Windows 10 Mobile: One small step for Windows Phone, one giant step backwards in UI

[FAHMI BASSEM]

One unfortunate consequence of the side-swipe to delete is that it seems to be incompatible with the panorama view concept, which uses side swipe to go to the next 'tab'. I really liked that concept and Microsoft's renderings showing the 'width' of an app. Is the Panorama control going to be discontinued, or is it just that MS has decided to stop using it in some of their own apps?

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I really afraid that MS is going to kill WP UI, panorama is one of our elements which is really creative-in my opinion- + the current MARK function-tap on the edge to mark multiple items- is much better that swipe to delete or flag

 

[tiziano27]

Agreed! Fortunately, both of those hands are already going to be at the bottom of the screen, where the New Message button was and where the keyboard will appear. Further, shape writing makes it pretty easy to "type" one-handed on 4"-5" devices.

Probably your brain is going to rewire and find a new optimal sequence of movements. For example, tapping the new message button with the index finger of the other hand, and then let that hand fall right into position for thumb-type.
I had not tried the swipe keyboard with one hand. It's ok, but I don't think that's a popular way to type.

I really don't think single handed use is so important for smartphones to optimize the whole UI for that. The back button (sorry iphone) and content in tabs that can be navigated dragging pixels in any part of the screen, is good enough for consumption with one hand. For content creation buttons are more important, but people generally use both hands in those scenarios, so It's not a big deal if they are at the top.

That's true for some of what's posted, but it's the very much the wrong verb for a lot of the commentary from A5cent, Spaulagain, me, and others. Here's how you can tell:
Whining: to utter a low, usually nasal, complaining cry or sound, as from uneasiness, discontent, peevishness, etc.
Critiquing: evaluate (a theory or practice) in a detailed and analytical way.

Now, although my tongue was in my cheek for much of that, the point stands that there are valid arguments to be had about what we've seen (and even pencil-drawn mockups). Of course, there are invalid arguments, too. Let's try to avoid the latter ones.

I'm not reading any deep analysis about UI design here. Probably because none of us is an expert in the subject. I'm aware of the naivety of my arguments, probably the other guys too. Trying to obtain conclusion from naive and shallow analysis, without even using the product, and then complaining with a little bitterness, could be described figuratively as whining.

 

[manicottiK]

I'm not reading any deep analysis about UI design here.

The fact that you keep returning to UI instead of UX reveals that you might be reading, but you either aren't getting it (unlikely, I think) or don't accept it (seems likely). Either way, I don't think that much more can be gained from this discussion (the larger one, not just between us) so I'm checking out unless I see some substantial shift toward why one UI might lead to a better or worse UX than another.

 

[jlzimmerman]

I wish if UI design was so simple as you put
Your if else will double the effort for developer and he would nt care to develop for windows at all

All the more reason they didn't make it different from the desktop version. Same code, same layout.

 

[Soble]

Zune HD and WP7 was Awesome.

 

[iice cage]

I like the new design of windows,10 for phone... Windows phone 8 are just textblocks that drops unto mainpage thats it.

 

[spaulagain]

This is like the most #firstworldproblem thing I've ever heard.

No, it's straight up usability issues. UX design is extremely important in today's market, and the 3 dot menu on the bottom right (the easiest corner to access) is far more reachable and efficient then the damn hamburger icon. There is a reason why Apple went through all that extra effort to develop a secondary UI function for large screen devices where users can't reach the top left.

I'm really excited for Windows 10, but so far the UI has been trashed and changed just for the sake of change, or mimicking others. When instead they should have taken the valuable experiences they already have, and enhanced them.

I really hope they turn this around before release.

 

[drachen23]

I wish if UI design was so simple as you put
Your if else will double the effort for developer and he would nt care to develop for windows at all

MS actually made it pretty easy with universal apps. Most programming these days separates the code that actually does app stuff (like getting data from the cloud, processing things, arranging data to be displayed on the screen) from the layout files that control how the data looks on screen. In universal apps, there is one shared project file of important code and two app projects, one for Windows and the other for Windows Phone. People are doing this right now. You can share the same layout or use a different layout for each. The important code in the shared project is always the same. MS also supports having the layout change based on the width of the screen with only one layout file. You can see this right now. A lot of apps change their layout when you snap them to a different width in Win 8.1, like Twitter. This sort of stuff is already built in and people are using it now.

That's why a lot of us app dev and UX guys on this site and elsewhere are so mystified by what we see.

 

[Jas00555]

No, it's straight up usability issues. UX design is extremely important in today's market, and the 3 dot menu on the bottom right (the easiest corner to access) is far more reachable and efficient then the damn hamburger icon. There is a reason why Apple went through all that extra effort to develop a secondary UI function for large screen devices where users can't reach the top left.

I'm really excited for Windows 10, but so far the UI has been trashed and changed just for the sake of change, or mimicking others. When instead they should have taken the valuable experiences they already have, and enhanced them.

I really hope they turn this around before release.

95% of the mobile phone market uses a hamburger menu and I have yet to hear of an outbreak of Strained Thumb Syndrome, so it's a pretty ridiculous thing to complain about IMHO.

 

[spaulagain]

95% of the mobile phone market uses a hamburger menu and I have yet to hear of an outbreak of Strained Thumb Syndrome, so it's a pretty ridiculous thing to complain about IMHO.

The point isn't that others do it so it must be ok. The point is the current method is actually a better UX. And considering Apple has specifically addressed this issue as I mentioned above, I'd hardly say the rest of the market is ignoring/dismissing that the issue exists.

And Android is certainly not the OS to model UI after. Up until Material Design, their entire UI was horrible.

Also, a hamburger icon menu access isn't so bad if you can access it by just swiping to the right like in panorama. And/Or, you can put the icon on the right like the Facebook app does and a website I made does as well.

 

[Michael Alan Goff]

Microsoft's biggest enemy isn't Google or Apple, it's their own fanbase that's never happy.

 

[Jas00555]

.

Also, a hamburger icon menu access isn't so bad if you can access it by just swiping to the right like in panorama. And/Or, you can put the icon on the right like the Facebook app does and a website I made does as well.

Ok, then what's the problem then? If you're able to get to it by swiping to the right, I really don't understand what the problem is.

 

[spaulagain]

Ok, then what's the problem then? If you're able to get to it by swiping to the right, I really don't understand what the problem is.

If that's the case, its fine. From what we've seen so far, that's not the case. Although right side is still better to be able to click the menu items. In general, I don't have an issue with the hamburger icon. I use it myself because it has become an industry norm.

What I do have an issue with, is its placement and accessibility. With the 5-5.5" screen becoming the norm for smartphones, that one handed capability is ever more important because the top left corner is so hard to get.

 

[spaulagain]

Microsoft's biggest enemy isn't Google or Apple, it's their own fanbase that's never happy.

This isn't just some fanboism crap. This is usability practice. People completely outside of the MS ****** group like Brad Frost and Luke Wroblewski have mentioned this many a time in UX design conferences, blog posts, etc.

It just so happens that Microsoft built a well designed UI with WP8 and now their loyal users want it to stay well designed. We don't want a me too OS to replace it.

Anyways, WP's issues are not the UI, they are missing features and apps. The UI is pretty solid and has set the pattern that Apple and Google have followed suite with (kind of).

 

[wpn00b]

The point isn't that others do it so it must be ok. The point is the current method is actually a better UX. And considering Apple has specifically addressed this issue as I mentioned above, I'd hardly say the rest of the market is ignoring/dismissing that the issue exists.

All of this even the part I didn't quote. I just wanted to say that although Apple did address it, I don't find it elegant. It definitely works though. But the bottom right "ellipsis" menu is far better. A complete paradigm shift would be to allow that to be configured to the left side for lefties. I mean... Those weird scissors in elementary school worked well so why not in the digital realm?

 

[Michael Alan Goff]

This isn't just some fanboism crap. This is usability practice. People completely outside of the MS ****** group like Brad Frost and Luke Wroblewski have mentioned this many a time in UX design conferences, blog posts, etc.

It just so happens that Microsoft built a well designed UI with WP8 and now their loyal users want it to stay well designed. We don't want a me too OS to replace it.

Anyways, WP's issues are not the UI, they are missing features and apps. The UI is pretty solid and has set the pattern that Apple and Google have followed suite with (kind of).

As it was in WP 8, it was a failure. I'm typing this up with 8.1, so it isn't out of hate. I find the UI unused to be the UI that failed. I can only hope that making as more familiar UI helps adoption.

 

[tiziano27]

If that's the case, its fine. From what we've seen so far, that's not the case. Although right side is still better to be able to click the menu items. In general, I don't have an issue with the hamburger icon. I use it myself because it has become an industry norm.

What I do have an issue with, is its placement and accessibility. With the 5-5.5" screen becoming the norm for smartphones, that one handed capability is ever more important because the top left corner is so hard to get.

If the Hamburger menu doesn't contain options that are commonly used, It doesn't make much difference if It's positioned at the bottom or at the top.
It's more common to use the other hand to reach other UI elements, like the first item on a list, a link, a command button in the body of the app.

 

[tiziano27]

This isn't just some fanboism crap. This is usability practice. People completely outside of the MS ****** group like Brad Frost and Luke Wroblewski have mentioned this many a time in UX design conferences, blog posts, etc.

It just so happens that Microsoft built a well designed UI with WP8 and now their loyal users want it to stay well designed. We don't want a me too OS to replace it.

Anyways, WP's issues are not the UI, they are missing features and apps. The UI is pretty solid and has set the pattern that Apple and Google have followed suite with (kind of).

People has to understand that single handed use is not the most important objective of the user experience. If some functions that aren't frequently used require both hands, It's ok.

IMO, Metro is awful, It has so many flaws, every product that it "touched" failed. That's why MS decided to drop it. I'd go even further, providing an option to choose between tiles and a grid of icons.

 

[Brandon Tobias]

The more I look at screenshots of Windows 10 for mobile the more I wonder why I don't just get an Android device, since the UI is pretty much heading in that direction anyway. Since Microsoft has put more time and energy into making sure their own apps are updated faster and more often on iOS and Android anyway, the only real differentiator between a Windows Phone and everyone else was the camera and UI. Since its inception, the Windows Phone UI was based on spacing and typography. Little-to-no chrome.

With Windows 10 mobile all I've seen is a major step away from the UI elements that made Windows Phone so great. Look no further than the new email, messaging and photos app. As a longtime WP user this frustrates me. I was willing to constantly be left behind in apps and games because I liked the style of my OS. I'll wait until Windows Mobile 10 comes out to make a final judgement, but I can see myself leaving Windows Phone if they continue to choose not to differentiate themselves with the UI. I suppose the preview time is our platform to let Microsoft know that we don't like the direction they are taking WP with regards to the UI.

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If the way an OS looked was the main purpose of you having WP well im sorry ... that's not what an OS is for
The new apps are designed to have a consistent look between W10 on desktop and tablet as well as mobile so the UI had to change ...
Some things we can change by feedback to MS but i like the direction MS is going honestly my main issue with windows phone was that the stat screen was limited and the OS as well as apps had little functionality compared to what android can do as well as BB10 ....
I want functionality yes some elements of WP like pivot navigation should be retained but that's about it i like the new direction ...
I also assume developers can still use pivot navigation in apps as well ...

 

[Brandon Tobias]

If after final build, I have to stretch my thumb all the way to that hamburger menu button at the top of the phone to access app settings; I'm leaving windows phone. It was the one thing I really appreciated - those three little dots at the lower right of most apps. Like you differentiation has won the hearts of most current and returning windows phone users. Failure to build on this advantage will only make the UI indistinguishable. Really Microsoft should be working on how to make core experiences better. E.g. Family Room - (can't attach photos to the messenger), Better Skype integration, Phone and Recent calls - (can we get a call history with duration and time of calls); Resuming/Loading - (how long will it take to remedy this?); the list goes on.
Windows Phone has been playing catch-up for a while now albeit its furious pace to do so. Ultimately it will be Microsoft's ability to carve out an unexplored customer base and to improve its advantages in the OS that will make it succeed. Anything else would lead to it swimming in the shark invested waters that is Google.

I have read over and over how people hate the new design language and will leave windows
what you gonna leave it for IOS or android ? cuz ios you have to reach to the top of the screen to go back, android is the same to open menu's
which i have no problem with ....
before people judge the hamburger menu which is not a Android thing its used in other OS's, apps , web apps and web pages its a standard recognized navigational UI element... have yall stopped to think that maybe MS has enabled a swipe from the left edge of the device to open up the hamburger menu so you wont have to reach all the way up ???

Again people don't get items based on looks alone functionality is key as if you are on WP for its UI only well im sorry for you
these new features and improved functionality you are asking for will come with UI changes....