Quote:
Originally Posted by guma
Functionally the tile interface might well be an improvement over earlier firmware versions. With the addition of some tweaks I can see it offering the possibility to tailor the home screen to each user's individual preferences.
Visually though it leaves a lot to be desired. (The same goes for the new sleep cover display.) With some effort at design a tile based home screen sure could be made to look a lot better. Until this happens I fear there will be no consensus whether an increase in functionality outweighs a decrease in visual appeal. Thus, in general, whether one considers the new home screen an 'overall step forward' depends, IMHO, a lot on which features/functions one uses on the device.
When I bought my KOBO some time ago, one thing that made me choose it was the simple and elegantly designed home screen interface. But with almost every firmware update it lost some of this visual appeal. First by adding all sorts of shop and 'social reading' related GUI elements and now by seemingly foregoing every attempt at visual design whatsoever for the new tile based interface. If I had to describe the new home screen aesthetic in one word I'd call it unmotivated.
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I'd have to be the first to admit that I often prefer industrial designs over their over-designed cousins. Simple, efficient and even intuitive works for me.
The carousel might be prettier than the tiles. That is about the only "advantage" of the carousel. Functionally, the tiled interface is parsecs ahead.
Moving on to the box on the full screen sleep and power off screens -- unlike some people, I remember the screams of anguish from those who could not tolerate the banner across the top of the sleep and power off screens that often blocked their view of book title and/or author name. I remember some of the comments when I stated that I seldom spent any time looking at the sleep or power off screens so really didn't care what they looked like. One PM suggesting that I was missing a major portion of my cerebral cortex if I didn't grok the enjoyment of having the book cover fully visible on a sleep or power off screen, visible the way it was meant to be seen with nothing blocking the view.
Lastly I can't resist including this video on design:
Regards,
David