Latest Trends of 2021 in UI/IxD to Keep an Eye on!

After staying at home for months together, our lives and the world itself seems to have slow down. Our lives appear static, stuck in a monotonous routine, confined within the safety of our homes. But there is always something new to look forward to, and despite all the odds few trends are still dominating the designs.

So we, at Creative Gaga, are here with a new set of latest trends for the year 2021. Heads up, Ui and IxD Designers, here are the upcoming trends for this year.

1. Apps Lead the Way

Mobile phones are slowly dominating our lives in almost every aspect. One cannot imagine living in 2021 without smartphones. Hence, it is imperative to understand the role websites and apps have in building brands and businesses. A gradual shift from online stores, social media platforms to brand dedicated mobile applications can be observed.

It has been noted that most smartphone users spend 90% of their time in mobile applications rather than browser or websites, according to Forbes.com. And apps dedicated to the brand also offer an edge over websites in several aspects, such as options to personalise the app and enhanced customer services.

Hence, the shift is anything but a surprise. But every coin has two sides, and these apps come with lucrative maintenance costs since they require frequent updates to keep up with the latest software.

2. White is the new Black

https://dribbble.com/shots/9054010-Student-Experience

Colours are the most critical aspect of any design and more so in UI. Harmonious colour palettes which reflect the ideals and resonate with the brand are crucial aspects of UI design. The colours must also be pleasing to the users' eyes and help the user navigate with ease while also distinguishing the various aspects of UI elements, surface and background.

https://www.behance.net/gallery/92977809/Tenant-App-Case-study

White and light grey colours seem to reign the background since they are some of the simplest and easiest colours to harmonise.

3. Shaking things up

https://www.macstories.net/stories/widgets-and-the-app-library-a-first-look-at-bringing-personality-and-customization-to-your-home-screens/

https://www.uistore.design/items/apple-widgets-ui-kit-for-figma/

https://dribbble.com/shots/12273158-iOS-14-widgets

The latest Apple update is here to ruffle the world of UI design, just a little bit. The IOS 14 has introduced the concept of resizing widgets, wherein one can resize the widget in three different sizes, small, medium and large and rearrange the icons as per their convince. This calls for UI designers to design the widget icon such that it can be adjusted to suit the users' needs while also displaying the crucial information required of the widget.

4. Lets Groove

No one likes stoic and static design anymore. Everyone craves a little rhythm, motion and life to things around us, and this includes the world of UI. Animated content is always received more warmly than static ones. It gives us a sense of life and interaction.

https://dribbble.com/shots/3833878-Animated-Icons-for-Rewards

The trend of incorporating animation has become crucial in the world of UI designs. Some of the ways one can incorporate animations are through JSON (JavaScript Object Notion) and Lottie.

JSON is software that can convert image and animation into code, which is but a fraction of the size compared to GIF, while also supporting transparent background. This can be used together with Lottie, an open-source library for IOs and Android that renders animations in real-time.

5. Explore the depth

https://dribbble.com/shots/14765075-3d-iOS-icons

https://in.pinterest.com/pin/300967187603551948/

3D is expected to be the biggest trendsetter of 2021 and is expected to exert the greatest influence in the world of UI designs. 2D icons, which have dominated the UI design industry for decades, is expected to be replaced by 3D, which offers more depth and life to products.

UI and IxD

UI Trends 2021