Improving Mobile App Development through UI Design

Currently, mobile app development has risen to become one of the most demanded and fastest growing paths in the tech world. Virtually, every individual and enterprise is looking to associate with this trend in one way or the other. This is basically because the latest mobile devices and apps they bring along are gradually transforming the way people communicate, do business, and access information online.

Interestingly, many people are not aware that these whole transformations that are currently being observed today started on the web. Back in the early 2000s, people were more concerned about getting on the web and no one even thought about adopting mobile technology. Then, it was all about owning a website and making it look presentable. While this is still very much practiced today, it is, however, important to know that web design has undergone a drastic transformation.

These days, there seems to be a transformation in the design industry, particularly as regards the role of a UI developer. Virtually every design professional is considered as a UI developer regardless of where they specialize, whether you are a web or an app designer. In fact, there is already a high demand for highly-skilled design professionals in the industry who are capable of performing both tasks.

With the emergence of web apps, many customers are looking to work with design experts that fully understand what it means to add high-quality functionality to a web app with the help of some programming tools like JavaScript, JQuery, HTML5, etc. No doubt, mobile app development is transforming the industry with the growing diversity of various platforms.

Understanding UI design

When it comes to mobile app development, most mobile developers always try to consider the device on which the app will be used, the specifics of the device, and how the device is used. These designers are mostly concerned with the site or app’s interface – i.e. how it looks on the web and/or device. While this may be considered by many to be less eminent, it is, however, important to note that UI design is very essential as it is the first part that aspect users often notice while accessing an application.

In the field of app design and development, designers are now focused on creating apps with a responsive layout. These are experts who understand how well a system should adapt to a mobile device bearing in mind the size of the screen. While mobile app developers build software for mobile devices, UI developers make the app look atheistically pleasing and acceptable on mobile devices. This is why they are expected to have excellent problem-solving skills.

Principles of UI design

Before a UI design work is carried out, designers need to perform a credible user research work so as to be able to understand the behavior to the user that will be employing the app. When designing for mobile applications, designers and even developers are often faced with lots of exigent factors to consider. These are basically mobile-specific design considerations that a designer cannot do without.

In mobile app development for Android, designers are often faced with several choices to make. One of the most prominent cases is choosing between employing an adaptive design or a responsive design. Basically, it all has to do with the device on which the mobile device will be used. These days, it is common to find users accessing apps from their smartphones, tablets, and even smart watches. To this end, designers are faced with the task of enhancing accessibility and helping users focus on the task at hand.

In a bid to help designers get started for mobile app development, there are some general principles that need to be observed so as to achieve credible results. It is important to understand that these are not hard-and-fast rules but simple guidelines to enable app designers to come out with the right solution to any design problem.

Design for small screens

Unlike PCs and laptops which have pretty regularized large screens, app designers looking to improve mobile app development will need to take into consideration the size of screen the apps are designed for. Simply put, they should be planning to design for multiple screen sizes. This is where the decision of using an adaptive design or a responsive design comes to play. Ultimately, they will need to make a timely decision as to whether to allow the servers to handle the changes in screen sizes or let the device cater to the changes in the display.

Reduce content to the barest minimum

Overloading an app with content can affect its user interface (UI) and this can, in turn, overwhelm users thereby discouraging them from using the app. In mobile app development, it is expedient for designers to respect the small screen space. Basically, it is best to employ short, simple and straight forward page descriptions. Most of all, utilize content that is well supported by all mobile devices.

Ensure simple navigation

When designing for mobile, try to make for precise navigation. While this may not be so easy with touch screens, it is, however, possible to enhance navigation in its simplistic nature by ensuring clear and concise labeling. Another great way designers can help to improve navigation is by minimizing the various levels involved and offering a regular size pattern for touch screen tap points (30 by 30-pixel space). In this case, it is expedient to ensure that navigation is prioritized based on how users employ functionality.

In conclusion, it is important to note that the mobile environment allows for the introduction of new design considerations. While it can be very flexible, mobility can also be very complicated particularly if you don’t know the rules involved. To this end, it is imperative for mobile app designers to focus more and pay greater attention to every design detail so as to provide users with the best possible results.