Steve Jobs was convinced that the iPhone needed a second "back" button in addition to the famous home button that exists to this day, one of the phone's architects has said.
Imran Chaudhri, a senior Apple designer who left the company last year, said Jobs pushed for the extra button in the run-up to the device's launch a decade ago.
If he had got his way, the iPhone might have worked more like Android phones do today, with an additional button for going backwards or opening the previous app. Instead the phone ended up with its simple one-button design and relied on the touchscreen for more of its navigation.
The claim comes in a new book about the birth of the iPhone written by Brian Merchant. During the top-secret process of making the phone, its designers had to consider how many buttons would be used to navigate.
Chaudhri insisted that one button, which does the same thing every time you press it, would be the simplest way to design the phone, but Jobs felt two were needed.