Title: Mobile First? Not So Fast.
Context: “Mobile first!” is the lazy UX designer’s rallying cry. Understanding context is hard.
Synopsis: Why should we design for mobile devices first? Because industry thought leaders tell us to? Because executive stakeholders have heard the buzzworthy refrain and bought into the sentiment? Because user’s are demanding that we do so? I’m not so sure about the last one. Now don’t get me wrong, there are many, many cases where the mobile context is the primary one for users. The problem is that there are at least as many that aren’t mobile first yet the dominant dogma dictates that you should have no say in the matter. “Damn your intuition, insight, and evidence, I said mobile first and so it shall be!” With all of the screens that we are being asked to account for, what matters less and less is the actual form factor of the devices that people use but rather the situational use cases that drive specific interactions. So yes, mobile first when conditions demand, but let us never be afraid to start elsewhere when the facts on the ground so demand.
Best Bit: “If you are a designer or product manager, it is Your Job to think about all the different ways someone might use your product and either support those behaviors or prevent them.”
via medium.com
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