The last big change to the design of Apple's iOS software for iPhone came in 2013, with the release of iOS 7. This eschewed skeuomorphism in favour of flat, colourful design – and from a design perspective, every update since then has felt pretty incremental. But fans think Apple has begun teasing another dramatic new look for the iPhone – and it could be inspired by the Vision Pro.
We've already marvelled at the highly visual new menu screen for assigning actions to the iPhone 15 Pro's new Action button. And now that users have had time to fully get to grips with both iOS 17 and the new iPhones, it seems the it isn't the only example of a dramatically different style for Apple.
Apple is definitely teasing an iOS redesign!Have a look at these screenshots, everything looks so unlike Apple's current software!Personally, I think it has something to do with the Vision Pro headset... pic.twitter.com/MrdHwmzgc1October 16, 2023
From the aforementioned Action Button menu to the splash screen for assigning actions to the Apple Watch Series 9's Double Tap feature, we're seeing lots more full-screen, highly interactive menus. And then there's the new iMessage apps menu, which features circular icons akin to, yep, those of VisionOS.
That would definitely explain it - these new views are so odd looking in the current iOS… https://t.co/4bzsnda26VOctober 16, 2023
Users have begun to speculate that Apple is planning a more unified design language across its devices, with aspects of VisionOS trickling down to the likes of the iPhone. Indeed, that Double Tap feature is straight out of the Vision Pro's gesture controls, so this isn't the first time we've seen evidence of the devices coming together from a software perspective.
And with the last truly game-changing iPhone design update arriving 10 years ago, it wouldn't be surprising to see something equally dramatic, perhaps even as soon as next year. We're calling it now – iOS 18 could look very different.
