Design for Screen - Final Pinup feedback

The final pin up allowed us to get some final feedback on the apps design, how it works and anything small that could be improved before the deadline. Figure 1 shows the animation of the interface in use, allowing the group to be able to understand how the app works. Figure 2 shows the post it notes left of the good points and improvements about the app. I was then able to writing these out into a list so I knew the common things that cam up so I could then decide which parts I did need to improve.

fig. 1

fig. 2

+ good

• scrollable, on trend + fancy
• like the archived section
• simple, easy to navigate layout
• consistent
• easy to navigate
• good use of links to helpful additions such as the map and the favourites section
• looks professional
• simplicity of the layout works
• legible and easy to navigate
• good concept and would use the app
• looks professional, the video showing it scrolling is good 
• circles and typeface works well together
• good colour scheme
• logo and colour scheme work well 
• too much text shown, can be a little overwhelming
• animation and presentation is good

- improvements

• too much text shown, can be a little overwhelming
• more influence of the colours in the sections
• more neutral logo
• colour on title needs to be removed and only used on the apps
• give sections a colour and the title changes per section
• slow down animation so it is easier to understand
• the logo in black would suit target audience better and look less childish
• experiment with the colours
• needs a demonstration of a real article in order for it to be understand easier
• needs more segregation of sections
• adjust the colours so that the main title is neutral and the sections change colour
• make the space less crowded

In response to the feedback

The first feedback was that the logotype needed to be changed to be a neutral colour such as black and then use the colours as part of the category identity throughout the app. Initially changing it on one of the splash screen colours I wasn't sure it would work, but then when applied to other areas of the app it began to work well and improve the legitimacy and sophistication of the app. 

 

The menu already had the colour scheme applied to the different categories, but only on the lines that then presented the titles of each section. To improve the overall look and maintain consistency the colour of the writing was also changed. 

         

The section colour for the articles was orange, so after applying this to the title it then had to be decided where else it would be necessary for it to also be changed to orange. The icons were changed to orange which worked well, but the text did not read very well when it was changed to anything other than black. The text was also made central to help with the overall visual and also when tested on an iPhone 6 screen it looked better and read easily. 

The apps concept would be easier to understand if there was an actual article as part of the mock up, so I added an article that I had originally put in the favourites section so that there is consistency throughout. The animation will need to be created to show how it can open up to another photo underneath and an expansion of writing. The animation will then also be able to show it go into the favourites and then show where it can be found at a later date by the user. 

The feedback helped me to see exactly the parts that could be improved as this becomes hard to distinguish when you have been looking at something for such a long time. I was unhappy with the way in which the colours had been used as I didn't feel it best represented the app, but now that I have presented the visuals and had time to discuss the different options the app design makes a lot more sense and works better visually in regards to who the target audience is. With the new colour scheme and overall design visual, it was thought that the app suited the target audience better and also had a higher level of legitimacy in terms of it providing factual articles to the user. 

As a result of the change in visuals for the app, a new home screen logo needed to be designed so that it represented the overall visuals of the app. The lines that are present throughout the whole interface were taken and designed to appear to weave in and out of the letters. The design is minimal but accurately represents the visuals of the app which is important. 

Now that the app design has been finalised the prototype can be linked up so that it works in order for the user to understand exactly how the content works with each other and to test the user interactions with the interface. The app prototype was developed using Adobe XD as the tools allow for each of the elements to become interactive in a way that it would appear on the users phone screen.