Dynamic Island on iPhone 14 Pro: what’s this and how it’ll change the interaction with users
Dynamic Island is a big surprise and the top 2022 feature from Apple. I don’t like to spread big words, but the first thing I thought was “It’s a revolution, Johnny” or something like that :)
At yesterday’s Apple presentation, the ‘Dynamic Island’ was shown. It’s a new feature of the iPhone Pro — an area around the minimized notch, the implementation of which became possible due to the reduction of the front camera size.
The presentation briefly showed how it will be used, but it is already clear that some system notifications and actions will be built into the Island, which were previously displayed on full screen, taking up unreasonably large space. It is also not yet clear whether standard push notifications will be built into the Island, or whether they will retain their previous appearance. Now it’s only clear that the push of a phone call, the use of Face ID, and the connection of AirPods will definitely be included in the concept of the Island. Typical actions will be shown in a minimized view, and if a user wants to get more information, they will be able to interact with the Island.
Dynamic Island is a function at the intersection of interface and engineering, which perfectly describes the phrase “a feature not a bug”. Previously, the notch was a problem that did not participate in interaction with a user. It just allowed Apple to increase the screen area keeping the Face ID feature and a great front camera. It was clear to everyone that this was a temporary crutch solution, which would ultimately come to an end. The Island, judging by the video, will take over a part of the application interface in order to create additional space for placing data, interacting with the user, and simplifying flow. Also, due to the fact that the pushes will be located higher and the Island will become an intuitive zone for some type of action, the working area of the iPhone will expand and the time of using the smartphone may decrease. Conceptually, it is very similar to the TouchBar.
I can say that Dynamic Island is the invention of a new way to interact with the user on a par with push notifications on the iPhone and the TouchBar on the Mac. Therefore, it is extremely interesting how this will work: the functioning of the island depends directly on how app developers will implement some functions into it. And, as we know from history, the TouchBar did not gain a lot of popularity, although it also made noise at the beginning. There is no information for developers about Dynamic Island on apple.com yet, so we will wait for more data on what information can be placed on the Island from the side of the apps and what actions users will be able to perform.
Have you already imagined how you could use the Island in your application? Share your thoughts in the comments!
