There've been a lot of rumors lately about how Jony Ive, now in charge of all human interface across Apple, may be reducing or eliminating the use of heavier textures, gradients, skeuomorphs, and other rich visual elements in iOS 7. Everything from buttons to icons, tabs to panels, bars to skins seems ripe for a subtler, flatter refresh. But what does that mean exactly?
For some, "flatter" could just mean taking things down a notch -- less severe gradients, lighter shadows, shallower bezels, fainter textures, and an overall refinement of what's already there. For others, "flatter" means scorched earth -- no gradients, no shadows, no bezels, no textures, and an utter obliteration of all that was.
Truth is often in the eye of the beholder, and somewhere in between the extremes. But it does prompt the question: how flat would you like to see iOS 7? Vote in the poll up top and let me know the details, and the reasons for them, in the comments below!
