What are the best ways to stay current in mobile design as a consultant?

If you want a broad understanding of trends, community sites like Dribble are the best bet. You’ll see in real time what designers are putting up for critical consideration. If you are looking for an understanding of those trends then YouTube channels like Flux Academy and others will give you great breakdowns of the why and the how.

Learning by doing is a great way to stay current. Download several different apps or go to mobile websites in the same vertical (like banking or dating or beauty retail) and do a breakdown of onboarding patterns, subscription and payment flows, messaging and search, filtering and selection and inspirational content. You can see what is common and what stands out, what is easy or difficult and what looks like a new design pattern. Understanding how to leverage new design patterns from a range of different verticals is a great way to stay current and continually learn whatever you are working on.

Following industry experts it’s key in staying updated with new knowledge and different solutions to new and old problems. Personally, I find that engaging with industry experts through platforms such as podcasts not only provides valuable insights but also fosters a continuous flow of innovative ideas.

Engage with industry blogs, webinars, and conferences to keep up with trends. Network with fellow professionals and join design communities for insights and discussions. Experiment with new tools and techniques through hands-on projects. Lastly, never stop learning and adapting to evolving technologies to offer top-notch expertise. Always try be updated as possible.

There is so much information on the internet that it might come across as intimidating to engage with! However, it is vital for any designer to keep on learning. I would recommend following a couple of industry leaders (refer to tip #1) on sites like Medium, Smashing Magazine or even putting together your own compilation of people and topics on Substacks. Once you're all set up, you have to actually take the time to read the articles, watch the videos, and engage with a critical design mindset. Spend just 10 minutes a day to keep in the loop or spark an idea. It can only positively influence your workflow!

Buy wearables, create Alexa routines and skills, experiment with AR and VR, ask other UX designers what tools they are using and test out the ones you haven't tried yet, leverage AI design tools, and my personal favorite: create personal art using new technology and art, it is the best way to learn!

Um ponto importante para uma solu??o já existente é mapear os dipositivos que s?o mais utilizados, tendo uma base de quais as resolu??es e os aparelhos que o usuários mais acessam (bem como o sistema operacional).

With the proliferation of devices available on the market, and the huge range of screen sizes they offer, it's important to stress test your designs and consider the entire gamut of dimensions you'll need to accommodate. Also keep track of the design guidelines for the major operating systems, and their native controls and elements. There can be significant gaps in things as critical as minimum clickable area as well as key differences in navigation that need to be considered when designing.

There are many online sources that offer valuable insights and tips on mobile design, such as Toptal, Neil Patel, and UX Design Institute. You can also follow influential mobile designers on social media or subscribe to their newsletters.

I think attending events is a time consuming. I always find people who inspire me or their designs are inspiring I chat with them about the thought process and decision making and that works.

You can learn from the experts and network with other professionals by attending webinars and events related to mobile design. Some examples are Mobile UX London, Mobile Growth Summit, and Mobile World Congress.

Feedback and reviews can sometimes feel like black-or-white evaluations. Design is highly subjective, (except for accessibility), so rather than seeking correct vs wrong feedback, when you ask someone for their opinion, provide them a framework for evaluation. What were your intentions, goals, or audience when designing this particular interface? This constructive and granular feedback will give you new directions to explore in your work, and that's how you get "better"!

Breakness assessments with users of various classes can say to what extent your ideas have welcomed your goal and always improve!

In my experience, the most important resource for learning and staying up to date on mobile device design was reading and studying the device operating system UI Guideline such as for Apple and for Android. Secondly, I visited lots and lots of sites to test gestures, interaction patterns and forms.

Technology is constantly changing, it can be overwhelming to keep up with industry news, if instead we observe human behaviors and their changes we can better predict the future and stay up to date. The core of behavioral design lies in its ability to understand and anticipate human behavior and then use that understanding to design solutions that can lead to better decision making.