The next generation of iPhone and iPad users may be using those devices without the familiar, round "home" button on front to guide users back to their home screens.
That means Apple's touchscreen devices would be truly all touch out front. It's a change incorporated by Apple in iOS 4.3, its latest mobile system software version now out in beta. BGR says it was told exclusively that the reason Apple added multitouch gestures for the iPad in 4.3 is because the iPad, and ultimately, the iPhone, will lose their home buttons.
The home screen button has been a part of the iPhone since it came out in 2007. And while tech users are used to changes, in everything from their Facebook profiles, to where the antenna is in their phones, this is one switch that may not sit well with everyone.
Apple's use of the one-button-control has not only made it simple to use and navigate its i-devices, but it also is a security blanket of sorts: it's a quick, easy, get-back-to Square One navigation tool.
"Instead of button taps, you will use new multitouch gestures to navigate to the home screen and also to launch the app switcher," says BGR.
"That’s not all, however. In addition to the home button disappearing from the iPad, we’re told that this change will make its way over to the iPhone as well. Our source said Apple employees are already testing iPads and iPhones with no home buttons on the Apple campus, and it’s possible we will see this new change materialize with the next-generation iPad and iPhone devices set to launch this year."
