
iOS 7 is Yucky. Why Isn't Anyone Saying So? - benstein
http://ios7yucky.tumblr.com/
======
potatolicious
Because it turns out most people don't really mind. The general feeling I've
gotten from people around me is that they _like_ iOS7.

Addressing a few specific ones:

> _" What’s with the fly-in animation all the time?"_

This has existed since the very first version of iOS. How is this at all an
iOS7-specific complaint? The fly-in hasn't changed in any substantial way
since the very first iPhone.

> _" Especially for common workflow tasks like switching from an app to
> 1Password and back to the app."_

Use the task switcher, which is now much faster than before? The task
switching animation on older versions of iOS took eons unnecessarily (it was a
very slow animation that "swapped" two cards). The new one is much, much
faster. You're talking about an overall improvement in iOS7, not a regression.

> _" Default wallpaper color theme is white on cyan."_

It isn't. The default wallpaper on the GM/final build is a dark blue
starfield, no contrast problems at all. It was only the cyan dynamic wallpaper
in early betas.

Blah blah blah, the self-anointed aesthetique classe will continue to pick
apart iOS7 in whatever ways they can find. In the meantime the world will keep
using it, and people (Apple included) who spend more time developing and
creating than bitching will find ways to improve it (like the community has
improved iOS in the past - see: left-navigation, pull-to-refresh, etc). By
_far_ the biggest complaint I've heard from lay users re: iOS7 is performance
on older devices. I've yet to meet a single person who despises iOS7's design
as much as the self-appointed defenders of good taste.

~~~
aes
>> "Especially for common workflow tasks like switching from an app to
1Password and back to the app."

> Use the task switcher, which is now much faster than before?

This was actually one of the "Wow! They've thought about the little things"
moments on iOS7. I was copying a phone number or an address from another app,
and with the new task switcher I didn't even have to launch the other app
since the information I was looking for was already visible from the switcher.

------
nemothekid
Really grasping at straws here for the "REALLY yucky". Can't see how someone
can mistake a stopwatch for safari.

------
hnriot
Actually a lot of people are saying so.

The sleep-wake fade is going to cause car accidents. All those people that
click home button to quickly look down and check new messages now have to take
their eyes off the road for much longer while ios 7 gets around to fading in
the screen.

apart from the timestamps on messages, I can't find a single new feature. The
stupid instagram mode in the camera app (square and real-time filters) is
dumb. I can use instagram if I want my photos to all look like crap. The
photos summarize mode is totally useless, it's great for demos, but not
actually useful, I've had siri off since day 1 so I don't know if that works
any better.

And as for the flying icons on unlock, the fact that you can't turn it off is
inexcusable.

Basically ios7 is just a theme. It's not a new version. If Apple want to
introduce new themes then I'm all for that, but give me more than one every
two years. How about actual features that are useful, Apple? I still can't use
the music app and search for a song, sure I can use spotlight, but it searches
everything, not just music.

and such glaring design flaws like the tumblr shows, and plenty I could add,
like swipe down control center and switch off bluetooth by mistake half the
time. Or swipe from center down to get spotlight? WTF!

edit: correction, I found one useful feature, block telemarketers! That's
worth the update, even if the rest of the update is guff.

~~~
threeseed
If you are operating your phone whilst driving then you deserve to crash.

And on your points. Yes you can search in Music, pull the list down and the
search bar appears. Filters are useless sure but I don't remember Apple
forcing you to use them. And I have not once hit the Bluetooth button whilst
swiping control centre so it might be just a personal thing.

~~~
deadbeef404
> If you are operating your phone whilst driving then you deserve to crash.

Does the same apply to the radio?

~~~
h4pless
Car radios are generally designed so they can be used without having to look
at them. Sure they have displays, but they almost always have a tactile design
that allows them to be operated by touch and sound without having to take your
eyes off the road.

Smartphones however cannot generally be operated with much precision without
having to occasionally look at them, which is why they are becoming
increasingly illegal to use while driving. But to your question, I would say
no: the same does not apply to most car radios.

------
threeseed
This is probably the dumbest post I've seen yet on iOS 7. The default
wallpaper is not cyan. It changes depending on phone and user. The number of
emails you see in Notification Center is controlled in your Settings and it is
not supposed to be a competitor to Google Now. The photo chrome hides when you
tap on the photo and finally the Messages bubbles aren't that shade of green.
It's darker and just as readable as iOS 6.

------
stephen_g
Sure there are areas to improve, but overall I'm really liking iOS 7.

To the blog author - sorry if you think that your opinion == the objective,
absolute truth, but it's not. It's just one opinion of many.

------
borland
I like iOS 7 a lot. Why isn't anyone saying so?

~~~
blisterpeanuts
I like it, too. It's definitely an improvement, at least on my iPad2, visually
appealing, feels faster, slicker, very refined. Maybe it's a different user
experience on an iPhone, I don't know; I use Android 4.3 for my phone and
mini-tablet.

------
kevincrane
While I agree with a few of your points, re: "Why Isn't Anyone Saying So?", a
lot of people are saying so. I think I remember two other Tumblr blogs in the
last week on HN making the exact same argument. Careful with the linkbait
titles.

------
jere
I think the illegible text is a pretty serious complaint. A lot of the visual
metaphors typically used in _nonflat_ design have real purposes. Kind of silly
to throw them out because it just so happens you used too many leather
textures in previous designs.

Text shadow is pretty damn useful. With certain color combinations, it's
practically required.
[http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzA2LzEyLzY3L2lvczd2c...](http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzA2LzEyLzY3L2lvczd2c2lvczYuNWQxZTUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJOTUweDUzNCMKZQlqcGc/0ff4a0b9/bb0/ios7-vs-
ios6.jpg)

~~~
plorkyeran
The text is often hard to read in screenshots, but I have no trouble
whatsoever reading the same text on the actual phone. Oddly enough the
combination of having double the resolution and the phone being much closer to
my face than my monitor makes a huge difference.

~~~
dingaling
> and the phone being much closer to my face

I was curious about this statement, so I've just checked with my old, non-
trendy Android phone and the results were:

Face to laptop monitor: 66cm Face to smartphone: 55 cm

Not too surprising as most people I see using smartphones hold them at near
full arm extension.

------
innino
People's emotional relationship with a company or brand predetermines to a
large extent whether they will react positively or negatively to a new product
or design. The same product released by Microsoft might have been met by a
flurry of negativity and/or apathy, with a few people trying to fight the tide
by pointing out positive aspects. With Apple the situation is reversed. The
lesson is that actual execution is not so important, it is more how you have
built your brand over time. It's just like at school, the same joke said by a
cool kid and greeted with laughter, if tried by an uncool kid will probably
fall flat.

And it's hard for both school kids and companies to escape the trap of
uncoolness - it tends to give people a whiny, desperate element - which people
hate. Part of the reason people are so harsh on Microsoft and soft on Apple,
because the former seems to try so hard to impress while the latter is
effortless and self-assured. Humans can be pretty cruel. But I think it does
make a big difference to your sense of self with buying or using products from
these different companies - Apple users feel relaxed and confident with their
iDevices, someone who uses Microsoft stuff might feel insecure and defensive
in comparison.

------
nwh
The animations are the worst bit by far. I'm constantly hitting the end of
them and having my touches ignored.

------
gareim
While I haven't personally played with it yet, this was the first reaction
from a nontechy friend I got:

"ITS. SO. BEAUTIFUL. I feel like I have a new phone. I took off the case for a
little bit while on my bed just for the funsies. makes me feel like I'm
holding a piece of heaven"

~~~
MAGZine
felt the same way when my android phone jumped from 2.3 to 4.0

------
larsbot
_iOS 7 is REALLY yucky. Why Isn 't Anyone Saying So?_

Have you considered maybe it's because most people don't agree with you? I
think you point out some real UI issues, but to me, they are more annoyances
than "really yucky."

------
terabytest
This looks as if it was written by a person who hasn't actually used iOS 7 for
more than 10 minutes in total on an actual iPhone. All of the things you say
are untrue or imprecise. The default background is the "starry night" one.

The only problem so far with backgrounds is that in some cases the icon labels
become hard to read.

The rest is just uninformed FUD.

------
adamnemecek
If only you had the option not to use it.

------
MAGZine
I can't help but feel that jobs would've had something to say on the majority
of these complaints (i.e. they would not exist)

------
svmegatron
Where do you hang out online that you get the impression no one is saying it's
yucky?

------
spullara
iOS7 is winning this poll by quite a bit:

[http://polarb.com/polls/126643](http://polarb.com/polls/126643)

