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Great post, though you really did pick an extreme screenshot for the iOS example. Something like Messages, Mail, or Calendar would be a more representative scre

Great post, though you really did pick an extreme screenshot for the iOS example. Something like Messages, Mail, or Calendar would be a more representative screenshot. It did remind me how much "find friends" and Game Center make my eyes bleed though.

edouard1234567 14y ago
+1 to that, I made the same comment at the same time :)
mtmoore55 14y ago
That's a good point guys. I didn't really intend for the Find Your Friends screen to represent Apple's UI aesthetic as much as an extreme example of real-life metaphors. It's pretty clear Apple is going away from that look as fast as they can.
- publicfig 14y ago
  You didn't? It's the only screenshot a section with W8, Android and iOS. Really looks like a representation to me.
  - lotso 14y ago
    Actually, the screenshots are iOS, iOS Google App, and WP8.
saint-loup 14y ago
Same thing for Windows Phone. Obviously, it's on every marketing material from Microsoft, but I don't see it as the killer feature of the OS, especially on WP8. The tiles have three different sizes, can be pictures or not, can be animated or not... The result is a mess. Highly connected and informative, certainly, but a mess nonetheless.
- lotso 14y ago
  Can you explain why the tiles of Windows Phone is a mess?
  - warfangle 14y ago
    * Constantly animating with new information often leads to overload (see: marquee tag) * Lack of affordances mask what actions can be taken by tapping on a given tile * Lack of differentiation between the functions of different tiles leads to a confusing experience
    - steverb 14y ago
      Other than the animations, what is the difference between tiles and app icons on every other mobile OS?
      - logn 14y ago
        Tiles convey information. I don't think iPhone does this. Android has had this since the beginning I believe. E.g., you can add a weather tile to see forecasts. Or the clock tile.
    - pedalpete 14y ago
      The constant animation I can agree with somewhat. Tapping a tile and the functions of different tiles isn't confusing because all tiles upon tapping have the same function, open the app. You can't actually interact with a live-tile in any way, though maybe you are suggesting that the animations of the tiles is suggestive that you can take an action on the tile other than open the app. In this regard, a WP tile is the same as an app icon on any other platform. Having said that, I think the challenge in WP8 vs WP7 is the 3rd size for the tile (WP7 had only two sizes, square and landscape). The smaller sized tile does allow more info/apps/tiles to be shown on the homescreen, but it certainly clutters up the interface and makes it somewhat overwhelming.

edouard1234567 14y ago

+1 to that, I made the same comment at the same time :)

mtmoore55 14y ago

That's a good point guys. I didn't really intend for the Find Your Friends screen to represent Apple's UI aesthetic as much as an extreme example of real-life metaphors. It's pretty clear Apple is going away from that look as fast as they can.

publicfig 14y ago
You didn't? It's the only screenshot a section with W8, Android and iOS. Really looks like a representation to me.
- lotso 14y ago
  Actually, the screenshots are iOS, iOS Google App, and WP8.

saint-loup 14y ago

Same thing for Windows Phone. Obviously, it's on every marketing material from Microsoft, but I don't see it as the killer feature of the OS, especially on WP8. The tiles have three different sizes, can be pictures or not, can be animated or not... The result is a mess. Highly connected and informative, certainly, but a mess nonetheless.

lotso 14y ago
Can you explain why the tiles of Windows Phone is a mess?
- warfangle 14y ago
  * Constantly animating with new information often leads to overload (see: marquee tag) * Lack of affordances mask what actions can be taken by tapping on a given tile * Lack of differentiation between the functions of different tiles leads to a confusing experience
  - steverb 14y ago
    Other than the animations, what is the difference between tiles and app icons on every other mobile OS?
    - logn 14y ago
      Tiles convey information. I don't think iPhone does this. Android has had this since the beginning I believe. E.g., you can add a weather tile to see forecasts. Or the clock tile.
  - pedalpete 14y ago
    The constant animation I can agree with somewhat. Tapping a tile and the functions of different tiles isn't confusing because all tiles upon tapping have the same function, open the app. You can't actually interact with a live-tile in any way, though maybe you are suggesting that the animations of the tiles is suggestive that you can take an action on the tile other than open the app. In this regard, a WP tile is the same as an app icon on any other platform. Having said that, I think the challenge in WP8 vs WP7 is the 3rd size for the tile (WP7 had only two sizes, square and landscape). The smaller sized tile does allow more info/apps/tiles to be shown on the homescreen, but it certainly clutters up the interface and makes it somewhat overwhelming.