request allowing high priority notifications for when
your doorbell is rung or your alarm triggered.
And let’s get rid of notification badges. The little red
dot on app icons is useless vestige of an old mobile
world. It is high visual impact but low information
density – all it can do is provide a number, which could
mean anything depending on the app. Worse, it doesn’t
tell you if any actions are needed or what they should
be. Their existence owes more to inertia than to actually
improving our phone experience.- Always-on display with complications
The Apple Watch has an always-on display. OLED
Android phones have had always-on displays for
years. There’s no reason why the OLED iPhone models
can’t have them as well.
The always-on ‘sleep’ screen for the iPhone should
be similar to the lock screen, with a few adjustments.
It should display time, date, and battery life on
a black background (to save battery life), but no
notifications. Perhaps new notifications could briefly
appear and go away, but we need fewer reasons to
pick up our phone, not more.
To that end, I’d love to see Apple take the idea of
complications from the Apple Watch and add them to
the lock screen and always-on sleep screen. Perhaps
four of them, flanking the clock, with standardized
formats. Developers could produce complications for
their apps and what they would display, and users
could choose which four they want to see.
This would be a great way to get simple information
without picking up our phones and diving into apps.
requestallowinghighprioritynotificationsforwhen
yourdoorbellisrungoryouralarmtriggered.
Andlet’sgetridofnotificationbadges.Thelittlered
dotonappiconsisuselessvestigeofanoldmobile
world.Itishighvisualimpactbutlowinformation
density–allitcandoisprovideanumber,whichcould
meananythingdependingontheapp.Worse,itdoesn’t
tellyouifanyactionsareneededorwhattheyshould
be.Theirexistenceowesmoretoinertiathantoactually
improvingourphoneexperience.
7.Always-ondisplaywithcomplications
TheAppleWatchhasanalways-ondisplay.OLED
Androidphoneshavehadalways-ondisplaysfor
years.There’snoreasonwhytheOLEDiPhonemodels
can’thavethemaswell.
Thealways-on‘sleep’screenfortheiPhoneshould
besimilartothelockscreen,withafewadjustments.
Itshoulddisplaytime,date,andbatterylifeon
ablack background(tosavebatterylife),butno
notifications.Perhapsnewnotificationscouldbriefly
appearandgoaway,butweneedfewerreasonsto
pick upourphone,notmore.
Tothatend,I’dlovetoseeAppletaketheideaof
complicationsfromtheAppleWatchandaddthemto
thelockscreenandalways-onsleepscreen.Perhaps
fourofthem,flankingtheclock,withstandardized
formats.Developerscouldproducecomplicationsfor
theirappsandwhattheywoulddisplay,andusers
couldchoosewhichfourtheywanttosee.
Thiswouldbeagreatwaytogetsimpleinformation
withoutpickingupourphonesanddivingintoapps.