iOS 19 will reportedly introduce a big redesign, alongside overhauled companion updates like macOS 16 and iPadOS 19. Per Mark Gurman, Apple executives have three goals in mind for the updates, and they sound lofty but spot-on.
Executives at Apple have a clear vision for OS overhauls
In his Power On newsletter over the weekend, Mark Gurman shared some new tidbits about the expected iOS 19 redesign.
Some of the more noteworthy details came in a paragraph talking about Apple’s goals for the new updates.
Executives say the goal is to make the operating systems simpler to use, faster to navigate and easier to learn. The software should also set the stage for new hardware designs, including foldable devices and touch-screen Macs. And it will have to adapt to an era dominated by artificial intelligence assistants, rather than people continually dipping in and out of applications.
Based on this excerpt, it seems that Apple’s leaders have three explicit goals. iOS 19 and its other updates must be:
- Simpler to use
- Faster to navigate
- Easier to learn
It’s also possible that the latter details—being ready for new hardware designs and an AI era—are based on what executives have shared too. But the writing doesn’t make clear whether these are just Gurman’s assumptions or actual stated goals.
Either way, let’s focus in on the three items that Gurman does explicitly identify.
iOS 19’s not-so-easy goals: ‘simpler to use, faster to navigate, easier to learn’
All of Apple’s iOS 19 redesign goals, on the surface, seem incredibly straightforward and intuitive.
In reality, they will no doubt be incredibly hard to achieve.
When I think of “simpler to use” and “faster to navigate,” I’m reminded of the iOS 19 clues I wrote about last week.
Specifically, Apple’s trend away from tab bar navigation and toward single-page scrolling interfaces.
Scrolling doesn’t require much of a learning curve. Many of the world’s most popular apps—TikTok and Instagram, for example—are designed around this simple mechanic.
But “simpler” in theory doesn’t always mean simpler in practice.
Take last year’s iOS 18 Photos redesign, for example. The app used to have a tab bar for navigation, then “simplified” into a single-page design. There are benefits to this approach, but it also introduced a lot of confusion for users.
Additionally, iOS 18 introduced a ton of new customization options to make your iPhone more personal than ever. But customization doesn’t usually equal “easier to learn.”
The average reader of this site will probably have no problem customizing their Photos app, Control Center, or Lock Screen.
But I suspect a large portion of Apple’s user base just stick with default layouts for everything. That’s the “easiest” method.
All this to say, it won’t be easy for Apple to achieve its goals, but they absolutely sound like the right direction for the company.
iOS 19 redesign: Solving the complexity problem
Increased power inevitably brings with it greater complexity.
iOS 18 can do far more than the earliest versions of iPhone software. But that increased functionality makes it harder for new users to get started. It has also led to discontinuity among Apple’s various platforms and apps.
While iPhone, iPad, and Mac share a lot of similar DNA, they also have their quirks. Similarly, app design at Apple has splintered over the years as certain apps retained older iOS conventions while others got more modern updates.
An overhaul that makes everything truly simpler, faster, and easier would go a long way toward addressing these issues. Following a huge year of feature updates, iOS 19 could be the reset that Apple’s software needs.
It seems that Apple has the right idea in store for iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16. But what will its execution look like? For that, we’ll have to wait until June’s WWDC unveiling and the first developer beta’s.
What do you think of Apple’s reported goals for iOS 19’s redesign? Let us know in the comments
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