With the official dates for WWDC 2013 announced and tickets already sold out, the rumour mill is kicking into high gear! Today, 9to5Mac’s Mark Gurman reports that Jony Ive and his team are busy redesigning iOS 7, which will debut with a fresh new look at WWDC. Citing multiple sources who have “either seen or have been briefed” on iOS 7, the latest version of Apple’s mobile operating system will feature a completely redesigned UI with a “very, very flat” look. Gurman’s sources have compared the new look to Microsoft’s “Metro” design language used in Windows Phone and Windows 8, which is known for its flat shapes and minimalist fonts.

To date, iOS has employed a “skeuomorphic” design style meant to mimic real-life objects and textures, a design language favoured by late CEO Steve Jobs and former iOS head Scott Forstall. Jony Ive, however, is not a fan of the heavy textures and gloss, and has evidently wasted no time replacing them in his new position as head of software design at Apple.

The iOS 7 revamp is said to be mostly cosmetic, with basic functionality staying the same - in other words, expect the familiar grid of icons to stick around. 9to5Mac also claims that Apple has been experimenting with adding more “glancable” information to iOS, akin to the existing Notification Center. Competitors have embraced glanceable information in their operating systems; Windows Phone features Live Tiles while Android implements home and lock screen widgets.

iOS 7 will be unveiled at Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference on June 10th.

[Source: 9to5Mac]

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