[TheLoneWolfling]

> Unneeded use of separating lines, grouping boxes,.. less of these = easier on the eye.

I seriously disagree with this particular assertion. I find that "flat" design trends make things much less usable, and this is no exception. It is far easier to group things with visual references than with lack-of-visual-references. And it is far easier to find things like buttons if there are, say, actual indications that they are buttons.

[sopooneo]

There's a balance to be struck. The pendulum may have swung too far towards the minimalist, but it used to be much more common to have lines and boxes around everything, where simply removing them and leaving open space made the layout easier to quickly grasp.

[TheLoneWolfling]

Maybe. But if so, this mythical "open space makes things easier to grasp" unicorn has failed to show its face to me even once.

And, one other thing. Layouts that have too much delineation degrade much more gracefully than layouts that have too little.