This article does feel like a missed opportunity. I hate the minimal design trend for a lot of reasons, but they aren't the ones listed.
I grimace every time another HN article explains that menus are evil, minimalism is great, and every product should do one thing well. Because in practice, that means downloading 50 apps where 10 would do. It means calendars that don't communicate with alarm clocks, because mobile apps are 'minimal' in an environment where cross-app integration is completely impossible. It means that because no one did my "one thing well", there isn't even a way to do that one thing poorly.
There's a missing discussion about power-user tools, and what non-minimal products should look like. There are places where we should embrace flexibility, and choose good design and clear menus over removing features. This wasn't that discussion.
I grimace every time another HN article explains that menus are evil, minimalism is great, and every product should do one thing well. Because in practice, that means downloading 50 apps where 10 would do. It means calendars that don't communicate with alarm clocks, because mobile apps are 'minimal' in an environment where cross-app integration is completely impossible. It means that because no one did my "one thing well", there isn't even a way to do that one thing poorly.
There's a missing discussion about power-user tools, and what non-minimal products should look like. There are places where we should embrace flexibility, and choose good design and clear menus over removing features. This wasn't that discussion.