Helpful resource: iPad & iPhone PSDs

For creatives who get their hands on an iPad, the first thought is often, "what kind of app can I develop for this?" I toyed with an iPad at Apple's 5th Avenue store yesterday and, watching people eagerly touching the screen one after the other, had a different idea. ((Obviously, I didn't actually do it or I'd be in jail. My first thought was actually to make a joke about anthrax, but wasn't entirely sure of the current status of habeas corpus.)) However, for those of you who have a concept for a mobile app, the easiest way to mock-up an application is to grab the free iPad PSD; all of the buttons, text, and other elements are separated out into Photoshop layers for you. There's also a freely available iPhone PSD, which I used for a quick design job for Diversion Media last week. One note of caution: if you're designing for clients or publicly presenting your app concept, change the time. As you can see, the designer who put together these helpful photoshop files had a little fun with the clock by setting it to the universal stoner time of 4:20. It's much more subtle in the iPhone version, and I didn't notice it until the client brought it up on the conference call; oops.

Finally, if you want to create an icon for your theoretical app, here's the icon PSD; Apple's design elements are also available as a vector kit.