Jony Ive’s iOS 7 Overhaul May Cause Delays

Bloomberg reports that iOS 7 may face delays thanks to all the changes Jony Ive wants to make to Apple’s mobile OS.

Jony Ive took over as head of Human Interface at Apple when Scott Forstall left the company about six months ago. Since taking over Ive changed the direction of iOS 7 to include a new, flatter design, which lead many to think the OS is in danger of not shipping on time.

Apple will reportedly debut iOS 7 at WWDC in June, and is on track for a release in September of this year. Sources expressed concern over missing those dates, however, as deadlines for submitting features are later than usual for iOS 7. That gives the team less time to test new features before the June debut and first developer beta.

A recent report claimed that Ive’s vision for iOS 7 involves a flatter design that moves away from the skeuomorphic designs of the past. That means no apps that try to mimic real-world objects so wooden bookshelves and felt game tables are out in the next iteration.

Bloomberg’s sources also claim that Ive is looking into ways to completely revamp the calendar and email apps. There are several third-party apps that some users prefer to Apple’s Calendar and Mail, but with simpler interfaces that require fewer taps to accomplish tasks they might switch back.

In addition to revamping iOS 7, Ive is encouraging collaboration between the hardware and software teams at Apple. Historically the hardware and software teams at the company would work independently of one another. That led to beautiful, modern designs for the iPhone and software that tried it’s best to emulate old-fashioned objects, which was a somewhat strange situation.

Looking forward, Bloomberg’s sources claim Jony Ive wants to look into using hand gestures in future iPhones. Ive is reportedly interested in letting users wave their hand in front of their device to interact with it. If that does happen, it will hopefully prove more useful than Air Gestures in the Samsung Galaxy S4.