Apple iPhone XS will be historic, but not for the reason that you think

Someone has described the iPhone as a window on our digital lives. Apple's job in designing it is to make the window as large and transparent as possible – preferably to the point where you do not even know it exists. In other words, the device should simply come off.

The material does it in many ways. To name a few: A fast processor means that Web pages and applications launch faster, reliable wireless connections means your AirPods "work" when you put them in your ears and you use simple, natural gestures on a photo to "close" it to manipulate the content.

But the most direct and obvious way to improve the so-called window is to enlarge it. That's exactly what the iPhone X does, with its edge-to-edge display. Apple now plans to unveil three different iPhones, at three different prices, with state-of-the-art displays at its Wednesday event, extending the design to even more of its customers. .

Admittedly, the window is not yet perfect. (Hello, notch.) But based on Apple's results, it's clear that the iPhone X has been a success. Even though the company sells less than iPhones, it generates a lot more revenue through these sales. The iPhone X, which debuts with a fame of $ 999, has clearly appealed to customers, validating Apple's design choices to push the screen to the outside and remove the button from D & # 039; # 39; home. Say what you want about the price and the notch: the iPhone X is a better "window" than the previous model.

Cracks in the window

I find it ironic that, just as Apple is about to perfect this window, the public is looking more closely at our relationship with technology. The social networks on which we have relied to connect have proved equally apt to divide and manipulate us. The focus is again on privacy, which still seems to be limited in the digital world. And there has been so much scrutiny about the habits that our devices have rooted in us that companies designing them have been forced to come up with tools to mitigate their use.

This is not a coincidence. I do not mean a direct correlation – it's certainly not the fault of Apple or the iPhone if a lot of people are negatively affected by the technology – but the iPhone X is the most tangible example of the friction technology trend. It is only now that so much friction has been eliminated that the general public is beginning to question the consequences, which are often not good.

The notifications hit us at any time of the day, destroying our attention. Social networks are so common that they encourage "zombie scrolling", as anyone who has entered a crowded elevator knows. There is also the simple psychological rehashing that it takes for everyone to constantly navigate cyberbullying, FOMO, indignation gangs and the lifestyle of social networks, which has led to exhortations public well-meaning to purge Facebook, Twitter. , and Instagram of our phones, if not our lives.

"It's the natural cycle of a sufficiently powerful technology," says author Nir Eyal, who studies the habits created by personal technology. "We basically adopt it, everyone loves it and then we expect some inconvenience.It is exactly the same story that occurred during the Industrial Revolution." There is always an account with such a deep technology. "

Phones and apps alone did not bring us here. Leaving Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri with us, we begin to wonder how much we want to reveal to these tech companies. Although the convenience they offer is very real, the personal data needed to make certain experiences transparent is now obvious.

There seems to be some sort of principle at work here that looks like the odd valley of robotics: as the smartphone experience becomes more and more frank – more we are getting closer to this perfect digital window – stronger is the instinct of recoil.

The first iPhone designed to be used less

Apple and its counterparts are certainly aware of the problem, and that is why they come up with tools like Screen Time, the name of the suite of Apple tools in iOS 12, to give users a glimpse of how they use their iPhones. The feature can show a user how much time he spends in a particular application and how many times a day he unlocks his phone, which, in the case of the iPhone X and his offspring, is as simple as look at the camera.

"It's usually difficult to sell people something that hurts them," says Eyal. "This backlash – people say," I use my device too much, I do not like what it does for me and my life's fun "- companies have an economic imperative and moral to react. "

There is reason to believe that Screen Time is not just a matter of concern. Apple's business model does not depend on the time spent with its devices. Whether you unlock your iPhone once a minute or once a week, Apple made its money when you bought it. Of course, Apple also wants to feed its growing service business, but most of its services (like Apple Music) offer simple subscription models, unlike social media that offers free services in exchange for data.

That's why Apple has the best chance of overcoming the current technological backlash. Not only do their customers connect to their products physically and intimately, they are also the least interested in keeping you in touch with them constantly. If Screen Time allows you to use less device, but generally improves your experience, the company is perfectly comfortable with that.

"With iOS 12 with Screen Time, they integrate in these devices a way to use less devices," says Eyal. "You may think that it makes no sense, but it's the case – it's like seat belts." It was not the regulation that put the seat belt in. cars – consumer demand – had no seat belt. "

Over the last decade, Apple has perfected its technology window to make it almost perfect, making the digital world even more attractive. For all the incredible experiments that these advances allow, the iPhones revealed on September 12 will be the first to recognize an obvious truth: sometimes you just want to take down the color.