Other POLL: What do you think about the rumored iPhone 15 Pro alert switcher removal?

[dszakal]

Let's assume the following rumor is true:

iPhone 15 Pro Could Feature Solid-State Unified Volume Rocker, Mute Button Instead of Switch

Multiple rumors have indicated that a handful of design changes are coming to the iPhone 15 Pro and ‌iPhone 15 Pro‌ Max, but one that until now has gone under the radar is the possibility that the volume controls on the side of the device will be a single unified rocker button.

www.macrumors.com

the mute switch will also switch to a singular press button, rather than the up and down switch that we have now

What do you think about this idea?

 

[BugeyeSTI]

You left out "I don't care either way is fine"..

 

[ian87w]

I think the hardware mute switch is one ingenious design decision by Apple. I know so many people on Android having a hard time silencing their phones. Most would simply shut down their phone instead since they don’t know any better. The hardware mute switch is simple and highly intuitive, and you don’t have to unlock the phone and deal with the UI. Just flip the switch, and done. This is excellent design, and I wish it stays forever.

 

[RRC]

I think the capacitive mute switch rumour, if true, will double nicely as a dedicated shutter button for the camera.
But the physical mute switch is part of iPhone history so will be a shame to see it gone.

 

[akash.nu]

Agree. I use the mute button all the time.

 

[I7guy]

Think the mechanical switch leaves no doubt in the mind about whether the iphone is muted or not.

 

[rambo47]

On my Android Pixel 5 I have to hit the volume button to bring up a temporary on-screen Silent Mode/Mute button. Tap that and the phone is on Silent. For phone calls I can simply set the phone on a flat surface, face down. That's the "flip to shush" feature. I'd like to see that feature expanded to silence all notifications so when the phone is face down it's truly silent. I say remove the hardware button/switch. It always gets toggled when I change cases anyway. Just one more thing to remember when a case is put on/taken off. My wife never remembers and then misses her notifications. The old fashioned switch feels convenient because it's familiar. But so were rotary-dial phones once. The mechanical switch's time has come and gone. I say Lose It.

Here's my one reservation about ditching the mechanical mute: Piling more and more features into the software eventually can lead to instability. I go back to the days of the Palm Treo, one of my favorite mobile phones from days of yore. Eventually the dated hardware couldn't handle all the features of the Palm OS and it became so unstable the phones would freeze without letting you know. So it was a brick in your pocket instead of a communication device. I had a situation where a contractor working on our house addition needed me to make a major time-sensitive decision but my Treo was frozen, unbeknownst to me. He finally made the decision himself and it was the opposite of what I wanted. The next day I was sporting a shiny new BlackBerry instead of a Palm Treo. I still miss playing Dope Wars, but that's about all I miss. Given the state of the Apple mobile processors I doubt this is a relevant concern now, but I still get the willies thinking about my iPhone losing its legendary stability and reliability one day.

 

[Ac1d 8urn]

The physical ringer switch is one of my favorite iPhone features. I really hope these rumors are not true, or if they are, I hope these pointless changes are limited to the pros only.

One of my biggest tech peeves is overengineering and change for the sake of change. Solid state side buttons are a solution in search of a problem. They work for home buttons b/c those double as Touch ID and that area of the phone is already exposed, but there is zero reason to replace tactile side buttons with capacitive buttons. I don't have to look at my phone to mute it in my pocket, I just flip the ringer switch off and that's that. I can simply glance at the side of my phone to see if it's on or off. I wouldn't trust a solid state button like I do the physical switch, and I don't want to have to unlock my phone to check if it's muted or have yet another status bar icon. And call me petty but I don't like cases full of janky cutouts for every button either. I have a Z flip 4 as a secondary phone and I hate the power button cutout on the cases, it looks like crap.

 

[ValerieDurden]

I never use it, the only time I toggle it is when I’m cleaning my case and it gets muted even taking the case off. Couldn’t care less if they take it away.

 

[compwiz1202]

I think the hardware mute switch is one ingenious design decision by Apple. I know so many people on Android having a hard time silencing their phones. Most would simply shut down their phone instead since they don’t know any better. The hardware mute switch is simple and highly intuitive, and you don’t have to unlock the phone and deal with the UI. Just flip the switch, and done. This is excellent design, and I wish it stays forever.

Exactly it can be a pain to toggle mute on my Android, but at least there is no button at all to accidentally hit. And the software hasn't failed yet fortunately.

 

[ian87w]

Exactly it can be a pain to toggle mute on my Android, but at least there is no button at all to accidentally hit. And the software hasn't failed yet fortunately.

It is about instinctive action.

This is what I observe on many lay people. Most don’t silent their phones. When it suddenly rings in the office or meeting, they’re in a panic. At this point, the hardware mute switch on the iPhone is very intuitive. You just flick the switch, done. 1 step. Most people on Android that I have observed were fumbling around in a panic, and since it will take a few steps to silent the phone (unlock, swipe for control panel or press the volume button, then find the silent or DND toggle), they just end up shutting down their phones (less steps, press and hold the power button, switch off).

 

[mebehere]

I like the current switch. But maybe they will do something that could help like pressing on the button sends two quick haptic taps for silent and one haptic tap for ringer on. Or vice versa.

That way you could still do it without taking your phone out of your pocket to check.

 

[Thoradin]

The physical mute switch is one of my favourite features that Apple ripped off from Palm, along with the swipe gestures and multitasking of course

 

[RobbieTT]

I guess they will ditch the last mechanical bit. It will be a shame as it is a clear divider between 'droid and iPhone users when a conference or major meeting starts!

It wasn't an original Apple idea, someone just pinched it for the iPhone design. I hope whoever championed it got a suitable reward. A defining feature in my view.