Apple’s iOS mobile operating system is revered in the mobile industry, and there’s little doubting its reputation as one of the smoothest out there. With that said, long-time iOS users have noticed progress stagnate over the past few iterations, and with the sixth edition releasing last September, it just felt like more of the same. With Jony Ive now at the helm, the iPhone and iPad community have high hopes, and some have already thrown some ideas of their own into the mix. YouTuber BlogB13 is one such individual, and has quite wonderfully recreated key elements of iOS, including revamped Notifications, Social Hub and an all-new multitasking concept.
Drip-feeding hardware to consumers in order to keep subsequent releases interesting is one thing, but Apple always seems to have held back on really unleashing the changes with regards to software, too. The jailbreak community has led the way in terms of improving iOS’s core functionality, and while Apple has brought some significant upgrades over the past few releases, they’ve either not fit for purpose (Maps), or felt somewhat incomplete (Game Center, Notification Center, Multitasking etc).
BlogB13’s concepts are some of the best we have seen to date. His take on the Notification Center offers an enriched, interactive experience with each app. The current configuration does a satisfactory job, but the conceptual arrangement sees the Notification Center take on new levels of functionality:
The concept of the Multitasking feature takes me straight back to that earlier point about the jailbreak community, and Apple’s inability to consider many of the best entries. An upward swipe gesture sees the current multitask bar make way for an Exposé-like interface, akin also to the Multifl0w tweak created by respected jailbreaker Aaron Ash. By being able to preview open apps, the conceptual multitask bar is infinitely more useful, and considering the one-dimensional capabilities of the current iOS multitasking feature, I, for one, would love to see such an implementation with iOS 7.
BlogB13 also shares an interestingly-conjured Social Hub, which makes the process of communicating with friends and associates just that little bit more pleasurable. To be honest, with the integration with Facebook and Twitter, social networking is arguably an area of less concern with iOS 7. Nevertheless, Social Hub keeps everything – and everybody – neatly filed in one place. Check it out:
So, what’s your verdict? Personally, I think the Notification Center aspect comes up trumps here, but having been very disappointed with the lack of substantial changes with iOS 6, I certainly won’t be the only one hoping for a redeeming effort next time around.
(Thanks to Kyle Barnes for sending these in!)
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