Guidelines you should follow while designing an Android Application

When making an app, following the platform’s design guidelines is a tried and true way to increase metrics like user retention and customer satisfaction.It makes it easier for users to learn how to use the application to the fullest extent, as quickly and intuitively as possible.

These design principles were developed by and for the Android User Experience Team

to keep users' best interests in mind. For Android developers and designers, they continue to underlie  the more detailed design guidelines for different types of devices.

These principles are need to be considered when we we apply our own creativity and design thinking.

Fascinate Users

Delight Users in surprising ways :

A beautiful surface, a carefully-placed animation, or a well-timed sound effect is a joy to experience.

Real objects are more fun than buttons and menus :

Allow people to directly touch and manipulate objects in your app.

Allow Customizations to the users :

People love to add personal touches because it helps them feel at home and in control.

Provide sensible, beautiful defaults, but also consider fun, optional customizations that don't hinder primary tasks.

Learn peoples' preferences over time :

Rather than asking them to make the same choices over and over, place previous choices within easy reach.

Simplify Users’ Life

Use short phrases with simple words :

People are likely to skip sentences if they're long.

Pictures are faster than words :

Consider using pictures to explain ideas. They get people's attention and can be much more efficient than words.

Decide for users but let them have the final say :

Take your best guess and act rather than asking first.Too many choices and decisions make people unhappy.Just in case you get it wrong, allow for 'undo'.

Only show what users need when they need it :

People get overwhelmed when they see too much at once. Hide options that aren't essential at the moment, and teach people as they go.

Never lose Users stuff :

Save what people took time to create and let them access it from anywhere.Remember settings, personal touches, and creations across phones,tablets, and computers.  It makes upgrading the easiest thing in the world.

Users should always know where they are :

Give people confidence that they know their way around.

If it looks the same, it should act the same :

Help people discern functional differences by making them visually distinct rather than subtle.

Make Users Experience Amazing

Give users tricks that work everywhere :

People feel great when they figure things out for themselves.

Be gentle in how you prompt people to make corrections :

They want to feel smart when they use your app. If something goes wrong, give clear recovery instructions but spare them the technical details. If you can fix it behind the scenes, even better.

Make important things fast. Not all actions are equal :

Decide what's most important in your app and make it easy to find and fast to use, like the shutter button in a camera, or the pause button in a music player.

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