Apple's latest controversy, "End Call buttongate," will be a very short-lived one
When word got out a couple of days ago that Apple was moving the "End Call" button in iOS 17 from the lower middle of the call screen to the bottom right corner, several iPhone users lost their minds. Yes, you are bound to hit the wrong spot at first and it might take you several attempts to end a call once iOS 17 is first released. Eventually, your muscle memory will kick in and you'll find it easier to hang up on a phone call even with the "End Call" button in a new location.
While everyone seems surprised by Apple's decision to move the "End Call" button, according to BGR, Apple tipped off everyone about the change at WWDC in June. We will get to that in a second. First, the move of the button has something to do with the new Contact Posters feature that allows iPhone users to design the card that shows on someone's iPhone when you make a call to them. The process will be similar to how you customized your iPhone's Lock Screen.
At WWDC, the new End Call button placement was displayed right in front of our eyes
When Apple's Craig Federighi discussed Contact Posters at WWDC, in the background was an image that showed how a Contact Poster will look during a phone call. And lo and behold, the "End Call" button was on the lower right side of the display which is where it will be in iOS 17. No one seemed to notice or care back in June but now, judging from some responses, you'd think that Apple decided to replace iMessage with RCS.
It doesn't appear that making a lot of noise and complaining to Apple is going to matter. Yes, Apple did eventually overturn the decision to move the URL bar to the bottom of the screen in Safari back in iOS 15. Apple was hoping to make the mobile browser easier to use with one hand. But in this case, the new placement of the "End Call" button will have to stick. If they moved the button back to the current location, some of the two rows of buttons would cover a user's face on his/her Contact Poster.
We're surprised that no one has called this controversy "End Call" buttongate. Nonetheless, it will be short-lived and iPhone users aren't about to switch to Android over this. A few weeks after iOS 17 is released next month, the controversy will be forgotten.
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