Kernic

Just my toughts.

My Wishes for a Smartphone OS

· by Kernic
Category: Opinion
Tags:#mobile, #tech, #opinion

I've been using smartphones before the term even existed. My first pocket computer was an HTC Diamond with Windows Mobile and stylus input. Not everything was perfect, but some things I still miss to this day.

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Since then, I’ve had many smartphones in my hands and in use myself. Currently, I use an Apple device, but before that, I had Android devices. In between, there was a very brief excursion to webOS and of course Sailfish OS. All systems had something going for them, and over the last 16 years, you notice how basic functions become established.

What was extremely innovative with pure gesture control on the Jolla smartphone with Sailfish OS or webOS is now standard. Sometimes still not implemented as well as in Sailfish OS, but intuitive enough. And if we’re honest, the differences in look and feel between Android and iOS aren’t that big anymore. iOS still has the edge for me, especially in terms of consistency, but the concepts are very similar.

And that’s where the problem lies for me. Home screen with apps and widgets, a quick launch bar at the bottom, a status bar at the top. Pull down quick settings on the right, notifications on the left. On Android, maybe an app overview, that’s it. But even after 16 years of smartphones, I don’t feel like this concept suits me.

A few examples? I hardly ever use the app icons. I tap on the search, type in 1-3 letters, and select the app. At most, I open a few frequently used apps via the icon on the home screen. But that’s only because I have notifications there. These are my second annoyance. Why are they hidden? I’d prefer them as a list on the home screen itself.

Why? I manage my notifications very precisely. Which apps are even allowed to send me notifications? Which notifications should they send me? Sometimes even when. And then they’re just hidden behind a swipe. But notifications are the reason I pull my smartphone out of my pocket. I want that exact information, that’s why it’s active. And then interact with it directly. Well, hidden… And unfortunately for me: out of sight, out of mind.

I’m not entirely sure, but I think with Windows Mobile, you had notifications on the main screen. Well, there were hardly any apps that sent notifications back then. But emails, appointments, and messages were definitely visible right there. I miss that.