Hot answers tagged

59 votes

Why do some mobile apps have mute buttons when the device has physical mute & volume switches?

The physical mute and volume buttons affect all other apps too. It's better to have a mute button in your app because as a user I may only want to mute the notifications from your app and not others. ...
  • 1,117
44 votes

Is there a design pattern for dropdown lists in iOS?

Even though Apple recommended (and surprisingly still recommends) pickers for dropdowns, not even they use it anymore. Spoilers: In both these cases, the "logic" would dictate to use a dropdown + ...
43 votes

How to design friction in an iOS app to prevent accidental action?

First, regarding answer that you linked, I think what Apple was having an issue with is the use of the same UI as their slide to power off, not the use of that UX/interaction. They just don't want it ...
  • 15.2k
42 votes
Accepted

Does rating on both extremes indicate UX issue?

After looking at some of the reviews, I'm finding a few common problems that relate to UX. People want to import their own models. They expected this to be an option. The instructions are unclear. ...
  • 1,496
42 votes
Accepted

When and why should we choose rounded corners over smooth corners?

I think it's more of an aesthetic or fashion decision than something inherently functional. Anyway, here's an argument. Most of the components in an interface are framed within an orthogonal grid, ...
  • 16.5k
40 votes
Accepted

What is the iOS alternative to a radio button?

Usually this is done using a table view, which is basically a list of items as well, only with a checkmark instead of a radio button. Sometimes such lists are on a new 'page' in the navigation ...
  • 526
36 votes

How to design friction in an iOS app to prevent accidental action?

To send money in my banking app, I must drag a symbol into a target. It is difficult to do accidentally, but quick to accomplish. It may be difficult for someone with limited dexterity or someone who ...
  • 461
28 votes
Accepted

Down arrow and up arrow status

I'll make this an answer so I can expand on my comment. Your main problem is not an arrow, icon, color or emoji thing. Your main problem is a conceptual one: you're mixing taxonomies with gradations ...
  • 33.9k
22 votes

How to design friction in an iOS app to prevent accidental action?

I haven't thought this through, but there might be mileage in considering the physical equivalent. On many control panels, such as in power plants or aircraft, the especially dangerous actions have a ...
21 votes
Accepted

Background music in app

Acceptable? Yes, you can have no music, or maybe some generic noisy background if you want to add something to the full audiovisual experience. Now, unless you're really short on budget, I'd ...
  • 33.9k
20 votes

Down arrow and up arrow status

Perhaps you could use only black for the arrows so that the user knows of the increase or decrease, place them on the left, and then on the right use a "health-bar" style status report which would ...
20 votes
Accepted

Should the label for a switch component be tappable on iOS?

In iOS tapping the label does not enable/disable the switch. Go with what ever the convention that is part of the respective operating systems, as the users of those systems will expect the ...
  • 2,674
16 votes

Is it acceptable to use Google Material Design in web applications?

I don't think it's a problem. There are many applications for iOS that use Material Design. Think of all the Google applications (Youtube, GMail, etc) iOS users use on a daily basis. You might want ...
15 votes

Does rating on both extremes indicate UX issue?

Yes, you do. Something is upsetting a significant portion of your users. The experience they are having is, to put it politely, sub-optimal. Therefore you have a User Experience problem. I suspect ...
  • 374
15 votes

Is it a strong anti-pattern to use a Floating Action Button in an iOS app?

New in iOS 11 you can find the Floating Action Button within the Notes App. If Apple uses them, you could definitely use them too.
  • 259
14 votes
Accepted

Why do some mobile apps have mute buttons when the device has physical mute & volume switches?

TL;DR: An app forcing me to use the global mute would be uninstalled in the blink of an eye. So they better have a mute function if they want to use audio at all. EDIT: The previous was a bit too ...
  • 887
14 votes

Is it acceptable to use Google Material Design in web applications?

Material Design is not "Android design", it's Google's all encompassing design "template" for both mobile and web apps. Many Google web products use Material Design like Angular (https://angular.io/) ...
  • 240
13 votes
Accepted

Is it a strong anti-pattern to use a Floating Action Button in an iOS app?

Edit (2022): Material Design has been a strong voice in application design for many years now, and many iOS users will have seen the FAB pattern. FABs are not a core experience to iOS and can still ...
13 votes

Is the use of username/password in a mobile app needed?

Some users won't want to give a second app access to their Facebook or Google information. Some apps only require Facebook login (for example) to ensure the identity of the user. This is because it ...
  • 16.7k
13 votes

How to design friction in an iOS app to prevent accidental action?

Additional ideas from this article: https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2018/01/friction-ux-design-tool/ Delaying the action and allow a window time for users to "undo" Extra step for security, such as ...
  • 5,136
12 votes
Accepted

Using Segmented Controls vs Tab bar

I see the tab used as a primary navigation and placed at the bottom of the screen, whereas the segmented controller is more like a local switch inside a particular screen and is usually placed at the ...
12 votes
Accepted

What control should I use to indicate multi-select lists on iOS?

Apple likes switches Sliding switches were a nifty looking control way back when. They were one way for iOS to announce "Hey, look! I like gestures. You should swipe stuff." In a short list ...
  • 21.2k
12 votes
Accepted

Can iOS apps be a bit more "adventurous"?

The Apple Human Interface Guidelines are 'Guidelines', not 'rules' - you don't have to follow them entirely, design and build what you like.
12 votes

Down arrow and up arrow status

I have always liked these icons, which indicate a trend on a graph. The combined shape and direction of the arrow indicate how the trend is progressing. I got these from Ionicons: http://ionicons.com/...
11 votes

What is the iOS alternative to a radio button?

I wrote a highly customizable radio button control for iOS. It supports both obj-c and swift. Hope it helps!
  • 211
10 votes

Do we really need to ask for password on iOS "login with email" screen?

Your proposal actually complicates things for the user Current user interaction: type in email tap password box type in password tap [login] button Proposed user interaction: type in email tap ...
  • 8,281
10 votes

Is it OK to use hamburger menus in iOS?

If you want to follow Apple's Human Interface Guidelines then you have to think of another pattern, because last year they announced that hamburger menus are not a welcomed sight in iOS applications: ...
  • 6,776
10 votes

Why do some mobile apps have mute buttons when the device has physical mute & volume switches?

Just a small extra consideration but I'll make it an answer anyway. I tend to listen to the radio via an app whilst playing casual games so need to be able to choose which app's volume to control. If ...
  • 321
10 votes

Is it a strong anti-pattern to use a Floating Action Button in an iOS app?

If you compare GMAIL user interface itself on the Apple and Android mobiles, the UI is a bit different (user pics and checkboxes - on the left-hand side, etc.). For the IOS, the GMAIL takes a ...

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