the apps I use the most for easy access. it's simple, doesn't look like shit, and I customized it myself to make it look like that.
how can anyone argue that kind of flexible customization is bad and apple shouldn't allow it is beyond me. I admit that iOS runs better overall than Android, but it's a trade off I'm willing to take given the amount of customization Android allows. I'm not on ICS yet, though, so I don't know if ICS runs better than GB.
saying android homescreen is impractical is weird, when you can customize to make it as practical as you'd like...
It's silky smooth if you have one of those dual core phones (I have the Galaxy Nexus). The times it lags for me is only if it's installing apps while I'm multitasking and sometimes there's a slight keyboard delay depending on what I'm doing. Other than that, it's extremely smooth.
edit: These iOS home screens look terrible...lol. I actually laughed out loud at Sentry's.
It's great iOS is very smooth and efficient in terms of battery life and speed, but I find it strange that people don't care much that the home screen of the OS that they're using looks almost identical to the iPod Touch's many years back. Seriously guys, how can you not be bored of that look after how many years? I know that a lot of iPhone users were introduced to the OS first by the iPod Touch. At least jailbreak your phone or something, damn...
Which is the problem
Yep. It worked fine initially, but under the weight of too many items it simply breaks.
Bitmap Frogs
Mr. Community
That piked my interest.
Grabbed my phone, and searched for "download all" on the appstore.
The first item on the list is Download All(c), which apparently does the same, is cheaper and has a 5 star rating. But the tacky screenshots and the fact the other alternative is Officially Recommended by Dave (TM) pushes me to dig deeper for the genuine item. Which is there, but it has a mere 3 star rating. Interesting. If you didn't know, the iTunes store star ratings and commens have a sort of filter that pushes reviews from your own country. Being familiar with this, I dig even deeper to read the reviews: oh, not so much of a surprise! Bunch of spanish users believed Download All was sort of a pirated media dispenser and downvoted it. LOL.
Mecha_Infantry
Banned
Android users don't like the iOS home screen, go figure!
yes ... that's all that's happening here lol
Sometimes you need access to the heating elements rather that the preset settings for broiling.
Most android widgets are half assed version of the apps made for eye candy purposes.
Twitter widget. Sounds great, but last time I used it, it's not real time and not scroll able. Terrible design decision. The only usage is for us to look at twits from 20 mins ago SLOWLY because you can't scroll through the messages and have to TAP TAP TAP TAP TAP. Also, if you need to do anything at all that is more complex, you have to go into the app itself. Why so half assed? Why not the whole program on your homescreen? You know? Like instant messaging app on our computer?? Duh?
Facebook widget, same complain as the above.
Instagram widget, eye candy, but some people might like it.
Alarm widget. How often do you set up your alarm clock? Once a day? Why would you want a huge widget for something that you do only once a day? Some of us even have already made fixed schedules for the alarm. Eye candy.
Weather widget. Most weather widget fall into the problem of trying to tell us what the weather is right now. How often do we tell ourselves "Oh boy, it sure is hot right now. I wonder what the temperature is!" Probably like twice... a week. A more useful version of the weather widget would be one that's focused on forecast. Then again, they take up too much screen estate in forecast mode for something we look at twice a day.
Quick settings widget. Airplane mode, flashlight, 2g/3g, silent mode or whatever. It's stupid, intuitive and takes up screen space. Works better on the dock on cyanogen's implementation.
Widgets tend to take space as useful as they are. I try to keep my home screen maximum 2 pages because I find it inefficient when there is more than 2 pages. You tend to swipe back and forth trying to look for things.
I guess everyone differs in how they use their device. I use a lot of apps few to moderate times, not few apps a lot of times. Icons serve me best for now. Live icons would be godly to me. I'm pretty fond of windows phone's interface. Very smart.
Here's my list of useful widgets.
RSS widgets is useful when they provide scroll able browser and be real time. You don't want the users to TAP TAP TAP TAP TAP TAP next just to look at everything. My reader of choice (currents) doesn't provide me with a widget and I'm fine with it. I treat mine sort of like a magazine, I will look at it when I feel like reading something.
To do list, you look at this a lot daily and you don't want to keep going in and out of the app.
Evernote widget, it's quite useful and pretty nice eye candy. Sort of overlaps with to-do widget though.
Calendar, similar to to-do list.
Gmail, it provides scroll able widget and it's real time. THIS IS how you make a widget.
Scroll able SMS widgets would be nice too and pretty braindead to figure out, but I can't seem to find one.
Music player. They tend not to take up too much space and useful.
brianmcdoogle
Member
Well, I'm an Apple user, so take this at what it's worth:
I like iOS just fine right now. Having some apps be able to update their icons (live icons) would be convenient for stuff like weather, but that isn't a huge issue to me. And, I really don't care that much for widgets since they tend to slow down the phone, make it unstable, or lessen the battery. That said, I've seen the iOS homepage for several years now without drastic change, and maybe it could use something new.
However, I don't want it to be anything like the jailbroken iphone photos or the android photos shown in this thread. They are universally awful. Either they are too cluttered, with needlessly changed icons, way too many widgets, icons upon icons upon icons, stale/"minimalist" to the point of obscurity, etc.
My point is: maybe I want something new, something better, but I don't know it. But if it is anything like what people in this thread want (who posted pictures), then I want none of it.
I like iOS just fine right now. Having some apps be able to update their icons (live icons) would be convenient for stuff like weather, but that isn't a huge issue to me. And, I really don't care that much for widgets since they tend to slow down the phone, make it unstable, or lessen the battery. That said, I've seen the iOS homepage for several years now without drastic change, and maybe it could use something new.
However, I don't want it to be anything like the jailbroken iphone photos or the android photos shown in this thread. They are universally awful. Either they are too cluttered, with needlessly changed icons, way too many widgets, icons upon icons upon icons, stale/"minimalist" to the point of obscurity, etc.
My point is: maybe I want something new, something better, but I don't know it. But if it is anything like what people in this thread want (who posted pictures), then I want none of it.
ThatObviousUser
ὠαἴÏÏιÏÏÎ¿Ï Ïαá¿Ï εἶ
Holo. <3
This is the new "post your phone homescreen thread?"
This is the new "post your phone homescreen thread?"
victreeb3l
Member
i think its okay. i wouldnt mind a revamp but im not really craving one right now either. ability to customize it would be nice but again, not a deal breaker.
what i would like them to change is making the music play better. i cant believe my blackberry is better at music than my ipod. i hate having to double tap on the home button to quick change songs or stop them. on the bb, i just hold either of the volume buttons and songs change.
granted they dont have a third button to be used as a quick pause/play button but these simple things make the music listening experience SO much better, especially while working out.
if theres a way to do that on the ipod and im a total idiot for overlooking it please let me know
what i would like them to change is making the music play better. i cant believe my blackberry is better at music than my ipod. i hate having to double tap on the home button to quick change songs or stop them. on the bb, i just hold either of the volume buttons and songs change.
granted they dont have a third button to be used as a quick pause/play button but these simple things make the music listening experience SO much better, especially while working out.
if theres a way to do that on the ipod and im a total idiot for overlooking it please let me know
ThatObviousUser
ὠαἴÏÏιÏÏÎ¿Ï Ïαá¿Ï εἶ
Kinda agree... I feel pressured to use all five screens, but a lot of it could be put in folders.
:lol
I hate filling up a page with icons. I always leave at east 2 spaces on each page. Much easier on the eyes in my opinion. I also disable the stupid badges (save for a few apps like Phone/Messages).
The spring board is one of the reasons why i left iOS. I got tired of jailbreaking and navigating the crappy cydia store to find good themes. 99% were awful too.
Heres what my android phone looks like. Unrooted.
Edits: its still difficult uploading and posting from the phone
That looks really good. Where did you get the icons?
So this thread's become an Android screenshot page now? I wanna play! From my backup Android phone:
Notification bar hidden, I swipe down to pull it out. I make very heavy use of icon gestures, e.g swiping up on the phone icon direct dials my wife, up on the browser brings up the marketplace, up on the messaging icon brings up mail.
About iOS, I think it's terribly stale and high time for a revamp. However most iOS users are content with the way things are, so more power to them, I guess. Oh and I've always thought iOS folder implementation was terrible, 9 little icons in one? On a screen full of folders it looks like somebody threw up all over it.
Notification bar hidden, I swipe down to pull it out. I make very heavy use of icon gestures, e.g swiping up on the phone icon direct dials my wife, up on the browser brings up the marketplace, up on the messaging icon brings up mail.
About iOS, I think it's terribly stale and high time for a revamp. However most iOS users are content with the way things are, so more power to them, I guess. Oh and I've always thought iOS folder implementation was terrible, 9 little icons in one? On a screen full of folders it looks like somebody threw up all over it.
Ollie Pooch
In a perfect world, we'd all be homersexual
After a few weeks of using Android, there's really not a huge difference in their core - some aesthetic stuff but for regular day to day you don't really notice a huge deal. It's the little things - like, say downloading an mp3 from a music blog and having it appear in your music player - that I like in my new phone, and something that Apple would never allow you to do.
I'm not sure Apple really do need to change their homescreen - it's testament to how simply it just WORKS that they've barely had to change it since it launched.
I'm not sure Apple really do need to change their homescreen - it's testament to how simply it just WORKS that they've barely had to change it since it launched.
MarkMclovin
Member
People need to stop posting their Android homescreens!
So you're saying that they CAN be useful now?
I agree that some apps just don't need to be 'widgetfied', as you're probably better off going straight to it. But at the end of the day, they are there to provide an at a glance view. There are 1000's of widgets that do the same job, only they look different. And the google store doesn't really do a good job of finding those little gems that are there.
Personally, I prefer everything to be on the lock screen, in live text format. On my GS2, I was using the SlimICS ROM, which allowed you to have the time, date, to do list, events in the calendar (that scrolled if you had more than 1 event), alarm time, weather and then any missed calls, sms's, and emails. I might be wrong, but it may have been the lockscreen for the Galaxy Nexus, but tweaked.
I'm not a fan of these big blocks taking up space, but I am a massive fan of having all the info I need at just 1 press of a button.
So you're saying that they CAN be useful now?
I agree that some apps just don't need to be 'widgetfied', as you're probably better off going straight to it. But at the end of the day, they are there to provide an at a glance view. There are 1000's of widgets that do the same job, only they look different. And the google store doesn't really do a good job of finding those little gems that are there.
Personally, I prefer everything to be on the lock screen, in live text format. On my GS2, I was using the SlimICS ROM, which allowed you to have the time, date, to do list, events in the calendar (that scrolled if you had more than 1 event), alarm time, weather and then any missed calls, sms's, and emails. I might be wrong, but it may have been the lockscreen for the Galaxy Nexus, but tweaked.
I'm not a fan of these big blocks taking up space, but I am a massive fan of having all the info I need at just 1 press of a button.
They can be, but at their current iteration almost all of them are crap which is so frustrating. So close but so far. The twitter widget is the one that makes me rage the most. It should have been one of the most useful widget one can get, yet it's crap.
I do have widgets on my homescreen because I find 3 them useful. Namely calendar, gmail and to do list. That's because I glance at them a lot when I'm at work. But the rest of them are pretty much useless eye candy or crap at this moment. Only 3 useful widgets out of thousands? Something is really wrong, don't you think?
I can't even find a scrolling sms widget for heaven's sake. RAAAAAAGGGEEEEEEEEE!!
Man do I envy you. On my Nexus I don't know where anything is, or how it works and it never does what I want
Get an app with a scrollable widget. Easy.
Get an app with a scrollable widget. Easy.
Don't use instagram so I don't know.
I have a clock. When I press the time part it takes me to alarm. When I press the date it takes me to the calendar.
Get a weather widget which shows forecast. Easy.
Yes, I too prefer the quick settings widget in the notification bar. I still don't see how it's stupid as is though.
There are several, but they seem to rely on you using a particular launcher. Just Google it and you'll find the necessary info. On my last phone I used to use the Pure Messenger widget which is scrollable and can be used for SMS, email, Facebook, Twitter etc. (you can choose what's displayed).
I still don't get the hate for more customisation options, given that you can make an Android phone look like this if you really want to: -
The argument about simplicity is bullshit IMO. People here aren't dummies. It's not like widgets and customisability mean you're all "shit, I can't figure out how this works!".
mescalineeyes
Banned
I still don't get the hate for more customisation options, given that you can make an Android phone look like this if you really want to: -
I knew I could make any Android phone look like shit.
I still don't get the hate for more customisation options, given that you can make an Android phone look like this if you really want to: -
Funnily enough, I think that's the cleanest and nicest Android theme I've seen posted yet. There was another nice minimal one posted further up too.
This topic has made me realise that I don't just tolerate the iOS homescreen, I actively like the design.
how is it inefficient? how is it less efficient than having to manage a separate app drawer and multiple home screens?
yes, its possible that an app layout can be ugly with differing icon styles, but its actually very efficient. apps are front and center and one tap away if you keep them on the main screen. the only second layer is folders, which are user initiated, instead of being imposed on the user as the app drawer is on Android.
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