The Human Interface Guidelines for Android I posted about earlier this month generated considerable interest. The folks behind it, Mutual Mobile, received a lot of feedback. The most common request was for more information and guidance about designing for Android 3.0, aka Honeycomb. Mutual Mobile has wasted no time in responding to these requests, and are today releasing version 1.1 of their Android Design Guidelines. The update “introduces some of the OS’s unique new features such as the Action Bar and Notification/Status bar along with how to utilize new UI elements like Fragments. As always, these guidelines are a living document and will continue to evolve as the platform evolves. We hope designers will use this tool to continue to innovate in Android design and help Honeycomb evolve into the enterprise tool it could be.”
From the version 1.1 document:
Honeycomb is a game changer for Android. By introducing an optimized UI, holographicthemes, intuitive multitasking and a redesigned widget structure, Honeycomb has created auser experience that not only makes sense functionality-wise but also has the capability of be-ing stunning visually. While there are not many Honeycomb optimized applications on the mar-ket yet, the ones that have been developed are well constructed and beautiful. CNN, YouTube,and Google Earth are three examples of remarkable Honeycomb applications.
I continue to remain a strong supporter of Android, and look forward to more elegant, intuitive applications. With design guidelines like this, all Android users stand to benefit.