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It must be acknowledged that User Experience design best practices and principles undergo relatively little change year over year. And 2021 has pretty much the same UI/UX mobile design practices.
This is primarily because the goal of user experience design stays the same โ make users happy when using your product and get a desirable action. Users still have two hands, ten fingers, two thumbs, and pretty much the same level of tech endurance. That is why previous UX practices are still relevant and applicable this year.
Which App Design Practice is Good?
Speaking about UX trends for 2021, as Lara Hanlon said: โThe main emphasis will be on the design, based on dataโ. This, basically, means that we should expect a smarter personalized user experience and greater emphasis on advanced navigation capabilities.
Video backgrounds, shiny colors, dynamic transitions, parallax & motion effects will also be widely popular in 2021. Keep in mind that minimal iOS user interface guidelines and Google human interface guidelines are still on the table.
- Why is design so important for an appโs success?
- Did you hire an experienced UI/UX designer?
- What was the biggest challenge you had to face in designing an app?
- How do you know your app design is encouraging?
- Do your users praise your app design?
- What are the most important things in designing a perfect mobile UI/UX?
66% of surveyed companies named AI technology as the most essential UX trend for the next 5 years.
Capgemini
Nevertheless, there are new tech trends and mobile industries that will push the boundaries of UX. Those trends are chatbots, virtual reality, ID authentification. We would like to bring the latest UX design trends for 2021 to your attention.
AI technology
Aristotle once said, โMan is by nature a social animalโ. Communication is one of the human priorities and there is no wonder that messengers stand among the top 3 most used apps in smartphones. While some messengers greatly depend on the userโs individual preferences a trend is obvious. The main aim of mobile app development is to make a better communication experience.
The focus is shifted to the optimization of conversational elements used in communication with chatbots. The chatbots are one of the most perspective technologies which have their own UX requirements (primarily regarded as communication). AI tech is expected to continue spreading in 2021. Among its main goals are reaching a higher level of security, entertainment, and real-time UI.
AR and VR technologies
AR and VR are rather new technologies and supposed to continue their growth in 2021. There are no accurate rules, policies, or guides on how to implement these techs. AR and VR have wide ranges of beneficial features and opportunities, specifically for different apps. The picture above is a great example of motion design for mobile devices. And while such fluid animation looks great on 2D screens, the same kind of effect will trigger motion sickness in virtual reality.
A new challenge for UX is to make VR animation that will be accepted by the human vestibular apparatus. Besides, user experience in VR should precisely imitate the physics and motion of the real-world to make virtual space comfortable and acceptable by our brains. Along with VR shopping, new VR functions are expected to appear in 2021 like VR education. advertising, and others.
Personalization
Itโs all about personalization nowadays. The tailored-to-your-needs services and products are valued more than ever. So how to deliver that personal user experience?
Rule #1: Donโt overwhelm users with tons of questions to customize the app. Just show users a tab with blank fields, give some hints, and explain the purpose of answering personal questions. But let the user decide where and when to fill in all those fields.
Rule #2: Use data like a ninja. Netflix spent a lot of effort on creating customized movie search, that seamlessly adapts to userโs tastes without their input. You can make something similar by just using activity and geo-targeting data. Just donโt forget to market this feature as a unique value proposition, as Apple did with Genius Search.
Rule #3: Give recommendations out of a binary system, prompt more than two options. Providing users with more freedom allows you to learn something unexpected about how they actually use your product. If you have simple radial questions, leave an optional field for custom answers.
Dark design
UX design is expected to be minimalistic in 2021. This year is going to bring the dark theme trend in website interfaces. Earlier, some apps and websites proposed optional themes with different colors. Today the dark color is supposed to become the primary one. It is already launched in Apple and Mercedes-Benz. Although, each business industry requires specific colors and themes, and the dark mode wonโt fit any industry. The dark design looks more stylish, firm, and modern. It can be applied to such industries as real estate, SaaS, eCommerce, etc. Among the benefits of dark mode are also:
- distress feature;
- easier to hide imperfect pixels;
- save the device-battery as the interface is visible with low screen brightness;
- easier to highlight the vital info or elements.
More 3D elements
In 2021 UX design will contain even more 3D elements than previous years. The 3D design is considered to be one of the most attractive trends. It is expected to continue expanding its borders. This design trend help to present the service or product in unusual ways that will engage more users and potential customers. 3D elements also make the users stay longer on a website.
Individual learning
Due to the pandemic, education turned online. There are hundreds of different applications that help to manage remote education for students as well as for tutors. UX design of these educational apps is going to change a little. Designers will implement useful features like psychological tests, matchmaking technology, individual schedules, and feedback that influence the experience of each user. This design approach should provide a one-to-one experience where each student can feel valuable and track the individual progress.
Less graphic
Today most websites tend to use an enormous number of graphics. 2021 UX trend implies using fewer graphics and more text. This trend can be quite challenging for designers. Using text and typography makes the website more creative and engage more users in 2021.
ID authentification
ID authentification via fingerprint or face are not new trends but remain popular. Mobile apps are constantly threatened by hacker attacks. That`s why this trend is critical for UI\UX design as the security level is an essential component of any mobile and web application. Face ID is considered to be the priority type of authentification. App developers predict the appearance of biometric locks and diverse data encryption tools in the nearest future of the UX market. To get a reliable reputation, app owners should pay much attention to privacy.
Load speed
Due to 5G technology, web and mobile applications require UX design that loads the pages as quickly as possible. The less time a user waits for a response, the more probability of staying on a website is. This goal can be achieved by reducing the number of invaluable elements that are sent to end-users. Some tools help to reveal such elements and fasten the website or app work.
FAQ
WHAT ARE THE MOST AFFECTING UX TRENDS FOR 2022?
The UX design trends have changed a little compared to the previous year. Among the latest UX trends should be highlighted AI technology, AR and VR, fast load time, more 3D elements. All of them are not new but are expected to expand their opportunities in 2022.
WHY IS UX DESIGN ESSENTIAL FOR WEB OR MOBILE APP?
Qualified and modern UX engages more users or potential clients. Great UX also makes users stay on a website or mobile app longer and, therefore, increases the probability of interaction or making an order.
HOW TO CREATE A CONSIDERABLE UX DESIGN?
The concept of UX depends on the industry and the audience specifications. Colors, themes, technological elements should respond to the users` expectations. It is also important to provide a fast load of pages and content that matches the app or website direction. Contact us to get a professional consultation with our designers who have vast experience in creating unique UX designs.
To end up
The first touch screens were invented long before the iPhone. Multi-touch has been around since the โ90s. What made the iPhone so unique and revolutionary is a user experience that stands behind the touchscreen. It was low latency and gave that feeling of real-life motion, which really sells the illusion of direct manipulation. Almost a decade past the first iPhone presentation the purpose of UX stays the same โ keep the illusion alive.
Mobile application engages more users when it provides excellent UX. The choice of UX design depends on the app specifications like the business industry, audience peculiarities, main goals that should be reached with this app, and so on. If you want to follow the latest UX trends and build a modern and unique design for your solution, please contact our designers for discussing your project.
