Apple designer 'winces' over some past product choices

Though Ive appears with relative frequency in news articles and documentaries, interest in his design philosophy has never let up. Perhaps that is because Ive has always spoken in an abstract, philosophical sense about the way he approaches design, which only seems to perpetuate the mystery surrounding one of Apple's core talents.

In an extensive two-part interview published in UK newspaper The Telegraph on Wednesday, Ive discussed some of his product approaches as well as his attitudes toward design failures, Apple's performance under newly minted CEO Tim Cook, and more.

The interview itself is worth reading, but we took interest in a few highlights from throughout his discussion with The Telegraph. Among them:-- Contrary to popular belief, Ive says the iPad 2's design was not inspired by the making of a samurai sword. Rumor after the iPad 2's launch in 2011 was that Ive had traveled to Japan to watch the process of creating such a sword, which then translated to the "razor edge" of the iPad 2, but Ive insists this is just lore.

Don't like the stitched leather UI on a number of Apple's iOS and Lion applications, like Find My Friends, Maps, and iCal? It seems that Ive doesn't either -- The Telegraph claims Ive "winced" when asked about the stitched leather, but gave a diplomatic response: "My focus is very much working with the other teams on the product ideas and then developing the hardware and so that's our focus and that's our responsibility. In terms of those elements you're talking about, I'm not really connected to that."

This article comes from:http://edition.cnn.com/2012/05/23/tech/apple-designer-ives-winced/index.html?eref=rss_tech