iPhone Any chance the Phone app finally gets updated?

[eoblaed]

Too bad I didn't get into this thread earlier. As a developer of hyper-scalable, highly concurrent, low-latency network servers with nearly 30 years experience having worked for everything from the smallest of startups to the world's largest companies, I think it would've been interesting to have someone tell me I definitely wasn't a developer because I disagreed with their perspective on phone app interfaces and the consequences of modifying same.

Alas.

(Are people going to get confused if the phone rings, buzzes, lights up, and shows a banner saying 'incoming call from <blah>' instead of ringing, buzzing, and displaying it on the whole screen? No.)

To the OP's point, I agree there should be a way to not have an incoming call disrupt everything you're doing. Our phones have long, long since stopped being 'just phones', and are broadly capable super computers that we use for innumerable tasks throughout the day, many of which are at least as important, if not more so, than that phone call that's coming in. Treating these devices as 'phone first; calls have top priority no matter what' entirely loses the point of the role these machines play in our lives.

 

[Tig Bitties]

Apple should just bake in the top 10 most installed JB tweaks as stock. Phone being #1, and also make it a T9 dialer already, when you start typing a phone number it should show the contact right away as you type it.

It really is a joke it's taken Apple this long to have a proper Phone app, WTF were they doing all this time, not realizing it felt like a decade old app years ago. Today the Phone app feels prehistoric.

Thank god for stock Android, and my Pixel 4 XL. Best OS right now, in my opinion. But I am very much looking forward to the iPhone 12 Pro Max, it should be a grand slam winner.

 

[StumpyBloke]

Too bad I didn't get into this thread earlier. As a developer of hyper-scalable, highly concurrent, low-latency network servers with nearly 30 years experience having worked for everything from the smallest of startups to the world's largest companies, I think it would've been interesting to have someone tell me I definitely wasn't a developer because I disagreed with their perspective on phone app interfaces and the consequences of modifying same.

Alas.

(Are people going to get confused if the phone rings, buzzes, lights up, and shows a banner saying 'incoming call from ' instead of ringing, buzzing, and displaying it on the whole screen? No.)

To the OP's point, I agree there should be a way to not have an incoming call disrupt everything you're doing. Our phones have long, long since stopped being 'just phones', and are broadly capable super computers that we use for innumerable tasks throughout the day, many of which are at least as important, if not more so, than that phone call that's coming in. Treating these devices as 'phone first; calls have top priority no matter what' entirely loses the point of the role these machines play in our lives.

Oh believe me, you would have been wrong, but not just any wrong, rather, super out of your head, you’re an idiot wrong. There seemed to be no limits on just how wrong anyone who disagreed could be!

And I agree wholeheartedly regarding phone usage. It’s changed massively over recent years, and it being used as a phone simply isn’t a priority for many people anymore. Having said that, I genuinely believe Apple will address the incoming call screen this year with iOS 14.

 

[TimFL1]

That time of year again to resurrect this thread...

So if rumours are to be believed, iOS 14 is going to have a revised and less intrusive incoming call screen.

Mind pointing me to the article that outlines this? I went through (I think) all leaks that came out this week, but I don't recall any talking about the call screen.

That being said, I hope they do something like this:

The call UI should have 3 potential states: Full screen, notification and lock screen / notification drawer widget.
When your phone is locked, it should function as it currently does (slide to answer) with one change: allow us to swipe up to go to the home screen and minimize the call UI into a persistent notification at the top (with basic UI like an answer call circled button).
From there, if the call still bothers you, you can swipe the notification up to mute the incoming call (but still let it ring). If you change your mind, you should be able to swipe down to get to your notification drawer where a call widget awaits you pinned to the top (think: now playing widget on the lock screen).

Tapping the notification or widget should present you with the fullscreen UI again (or alternatively, directly tap an action button in the notification / widget to e.g. answer or dismiss the call). Add a highlight to the time UI in the status bar (like the recording or minimized active call highlight) so it's obvious there is still an incoming call to take / dismiss.

If your phone is unlocked AND you are on the home screen, show the fullscreen caller UI with the answer / hangup etc buttons. If your phone is unlocked AND an app is in the foreground, go straight to the persistent notification at the top (they could even offer APIs where developers can flag their app as "not that important", so calls can still hijack the screen at first... games or texting apps would probably opt into being flagged as "important" so we only get a notification for them... or leave it up to the user to pick which app should show fullscreen and which shouldn't).

Kind of surprised we're nearing iOS 14 and this still hasn't been tackled. Doesn't seem that hard to get a good UI for minimizing calls going.

The incoming call UI could also be applied to the active call UI: swipe up to get a persistent notification at the top, swipe that up to push it into your lock screen.

 

[StumpyBloke]

Mind pointing me to the article that outlines this? I went through (I think) all leaks that came out this week, but I don't recall any talking about the call screen.

I would love to but in all honesty I can’t find it now. It was an image and text. I’m wondering if I completely imagined it?...

 

[TimFL1]

I would love to but in all honesty I can’t find it now. It was an image and text. I’m wondering if I completely imagined it?...

Probably... I'm usually very quick about reading up on iOS update leaks so I digested all the info we got a few days ago (and can memorize a lot of it). I don't recall any call UI leaks.
What I DO recall is some mail leak from Craig, where he acknowledges that they know about the incoming call UI woes and that it's too late to happen in iOS 13 (so has to wait for a future release).
No idea if that one was fake though, because that was around the time when the music app lyrics blur animation being toggle-able permanently fake leak made the rounds (also a supposed mail by Craig, which was later debunked).

 

[Sirious]

Just want to add my £1 and say this is such a simple yet needed feature!!!

 

[thadoggfather]

I cant believe there isn't the ability to swipe up on Phone app when an incoming call occurs, instead of only having the option to take it or reject it.

ITs been one of my favorite tweaks as of the past couple years, for calls I don't want to send to voicemail and just play out while getting back to what I'm doing, or because I get stuff done quick, finish my task right before answering the call like wrapping up a quick text

--

or even the option to make an incoming call a banner and accept or reject it from there even though I'm ok with it taking over the screen until I take action just to be alert

 

[adnbek]

Had to revive this thread since PastaPrimav was so convinced this could never be done for unexplained reasons. It's finally here!!

 

[StumpyBloke]

Had to revive this thread since PastaPrimav was so convinced this could never be done for unexplained reasons. It's finally here!!

You got there before me. He was also adamant that anyone who wanted the revised less intrusive call ‘screen’ was an idiot. Think he’s banned from here now, and so he should be for his behaviour!

 

[adnbek]

You got there before me. He was also adamant that anyone who wanted the revised less intrusive call ‘screen’ was an idiot. Think he’s banned from here now, and so he should be for his behaviour!

Good riddance! Hope he is still lurking and is eating crow right now.

 

[StumpyBloke]

And don't expect Apple to change its very purposed stance on the incoming and outgoing Call UI.

Really? Pissed on your parade today haven’t they?

 

[thadoggfather]

The jailbreak community continues to laugh at what you all applaud as “innovation” and once deemed as distasteful and totally unneeded.. until Apple pitched their tent on the same plot of land of course

ios 5 / 2011.

 

[SoYoung]

The jailbreak community continues to laugh at what you all applaud as “innovation” and once deemed as distasteful and totally unneeded.. until Apple pitched their tent on the same plot of land of course

ios 5 / 2011.

I still think the non-full screen incoming call notification is unneeded just like PIP on an iPhone but Apple just wanted to please some fans that crying for year to have these gimmicks.

 

[C DM]

I still think the non-full screen incoming call notification is unneeded just like PIP on an iPhone but Apple just wanted to please some fans that crying for year to have these gimmicks.

Nothing gimmicky about it given that there are very valid straightforward use-cases for it all. Now some might not care about things being one way or another, or even prefer that they are a certain way, but that instead doesn't make alternatives become gimmicks simply based on that.

 

[thadoggfather]

I still think the non-full screen incoming call notification is unneeded just like PIP on an iPhone but Apple just wanted to please some fans that crying for year to have these gimmicks.

It’s disruptive. If I wanna wrap up a text or finish placing an order or whatever I’m doing I wanna be able to do then pick up the phone or ride it out without declining but also without waitiing

nothing gimmicky about it it’s a basic use case

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I like my tweak it’s still full screen so I’m aware I’m getting a call, it’s obvious, but I can swipe up and return to it in multitasking after I get done what I’m Doint assuming I want to pick up

 

[adnbek]

I still think the non-full screen incoming call notification is unneeded just like PIP on an iPhone but Apple just wanted to please some fans that crying for year to have these gimmicks.

Good to know that an incoming call interrupting *anything* you might have been doing on the phone is not something you think should be changed.

 

[SoYoung]

Good to know that an incoming call interrupting *anything* you might have been doing on the phone is not something you think should be changed.

I just think its not a big deal. I'm not using my phone 7-8 hours a day, I have a computer for long sessions, and I don't receive 20 calls per day so no, I don't think this is a "must have" feature for the rare occasion I receive a phone call while doing something on my phone and when it happens, its not a big deal to just answer or reject the call. And if I really want to not be disturbed, I just turn on DND.

 

[C DM]

I just think its not a big deal. I'm not using my phone 7-8 hours a day, I have a computer for long sessions, and I don't receive 20 calls per day so no, I don't think this is a "must have" feature for the rare occasion I receive a phone call while doing something on my phone and when it happens, its not a big deal to just answer or reject the call. And if I really want to not be disturbed, I just turn on DND.

For those who don't care about messing the whole Messages app is an irrelevant feature, let alone any functionaries it provides. Does that mean that it shouldn't be there or that any additions or improvements to it are basically unnecessary and pointless because some don't really care about messaging?

 

[MisterSavage]

Non-intrusive incoming call alerts and being able to specify default apps make for a very happy me.