It remains to be seen if the iPhone 5 will receive new gesture functions alla the fabled “smart bezel.” But the new beta version of iOS 5 is revealing a new set of gestures that could prove to replace traditional buttons.
Rumors and prognostications about the fabled “smart bezel” have faded over the months, as the iPhone 5 becomes more and more of a reality. Almost from the very beginning of the iPhone 5 rumor cycle, the smart bezel rumor was coupled with related rumors that Apple would get rid of a physical home button and look to diversify gesture control areas on the iPhone 5, as well as open up new ways to control the device.
It very well may be that significant hardware changes like smart bezels and moved home buttons may not make their way onto the iPhone 5, but the newest beta version of iOS 5 has revealed that the platform itself — once it is released in its full regalia in the fall — will equip the iPhone 5 with new gestures to play around with.
The latest beta build features Assistive Touch. Apple Insider reports that, “With Assistive Touch, an overlay menu is displayed that presents the user with commands that usually require certain physical actions, such as rotating the screen or shaking the device. This new feature allows for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch to be more accessible to those who may not be able to accomplish these tasks.”
At present, Assistive Touch offers limited functionality, only allowing for basic functions, such as locking the screen, adjusting volume, rotating the screen, and pinch/swipe movements.
But perhaps what is most interesting about Assistive Touch is the ability to customize gestures to complete otherwise complex gestural tasks on the iPhone. As Apple Insider explains, “Users can also create custom gestures, tracing certain patterns or movements with their fingers on the screen to accomplish some tasks that may be difficult. These gestures can then be given a name and accessed from the Assistive Touch menu.”
New Gestures for a Bigger Screen on the iPhone 5?
We already know that iOS 5 will work fully with the iPhone 4, and will even offer somewhat limited functionality with the iPhone 3Gs. But in spite of iOS 5′s flexibility to work on legacy iPhone devices, it has clearly been developed with the iPhone 5 in mind. After all, it was released after the iPad 2, but before the iPhone 5.
Perhaps the crux of Apple’s Assistive Touch is to make the gestural interface of the iPhone 5 more immersive due the inclusion of a larger screen? It would seem that adding more sophisticated gesture control to a sprawling new iPHone 5 screen would be an ideal way to further boast of the iPhone 5′s new dimensions.
We really won’t know how Assistive Touch works (and feels) until we see how it fits on the iPhone 5. But in the end, it could prove to be just as impressive as a smart bezel.
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