Remember the controversial introduction iOS 7

With only days before WWDC, consensus is that Apple will reveal a great overhaul of visionos inspiration in its operating systems. And although some can fear a rehearsal of the IOS 7 announcement a decade ago, it was quite long that many readers do not remember (or may have never even seen) what this revision looked like.

Here is a quick refreshment of what happened, and why this year will probably be (I hope?) Will be different.

The years between 2011 and 2013 were fairly busy in Apple. After the death of Steve Jobs, Apple licensed Scott Forstall (then please from iOS software) on the sloppy version of Apple Maps. This left a gap in the leadership of the software design, which was filled by Jony IVE, who also led the hardware design.

Shortly after, rumors began to swirl that he provided for a major visual overhaul of the whole system.

Flat

In the perspective of WWDC 2013, the Wall Street Journal reported That I worked on “a” flat design “more contributing and simpler”, a lively gap of the great skeuomorphic visuals of the time (think of linen textures, paper type files, glass effects, and yes, in Corinthian leather).

Some time after that, 9TO5MAC shared exclusively models of the overhaul, which had been disclosed to Mark Gurman.

It was chaos.

I remember very well having thought that it was reckless to publish so unfairly primitive sketches of what would certainly be a more polished overhaul. After weeks of intense debate and ferocious expectations that rumors had been wrong, Apple presented iOS 7:

In the years that followed, Apple has reduced its reduction in its system of the system, evolving towards what we have today. Now, it’s about to change again.

Why iOS 26 will probably not be like iOS 7

Currently, most reports tend to agree that the overhaul will be deeply influenced by the visual language of Visionos, with its translucent layers, its depth effects and its soft glass textures. And even if you are like me and you have never worn a pro Apple, it is likely that you have seen what Visionos looks like. Apple has already laid the foundations, so change will not be such a shocking surprise, as with iOS 7.

And from the point of view of the design, speaking like someone who has been working in graphic design for more than two decades, the best movement that Apple could do is exactly what was reported: the update: the update: the update: the update: the update: all systems at the same time.

If you have already had to adapt the interfaces and key visuals to several concepts, such as wide, narrow, square, rectangular, large, small, etc., you know that with each new appearance report, you become a little more familiar and more comfortable with each individual element.

Starting with the practically limitless and unstrunted environment of visionos, then moving more and more to smaller interfaces through macos, iPados, iOS and Watchos, each decision informs past and future visual adaptations. In other words, an overhaul of this large can be iterative in both directions.

Will it be beautiful? It is subjective. Even iOS 7 had a handful of defenders. But one thing is certain: Apple’s design team knows how important this moment is.

It is the greatest task that has been granted to them since I left the company, and they are well aware of the disputed history of iOS design updates. The simple fact that the new design has not yet disclosed indicates the absence of dissidents inside the team, and considering how close we are, it is already a victory in itself.