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15 tiny design features that show Apple’s insane attention to detail

Apple's Command key in macro.

Image Credit: Mitmensch0812/Flickr

Apple products have always been known for their quality design and attention to detail.

Many of these details go unnoticed by the average Apple user or are useful only to a relative handful of people who use the product.

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Some features are handy while others are purely cosmetic, but Apple included them anyway.

Here are the best of these little design flourishes.

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A “breathing” sleep light:

Above: MacBook light.

Image Credit: DeclanTM/Flickr

Apple has a patent dating back to 2002 for a “Breathing Status LED Indicator.” The patent describes a “blinking effect of the sleep-mode indicator [that] mimics the rhythm of breathing which is psychologically appealing.”

A smart fan that listens:

Above: Internal fan

Image Credit: iFixit

When engaging the voice dictation feature on newer Mac laptops, Apple automatically slows the internal fan speed to better hear your voice.

Watch the light’s travel in Maps:

Above: Maps

Image Credit: Steven Tweedie

If you select the satellite view in Apple’s Maps app and zoom far enough out, you’ll be able to see the sun’s light as it moves in real-time across the Earth.

Smart caps:

Above: Caps lock.

Image Credit: David Reber/Flickr

On every MacBook Air (and all newer MacBook Pros), if you hit the “Caps Lock” key, nothing will happen. To prevent accidental keystrokes, Apple turns on Caps Lock only if you hold the key for a bit longer.

The half-mast favicon:

Above: At half mast.

Image Credit: LittleBigDetails

Apple used to have an Apple-shaped bookmark icon, or “favicon,” for saving your favorite websites. Before Apple removed the icon in later versions of Safari, it used to show only half of the Apple icon on the anniversary of Steve Jobs’ death, symbolizing Apple being at half-mast in remembrance.

Hidden magnets:

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Above: Hidden magnet.


Before Apple integrated its iSight cameras into iMacs, older iMacs had a hidden magnet centered on top of the bezel. This magnet anchored the iSight perfectly atop the computer. A magnet on the iMac’s side bezel held an Apple remote in place too.

The shine that guides you:

Above: The shine.

Image Credit: Steven Tweedie

After people got used to using an iPhone’s slide-to-unlock button, Apple removed the arrow button and guiding rail. While the new version is much more minimal, Apple still guides new users in the left-to-right motion by causing the text instructions to shine from left to right.

Hidden high-fidelity audio:

Above: High fidelity.


For audio and video professionals using optical adapters, Apple has integrated a high-fidelity Toslink output. As soon as you plug in an optical adapter, MacBook Pros automatically switch over to Toslink, enabling higher-fidelity, high-definition sound.

A tiny “Do Not Disturb” eclipse:

Above: A tiny crescent moon.

Image Credit: Business Insider

When you turn on “Do Not Disturb” mode, a tiny crescent moon appears at the top of your screen. Not too impressive by itself, but when you toggle the setting on and off, you’ll notice that a tiny eclipse animation happens right before your eyes.

Volume and Brightness Bounce:

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Above: The bounce.

Image Credit: Business Insider

The next time you adjust the brightness or volume on your iPhone using the control center, give the dials a hard flick and watch as they continue to move even after your finger stops. If you flick hard enough, they’ll even bounce back a bit.

One-finger lift to open:

Above: Open with a finger.

Image Credit: DeclanTM/Flickr

Apple designs its laptops so they can be opened with just one finger, thanks to that special groove on the front lip. It’s worth noting that new devices can take some time to break in before it works.

Predictive “Store” button:

Above: The smart “store” button.

Image Credit: Apple

When playing a song in your iPhone’s Music app, it used to be dangerous to back your way out through the menu buttons. Going from “Now Playing” to “Artists” often led to accidentally tapping the “Store” button, leading iTunes to pop up.

Apple now prevents iTunes from opening from a single tap of the “Store” button when someone is backtracking through the menus.


Virtual reflections:

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Above: Cool reflections.

Image Credit: CultofMac

In iOS 6, Apple included virtual “reflections” that made the knobs on the volume and brightness sliders appear to subtly change as you tilted your phone, as they would in real sunlight.

Fingerprint organization:

Above: Storing different fingerprints.

Image Credit: Business Insider

If you want to add or delete a fingerprint from your iPhone’s Touch ID storage, Apple makes it easy to identify which fingerprints you have saved by highlighting the relevant one when you place a finger on the home button.

Rebound to unlock the Camera app:

Above: Bounce the lock screen down to rebound.

Image Credit: tune.pk

In iOS 7, Apple allowed you to drag the camera icon on the lock screen upward to unlock and open the camera app. Interestingly enough, you can also bounce the lock screen downward and “rebound” the app open.

This story originally appeared on Www.businessinsider.com. Copyright 2015

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