The rise of smartphones, tablets and electric vehicles has pushed buttons out of many design interfaces. In their place are touchscreens, voice activation and motion sensors galore.
But according to consumer trend watchers, buttons are making a comeback.
Apple recently added two new buttons to its latest iPhone — one of which is tied to its new AI functions. In the automotive world, Hyundai and Volkswagen are bringing both buttons and dials back to buttress their touchscreens.
Rachel Plotnick, associate professor at Indiana University Bloomington and author of Power Button: A History of Pleasure, Panic and the Politics of Pushing, studies human-machine relationships.
In her research, she found that the history of buttons in the Western world likely began in the mid- to late-1800s, coinciding with the rise of electrification and industrialization.
Their use has been connected to everything from optimism to fear of increasing automation, and even to class consciousness — such …