Slivka reports, “According to BGR, Apple is in fact contemplating doing just that, with both the iPad and iPhone being considered for home button removal. ‘We have exclusively been told that the reason Apple just added multitouch gestures for the iPad in the latest iOS 4.3 beta is because the iPad will be losing the home button. Yes, we are told that Apple, at some point in time, will remove the home button from the iPad’s design. Instead of button taps, you will use new multitouch gestures to navigate to the home screen and also to launch the app switcher. That’s not all, however. In addition to the home button disappearing from the iPad, we’re told that this change will make its way over to the iPhone as well.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Uh oh, if so: Grandma, we’ve got some training to do!
I’m a bit skeptical about it. Maybe the iPad but not the iPhone.
I can see iPad. But iphone is a one hand gadget.
Doubtful. I think the Home button will remain, along with these new gestures to access the Home screen.
The iPhone needs the top and bottom “handles” as a way to hold the iPhone in landscape orientation, without touching or blocking the screen with your thumbs, so it won’t save any space to remove the button. The iPad needs all four sides for the same reason, so although they can get a bit thinner than on the first gen iPad, you are not going to see an iPad with the screen extending to the edge (so there will be plenty of space for a button).
I think they are spreading rumors so that the competition blindly does just that, remove home button
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Nooooooooooooo!!!!! Too prone to error. Apple better survey their customers.
I can see how that would work 99 percent of the time, but it could also present problems. Let’s say you’re playing a game of some kind and in the process of playing swipe the screen in a way that causes it to think you want to go “home.”
That would be annoying.
BSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBSBS
Completely RIDICULOUS. Got to be from Enderle, Moritz, Savitz, Abramsky or one of their aliases. Stupidest thing I’ve heard in a long time.
This is the dumbest thing I’ve heard all week, and when it’s comes to Apple, there is lots of dumb to go around.
Seriously, how Manu of you are operating your iOS device with one hand right now? Dumb as shit, these guys.
Makes sense in a minimalist kind of way. Apple’s been doing away with a lot of things, removing the user replaceable battery for instance, all in the name of user efficiency.
On the other side of the burning bush, meanwhile, Google has been adding stuff to its Android phones, in complete contrast to Apple. I wouldn’t be surprised if they added a toilet flush button – to save you a bit of time as you flush the piece of shit down the crapper.
If they did anything I think they would redesign the home button itself. I don’t even know why its an actual push button. They should make it just like their cinemas were with a flat button that you didn’t push in.. but you touched it. And it would work just like the home button does now.. and if anything it keeps it closed up more so one less chance of getting the button stuck. I know some people who have had a stuck button.. probably from spilling soda on it.. but that issue would go away with a “touch” button instead of a “push” button..
just my 2 cents but I think it would be pretty cool to have a touch home button
As others have said, this would be sweet on the iPad, but the iPhone needs some kind of home button, doesn’t have to be a physical button though. But you should be able to do almost everything on your iPhone with your thumb.
So much for a hard reset when your apps lock up.
I think it’s probably an additional method to get to the Home screen, but removing the Home button from the iPhone and iPod touch would be a mistake.
Without a Home button, how in the world would I drive, text, make phone calls, and pull up Maps?!? All while drinking my morning coffee? Not to mention a good game of Sol Free . . . .
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!
I agree with jtc. Maybe a touch buttton. And the cool multi touch gestures too! Which you could customise….. Hm!
Sure hope not
Reading the detailed iLounge article about these changes, it appears as if the multitouch swipes are for iPad only, and are not activated for iPhone or iPod touch. So the Home button would have to remain for the small devices, but could go away for the iPad.
Go for it Steve, fewer physical button on the surface the better and this should allow a narrower margins on the sides.
Go APPLE
highly unlikely!!
I don’t believe they will remove it.
The new swipe gestures are a matter of convenience only, they’re not going to replace the Home button, which has many different uses beyond just taking you back to the “Home” screen.
Taking you to the first Home screen when you’ve swiped to another.
Taking you to the search screen when you’re at the first home screen.
Taking you to the task bar when double-clicked.
Taking a screen shot when used in conjunction with the sleep button.
Bringing up voice control when held down for 3 seconds.
They would need different gestures for all of these actions if they got rid of the Home button.
I don’t like the idea of removing the home button. And in fact, they need a trackpad on it!
When Apple designed the iPhone, it’s likely that, in order to make use of unused surface as a result of inner component placement, Apple decided to make the space functional by placing a Home button. If technology has advanced enough since the original design to effectively do away with a Home button as replaced with new gestures, what will happen to the unused space then?
1) replace the unused space with a bigger screen? Possible (and on my wish list)
2) replace the unused space with nothing? Unlikely as that would be inefficient use of space
3) keep the Home button despite the available new gesture option? Possible
It’s hard to predict what Apple will do. But, we know they will do their best to make sure the user experience is the one most people would be happy with. When iPhone was originally introduced, I wondered why there was a Home button. After all, why not just make the ‘Go to Home Screen’ command either a gesture or some image on the screen to tap on?!
It’s fun to speculate. But, whatever Apple decides, I’m getting the new iPhone 5.
This is HORSESHIT! When Apple adds a keyboard shortcut do all the jerkoff pundits say “Apple to remove the Menu Bar”? Well, they probably do say that but it doesn’t mean they’re right or that it’s at all newsworthy! MDN grasping for straws…
I dont like the home button removal idea..
games, as one poster above pointed out, would turn into a pain to play/quit.
now as another person pointed out, make the home button not a physical button but a touch sensitive button… all for that.
Personally the buttons on the iphone now, the least it should be. the orientation lock/mute on a ipad, i can see them removed. on the iPhone the Lock button has a purpose, same with volume, and the home button. the Mute on the iPhone i use all day long…
my home button is the one i would think is going to be the first one to go out and need replaced.
MDN’s take is right, there will be a LOT of training to be done. and not by just grandma’s…