New trends come and go with every season for UI/UX but here are the top fifteen trends that will help you navigate the app market from 2021–2022.
INCREASED PERSONALIZATION
With more and more apps offering customized features and offers within their apps, it’s time the UI & UX of apps stepped up to match the game. The one way to stand out and increase brand recall and loyalty is by providing a matchless personalized experience within their branded apps.
PASSWORDLESS LOGIN
Remembering or even storing passwords has become quite a cumbersome task in today’s otherwise seamless world. Gone are the days of passwords or patterns to even unlock your phone. An OTP, simple fingerprint tap or face unlock is enough to unlock a plethora of devices including mobiles and even laptops. With the advent of such technology, soon apps are also adapting and allowing users to log in or make purchases using fingerprint scans or even facial recognition.
BOTTOM ALIGNED NAVIGATION
As screens get bigger and handheld devices become larger, navigating with one hand has become increasingly difficult. The classic burger menu, so often seen on the left top corner, is not slowly finding itself obsolete. Early adopters had already changed their app and mobile website designs accordingly and now giants like Amazon are also enabling button-aligned easy navigation in their apps.
DARK THEMES
As Instagram turned dark and so did a plethora of apps and websites, the app development world took notice and got to work. Now a host of websites and apps are available in dark mode and so are the native OS- Windows, MacOS, iOS, Android, etc. This enables the user to have a seamless dark mode experience across the usage of their device. When an app they use does not have a dark mode build available, it’s the glitch in their experience. Thus, more and more apps developers and brands are working hard to ensure that their dark mode experiences are available to the users at the earliest.
INCLUSIVE & ACCESSIBLE DESIGN
Creating a design that’s inclusive or accessible for people with different needs is something that every app or website developer should definitely keep in mind. Whether it is for the colour blind, for the ones with low vision or even someone who cannot simply read or write the native language it’s built in. The idea is to create a design that’s inclusive of people beyond the regular spectrum and accessible to even those who might not have the same access or opportunities as us.
INTEGRATED VOICE INTERACTION
Many apps now offer the use of voice search or voice commands. They could be integrated with the native OS’ voice assistant or simply have a customized Google search setup within the app. This provides not only ease of use but also better accessibility. For example, one can simply take notes using voice commands instead of having to type. This also enables someone with visual challenges to also access the app in the exact same manner.
ROUNDED CORNERS
The sharp edges and heavy contrast boxes have now been replaced with softer rounded edges and only enough contrast to aid in functionality. As users get more intuitive about mobile app usage, the need to demarc buttons and sections with excessive contrast is now gone. Thereby giving rise to softer design details like these rounded edges.
GRADIENT ELEMENTS
Gradients have made a new entry into the UI/UX design space. Glassmorphism has been a huge trend in 2020 which has translated in a simpler manner across the UI/UX design space as gradients. Whether to simply make a page appear more interesting as backgrounds or to create the illusion of a light source behind elements, gradients are here to stay and add dimension to our mobile app designs.
INTERACTIVE ANIMATION
Mostly animation so far has only had one purpose on mobile apps- to add an element of interest. However, with more intuitive use and smoother tech integration, animations are making a comeback but with functional purposes.
BUTTONLESS SEAMLESS DESIGNS
Many intuitive app interactions now do not need buttons or visible pointers to indicate that the function is available. One major example of this is scrolling. Scrolling bars haven’t been around for a while but the indicator of scrolling also seems to have been replaced with a smooth flowing liquid scroll motion.
3D ELEMENTS INTEGRATION
3D elements add an interesting depth to the apps. Whether actual rendered 3D elements or faux 3D elements, both have great potential to make your user interaction much more visually appealing and fun and with a better recall.
MORE VISUAL EMOTIONAL CONNECT
Another way mobile apps are trying to increase recall value is by trying to embrace design and illustration styles that lend an individualistic visual style. This style makes them stand apart from their competitors and gives an immensely better brand recall. Beyond this, it sets a mood and personality for the branded app and gives an overall better experience to its users.
AUGMENTED & VIRTUAL REALITY INTEGRATION
For certain apps, their purpose and functionality can be taken to a whole different level if AR/VR integration is made possible. For example, if you’re in the interior space business, the integration would lead to easier conversions when the client can easily visualise your designs in real time using your app and their phone’s camera. This can also prove to be super helpful for apps that use maps or real time locations to showcase their app’s business.
CUSTOMIZED CHATBOT DESIGN
Chatbots are now increasingly popular due to their convenience and ease of use. You don’t need a customer-facing team to be available 24x7 for most basic issues that a chatbot would solve instantly. Many chatbot tools are now available for ready integration into your apps and websites which can also be customized to your needs.
Content First & Device-agnostic Design
Devices are now not just limited to your desktop or mobile apps. They need to be modified to every possible OS and device that a potential user might access via. This means irrespective of the device they access it via, the experience needs to be seamless and familiar. A content-first approach helps in creating simple but efficient designs that aren’t complicated to understand or follow.
With so many trends and features to keep up with, it’s overwhelming to make the right choice. But with the right research and steps in place, you can make the correct choice that matches your tech entrepreneur dreams. Getting an expert like Valere on board can help you understand and work on the process and our App Development Cost Calculator helps you envision the budget that you might need!
Valere is an award-winning software development agency that has built over 300 top-rated applications for startups and Fortune 500 companies in all verticals like healthcare, finance, sports, fitness, education, and more. Their apps have been featured by the New York Times, and have been consistently recognized as Apple App Store’s top featured apps, TechRadar, and Google Play Store’s top featured apps! Schedule a call with us today to learn how we can help your team create the perfect software or application that can Accelerate Your Business Goals!
