designing native android apps

Designing Native Android Apps

Making apps look and feel at home on Android

Ryan Harter

● Freelance Android Developer

● Develop mobile apps for 5+ years

● http://ryanharter.com

Differentiators

● Sharing● Widgets● Rich Notifications● Action Bar● Navigation● Launcher Icons● Launch Image

Sharing

● Support Dynamic Sharing● Let user choose app based on type

○ image○ text○ url○ etc.

● Multiple sharing dialog options

Sharing - Standard and Custom

Sharing - Quick Share

Widgets

● Provide quick access to information● No need to launch app● Support Basic Interaction

○ Lists○ Galleries○ Buttons

● Resizable

● Encourages Launcher Placement!● Prime Real Estate

Widgets - Examples

Widgets - Resizing

Rich Notifications

● Support Rich Contents (more than just text)○ Images○ Dynamic Data

● Interaction○ Allow (read: Promote) Interaction

● Expandable● Ongoing Notifications

○ Give Users Data and Control

● Promotes Interaction

Rich Notifications - Examples

Rich Notifications - Ongoing

Action Bar

● Contain Custom Controls● Most used Action Items● Action Overflow for lower priority actions

○ This is behind the menu button for phones that have one

● Split to utilize space● Can contain navigation (Tabs or Spinner)

Action Bar - Standard

1. Logo (defaults to App Icon)a. Provides Contextb. Can include up affordance

2. Spinner Navigationa. Top level navigationb. Defaults to current Activity name

3. Action Items4. Overflow Menu

Action Bar - Split and Sizes

Action Bar - Contextual

● Contextual Action Bar○ Used for selected items/text

● Change appearance to add context

● Provide action items for selected data

Navigation

Two Navigation Styles● Temporal

○ System back button○ Never put on screen, required on all devices

● Hierarchical○ Up Button (Top left of Action Bar)

Navigation

Navigation - List Exception

Launcher Icons

● Distinct Silhouette○ Makes your app easier to find○ Allows added branding

● Top-down Perspective● Multiple Per App

○ Each Activity can have it’s own launcher icon

● Allows added branding in launcher icon● Eases discovery

Launcher Icons - Distinct Silhouettes

Launcher Icons - Multiple

● G+ Photos & Google+○ Multiple entry points ○ Support main use cases

● Use Sparingly

Launch Image

● Not a splash screen○ Apple guidelines say to make it look like an empty

first view, doesn’t make sense on Android● No purpose on Android

Resources

Excellent resources for Android Design Guidelines

http://developer.android.com/design/index.html