Ask HN: What started the flat design trend?

2 points by frigg ↗ HN

8 comments

[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 22.0 ms ] thread
To me it seems like it really got rolling with Apple - Steve Jobs decision to stop doing the more richly detailed skeuomorphic designs. Which prompted flat redesigns in iOS 7 and OSX, and I think many developers followed suit to either look like today's Apple or not to be the nail to be hammered down in the iOS community. Also attributed is Microsoft Zune and Metro design work.

Historically flat design is a form of minimalist design articles point to it being rooted in Soviet design styles.

(comment deleted)
Whatever started it was not a smart idea. Humans have the ability to perceive depth from gradients and shadows very fast, it's dumb not to use it.
Why does that make a flat design a bad idea?

IMO, flat design, when skilfully used, can look really good. Of course there is quite a bit of bad flat design out there, just as there is of any other design style.

And don't worry, trends cycle with time, so it stands to reason we'll be seeing some more depth on our screens again some time in the not-too-distant future. (Depth of design, that is, not necessarily depth of content ;-) )

I got the impression that Google was using pretty flat designs before the Windows phone came out - think about the GMail UI, etc.
Cheaper in terms of developer hours generally. No source, just my own opinion.