Writing

Reference guides and practical walkthroughs — mostly about phone interfaces, screenshot sizes, and getting design work done without a design tool.

• Why Every iPhone Ad Shows 9:41

  Apple has put the same time on almost every iPhone it has ever advertised. The reason goes back to the 2007 keynote, and it explains why 9:41 looks right in a mockup when other times don't.

  4 min read

• What Every Icon in the iPhone Status Bar Means

  5G UC, 5G UW, LTE, the orange dot, the arrow, the crescent moon. A plain-language guide to every symbol iOS puts along the top of your screen.

  7 min read

• iPhone Screenshot Sizes for Every Model

  The exact pixel dimensions iOS writes when you take a screenshot, model by model, plus how points and pixels relate and why the numbers are what they are.

  5 min read

• Android Screenshot Sizes: Pixel, Galaxy, and Why dp Matters

  Android screenshot resolutions for common phones, what density-independent pixels actually are, and why 360dp keeps showing up in Android design work.

  6 min read

• How to Make Phone Mockups Without Figma or Photoshop

  A practical walkthrough for putting a photo or design inside a realistic phone screen when you don't have a design tool, a license, or twenty minutes to spare.

  6 min read