Designing the iPhone User Experience - A User-Centered Approach to Sketching and Prototyping iPhone Apps

Given the fiercely competitive state of the iPhone app landscape, it has become increasingly challenging for app designers and developers to differentiate their apps. The days are long gone when it was possible to crank out an app over the weekend and refine it after receiving a few not so flattering user reviews. Users now have choices -- lots of them. If your app is difficult to use or doesn't meet their needs, finding another one is just a tap away.

To illustrate, consider the ever-growing field of Twitter clients. There are hundreds of variations in the App Store but only a handful stand out from the pack (such as Tweetie or Twitterific). For most apps, it boils down to one thing: the user experience. The same is true for countless other categories within the App Store; well-designed apps are more likely to attract and retain users. Of course there are other critical aspects of iPhone app development: the coding, the marketing, the customer support. All of the elements must come together.

Designing the iPhone User Experience will help you tackle the user experience part of the iPhone challenge. Three key themes will be reinforced throughout the book: Know thy user, the Design Lifecycle, and Attention to Detail:

• Know Thy User
  Millions of people depend on iPhone apps to get them to work, find their next meal, and stay in touch with family and friends. Professionals of all kinds also rely on iPhone apps: doctors look up drug interactions; photographers fine-tune lighting; cyclists find the best routes. To truly understand how your apps can fit into their lives, designers and developers must learn how users do things today, what's important to them, and what needs have not been met. Part II, Introduction to User Research, will introduce a variety of user research methods.


• The Design Lifecycle
  Award-winning designs rarely happen overnight; they usually only occur after many rigorous design cycles. To illustrate this point, consider USA TODAY's iPhone application, which went through at least seven iterations for the article view in their app. These kinds of iterations should happen before you launch your app, since it will save valuable time and money, not to mention the headaches a bad design could create for your user. More importantly, you may only have one chance to impress your users -- you do not want to sell them half-baked ideas. Part III, Developing your App Concept, will explain how to iteratively design and test your app concepts.


• Attention to Detail
  Most professionals know that attention to detail is important, but hundreds of apps fail to incorporate even the most basic design principles. This lack of attention is not merely an aesthetic issue (which is important) it also affects the way apps function. For example, a news article without proper alignment will be difficult to read, and a poorly rendered icon will be challenging to interpret. Apps with a razor sharp attention to detail will stand out because their apps will look good and perform well. Part IV, Refining your App Concept, will show you how to make to your app shine, from visual design and branding to accessibility and localization.

Mastering these three areas will help set your app apart from the crowd. You may not have an award-winning app over night. But knowing your users, iterative design, and attention to detail are important first steps.

Price: $44.99

Click here to buy from Amazon

Will Apple abandon the iPhone 5S in favor of an iPhone 6 and iPhone Mini?

We’ve seen a number of supposed leaks for the next iPhone in the last month. Plastic backs, gold trim, and even a phablet-sized redesign have been bandied about, but we’re starting to see some interesting trends. Most recently, the idea of a cheap colorful iPhone has really taken off. At this point, it’s a pretty safe assumption that we’ll see at least one plastic iPhone launch this year.

Nowhere Else, a French tech blog, posted a few pictures of a supposedly leaked iPhone 5S shell last week. This lime-green monstrosity features an all plastic back with what looks like a metal framework on the inside. The introduction of whacky colors has been rumored for years, and it fits neatly in Apple’s modus operandi for product line expansion. After the iPod line saw so much success from the fashion-conscious, it was only a matter of time before the iPhone received similar options.

When you look at the supposed iPhone 5S logic board and these gold-trimmed buttons, it’s clear that the rumors are converging on the idea of a colorful iPhone 5S with a small footprint. Just last year, the iPod Touch line expanded to five different color options, and that is par for the course at Apple. Frankly, a line of colorful iPhones with matching trim is just the next logical step.

Last month, a picture leaked showing an iPhone with a curved plastic back. This was reportedly some kind of low-end iPhone or “iPhone Mini.” Even if this model was legitimately prototyped by Apple, it seems unlikely that it would come to market with a design so reminiscent of the iPhone 3G and 3GS. Regardless of a specific design, the rumor mill seems adamant that an iPhone Mini is on the horizon.

While most signs point to a small, cheap iPhone, some people aren’t giving up hope for a phablet from Apple. While it is certainly possible that Apple can simultaneously launch a cheap iPhone 5S (or iPhone Mini) while offering a bigger phablet-sized iPhone 6, it doesn’t seem likely. Apple is quite bullish on minimizing fragmentation, and a bump in screen size a single year after the introduction of the 4-inch iPhone 5 just seems too sloppy.

After putting all of these rumors together, I theorize that Apple will end up releasing two iPhones this year. I’m betting on the first model being a boring old iPhone 6 with a nice bump in specs, and the second model being a cheap plastic iPhone that can be sold for little or no money on contract. Needless to say, both versions will likely sport a 4-inch screen. Apple recently did away with the generational split for the iPod Touch line, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Cupertino drop the iPhone 5 and 4S completely going forward.

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Designing the iPhone User Experience: A User-Centered Approach to Sketching and Prototyping iPhone Apps

Given the fiercely competitive state of the iPhone app landscape, it has become increasingly challenging for app designers and developers to differentiate their apps. The days are long gone when it was possible to crank out an app over the weekend and refine it after receiving a few not so flattering user reviews. Users now have choices -- lots of them. If your app is difficult to use or doesn't meet their needs, finding another one is just a tap away.

To illustrate, consider the ever-growing field of Twitter clients. There are hundreds of variations in the App Store but only a handful stand out from the pack (such as Tweetie or Twitterific). For most apps, it boils down to one thing: the user experience. The same is true for countless other categories within the App Store; well-designed apps are more likely to attract and retain users. Of course there are other critical aspects of iPhone app development: the coding, the marketing, the customer support. All of the elements must come together.

Designing the iPhone User Experience will help you tackle the user experience part of the iPhone challenge. Three key themes will be reinforced throughout the book: Know thy user, the Design Lifecycle, and Attention to Detail:

• Know Thy User
  Millions of people depend on iPhone apps to get them to work, find their next meal, and stay in touch with family and friends. Professionals of all kinds also rely on iPhone apps: doctors look up drug interactions; photographers fine-tune lighting; cyclists find the best routes. To truly understand how your apps can fit into their lives, designers and developers must learn how users do things today, what's important to them, and what needs have not been met. Part II, Introduction to User Research, will introduce a variety of user research methods.


• The Design Lifecycle
  Award-winning designs rarely happen overnight; they usually only occur after many rigorous design cycles. To illustrate this point, consider USA TODAY's iPhone application, which went through at least seven iterations for the article view in their app. These kinds of iterations should happen before you launch your app, since it will save valuable time and money, not to mention the headaches a bad design could create for your user. More importantly, you may only have one chance to impress your users -- you do not want to sell them half-baked ideas. Part III, Developing your App Concept, will explain how to iteratively design and test your app concepts.


• Attention to Detail
  Most professionals know that attention to detail is important, but hundreds of apps fail to incorporate even the most basic design principles. This lack of attention is not merely an aesthetic issue (which is important) it also affects the way apps function. For example, a news article without proper alignment will be difficult to read, and a poorly rendered icon will be challenging to interpret. Apps with a razor sharp attention to detail will stand out because their apps will look good and perform well. Part IV, Refining your App Concept, will show you how to make to your app shine, from visual design and branding to accessibility and localization.

Mastering these three areas will help set your app apart from the crowd. You may not have an award-winning app over night. But knowing your users, iterative design, and attention to detail are important first steps.

Price: $44.99

Click here to buy from Amazon