Simplicity is KEY

Watching this week’s video, I immediately picked up my iphone and began comparing the current design of the iOS 7 to that iteration of iOS that was available at that time. My of the points that Tufte made were that simplicity the cornerstone on what made iPhone so successful.

As much as Tufte, hold in high regard the simplicity of most of the design he finds fault with two particular areas of the the phone: the weather app and the stock app. He explains that although the simplicity allows for create user interaction he would prefer to have more detailed information. This is one point that he made that I disagree with. Adding more detail to these particular areas would take away from the overall user experience. As an iPhone user I prefer to get an overall view of my weather versus detail. If I wanted more detail then I would have sough the information out on a larger display.  In the areas of the device that he expressed a need for greater detail, the introduction of iPad seemed to have solved that problem. It was a great medium between smart phone and computer.

I think the biggest thing that I took from the video is that simplicity is sometimes better than unneeded detail. When creating my own designs, particularly those that are meant for users to interact with, I have to keep in mind that simplicity is sometimes the best way of conveying information. Also, given the success that Apple has had in the past few years, simplicity could provide a richer and fuller user experience. Even though simplicity is the highlight of the video, there were minor detailing in some apps that provided an added tough. For example the clouds used to depict the weather or the rain drops used to show rain. The right amount of detailing and finding an appropriate place in your design is what could take it from being good to great.

Interestingly enough, many critiques Tufte had of iOS were eventually changed in later releases of the software and today with iOS it is extremely flat and utilizes extremely simplistic design. After introducing a simplistic design that revolutionized smartphones, I do wonder what changes will be made the next time Apple does completely redesign their entire mobile OS.