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Does Anyone Use The Contacts App Icon On iPhone?

April 26, 2010

Do we really need the Contacts app icon on the iPhone? I honestly cannot remember the last time that I used it. If I could wish for one additional feature in OS 4.0 it would be the permanent  removal of the icon for the Contacts app.

On a normal cell phone the first place you go to make a call is usually contacts. It may be called phonebook but it's usually the app or icon where all of your contacts are stored. That is where you begin, you find your contact, click, call and away you go. But the iPhone isn't a normal cell phone, and this is not how us iPhone users do things. We tap Phone to call, Messages to message and Mail to email. The iPhone user interface is so intuitive that whatever function we wish to use, our contacts are there, available, searchable and ready to go. So why do we have a contacts icon in the first place, we don't need it. Do we? The iPhone SDK doesn't allow apps that replicate existing functionality, but with a separate Contacts app icon I think Apple are guilty of this themselves. If I do need to add a contact, I can do this from Mail, Messages, Phone and even Maps so why do I need "Contacts"? If I need to search for a contact then I use Spotlight, so why do I need "Contacts"? If I want to see my contacts as a list, or even delete a contact then I can tap Phone, and then Contacts and I see my contacts, I can even tap delete to delete so why do I need "Contacts"? I hope Apple can see sense and remove this unnecessary icon from all of our Home Screens. Can you think of a reason why we need the Contacts app icon?