Apple Interface Mysteries

The iOS and iPadOS Look and Feel Casebook

When the iPad made its first appearance, the more cynical among the digital punditry proclaimed that it was really nothing more than a big-screen iPhone. Superficially, they were correct: the iPad and iPhone used the same touchscreen technology, ran the same operating system, and had user interfaces that were almost indistinguishable. But the size discrepancy was significant in how the two types of devices would come to be used, just as the difference in size between a jewelry hammer and a sledge hammer imply quite different uses. And, over time, those different uses would cause the interfaces of iPhones and iPads to diverge, leading, eventually, to a divergence in their operating systems (see The Case ...