Android is getting a nice makeover. This was previously apparent after reports in recent weeks. Now Google has prematurely published an entire page with photos’s and details about the new Material Design 3 Expressive. What will Android's new design style bring?
Material 3 Expressive
Google has published a blog post full of new styles and changes Android is getting. The blog post was clearly not intended for today, and has since been taken offline again. But like so much on the internet, things do leave their mark. Now we can share with you what's happening with the new Material 3 Expressive design we're going to see back in Android. We already wrote this morning about the revamped Google Clock app, which is getting the new design. Along with that, big news of the week appeared; with the new design of the status bar, for example.
Material 3 Expressive is the result of three years of research into how digital interfaces can have more emotional impact, without sacrificing usability. According to Google, it is the "most researched Material Design update ever", with contributions from more than 18,000 participants worldwide. The project started from a central question: why do so many apps look alike, and why do they feel so distant?
Whereas previous choices in Material Design - such as the famous experiment with 41 shades of blue - were mainly data-driven, this time Google took an integrated approach in which design, research and technology worked together. The goal: designs that not only understand users, but also appeal to them.
According to Google, the core of Material 3 Expressive lies in the use of colour, shape, size, movement and containment. These elements are used to direct attention, highlight important actions and group related functions logically. Concept designs show, for example, a new floating toolbar: a pill-shaped element at the bottom of the screen that does not cover the full width, leaving the background subtly visible - a style similar to Google Chat's recent interface.
In user tests, key interface elements in expressive designs were recognised up to four times faster than in traditional variants. This applied not only to visual recognition, but also to actions: participants performed actions measurably faster, such as sending an e-mail via a prominently placed and strikingly coloured button in a sample application.
Although many of the designs are still in concept phase, the early leak indicates that Google is sending a clear message with Material 3 Expressive: design should not only be functional, but also appealing. We are expected to see these expressive principles in more and more apps in the near future. Presumably, Google will present the new designs at the Android Show next week.
Via 9to5Google
