I would like to start by saying that minimal design is a good thing. Clutter is objectively bad, and it takes a lot of really difficult work to cram a lot of capability into a smaller and smaller UI surface. I am completely acknowledging that.
That said, some gestures on the iPhone can go screw themselves.
In particular, whoever decided that swipe up from the bottom but not too much was a good idea should be publicly shamed.
Again, I understand the need to fit more functionality into a less space. If they break down the swipe up gesture into a little and a lot variants, you get two functions for the price of one. It makes sense… on paper.
But in reality? When I’m switching phones and trying to figure out what the distances are on all these swipes? It’s really terrible.
On top of that, the animation for close an app looks awfully similar to the end of the animation for dismiss the app carousel. Given that they both use the same overloaded swipe up gesture it’s just… incredibly uncomfortable not knowing what happens when I stutteringly swipe up, which happens from time to time on the big phone screen.
I wish they took Android’s cue for the three buttons at the bottom. Then I would know when I’m summoning the carousel, and when I’m not. Calling in a HUD also gives you a lot more options to make features visible when needed, rather than overloading a fixed set of UI options.
I know Android implemented a similar semi-swipe up an OS update or two ago, but I immediately found a way to get the buttons back. No such luck for customization on Apple.
Apple keeps trimming UI elements to the point where functionality is now ambiguously hidden instead of just out of the way. To me, that seems like a bad line to cross.