What is the ios-design-review skill?
The gstack ios-design-review skill is a visual design audit for iOS apps on real hardware. It connects to an iPhone through the same StateServer as ios-qa, screenshots every screen, evaluates against Apple HIG, DESIGN.md and best practices, and scores each dimension from 0 to 10.
ios-design-review is a designer's-eye QA pass on a real iOS device. It finds visual inconsistency, spacing issues, hierarchy problems, AI-slop patterns and accessibility gaps, then rates each dimension from 0 to 10.
Its rubric is the one from /plan-design-review ported to iOS idioms. For every screen it also explains what would push the score to 10, and it runs read-only with no mutating calls.
The ten dimensions it scores
- Typography hierarchy, with SF Pro at the correct dynamic-type scale.
- Spacing rhythm on a 4pt or 8pt grid, with safe-area insets respected.
- Color hierarchy and contrast, including dark mode.
- Touch targets of at least 44x44pt.
- Loading, empty and error states.
- Accessibility: VoiceOver labels, Dynamic Type, Reduce Motion.
- Animation discipline, iOS idiom alignment, information density and an AI-slop check.
How the review runs
- It uses the running gstack-ios-qa-daemon, or starts one the same way /ios-qa does.
- It acquires a read-only observe session, so no mutating calls are made.
- For each major screen it fetches a screenshot and the element list, applies the rubric and records findings.
- It writes a markdown report with screenshots, per-screen scores and a top fix suggestion per dimension.
- It asks you about any score below 7, with a recommended fix and the tradeoff.
Where it fits among review skills
- Plan-stage design review, before implementation, belongs to plan design review.
- Live web visual audits belong to /design-review, covered by the design review skill.
- The report can be referenced by the CEO and engineering review skills when planning UI changes.
Who the ios-design-review skill is for
Best for
- iOS developers with a working build on a connected iPhone who want a design critique.
- Teams holding a DESIGN.md, which gstack design consultation creates, who want each screen checked against it.
- Requests like review the iOS design, audit the iPhone app's visuals or design QA the iOS app.
Not for
- Websites, which belong to the design-review skill.
- Screens that are not built yet, which suit plan-design-review.
How to install gstack iOS Design Review Skill: Audit an iPhone App
git clone --single-branch --depth 1 https://github.com/garrytan/gstack.git ~/.claude/skills/gstack && cd ~/.claude/skills/gstack && ./setupCheck requirements
The README lists Git, Bun v1.4.2 or newer (setup refuses Bun older than 1.3.3), Claude Code, and Node.js on Windows only.
Install gstack
Run the clone and setup command above. ios-design-review is part of the collection, so it arrives with the other skills.
Add other agents
Bare ./setup installs for Claude Code only. Run ./setup --host auto, or --host codex, and check results with ./setup --status.
Connect a device
The README describes /ios-qa as driving a real iPhone or iPad over USB CoreDevice through an embedded StateServer in your app. ios-design-review reuses that connection.
Run the audit
Type /ios-design-review with your device connected. Copilot and Antigravity CLI use the prefixed name /gstack-ios-design-review.
Check that it loaded
Connect an iPhone running your app and run /ios-design-review. It should screenshot each screen, score the ten dimensions from 0 to 10 and write a markdown report with screenshots.
Key features
- Real iPhone auditIt connects to a real iPhone through the same StateServer as ios-qa, so the review looks at what the screen renders on hardware.
- Read-only by defaultIt acquires an observe session and makes no mutating calls, so an audit does not change app state.
- Typography hierarchyDisplay, body and caption sizes are checked against Apple HIG, with SF Pro at the correct dynamic-type scale and line height matching font size.
- Spacing rhythmIt looks for a consistent 4pt or 8pt grid, flags magic paddings such as 17, 23 and 31pt, and checks that safe-area insets are respected.
- Color and contrastPrimary actions need the highest contrast and destructive actions must look distinct. Dark mode must render correctly, with 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text.
- Touch targetsEvery interactive element must be at least 44x44pt, and no tappable text may be smaller than 24pt.
- States and accessibilityLoading, empty and error states must each be present and intentional. VoiceOver labels, Dynamic Type at XXL and Reduce Motion are checked.
- Animation and idiomNo more than 2 simultaneous animations, 200 to 300ms for UI feedback, and native components such as NavigationStack and List instead of web-style hamburger menus.
- AI-slop checkIt flags generic stock layouts, leftover placeholder text, Material Design imported from Android and gradients that look AI-generated.
- Report with biggest fixesOutput is a markdown report with inline screenshots, scores per screen and a top fix suggestion per dimension, saved under the project's gstack state folder.
Frequently asked questions
What is the gstack ios-design-review skill?
It is a visual design audit skill for iOS apps on real hardware. It connects to an iPhone, screenshots every screen, evaluates against Apple HIG, DESIGN.md and design best practices, and scores each dimension from 0 to 10 with a note on what would make it a 10.
How do I install ios-design-review?
Install gstack. Run the README clone command, which places the repo in ~/.claude/skills/gstack, then run ./setup in that folder. Bare ./setup installs for Claude Code only. The skill ships inside the collection, so the same install gives you /ios-design-review next to the other gstack skills.
What does ios-design-review score?
It scores each screen from 0 to 10 on typography hierarchy, spacing rhythm, color hierarchy, touch targets, loading and empty and error states, accessibility, animation discipline, iOS idiom alignment, information density and an AI-slop check, then explains what would make each a 10.
Does ios-design-review change my app?
No. The skill is read-only by default and makes no mutating calls. It acquires a session with the observe capability, takes screenshots and reads the element list through the running gstack-ios-qa-daemon, then writes a markdown report to the project's gstack state folder.
How is it different from design-review?
SKILL.md sends live web visual audits to /design-review and plan-stage review, before implementation, to /plan-design-review. ios-design-review audits built iOS screens on a real iPhone through the same StateServer as /ios-qa, and mirrors the plan-design-review scoring rubric ported to iOS idioms.
Which agents does gstack support?
The README table lists Claude Code at the full tier. Codex CLI, OpenCode, Cursor, Factory Droid, Kiro, GitHub Copilot CLI and Antigravity CLI are experimental, while OpenClaw, Hermes, Slate and GBrain are instruction-only, meaning setup installs nothing and prints what to copy. Pick a host with the --host flag.
Which phrases trigger it?
The frontmatter lists review the ios design, audit the iphone app visuals and design qa the ios app. SKILL.md also lists speech-to-text aliases: review the iOS design, audit the iPhone app's visuals and design QA the iPhone app. Say any of them, or invoke the skill directly with its slash name.
What license does gstack use?
The repository is MIT licensed. The README describes gstack as twenty-three specialists and eight power tools, all slash commands, all Markdown, all free, MIT license. ios-design-review is one of those skills, so it ships under the same MIT terms as the rest of the collection.