Apple Inc. is preparing one of the most dramatic software overhauls in the company’s history, aiming to transform the interface of the iPhone, iPad and Mac for a new generation of users.
The revamp — due later this year — will fundamentally change the look of the operating systems and make Apple’s various software platforms more consistent, according to people familiar with the effort. That includes updating the style of icons, menus, apps, windows and system buttons.
As part of the push, the company is working to simplify the way users navigate and control their devices, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the project hasn’t been announced. The design is loosely based on the Vision Pro’s software, they said.
Apple is betting that a breakthrough new interface can help spur demand after a sluggish stretch. Its revenue slowed following a pandemic-era surge in technology spending, and growth is only returning gradually. Apple’s iPhone — its biggest moneymaker — suffered a surprise dip in sales during the most recent holiday season.
I don’t feel like anything good can come of this. It smacks of the change from Aqua to Metal to non-skeumorphic UI, and not like the change from HIG-backed to Aqua UI.
And “most dramatic software overhaul” without taking all that history into consideration is also worrying.
I’m all for Apple reining things in to once again map to a focused HIG sheet… assuming they’ve done the research like they did the first time to figure out what sort of consistent interface language will resonate across their modern customer base.
Basing it on Vision Pro really doesn’t sound like that’s what they’ve done though.
The vision pro is basically just ipadOS but shittier, the only good thing in visionOS is the eye tracking and that’s terrible half the time