In the field of app design, new trends in aesthetic choices are constantly emerging. As user functionality preferences continue to evolve, some design elements stick around while others seem to change overnight. The larger fluctuations tend to follow the arrival of a newly upgraded operating system or some new technological device, as in the case of the iOS 7 from 2013 or the Android Marshmallow just last year.
Today, phablets and wearables are influencing the conversation, resulting in a new series of design trends that are getting a great deal of attention.
1. Motion designs and functional animations
Motion designs and animations can make apps more engaging, intuitive, and interactive, but app designers should be careful about including animations that serve no logical purpose. They should be simple, meaningful, fast, and vibrant to improve the overall user experience. Even an unconventional animation can be useful if it accomplishes a specific task. Other examples of motion features might include button morphing, zooming effects, highlighting, and the pull-to-refresh feature of the YouTube app.
2. Material design
For several years, the concept of flat design has been the industry standard. But as time goes by, many app developers are once again integrating subtle gradients, translucents, and shadows to spice things up a bit, almost shifting closer to the skeuomorphism option of the past. Meanwhile, the material design language of Google is gaining a lot of online buzz among the app community. Material design allows for more meaningful motion sequencing when interacting with a flat color pallet. Multilayer interfaces using paper-like objects called materials provide a streamlined and more functional app.
3. Side-scrolling
Menus that seemingly disappear into the edge of the screen are trending among both newly released and newly redesigned mobile apps. The extremely popular Tinder app was one of the first to include side-scrolling or swiping as a primary feature, and many others are following suit. This design element makes the app more user-friendly by giving the user a better feeling of control. The Peek and Pop feature on new iPhones and iPads with 3D Touch is also trending big.
4. Pastels
While bolder, richer colors like dark reds, blues, and browns are still common choices for backgrounds, app designers are seeing a shift toward pastels for the buttons and other prominent features. The dramatic contrast of the two color pallets allows the interactive elements to stand out without drawing attention away from the other important functions of the app.
5. Wearables
Even though the online community has been hearing about the Apple Watch for almost a decade, it’s finally here, and several other competitors are already jumping on the bandwagon. Most insiders agree that smartwatch technology is going to change the game of app design forever. The next surge in popularity of wearable devices may involve the Internet-enhanced Google Glasses, which will have even smaller screens. As a result, apps developers are already slowly transitioning to less-busy visual displays while also opting for quick, one-tap interactions.
While wearables are the app device of the future, consumers will still be using their tablets, phablets, and smartphones. With so many screen sizes to consider when designing an engaging and functional app, developers will face a broad range of challenges over the next couple of years. By staying on top of the current trends in app design, making the final transition to wearables when the need arises will be far less difficult.
